STRAUS
PROTECTED TIRE.
Every one actively interested in the subject of tires will readily admit that the puncture proof tire is the tire of the future. Inventors are aiming to that end, and it is unfortunately true that the aim of most of them, while high, has not been straight or true. The result has been a confusion of so-called puncture proof tires, the non-utility and impracticability of which are observable at a glance. Steel, iron, wood, cork and chemical compounds have all been brought into use, and in such ludicrous shapes as to make the average puncture proof tire an object of deserved ridicule. In common with other interested people, the inventor of the Straus protected tire has for years sought the end in view—a practical puncture proof tire. He was one of the very first to engage in the tire trade, and since the year 1890 has been continuously and prominently identified with the business in expert capacities as inventor, manufacturer and seller. His extensive knowledge has been concentrated in the Straus protection tire. It is composed entirely of rubber and fabric, the same as all of the practical tires now in universal use. As the single tube tire is now the leading tire in use in this country, and as for easy riding and speed it cannot be excelled, the [Straus protected tire] is made in the single tube form. It can be produced, however, in double and detachable forms. It is called a “protected tire” because the tire proper is protected by a shoe, which is made with six plies of fabric and which surrounds the tire proper loosely when fully inflated. This protector is not a part of the tire proper, but a fixed attachment thereto, affording a surface over which the tire rides. The tire proper is a highly resilient single tube tire, actually a racing tire, which gives the tire its life. The cover or protector does not in any way subtract from its resiliency for the reason that the outer cover does not come in contact with it any more than the ground does with any tire, the cover being simply the road over which the tire proper travels. In fact, the “[Straus protected tire]” carries its own road, so to speak. In other words, the protector acts the same as if it were laid on the ground and the tire proper passed over it. We have found that the tire does not slip on wet pavements or wet asphalt, and that it prevents cutting on the rim. In coasting tests the tire complete has coasted as far as the same tire with the cover removed, sufficiently proving that the protector does not take away any of the life of the tire proper. It is proof against nails, thorns, pins, glass and all other of the “ills” which a tire encounters on the road in everyday use, and the result is obtained without a resort to freakdom or without affecting the life and practical utility of the tire. In appearance the tire is just the same as any other single tube tire, and is applied to the rim in exactly the same way. In case of puncture remove the protector, the protector being only cemented to the tire with rubber solution and easily removed. It is very necessary that the space between the tire proper and the protector is not too great, else the tire will drag. It should be just loose enough to be felt when the tire is fully inflated, and no more. The weight of a pair of the regulation 1⅝ in. tires is about 4½ pounds.
The Buckeye tire has a square base and is held to the [rim] by steel toothed washers which are held in place by the heads of the spoke nipples, and the teeth of these washers prevent creeping of the tire, making cementing unnecessary, and there is no possibility of the tire ever creeping and cutting the valve stem off. The outer cover is open at its base and laced all around in sections, so that when punctured only one section needs to be unlaced. The lacing holes through the base and the side screws which enditch the cord are vulcanized in a mould. The inner air tube is endless and is entirely surrounded by the outer cover, thus giving an even pressure of air all around, which sometimes butt ended tubes do not.
In producing a tire that has all the qualities demanded by experienced riders, namely, speed, resilience, strength and durability, the manufacturers of the Kangaroo, the National India Rubber Company, have made a radical departure in the construction of their tire. The Kangaroo tire is made to conform to the prevailing weight in tires, but in doing so it has been necessary to use more rubber, owing to the fact that only about one-half the quantity of thread is used.
THE KANGAROO.
One of the principal objects sought in designing the [Kangaroo tire] was to reduce to the lowest possible point consistent with strength the inelastic material (thread or fabric) employed, and to this end a special yarn or thread of Sea Island cotton of a tensile strength of seven and one-quarter pounds each was obtained. To secure greater elasticity in the fabric continuous threads, coated with rubber, are wound spirally from one end of the tire to the other, doing away with the friction of thread upon thread and stiffness to the ordinary fabric. The inner tube is placed on the mandrel of the tire machine, and the threads are wound spirally around it at an angle of 45 degrees, after first being immersed in a solution of rubber. An intermediate inner tube is then put on, and a second layer of thread wound about it at the same angle, but in an opposite direction, making an angle of 90 degrees between the two layers. It will be readily seen that only one-half as much thread is used as is contained in two-ply of woven fabric, and yet the peculiar construction gives, among other advantages, nearly twice the strength of any other make of tire.