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Aviation History
1934
1934 - 0063.PDF
FLIGHT, JANUARY 18, 1934 THE BRISTOL TRACTOR N unusually interesting and efficient little tractorwas demonstrated at Heston recently. The machine, which is all-British, is manufactured byBristol Tractors, Ltd., of Quality Court, Chancery Lane, W.C.2, and is being marketed at £175. Comparedwith the average tractor, the Bristol is very small; in fact, the model demonstrated at Heston, i.e., the standardmodel, is only 35£ in. wide and 6i ft. long. For special requirements the width of the tractor may be increasedto 60 in. overall. The weight is just over a ton. It is claimed that the Bristol is the only tractor in the worldwith front sprocket drive, and, as the centre of gravity is well in front of the mid-position of the track, theground holding properties are quite remarkable. Another very interesting feature is the " stretch proof " trackpatented by Roadless Traction, Ltd., the joints of which consist of hard moulded rubber blocks, which hold theplates of the track apart instead of together as do the joints in tracks of conventional design. The driving powerrequired is much less than that required in the average tractor. Nowhere in the track is there any contact ofmetal, and consequently an unusually long period of service is obtained. The National Physical Laboratory has testedthe track for the equivalent of 38,000 miles at a speed of 30 m.p.h. (about ten times the ordinary operating speedof the vehicle), and reported that at the end of the tests there were no signs of wear or disintegration. A twelvemonths' guarantee is given for the track. The engine fitted is a specially designed air-cooled " V "with a rated h.p. of 9.8, developing 18 h.p. at 1,800 r.p.m. Three forward speeds and a reverse are provided, and thedraw-bar pull in first gear at 1 to 1.8 m.p.h. is about 2,100 lb. For stationary work a belt pulley may be fittedas an additional item of equipment. A " joystick " type control is used for steering, and a decelerator button fittedto the control handle gives the vehicle exceptional- powers of manoeuvre. It will turn in its own length. • Themachine seems particularly well suited for aerodrome work. . It will operate over the tightest tilth without " packing,"as the load is less than 4£ lb. per sq. in., but what should be of particular interest to aerodrome operators is the easewith which it handles heavy aircraft. At Heston the big Ford 5 A.T. belonging to B.A.N.C.O. was used in a con-vincing demonstration of the hauling power of the tractor. We understand that at a recent demonstration of variouskinds of tractors at Selbourne before several celebrities in the agricultural world the Bristol outclassed all theother tractors present by pulling a 2,100 lb. load. Petrol from coal IN the issue of FLIGHT for July 27 of the year 1933there was an article under the same heading as above by E. Nugent Head. The following is an extract from it:" The annual petrol consumption of the Royal Air Force is about 6,000,000 gallons per annum, which means thatBritain's air arm could be made self-sufficient as regards fuel by the carbonisation of 300,000 tons of coal a year,which figure has already been passed, and quite a small amount compared with the 40,000,000 tons that are burneddomestically in this country annually! If only 50 per cent, of these millions of tons were carbonised annuallyand the resultant oil hydrogenated, our petrol import would drop by 400,000,000 gallons, and many thousandsof men at present unemployed would find work." It would now appear that this little prophetic vision is inthe process of becoming fact. The Royal Air Force has been supplied with petrol obtained from coal during thepast year, and a whole squadron has been flying on it. The production of this fuel is in the hands of Low Tem-perature Carbonisation, who are considering the Forest of Dean and the Lancashire coalfields for the erection of twonew plants to use 300,000 tons of coal. Already 1,000,000 tons of coal have been carbonised and 100,000 tons of oiland petrol made from it. The whole output of the com- pany has already been sold out for the New Year. Asmentioned in the quoted paragraph above, this may give employment to thousands of miners, and do something torevive an industry which, for some time, has looked like being buried by the latest inventions of modern chemistry. Autogiros for Army use THE possibilities of the " Autogiro " for various kinds of military and naval work have for some time past been carefully watched by the authorities of the fighting Ser- vices, and the performance of the direct-control type,known as C.30, made a deep impression on the said authorities. Last year it was decided to procure a numberof these machines and make practical tests with them in Army manoeuvres. However, the C.30 was still in theexperimental stage, and the plan had to be modified. Ultimately two C.19 " Autogiros " were ordered and wereused on manoeuvres. The manoeuvres last year were on a small scale, and two " Autogiros " did not afford suffi-cient data for the drawing of definite conclusions. The experiment was, however, sufficiently promising to justifyfurther tests on a larger scale. The Air Ministry has accordingly decided to order a number of C.19 " Auto-giros " for use with the Army during 1934. No contract has yet been placed, and the precise number to be orderedcannot be stated. It is most probable that one " Auto- giro " will be supplied to each of the five Army Co-opera-tion squadrons in this country for use in reconnaissance and communications. Another will probably be suppliedto the School of Army Co-operation at Old Sarum, to be placed at the disposal of the Royal Artillery during themanoeuvres for artillery observation work. Manoeuvres will, of course, not show whether the " Autogiro " ismore or less vulnerable to shell fire and small arms fire, but they will undoubtedly teach useful lessons as to thecomparative usefulness of the " Autogiro " and the aero- plane for the various tasks of reconnaissance, artilleryobservation, and communications. For communications in one's own lines it seems fairly certain that the " Auto-giro " should be able to play a very useful part, and like- wise for reconnaissance of the ground before a battle isjoined. Of its usefulness for other work we shall be better able to form an opinion after the experiments. It is cer-tainly a very good thing that such experiments should be undertaken. 63
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