Do you know the Brasie?

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 

Longtime Hersheygoers tend to think they've seen it all, but each year invariably brings surprises. This year's was a Brasie Packet Express for sale in the Chocolate Field. Few people have even heard of Brasie, so a quick check of the catalogues was necessary for background.

Frank R. Brasie of Minneapolis, Minnesota had manufactured the Twin City truck, a forward-control two-ton design. In 1914 he conceived a light car and delivery vehicle, called the Brasie Messenger and Brasie Packet, respectively. Scarcely heavier than a cyclecar, the Brasie rode a 100-inch wheelbase, was powered by a 12-hp four-cylinder engine driving through a friction transmission. Final drive was via a belt.

This tidy little Brasie Packet was offered at $15,900 and drew a crowd of curious passers-by. Seemingly complete and operable, it came with a number of spare parts, including an engine block. The drive belt mentioned in printed references had been replaced by a chain, although it was not clear whether this was a later modification or whether the design had been modified during its production life, which ended in 1917.

     

Plaats een reactie, stel een vraag, geef uw mening, deel aanvullende informatie of start een discussie door de onderstaande velden in te vullen