Hi Noel/All,
The hand controller buses you mention are "Trasckless Trams" rather than trolleybuses. I know I am splitting hairs, but this is an important early stage in the development of the trolleybus. Our Chch 210 at Ferrymead has tram style technology including a GE CP27 compressor, but with the controls foot operated. The brake valve is even basically tram style.
The buses you mention are obviously really early ones.
Alan Roi Who likes trolleybuses.
--- InTramsDownUnder@..., "Noel Reed" <noelreed10@...> wrote:
>
> Hello Alan and others,
>
>
>
> I once had an opportunity of looking through some old bound copies of 'The
> Street Railway Journal' (USA) which were at the former NSW Railways
> Technical Library. There were illustrations and advertisements showing
> early trolley buses. Two features I remember were --
>
>
>
> 1. A tramway type drum controller beside the driver. Rather than use a pedal
> operated speed control, the driver apparently had to 'notch up' with one
> hand on the controller while keeping the other hand on the steering wheel..
> This may not have been as difficult as it seems as many older buses with
> 'crash' gearboxes needed the driver to have one hand on the wheel while
> doing a 'double de-clutch' action with the gear lever.
>
>
>
> 2. A single trolley pole with two (2) very wide fixed U shaped collector
> shoes at the top. The wide U shape would probably have allowed a certain
> degree of deviation from the alignment of the twin trolley wires without the
> wires 'climbing' the sides of the U's. They would need some form of wire
> lubrication and the OHW suspension fittings would need to extend downward
> sufficiently to keep the tops of the U's clear of the span wires.
>
>
>
> Some of these illustrations and maybe further information may possibly be
> seen on copies of 'The Street Railway Journal' in the now preserved Peter
> Duckett collection.
>
>
>
> I attach an illustration of an 'Electromote' using power collection by a
> 'troller'. This picture was copied from a greeting card sent many years ago
> from Siemens of Germany.
>
>
>
> Noel Reed.
>
>
>
> _____
>
>