Riding gear

“ The question of gearing is complicated by the fact that the frame of the car oscillates vertically with respect to the axles. Spur-wheels, worm-gear, friction gear, belts, multiple-band gear, and chain-gear are or have been used. ”

“ For medium weight habits for spring and fall use, there is more freedom of choice. The rider can always select something becoming in checks, medium weight gray and brown cloths, light whip-cords, and invisible stripes. The great point is to be sure that the material selected is “tailor’s cloth,” for no other cloth will stand the hard wear of riding. ”

“ The higher gears are useful for normal conditions or for riding with the wind blowing on the rider's back or down slopes when the gradient is not steep enough to let the machine run down quickly by its own weight. ”

“ This is a proper place to explain gear ratio or “gear,” which is a phrase not generally well understood, although in constant use; for instance, women have been known to ask dealers for a wheel with low gear, because they liked to be seated near the ground. The term gear, which is an adaptation from the old high wheel, expresses the ratio of forward travel of the bicycle for each pedal revolution, and yet this has nothing to do with either the height of the rider or the length of his leg, or the length of the crank. ”

“ How much of this bending or this swaying of the body may sometimes be required is exhibited by the photograph of the Italian cavalry officer who rides down the face of a cliff, or by that of the rider who makes a wheel, or pirouette volte, at a rapid pace. From this seat the soldier may rise high enough to give force to the blow of his sabre; the hunter may send his feet home in the irons without lengthening the leathers, and every horseman will have the greatest security in the saddle that his skill in riding makes possible. ”

“ Along the road a rider is proceeding leisurely, a large wooden pannier jutting out from either side of his saddle. This bulky gear, that lends such a swollen appearance to the advancing combination of man and horse, denotes a travelling merchant of humble status. ”

“ Chain and sprocket act on each other much as the teeth of gears act, and in effect they are a peculiar form of gears, for if you can imagine one of a pair of gear wheels flexible and flattened out like a chain, and thus running, it is evident that this action is really that of gearing. ”

“ The imported gear cases are clumsy and heavy, and, being made mostly of metal, are apt to be noisy. The 1898 gear cases of American make are made of a combination of rubber, leather and metal, and are light, noiseless and graceful, and most of the leading makes of the chain cycles for the coming season are built with sufficient clearance to take a gear case. ”

“ Under the latter conditions, viz., with the higher gears in use, the rider's feet revolve the crank axle slower, but the ratio of gearing being about one to two and a half turns of the road wheel on normal or middle, and three to three and a half turns of the road wheel on top gear, the machine moves faster with approximately the same exertion; or to explain it another way, the rider has no need with a high gear in use to exhaust himself with rapid pedalling as he would do if he wished to ride fast with a normal single gear. ”

“ In the early days of gearing, few riders could be115 more easily offended than by intimating that they wanted a low-geared machine, say fifty to fifty-two; no less than sixty or seventy would satisfy their cravings for great speed, and in fact the writer has been asked seriously, “Why not gear her up to about a hundred?” But now that the idol of so many riders has been shattered, they will too complacently accept the word of the maker as to what they need, and hence there is a real substantial reason for investigating this matter. ”

“ When the end of the ride is reached, the man quickly dismounts and is at his companion’s side to assist her, she, in the meantime, assisting herself as much as possible. This is done—that is, dismounting in the most approved style—by riding slowly, and when the left pedal is on the rise, the weight of the body is thrown on it, the right foot is crossed over the frame of the machine, and, with an assisting hand, the rider easily steps to the ground. ”

“ One coat of priming and one of paint finishes the box, and with the name of the merchant on the front and rear, the whole makes a neat advertising feature. Regarding the selection of a bicycle, since great speed is not essential, the lower the gearing is, the easier it will be to propel the load, and for ordinary work, where only small grades are covered, a gear of about 65 will be found efficient. ”

