Page:Popular Science Monthly Volume 88.djvu/615

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��Popular Science Monthly A Disappearing Automobile Top

N automobile top that drops out of

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��sight behind the driver and pas- sengers when not in use is the ingenious idea that a Colorado man proposes for the automobile manufac- turer who desires in his product the utmost in sim- plicity of appearance. An- other advantage of this top is the decrease in wind re- sistance of the car.

i\o part of the top pro- trudes from the car when it is down. The top is circu- lar, being pivoted at either side. The pressure of small levers is sufficient for rais- ing and lowering it with little difficulty. I'or touring car bodies two tops are nec- essary, one of which drops into a depression behind the driver's seat, the other dis- appearing into a similar pocket behind the rear seat.

An Emergency Tire Made Simply of Rope

WHEN a blowout occurs on the road and no spare tube or shoe is on the car and the blown tube or cas- ing is beyond further repair, the usual method of procedure is to rmi to the nearest garage on the rim. In every case this means positive destruction of the rim, if the casing is removed, and the serious damage of the rim or the destruction of the shoe, if it is left on

��the rim in an entirely deflated condition. The inconvenience caused by the acci- dent may be eliminated to a great ex- tent by following the tactics of a driver who, instead of running in on the bare rim, purchased some rope from a nearby

����A rope will get you home safely when you have a blowout, if you follow directions given above

��An attractive runabout top which drops entirely out of sight, and also reduces the wind resist- ance to a very appreciable degree

��farmer and wound it tightly around the rim, felloe and spokes, as shown in the accompanying illustration. The first few turns of rope were wound circum- ferentially; the remainder was w-ound crosswise, so that holding places were obtained at four or five spokes. Suf- ficient rope was used to make the thick- ness of the novel tire equal to that of the rubber casing.

If properly wound, the rope-tire will not make rid- ing very uncomfortable ; in any event it is better than destroying a rim.

Many drivers, instead of using a covering of rope or other material, have been successful in saving the rim by stuffing the blown-out outer casing. In a few instances, grass ^or straw has served the pur- pose well, and in others old rags or other soft ma- terial, such as paper.

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