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Show TflociTiir m JFJURED Intensive Study ' of Faults Presented Usually Shows Way Out. Buying of Vehicles of Unknown Un-known Quality Is to Be Avoided. If the truck industry were not cluttered clut-tered up with so many cheap vehicles that in some manner get to the operator who can least afford to run them, there would not be the need for the elaborate shops that many of these owners have. The error is made in the beginning in buying trucks of unknown quality, but having invested in such trucks that give trouble, the next best thing is to learn how to keep them running avoid unnecessary delays in the shop. One of the greatest time wasters is improper diagnosing of trouble, resulting result-ing in a dismantling of too much of any one unit and a general fussing around until the faulty part is found. To avoid this calls for a good foreman or a well-informed driver if there is a small shop without a foreman and the crew does the work. Take, for example, exam-ple, gear or bearing trouble in the transmission or the axle. Often very often, in fact the driver will say that it is transmission trouble, because the grinding or pounding is right under his feet. As a matter of fact, a crushed pinion bearing, a broken pinion or ring gear or other axle derangements of this character may sound so close to the front compartment as to be diagnosed as transmission trouble. The transmission trans-mission case cover is removed and everything ev-erything is found O. K. ; then the axle is inspected. Time lost may be a half hour or more. The good mechanic or foreman or driver should so educate himself on the particular truck as to be able to tell exactly where the trouble trou-ble is and just about what is causing it. This education cannot be had in a day, which shows the vital importance of getting competent help to operate and care for the trucks. Analyzes Trouble. One fleet owner who used twelve trucks of one make discovered that all of the trucks gave persistent clutch trouble. This operator did not wait until all the trucks came in a second time, but studied the design of the clutch to determine why there was so much trouble. As a result he devised a little addition to the clutch in the form of a stronger part which eliminated eliminat-ed all the trouble. This was cheaper than keeping on repairing the old parts or replacing them only to have the new parts break in service. Difficult solutions of troubles are encountered en-countered when the trucks are of a make no longer manufactured or of foreign for-eign make or a make that has no service ser-vice station within a reasonable distance dis-tance of the shop. These things must be taken into consideration while the trucks are running, for it must be expected ex-pected that some time or other they will come in for repairs. If you have no shop facilities for making a certain part or getting it quickly, you might lose a whole week's profit, and then some. It also should be a lesson to many oporators to avoid cheaply made trucks; trucks made by fly-by-night concerns; con-cerns; trucks with no national distribution, distri-bution, and hence no service near at hand; trucks that are changed so often in design that the maker hasn't factory room to make spare parts for the older models. Prepare for Emergency. The truck operator must anticipate trouble. The time to learn how to remove re-move a power plant, quickly is not after the truck comes in for repairs, but long before the actual work is necessary. An owner operating two or three trucks may not have need for removing the engine more than once a year; but he should have the necessary equipment in the shop, just the same, or, if not, he must be sure that the service station or a near-by repair shop can properly take care of him. This means it must have the up-to-date equipment to got the engine out quickly. It means know-inig know-inig tho assembly of that particular truck. Certain troubles may come in classes of vehicles, such as coal trucks or sand conveyors or other vehicles, which may not happen to any other trucks, and therefore a precedent is lacking. One coal company found that the coal dust interfered with the proper flow of fuel from a rear pressure tank. The pump became clogged regularly. Many other fuel feed troubles were encountered, and so much of it, in fact, that the whole system was changed from pressure pres-sure to gravity, using a vacuum tank with the tank properly protected. The driver as well as the shopmen and the owner must study the trucks and work out problems of this sort. In many cases tho truck maker is in a position to give valuable help, or, if not, the editors of truck trade journals. jour-nals. This department will gladly take care of any requests local operators may make and help in the solution of the more difficult problems. |