September 2, 2009

Winners in NEW USE for Old Fords Contest (Feb, 1929)

Filed under: Automotive, DIY — @ 8:10 am
Source: Modern Mechanix ( More articles from this issue )
Issue: Feb, 1929
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Winners in NEW USE for Old Fords Contest

MODERN MECHANICS pays $10 for every acceptable photo and description of the odd uses to which old Tin Lizzies have been put. The machines shown below are all made from old Model T Fords.

DOWN at Iowa Park, Texas, is an old flivver motor which is enjoying a ripe old age puffing and grunting on half her lungs while the other half supply fresh ozone for tires which have lost the courage of their convictions.
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Diving Under Ice to Solve Polar Mysteries (Jul, 1931)

Filed under: Nautical — @ 8:09 am
Source: Modern Mechanix ( More articles from this issue )
Issue: Jul, 1931
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Diving Under Ice to Solve Polar Mysteries

by LEW HOLT

Sir Hubert Wilkins’ amazing journey under the North Pole in the submarine Nautilus, now under way, may discover evidence which will solve long-standing polar mysteries. Are there undiscovered islands near the pole—will the expedition discover a fathomless hole at the axis of the earth? Some of the riddles they will answer are described here.
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September 1, 2009

Eye-Shade for Watching Planes (Jul, 1931)

Filed under: Aviation — @ 11:15 am
Source: Modern Mechanix ( More articles from this issue )
Issue: Jul, 1931
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Eye-Shade for Watching Planes
A NOVEL card-board shield, shaped to fit tightly around the eyes, has recently been devised for watching airplanes, boats and other objects where glaring reflections are hard on the eyes. The inside of the shield is painted black.

August 31, 2009

Three Wheel Taxi Built Like Hansom Cab (Jul, 1931)

Filed under: Automotive — @ 9:48 am
Source: Modern Mechanix ( More articles from this issue )
Issue: Jul, 1931
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Three Wheel Taxi Built Like Hansom Cab

THE last word in comfort and convenience for taxi passengers, particularly passengers loaded down with bundles from a shopping tour, is provided by a unique taxi now being designed by automotive engineers. With this car, the passenger can step from the curb right into the tonneau without inconvenient squirming and stooping, as in the ordinary taxi. The driver sits in the rear, like the driver of a hansom, from where he controls the door on the front of the car and operates the steering wheel.

The car is provided with only three wheels.

August 29, 2009

Enjoy the Finest (Sep, 1958)

Filed under: Advertisements, Trains — @ 10:02 pm
Source: National Geographic ( More articles from this issue )
Issue: Sep, 1958
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Wow, I would totally take this train.

Enjoy the Finest

BETWEEN CHICAGO AND THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST

It costs no more!

“CITY OF PORTLAND”

This delightful Domeliner is the finest and fastest between Chicago and Portland, with through Pullman to Tacoma-Seattle.

It is the only train to Portland featuring three types of Astra Domes; a Dome Lounge, Dome Coach, and Dome Diner (exclusive on Union Pacific) with three exquisite dining areas—the Dome, and downstairs the main dining room, and the Gold Room for private parties.

Pullman and Coach equipment is the very latest in design, providing both relaxing comfort and convenience. And, of course, the money-saving Family Plan Fares apply on all Union Pacific trains.

• • •

Through Hertz Rent-a-Car service, we can have a car waiting for you at your destination.

UNION PACIFIC RAILROAD

How Fast can Man Travel? (Feb, 1929)

Filed under: Transportation, Useless Tech — @ 10:02 pm
Source: Modern Mechanix ( More articles from this issue )
Issue: Feb, 1929
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Apparently Einstein’s work hadn’t really sunk in yet. It’s the acceleration, not the speed that gets you.

How Fast can Man Travel?

Is there a limit to the speed which the human body can withstand? Five miles a minute caused no ill effects for the English aviator who recently attained this speed.

