Mechanical Horse
| Scammell | |
|---|---|
|
|
| Mechanical Horse | |
| Manufacturer: | Scammell Lorries Limited |
| Production period: | 1934 to 1968 |
| Vehicle type : | tractor |
| Engines: |
Gasoline engines : 1.1–2.0 liters |
| Payload : | 3 to 6 tons l. (3050 kg to 6100 kg) |
| Successor models: | Scammell Scarab,
Scammell Townsman |
Mechanical Horse (German: "mechanical horse") is the name of a three-wheeled truck made by the British manufacturer Scammell . In the history of transport in Great Britain, it is considered a milestone in the gradual replacement of horse-drawn vehicles by motorized towing vehicles. It was built from 1934 to 1968 with basically unchanged technology.
history
Until the middle of the 20th century, a large number of land transports were still carried out by carts pulled by draft animals . The railway companies also use horse-drawn vehicles for the short transport from the train station to the customer. The high operating and personnel costs (feeding the horses even when they are not needed) as well as the care and space requirements of the animals were disadvantageous . During the manual, time-consuming loading at the transshipment point , the horses were mostly not connected (decoupled) to the wagon. The associated, constant coupling and uncoupling of the animals, even for only brief maneuvers in the depots, was tedious because of the handling of the harness and required staff trained in handling horses. The contamination caused by the draft animals was also perceived as annoying and increasingly unacceptable.
The British railway company London and North Eastern Railway contacted the renowned engine manufacturer Napier & Son in the early 1930s to promote the development of a motorized towing vehicle with a trailer that could be easily and quickly uncoupled. The aim was to replace the horses, but not to use regular trucks, in order to maintain the flexibility of the tried and tested trailers when handling goods.
The subsequent draft of a three-wheel towing vehicle created by the Napier Company was acquired by Scammell Lorries Ltd in 1933 and further developed and made ready for production under the direction of engineer Oliver Danson North . In 1934 production began under the appropriate name Mechanical Horse .
technology
The vehicle was very simple and robust design: As a chassis a was Zentralrohrrahmen selected from steel, has been constructed in which a driver's cab of wood. Stretcher frames covered with canvas were used as doors in the first models . The special thing about the vehicle technology was the single front wheel that could be steered through 360 degrees and the clutch module, which was also completely rotatable. Mechanically, they won so two almost in full angle rotating pivots . This hitherto unique construction made it possible to turn the team in a smaller space than its total length. It could even be maneuvered directly in front of an obstacle (such as a house wall or wedged in a parking space).
The Mechanical Horse was offered in two versions: Optionally as a three- tonner or as a six-tonner; What was meant was the towed payload (given in British tons ). The engine consisted of an in-house Scammell gasoline engine with side valves with 1125 cm³ (for the three-ton truck ) and 2043 cm³ (for the six-ton truck ). This motor was installed offset on one side to the left of the cabin, which in certain driving positions could lead to stability and balance uncertainties in the vehicle. The top speed was 20 mph (around 30 km / h ) and was rated as sufficient, especially since it far exceeded the speed of horse-drawn vehicles.
Newly developed coupling system
The connection between the towing vehicle and the trailer was a technical innovation . This newly developed design made it possible to drive the towing vehicle backwards to the trailer until it was automatically coupled without the driver getting out:
At the rear of the towing vehicle there were two steel rails protruding beyond the vehicle. The trailer was equipped with a rotating and folding base on the underside. When the towing vehicle backed up to the trailer, the mechanical horse hit this undercarriage. The rails picked up the now buckling underframe and guided it onto the towing vehicle as it moved backwards. In the middle of this frame there were two rollers that supported this process precisely. The vehicle pulled up until the connector of the trailer (similar to an eyelet ) hit a steel hook on the vehicle and clicked securely into place. A second, lower coupling hook was used for safety: In the event of accidental, incorrect coupling, it caught the connector and prevented the trailer from slipping on the road.
The coupling process was now complete and the trailer was ready to drive. The driver only had to release the trailer's parking brake before driving off . With this coupling system, the mechanical horse is considered to be one of the simple forerunners of modern articulated trucks . This system has also been adopted by other manufacturers, including four-wheel towing vehicles, including Thornycroft , FAR , Karrier and Jensen Motors .