“ For those who have not cultivated the art of quick pedalling the useful range of gear under favourable conditions may be extended to say 90 in. or 100 in. The gear-ratio of a two-speed gear is the ratio of the high to the low gear. The most suitable gear-ratio for any rider will depend upon his personal physique and the nature of the country in which he rides. For a middle-aged rider of average physique a gear-ratio of 125 : 100 is suitable, for those of weaker physique the gear-ratio may with advantage be greater, say 137·5 : 100 ”

“ Fig. 10 is a horse for holding carriage gears during the process of painting and finishing. Gear horses can't all be revolving ones, and this one is strong and handy to work around. Make the legs of 3×1 1/2 pine or ash and the bed piece, to which the iron standards are bolted, of ash 3×3 inches. ”

“ The driving power being transmitted from front sprocket or gear by shaft tube to rear gear or sprocket, all being suitably secured as above stated to frame upon rear fork rotatably supported by ball bearings connected to the frame and forks.
“This does precisely what has always been accounted to be out of the question and confutes both theoretical and practical mechanics. It is a gear that turns the corner by means of square cut teeth that mesh directly instead of by means of bevel teeth, and we call it a face gear. ”

“ At first sight, it might appear that sand and mud might create a disturbance by edging themselves into these small gears, but the makers maintain that a gear case is unnecessary, because the gears practically clean themselves, in consequence of each gear wheel running in direction opposite to that of its neighbor. ”

“ Self-reversing gear, with one belt, two fast and one loose pulleys. The large spur wheel is driven from the bevil gear, and carries the weighted lever past the vertical position by a stop on the face-plate or disc, when it falls over and reverses the belt fork. ”

“ When first leaving port, studding-sail gear is to be rove, all the running rigging to be examined, that which is unfit for use to be got down, and new rigging rove in its place; then the standing rigging is to be overhauled, replaced, and repaired, in a thousand different ways; and wherever any of the numberless ropes or the yards are chafing or wearing upon it, there “chafing gear,” as it is called, must be put on. This chafing gear consists of worming, parcelling, roundings, battens, and service of all kinds—both rope-yarns, spun-yarn, marline, and seizing-stuffs. ”

“ Within a circular rampart, formed out of various articles of household gear,—three or four antique-looking spinning-wheels, a pair of churns, a few clumsy chairs, a large chest, together with a couple of small heavy waggons not yet placed upon the wheels,—were a few as lively recruits as any land desirous of population could wish to welcome. ”

“ A gear is primarily a toothed wheel; gearing is a train of toothed wheels for transmitting motions; there are two chief sorts of toothed gearing, viz., spur gearing and bevel gearing.
A spur wheel has teeth around the edge pointing to the center; commencing at the center, a spur wheel may be said to consist of a hole, square, octagonal or round, for its axle or shaft; a hub; the web, body or arms; a rim, and the teeth; see fig. 263.
A spur wheel has teeth on its circumference which run parallel to its shaft; wheels as shown in fig. ”

“ The horse is entirely covered with hair; the bicycle is not entirely covered with hair, except the '89 model they are using in Idaho.
In riding a horse the performer finds that the pedals in which he puts his feet will not allow of a good circular stroke. He will observe, however, that there is a saddle in which--especially while the horse is trotting--he is expected to seat himself from time to time. But it is simpler to ride standing up, with the feet in the pedals. ”

“ That gear develops drawbacks in turn, provoking fresh complaint, and after some years of suffering under it, some maker brings out a chain wheel, which is hailed with delight, and widely written up as the novelty of the year. One by one makers follow suit, until the gear is again quite displaced; improvement has then gone around and has come back upon its own path, the disadvantages of the old form having been found by trial to be less than those of the newer. ”

“ By gripping the endless rope between grip wheels (see 1208) the small wheel can be thrown into gear to grip the rope by a lever, cam or screw.
c. Differential gear may be driven from a shaft by belts or gearing. See Sections 84 and 3.
d. Screw gear. Ditto.
e. Rack gear. Ditto.
f. Worm and wheel gear. Ditto.
g. Friction gear is usually driven as No. 1211.
1211. Where the barrel shaft has a slight horizontal movement, so that, by the lever, it can be forced into gear with the friction pinion to raise the load, or into the brake block to sustain the load or lower it. ”

