From the Rolls-Royce experimental archive: a quarter of a million communications from Rolls-Royce, 1906 to 1960's. Documents from the Sir Henry Royce Memorial Foundation (SHRMF).
Investigation into a failing rear shock damper and modifications to cure an engine oil leak.
| Identifier | ExFiles\Box 1\4\ B001_X 100a-page102 | |
| Date | 2nd December 1932 | |
| Seen E By Please return r 4057. To Hs{Lord Ernest Hives - Chair}/Rm{William Robotham - Chief Engineer} From G.W.H. Rm{William Robotham - Chief Engineer} Hotel de France, Chateauroux, FRANCE. 2.12.32. 2.PER.II. To confirm our memo of 1.12.32, we enclose a sketch of the rear shock damper showing the lever fouling the front bolt of the anchorage on maximum bump. We measured the buffer clearance as the car stood, which apparently has settled down since we gave you the figures. It is now 4.1/8" and taking the arc of the damper lever we found that it could travel 4 1/4" upwards and then comes choc-a-bloc under the bolt of the anchorage. Allowing for 1/4" compression of the buffer rubber we get the arm hitting solid on to the bolt. This brings the full load of the shock on to the bracket F.100254 (Aluminium), and is most probably the cause of the bracket breaking. It substantiates the angle of the fracture of the brackets broken. We can see where the levers have been hitting the bolt. It seems therefore that it may not be necessary to alter the F.100254 bracket from aluminium to steel. RE. OIL LEAK FROM REAR AND FRONT OF ENGINE. We have cured this by fitting an efficient breather to the engine. We did not collect more than half a dozen drops in 500 miles, and our consumption for the day verified this. We were just 1 pint to the good. The breather must be efficient. We have not got one on the Phantom or the 25 HP. They stuff it up with gauze which becomes clogged, or else in the oil stream as the one fitted to this car. We have taken our breather from the top of the rocker cover down to the carburetter intake, and made it go into the air stream of the carburetter. It is now up to the designers to give us what we want. In conjunction with the breather we have fitted a scoop to force air into the clutch case, as per sketch. This, from results taken, helps. Without this scoop fitted we collect approx. 1/10 of a pint of oil in 250 miles. G.W.H. | ||