Areas of application
The vehicle was initially used by railway companies. It gained widespread attention and was soon acquired by a variety of other companies. Breweries in particular valued the manoeuvrable Mechanical Horse as a replacement for horse-drawn vehicles, and even breweries overseas ordered this vehicle. In India the team was used as a garbage truck. The great popularity of the vehicle meant that the company set up specialized sales outlets in Great Britain only for this type. During the global economic crisis , which continued to have an effect until the end of the 1930s , it was above all this simple truck that enabled the Scammell company to survive in economically difficult times.
The British Air Force used the vehicle on airfields, e.g. B. to transport small fuel trailers, the navy also on aircraft carriers like the HMS Ark Royal . In the cramped conditions of this type of ship, the agility of the Mechanical Horse proved to be particularly advantageous. A total of 676 Mechanical Horses were purchased by the British Forces during World War II .
The particular maneuverability made the three-wheeled vehicle popular with fire departments . In particular in the tenements with narrow courtyards that were common in the mid-20th century , they had an advantage over the larger fire engines.
After the construction of the Dartford Crossing in 1963, the first tunnel under the Thames , tow trucks were needed that could turn around in the narrow, only 21 foot (6.4 meters) wide tunnel lane with a towed vehicle in the event of an emergency . The solution was to use Scammell Scarabs , which were stationed on each side of the tunnel. The vehicle was not offered in Germany or Austria.
Scammell Scarab 1948-1967
In 1948, after 14,000 vehicles had been produced, the Mechanical Horse was replaced by the Scammell Scarab . The Scarab retained the essential elements, but had a Scammell 2,090 cm³ side valve gasoline engine in both the three-ton and the six-ton payload version. It was now also offered with a diesel engine by Perkins . The driver's cab was made of steel and made more rounded. The engine has now been mounted lower and more centrally, resulting in greater stability of the vehicle as well as more space and less noise in the driver's cab.
Scammell Townsman 1967-1968
The Scarab was replaced by Scammell Townsman in 1967 . No replacement model was created for the six-ton version, as more powerful towing vehicles from other manufacturers were available on the market. Scammell also followed the concept of the mechanical horse for the Townsman . However, the engine and transmission were installed in a small porch in front of the driver's cab. It consisted of fiberglass-reinforced plastic and was designed futuristically. In doing so, the manufacturer drew on experience that it had gained with other truck cabs made from this material. Most of them were designed by the automobile designer Michelotti . For the Townsman, Scammell used vacuum-assisted hydraulically operated brakes. However, one weakness of the previous versions remained: Since it seemed technically only possible with considerable effort to brake the individual front wheel, which could also be turned in a full circle, without risking the stability of the vehicle, only the wheels of the rear axle were braked in all versions of the Mechanical Horse . Although the same automatic hitch function was used, it now had a vacuum operated release mechanism instead of the hand lever on the earlier models. Scammell was taken over by Leyland Motors in the 1950s . Therefore, more powerful Leyland engines were installed in the Townsman . This also made it possible to increase the speed (50 mph). Despite numerous improvements over the Scarab, the Townsman was almost exclusively ordered by British Rail and Royal Mail, which is why production was discontinued at the end of 1968.
Production abroad
From 1937 a license was granted to the French company FAR , which was affiliated with the automobile manufacturer Chenard & Walcker . This French version also used the engine of the Citroën Traction Avant and was marketed under the names cheval mécanique and Poney Mécanique . The vehicle was produced there until 1970.
End of production
At the end of the 1960s, more demanding legislation to improve the safety of commercial vehicles (especially with regard to braking behavior), the technical advancement in truck construction in general and the declining customer acceptance of three-wheeled vehicles led to falling demand . Production ended in 1968 after 35 years. During this time, a total of around 30,000 towing vehicles of all versions and around 100,000 trailers were built.
Historic vehicle
According to various sources, around 30 Mechanical Horses, 60 Scarabs and 30 Townsman have been preserved as old-timers to this day. These vehicles are found by lovers of historic commercial vehicles or in museums, such as B. the Royal Air Force Museum in London, the STEAM - Museum of the Great Western Railway in Swindon (England) or the British Commercial Vehicle Museum in Leyland, Lancashire , (England).
toy
The Mechanical Horse has been recreated as a toy by many well-known model car manufacturers in Great Britain. A first version was offered by Dinky Toys as early as 1934 . The company Lesney Products & Co. Ltd., known for the production of Matchbox -Modellautos had 1955-1961 the Scarab in the toy program. The model, which at the time only cost a few shillings , is now valued at up to 125 US dollars in collector's catalogs in a very well-preserved version . With the end of the production of the Mechanical Horse , the production of corresponding model cars also ended.