RECENTLY broken records for speed in various methods of transportation have bettered the marks of recent years by such a wide margin that scientists are asking the question, “How fast can man travel before the functions of his body cease to be normal? Is there a limit?” Read the rest of this entry »

August 27, 2009

Moto Polo – Mayhem on Wheels (Mar, 1951)

Filed under: Automotive, Sports — @ 10:06 am
Source: Mechanix Illustrated ( More articles from this issue )
Issue: Mar, 1951
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Moto Polo – Mayhem on Wheels

Combine football, soccer and polo with a dash of Sunday driving and you’ve got the West Coast’s newest sport fad.

By Louis Hochman

“PLAY Ball!” yells the ump and six peculiar cars tear into each other trying to bounce a giant six-foot rubber ball into a goal. They collide, turn over, bounce high into the air, roll end over end, spin on their noses, land on top of other cars, fall to the ground and then get right back into the game and start all over again!
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August 26, 2009

Auto SCOOTER (Dec, 1947)

Filed under: Motorcycles — @ 10:18 am
Source: Mechanix Illustrated ( More articles from this issue )
Issue: Dec, 1947
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Auto SCOOTER

IN CROWDED metropolitan centers across the country the thin trickle of new automobiles is helping one problem —transportation—but heightening another. Parking lots are bursting with automobiles of commuters, curbs are lined and every city has a parking problem which no plan has solved. Increased costs pose another serious problem for the average family. Car prices have risen beyond comfortable reach. One-car families which ordinarily might be two-car families can’t afford the extra outlay of $2,000 or more, even if auto deliveries could be made next week. Read the rest of this entry »

August 24, 2009

FUN JEEP (Mar, 1957)

Filed under: Automotive — @ 9:58 pm
Source: Mechanix Illustrated ( More articles from this issue )
Issue: Mar, 1957
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FUN JEEP, above, intended for beach use, touring, camping; seats seven. Farina-built, it features gas-stretching 4-cylinder mill.

Freak Plane Crashes (Feb, 1929)

Filed under: Aviation — @ 7:25 am
Source: Modern Mechanix ( More articles from this issue )
Issue: Feb, 1929
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Freak Plane Crashes

By RAOUL WHITFIELD

Wartime Aviator and Famous Author of Air Fiction ISSOUDUN, FRANCE. August, 1918. Grey sky, spit of rain. Two fifteen-meter Nieuports doing combat work at eight thousand, just under the clouds. And then, wings too close, the crash!

I’ve seen a lot of sky bangs. This one took the prize. I watched it from the earth—it was my turn to take one of these ships up next. It was my turn, but I didn’t take one. They tangled wings, and one ship spun free like a top. A wing dropped loose as she spun, But not her wing—the other plane’s. Read the rest of this entry »

August 19, 2009

New Auto Lock Shuts Off Gasoline and Ignition (Feb, 1929)

Filed under: Automotive — @ 10:10 pm
Source: Modern Mechanix ( More articles from this issue )
Issue: Feb, 1929
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New Auto Lock Shuts Off Gasoline and Ignition

AUTOMOBILE thieves are thwarted by a new steering wheel lock which has been invented in England. This lock fits the steering column in the conventional manner, as shown in the photo. When locked it not only makes steering impossible, but also cuts off the ignition and stops the gasoline flow.

Most automobile thieves depend upon speed to accomplish their getaway. With three essential running features of a car shut off it would almost be impossible to drive it away. The time that it would take to pick all three of these safety devices would be more than most car lifters would dare risk.

August 18, 2009

New ‘Home on Highway’ Has Kitchen, Dinette, Sleeper (Jul, 1931)

Filed under: Automotive — @ 8:46 pm
Source: Modern Mechanix ( More articles from this issue )
Issue: Jul, 1931
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New ‘Home on Highway’ Has Kitchen, Dinette, Sleeper

MOTOR nomads will find the ideal home of the highway in a new motor caravan which has recently been designed and built by a French engineer for vacation tours. Although somewhat unique in appearance, this odd vehicle, shown in the photo at the left, has a kitchen, dining room and sleeping accommodation for four people. And with all this equipment, which includes also a canoe carried on the roof, the weight of the mobile home is no greater than that of the ordinary automobile seen every day about the streets.

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