Talk:Edward Butler (inventor)

Comment left at disambig page
Left at Edward Butler, in an (unclosed) comment: "It was a trike, featuring Ackermann steering (first use in a car) & spray carburetor, 5yr ahead of Maybach; built in 1888 by Merryweather Fire Engine Works, Greenwich. ".  Integrate (or not) as seems appropriate here. Alai 11:52, 28 October 2007 (UTC)

Butler Petrolcycle
Hello Dennis. There are several errors on the wiwi page about Butler's Petrolcycle. I've ignored them over the years, but as I've now seen a few people quoting the page and its errors, I attempted to fix some of them. The edit regarding the front brakes was rejected by you. Here is the note that I received:

Note that the photograph is the 1887 version. The cited facts refer to the original 1881 model which was "improved over the years". Please do not conduct original research by deducing facts from a photo. Dennis Bratland (talk) 00:29, 23 May 2014 (UTC)

I think that you wrote that, but I'm unsure how Wikipedia works. My apologies if this note should be directed to somebody else. Anyway, you may know that there was no 1881 model of the machine per your note above. He presented his drawings in 1884, and it took a couple of years to construct the first version (the one with the two stroke motor). His patent drawings show the front brakes, as do the photos of the bike. They are also shown in the later photos of the bike after he changed to the four stroke motor.

There are no records anywhere of Bulter designing or using an "air-starting" mechanism on his Petrolcycle, so that note could be omitted from the wiki page. The early cylinders were double-acting, maybe that was were the confusion came from. He later set them to single-acting.

My research is thorough, and uses his official patent drawings as well as the books that were written in the 1890s and just after the turn of the century. I also have information from Butler's great niece, the Royal Automobile Club of England, the London Science Museum and the Beaulieu Museum, the Motor Car Journal issue Sept 15, 1899, Scientific American, etc, and several other books and periodicals of the era.

If you view his patent #15598 of 1887 you can see the labels for the brake lever, brake surface, etc. clearly called out. In addition, they are not only visible but are mentioned in a number of the books and periodicals.

I'm not a wikipedia guy, so I'll ask you to update the page if you would please. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Arbitrary wiki (talk • contribs) 01:23, 6 June 2014 (UTC)
 * I think WP:NOR would allow you to point out the various features on the patents, but analysis of the photos is out of scope. Also bear in mind that the photos may show a later or altered model from what the cited writer was describing. — Brianhe (talk) 18:49, 6 June 2014 (UTC)