Hit n Miss Motor - restoration at the Motor Transport Museum
A hit-and-miss engine is a type of four-stroke internal combustion engine that is controlled by a governor to operate at a set speed. It was conceived in the late 19th century and produced by various companies from the 1890s through approximately the 1940s. The name comes from the speed control on these engines: they fire ("hit") only when operating at or below a set speed, and cycle without firing ("miss") when they exceed their set speed. This is as compared to the "throttle governed" method of speed control. The sound made when the engine is running without a load is a distinctive "POP whoosh whoosh whoosh whoosh POP" as the engine fires and then coasts until the speed decreases and it fires again to maintain its average speed.
Many engine manufacturers made hit-and-miss engines during their peak use—from approximately 1910 through the early 1930s when more modern designs began to replace them. Some of the largest engine manufacturers were Stover, Hercules, International Harvester (McCormick Deering), John Deere and Fairbanks Morse.Jacumba Hot Springs Spa
In the 1850’s, a mail station was established in Jacumba as part of the early trail from San Diego to Fort Yuma. In the 1920’s, Bert Vaughn created a popular resort which included an impressive hotel, a large bath house, swimming pools, apartments, and auto court. Over the years that followed, the resort boom began to fade. The opening of Interstate 8 in the 1960’s that bypassed Jacumba was a devastating blow to the town’s vitality. Today, it is once again becoming a destination for retirees, artists, natural healers and visitors seeking clean air, star-filled skies, healing waters, abundant sunshine, and the quiet solitude that can be found in the magical place.