Sunday, July 26, 2026

Sidecar Sunday



This could be a "we used to make things here..." Hannigan started in Oakville Ontario but  moved to Kentucky some decades ago..


I never did understand the concept of fringe...

 



Not for legal trade...


No manufacturers name, unfortunately.

Saturday, July 25, 2026

Copper firebox

Copper through the ages, Copper Development Association, 13th printing, 1956

 This locomotive, the William Shakespeare, was featured in a book published by the (British) Copper Development Association as an example of modern use of copper in transport. The firebox, 10ft long, 7 ft 1 inch wide and 7 ft high was made of 5/8 inch copper sheet, with the crown sheet 1" thick. Presumably calculations determined that the crown sheet would withstand the boiler pressure of 250 lbs per inch, but...

 

Thursday, July 23, 2026

Gas or electricity?


  The idea of a pipeline supplying gas to houses for heat, cooking and light was revolutionary in the late 19th century but by the turn of the century, electricity was becoming practical enough to threaten the gases dominance. This somewhat awkward cartoon tries to illustrate that point.
 I've rented apartments that still had the capped-off gas pipe that used to be the light for the room. They generally still had the 80 plus year old flowery wallpaper. Oh, they also generally had one outlet in the room because who could need more than an electric clock or bedside light in a bedroom?

Mototri Contal

This thing dates to about 1905. Just the thing to take your mother-in-law for a ride. 
Someone decided one of these tricycles would make a good machine to take part in the 1907 Paris to Peking motor race. The machine made it into the Gobi Desert before it was abandoned.


Parilla


 Seen at The CVMG meet in June. So beautiful...

1922 Austin 7


 Maybe it's just me, but doesn't the driver look a bit sheepish slouching in this undersized car?  When the simple little Austin 7 was unveiled in July 1922, it was priced at just £165, when an Austin 20 was between £600 and £700. It was even cheaper than a model T. The average British worker earned around £5 per week so car ownership became a lot more accessible. The body bolted to a simple frame so it could be a 4 seater, a coupe or even a race car. It sold well and was built under license by BMW and also Nissan in Japan. It showed up in the US as the American Bantam.

A year after it was released with sales doing well, Sir Herbert Austin started an official competition department to develop  the car and to promote the cars reliability and performance. It became a popular racing car, winning races and setting records through the rest of the decade. The car went out of production in WW2 when the factory was converted to defence work.

Wednesday, July 22, 2026

Lister Diesel

 I've run across Lister wrenches occasionally but never an actual engine. This beauty, about 4 feet tall, was originally used to haul anchor on a freighter on the Great Lakes. Wish I knew more about it!