“ After the pupil has acquired a good seat at the various paces and over small fences, her further education in the guidance and control of her mount might be entrusted to a competent horseman, preferably to a good cross-country rider, and not, as is frequently the case, to an ex-military riding-master, who, having been taught that a cavalryman’s right hand has to be occupied with a sword or lance, considers that ladies should also adopt the one-handed system of riding! ”

“ His legs move only in the tread of the wheel, and his hands rest quietly on the ends of the cross-bar of his machine. The rope-walker keeps every muscle tense, and every limb in motion or ready to move. No wonder, when a tourist on his bicycle spins for the first time through a village here, or among the nomads of Asia, he is followed by a gaping crowd, till his machine carries him out of their sight. ”

“ Double wedge gear.
1495. Governor gear. The rope attached to the cage drives a governor acting on a brake or catch which is thrown into action if the cage gains excessive speed, used in Attwood Beaver’s Patent; American Elevator Co., &c.
1496. Rack and pawl gear.
1497. Cross grip lever gear.
1498. Safety hook to prevent accident from overwinding; the projecting horns A A strike the edges of the plate B, and throw the shackle C at top out of gear.
For hoist doors the best appliance is an ordinary spring lock opened only by a key, the doors being provided with springs to close them. ”

“ Our baggage, which we had to carry with us on horseback, would have excited the curiosity and merriment of an English railway guard or porter. It was composed of three pairs of enormous leather saddle-bags, a 'mafrash,' or small leather portmanteau, constructed so as to be conveniently carried behind the saddle, a small leather valise, three pairs of holsters, besides blankets, waterproofs, and overcoats. ”

“ A horse that is used to it thinks nothing of drawing a cart over a fallen trunk a couple of feet in diameter, going at it obliquely, one wheel at a time. But as tall hats, and black coats, and crinolines, and bonnets are about as necessary on a bush journey as an Armstrong gun or a pair of skates, you will probably dispense with any such useless incumbrance, and take only a change of clothes in a valise on the pommel of your saddle or behind it, or a mackintosh-covered bundle of eight or nine pounds weight strapped neatly to the off side of your side-saddle. ”

“ You will surely find a bicycle to suit your needs among the 44 styles, colors and sizes of the famous Ranger line. There is a “Mead” bicycle to suit the taste of every rider—a wide variety of colors, sizes and many options as to style in equipment. They are all pictured in actual colors in the big new Ranger catalog which we want to send you now. Do not make a selection until you have written for and received a copy of this new Ranger Catalog. ”

“ Bike parties that make explorations lasting for days, or even for weeks, are now not unusual, and if they travel prepared to make camp wherever night overtakes them, the more healthful the sport and the more novel and independent the tour. You should know how to carry the necessary baggage on your wheel. It is customary in ordinary wheeling to strip a machine of every ounce of weight not necessary. Many riders travel without even a tool bag, pump or wrench. The additional weight of a few tools cannot be sufficient to make much difference to a rider. ”

“ By means of these it is possible to change the gear of the machine so as to have a high gear under favourable conditions and a low gear when mud, wind, or an ascent make travelling difficult. Although chain gearing is used in nearly every machine made, connecting rods, wheels, or bands are fitted instead to some machines. ”

“ He likens his gear, in working, to the familiar breast drill, except that the drill has its teeth somewhat bevelled. If simplicity coupled with great strength and rigidity of frame, together with cheap construction and smooth and quiet action, are attained by this gear, as expected, it will evidently score a point among chainless models; but that straight-cut teeth can interact successfully at all with gears set at right angles or nearly so is contrary to all ideas heretofore, and in the lack of a model for examination we must forbear any opinion. ”