The evening Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1918-1920, 1919-08-12
WATCH YOUR BRAKES. DRIVERS
SHOULD LEARN TO CARE FOR THEM
Oh In Wrong Places and Poor Adjustment May Result
Observation-Disclosures Valuable Hints
On Applying

Good brakes are about the best
form of life insurance the motor car
driver can have. In fact they arc
about the most important part of the
automobile. A pretty poor sort of a
motor will run the car, but to stop 1t
requires the best there IS to be had;
pretty good" will not do IN an en-
Urgency. You need motor to get
there, but without good brakes you
may get too far.
There is nothing the matter with
the brakes on most cars when they
come from the factory. There viii
be little the matter with them at any
time il they are given the proper
care; if oil is put on where it is
needed, and kept off where it is not
needed, and if worn parts are renew
ed in time to prevent an accident.
The brakes will hold the car as long
as they are in condition; they arc
sufficient for all needs so long as
they are in order. 1t is the drivers
business to see that they are in con-
dition before going out, even if he
cannot take time to look after the
motor. 1t may be matter of life
and death before the garage is reach
ed again.
Every car has two sets of brakes,
operating Independently of each
other, and either one should be in
shape to hold the car at a standstill,
or, in chauffer phrasing, slide the
heels" The average owner is care
less about the brakes.
- Use Both Brake Sets.
Drivers should learn to use first
the foot and then the emergency
brake on long hills. This alteration
allows each in turn to cool off, for
where there is so much friction heat
cannot be avoided, and only by. al
terating the brakes is there safety
from burned out Innings. Also the
driver should learn how use the
motor as a brake. By engaging a
lower gear and cutting off the igni-
ton the engine under compression
will retard the speed sufficiently so
that moderate use of the foot brake
will be enough for safety. Likewise
safety calls for slow speed in de-
scending a long hill, as less heat is
developed, or at least it is developed
more slowly.
Brake Innings nowadays do not
actually burn out, being made of an
asbestos composition. But they char
and lose FRACTIONAL qualities and the
fabric is likely to crumble away
from the wire woven within it.
Another serious cause of brake
failure is oil. AS a rule this comes
from the differential leaking through
the axle housing to the hub and
thence overlooking to the brake
drums. This may be the result of
enthusiasm in fabrication, which
prompts a too liberal quantity in the
differential. Then when the car
turns off the crown of the road the
oil overfows the casing and the only
outlet is the axle housing. And some
times the play of parts acts ike
pump and sends the oil out along the
axle. The remedy lies in using less
oil, and if that does not remedy it
put felt washer in the axle housing.
This consists of a long, thin strip
of hard felt wound around the shaft
Wind it, beginning at the wheel end,
in direction opposite to the forward
motion of the shaft. 1t should be
fastened to the shaft with shellac
and bound with cord in several places
1t need not cover more than six or
eight inches of the shaft.
Good Roads Help Trucks
The writer recently rode in de-
monstrating truck in a western city