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).
Cause of steering inefficiency and wandering in car model GUL-1, with recommendations for improvement.
| Identifier | ExFiles\Box 153\2\ scan0089 | |
| Date | 18th August 1936 | |
| To Sg.{Arthur F. Sidgreaves - MD} & Wor.{Arthur Wormald - General Works Manager} c. to C. c. to E.{Mr Elliott - Chief Engineer} c. to By.{R.W. Bailey - Chief Engineer} c. to St.{Capt. P. R. Strong} c. to Mx.{John H Maddocks - Chief Proving Officer} Handwritten: wandering Steering of GUL-1. Attached is a report of F.J. Hardy's, enumerating the work carried out to determine the cause of inefficiency on the steering of this car. It will be noted that the only places where signs of seizure were detected were in the thrust races of the pivots. We think that inadequate lubrication of these pivot thrust races may be responsible for some of the complaints of wandering steerings which have from time to time been made. Our own impression of GUL-1 when it arrived at the factory was that the steering was perfectly alright. After driving it a considerable distance, however, we got the impression that we could detect a slight tendency to tighten up. This is an almost exact repetition of our experience with GUL-82, only in the case of the latter car we actually reproduced the trouble in a more acute form. We can understand that if GUL-1 got into the same condition as GUL-82 there would be just cause for complaint. To improve matters we recommend that the thrust washer on the 20/25 pivot O.51848, should have three lubrication slots cut in either side of it instead of one, the slots to be the Bentley width. This will bring the 20/25 lubrication at this point exactly into line with the Bentley piece O.100569. The reason the 20/25 has less grooves in it than the Bentley is that there were complaints of oil leaking out of the bottom of the pivot. This was overcome on the Bentley by making the grooves narrower, but the practice was not transferred to the 20/25 because at the time we were not troubled with friction at this point. There is no doubt that the Marles steering gear, being lowered geared than the old 20/25, accentuates wandering due to varying friction, etc. Hs{Lord Ernest Hives - Chair}/Rm.{William Robotham - Chief Engineer} Att: Hs{Lord Ernest Hives - Chair}/FJH.{Fred J. Hardy - Chief Dev. Engineer}18/KW.18.8.36. | ||