Life, 1918-08-15 · page 31 of 36
Life — August 15, 1918 — page 31: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page is **entirely an advertisement**, not satire or political commentary. It promotes the Torbensen Internal Gear Drive, a rear axle system for motor trucks manufactured by The Torbensen Axle Company of Cleveland, Ohio. The ad uses technical marketing language targeting two audiences: engineers (emphasizing design features like the I-Beam construction and gear ratios) and truck users (highlighting practical benefits: 45% greater road clearance, lighter weight, 20% longer tire life, and fuel savings). The central image shows a technical cross-section diagram of the rear axle assembly. Claims include a "Gold Bond Guarantee" covering the I-beam axle and spindles for the truck's lifetime, plus internal gears for two years. The ad boasts fifty thousand units in service and positions Torbensen as "Largest Builder in the World of Rear Axles for Motor Trucks." This represents early 20th-century industrial advertising in *Life* magazine—straightforward product promotion with no satirical intent.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Sunday. tones he n, Tet me ica there territory 1 where cir Sun. Iry and To Motor Truck Engineers: — Here you see clearly the basic design of Torbensen Drive. It is elementally like this in all sizes, though, of course, individual parts in each size are designe spe- cifically for the work they are intended to do, Look particularly at the design of the I-Beam—the patented construction that has given Torbensen Drive its leadership. See the very small gear reduction at the differential, and the very large one where the jack-shaft pinions mesh with the internal gears, This accounts in part for the light weight of Torbensen Drive. Close examination of this rear axle shows how carefully excess weight has been elimi- nated without in any way affecting strength, There are many things about Tor- bensen Drive that are extremely inter- esting from an engineering standpoint. to last. We will gladly supply blueprints of any size axle from 3{-ton to five tons, free and without obligation. Kindly request them on your letterhead. ‘TORBENSEN Dri: ivery owner GOLD BOND GUARANTEE that the I-Beam axle and spindles will last as long as the truck, and the internal gears at least two years, To Motor Truck Users: — The drawing below is an intimate view of Torbensen Drive. Engineers can see from it instantly why Torben- sen Drive has become the undisputed leader in the truck rear-axle field. Its mechanical features give Torbensen Drive 45 per cent greater road clearance—which makes the truck ess likely to stall on bad roads and in snow. ~ The patented I-Beam — particularly —makes this Drive very strong—at the same time keeping it much lighter in weight than other types of equal capacity. This light weight increases rear-tire mileage about 20 per cent, saves gas and oil, and cuts repair costs to the minimum. In every way, Torbensen Drive has proved itself the essence of econony and reliability—and the evidence lies in its very extensive use. There are now fifty thousand Torbensen Drive axles in service. The iron-clad Torbensen Gold Bond Guarantee makes unfailing rear -axle service certain. Torbensen Drive is the only re le drive that is defi- nitely guaranteed, THE TORBENSEN AXLE CO. Cleveland, Ohio comicbooks.com