Horseless Vehicles
Automobiles & Motorcycles
by
Gardner D Hiscox
"...operated by steam, hydro-carbon, electric and pneumatic motors. A practical treatise for automobilists, manufacturers, capitalists, investors and everyone interested in the development, use and care of the automobile including a special chapter on how to build an electric cab, with detail drawings."
Heavy stuff! for 1900!
This is a gem. An absolute gem, and you'll be hard pressed to find a copy on the used book market. Here, you can have a quality reprint at a fraction of the price I paid for the original. s
This big, heavily illustrated volume covers a wide range of
early auto history and technology. Chapters include: introduction, history,
steam automobile appliances, specialties in automobile construction, 
steam propelled vehicles and automobile carriages, horseless vehicles with
explosive motors, electric ignition devices, atomizing carburetors, operating
devices and speed gears, motive power and running gear, automobile bicycles
and tricycle, gasoline motor carriages and vehicles, electric motive power
for vehicles, how to build an electric cab, general management of motor vehicles
of all kinds, compressed air power for vehicles, miscellaneous, and lists
of patents and manufacturers.
You get drawings and photos of early steam carriages, burners,
boilers, engines, marine engines, carriages, delivery trucks, Phaetons, Broughams,
some of the machine tools to build autos, and much more. 
The four page list of manufacturers is interesting in itself. Duryea, of course, was producing autos in Peoria, but so was the Peoria Rubber Mfg Co. Haynes-Apperson (remember the JackRabbit?) was operating in Kokomo. Marsh Motor Carriage was building in Brockton, MA. And hundreds more.
But
again, the best part is almost 500 pages of history and illustrations. Get
a copy and build a half scale model of a Steam Dos-A-Dos. You can drive it
in the annual "Weird Machinist's Day Parade" next June 31st. (
Dave Gingery will be Grand Marshall.)
The electric cab drawings occupy only one page, and the instructions are obviously not very detailed. But it's a strange looking vehicle that would get you a lot of attention when you roll down the street. Every dog in town would want to lift his leg on the wheel! (probably a lot of weird machinists as well...)
Get a copy of this! It's good. No doubt about it. About 488 pages with advertising. 5 1/2 x 8 1/2 softcover
No. 22342 ... $24.95
Short Supply - Will not be reprinted
 | ||
 | | |
