Long steam tricycle

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Long steam tricycle
Long steam tricycle patent drawing.jpg
ManufacturerGeorge Alvin Long
Productionc. 1880
Class Steam tricycle
Engine Gasoline-fired steam, 2-cylinder, 90-degree, V-twin engine
Bore / stroke Unk.×1 5/8"
Transmission Two speed, rear-wheel drive via quasi friction drive
Frame type Steel tubular
Suspension Solid; full-elliptic springs suspending independent, height adjustable seats
Brakes 2×Spoon brake (front)
Tires Front: 2×36 in (910 mm)
Rear: 60 in (1,500 mm)
Solid tires on spoked wheels
Weight350 lb (160 kg) (wet)

The Long steam tricycle appears to be one of the earliest preserved examples of a steam tricycle, built by George Alvin Long around 1880 and patented in 1883. [1] [2] [3] One example was built, which after some years of use was dismantled and the parts dispersed. In 1946, one John H. Bacon, with assistance from the 96-year-old Long, reassembled the machine, which is now on display at the Smithsonian Institution. [3] The example at the Smithsonian has been noted as the "oldest completely operable self-propelled road vehicle in the museum". [4]

Contents

In 2004–2010, the item was displayed at Blackhawk Museum in northern California. [5] [6]

Specifications

Specifications in the infobox to the right are from the Smithsonian Institution America on the Move collection. [3] [7]

Steering the two front wheels was accomplished via two independent tillers which would have made simultaneous steering and control of the brake levers difficult for a single individual. [3]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "1880 Long Steam Tricycle - Pictures". Remarkablecars.com. 2009-06-17. Retrieved 2010-07-29.[ dead link ]
  2. ↑ "Long Steam Tricycle - Pictures". Remarkablecars.com. Retrieved 2019-09-29.
  3. 1 2 3 4 "America on the Move | Long steam tricycle". Americanhistory.si.edu. 2008-10-24. Retrieved 2014-06-17.
  4. ↑ Oliver, Smith Hempstone; Berkebile, Donald H. (1953), Wheels and Wheeling: The Smithsonian Cycle Collection, Smithsonian Institution Press, p. 49, ISBN   978-0-598-24389-8 {{citation}}: ISBN / Date incompatibility (help)
  5. ↑ "Arts Listings: Museums-East Bay Through May 30", The Berkeley Daily Planet , May 18, 2010, retrieved 22 September 2019
  6. ↑ "Automobiles de collection: Long steam tricycle", Les voitures anciennes et histoire des marques des véhicules (in French), archived from the original on 2014-11-13, retrieved 2014-06-18
  7. ↑ Roger White (20 December 2010), Nicholas Jackson (ed.), "Race to the Museum: Long Steam Tricycle, About 1880", The Atlantic blog, The Atlantic , retrieved 22 September 2019

Further reading

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