In the 90s, the British manufacturer Corgi Toys launched a model car series of historic commercial vehicles under the name Trackside , including various versions of the Mechanical Horse . Based on these models, collectors' clubs have formed in England that reproduce historical scenes of the model in dioramas .
The mechanical horse is currently being revitalized in the wooden toys from the Thomas Wooden Railways brand, which the Japanese manufacturer Tomy Co. Ltd has been offering since 2008 . The Mechanical Horse is represented as a vehicle called Madge with its own human traits. This wooden train, intended for preschool children, is based on the stories marketed in Germany under the name Thomas, the little locomotive , which are also distributed in television programs and as a movie in the course of sales promotions .
See also
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b Bill Aldrigde: Mechanical Horses. Crecy Publishing, Manchester (UK), 2000, ISBN 1-903016-05-3 .
- ↑ Maniabilité Maxima - Internet gallery of a Canadian three-wheeled vehicle importer. Retrieved October 9, 2012.
- ^ A b G. Nick Georgano: Scammell the load movers from Watford . Roundoak Publications, Somerset (1997), ISBN 1-871565-26-X .
- ↑ Scarab Cuopling ( Memento of the original from February 27, 2012 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. - Mechanical Horse Club website . Retrieved October 14, 2012.
- ↑ pic52 picture gallery - Image 52 from the internet gallery of a Canadian three-wheeled vehicle importer. Retrieved October 9, 2012.
- ↑ pic 45 picture gallery - Image 45 from the internet gallery of a Canadian three-wheeler importer. Retrieved October 9, 2012.
- ^ Scammell Automatic Coupling Gear - Website of the Mechanical Horse Club. Retrieved October 14, 2012.
- ↑ Other Mechanical Horses ( Memento of the original from June 22, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. - Mechanical Horse Club website . Retrieved May 31, 2013.
- ↑ Scammell Register ( Memento of the original from September 21, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. (PDF; 1 MB) - Scarab Internet gallery of the Scammell Register of November 20, 2011. Accessed October 9, 2012.
- ↑ Refuse Transport Truck used by Bombay Municipal Corp. - Picture 16 Internet gallery of a Canadian three-wheel vehicle importer. Retrieved October 9, 2012.
- ^ Bart H. Vanderveen: Observer's Fighting Vehicles Directory of World War II . 2nd revised edition. Frederick Warne and Company, London / New York 1972, ISBN 0-7232-1469-7 , pp. 178 and 193.
- ^ Archivist - Archive page of the Mechanical Horse Club from April 28, 2011. Retrieved October 13, 2012.
- ↑ The Scammell Register - Internet presence of the Scammell Register from November 11, 2011. Accessed October 8, 2012.
- ^ A b Nick Larkin: Classic and Vintage Commercials - Scammell. Kelsey Publications, Peterborough, Kent (UK) 2002, ISBN 1-873098-59-6 .
- ^ Armstrong, Aldridge, Boyes, Mustoe, Storey: Companion to British Road Haulage History . NMSI Trading Science Museum, Kensington (UK) 2003, ISBN 1-900747-46-4 .
- ↑ The Mechanical Horse in Miniature ( Memento of the original from October 12, 2012 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. - Mechanical Horse Club website of April 28, 2011. Accessed October 14, 2012.
- ^ Charlie Mack: Matchbox Regular Wheels . Schiffer Publishing, Atglen (USA), 2001, ISBN 0-7643-1198-0 .
- ↑ Scammell Mechanical horse ( Memento of the original from September 21, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. - Search result of the website of the model car manufacturer. Retrieved October 14, 2012.
- ↑ Collectors Diecast Models ( Memento of the original from March 4, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. - Mechanical Horse Club website of April 28, 2011. Accessed October 14, 2012.
- ↑ Tomy product madge - Internet presence of the manufacturer. Retrieved October 14, 2012.
- ↑ Cool Truckings - Thomas and Friends Season 11. Uploaded to YouTube on October 9, 2010.
Web links
- The Mechanical Horse Club of Great Britain - private association for the restoration and preservation of historic commercial vehicles
- Scammell Scarab at 3wheelers.com
- The Mechanical Horse Pool - small collection of photos of the Mechanical Horse
- Short film about a restored mechanical horse
- Short film about a presentation of historic commercial vehicles in Essex (UK)