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).
Proposed modification to Bentley bonnet louvres for cost savings and production simplification.
| Identifier | ExFiles\Box 84\3\ scan0134 | |
| Date | 21th September 1933 | |
| W/S. To G.{Mr Griffiths - Chief Accountant / Mr Gnapp} from E.{Mr Elliott - Chief Engineer} c. Works Hs.{Lord Ernest Hives - Chair} ~~by EV.{Ivan Evernden - coachwork}~~ [Handwritten: x205] E.7/HP.21.9.33. Bentley Bonnet Louvres. We attach herewith a blueprint of XB.87 shewing an arrangement drawing of the Bentley bonnet in which the louvres have been altered in pencil in such a way that the step in length between the short and the long louvres is made without graduating the length. We should like to know if Sales would have any objection to this on the score of appearance as this modification would mean an immediate saving of £350 in the cost of the dies for producing these louvres, and it would also enable us to vary the angle of the louvres in the bonnets without any difficulty if it were desired to alter this at any time as two simple repeating dies would be used for doing both right and left hand sides of the bonnets fitted to circular mountings adjustable to the angle desired. The double louvre agreed on, of course, would be used. The reason for this step in the length of the louvres is only for the purpose of accommodating the front bonnet fastener and leaving room for the hand to operate same. Generally this change in the length is covered from view by the presence of the front mudguards, but in cases where it is exposed the present line of curvature of the step does not match in any way the curvature of the guard, and we, therefore, feel that the appearance would not suffer by the proposed modification, but on the contrary might even be considered an improvement. Naturally the Works are in favour of doing this from the point of view of simplification of the tools necessary for production, but if there are objections to its appearance we must adhere to the present line along the bottom edge of the louvres. E.{Mr Elliott - Chief Engineer} | ||