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).
Dismantling an engine to investigate issues with stickiness and load loss on a low inertia slipper wheel.
| Identifier | ExFiles\Box 11\4\ 04-page088 | |
| Date | 10th July 1932 | |
| x7941 Hotel de France, Chateauroux, FRANCE. To Hs.{Lord Ernest Hives - Chair} From G.W.H. 10.7.32. 19-EX. We have dismantled the engine front to advance the timing of the engine one tooth, and to investigate the Low Inertia Slipper wheel. We found that the characteristic of the slipper wheel had become totally different to when it was fitted. We got an initial load of 27 lbs to move it. It then slipped at a load of 13 lbs. The condition of the Rabestos washers were as new. The only alteration being that they had become more polished, and were totally dry in patches, which is the cause of the initial stickiness. We have run into the same trouble as was experienced when using fibre washers. We overcame a lot of that trouble by having grooves slotted diagonally across the fibre washers to allow oil to be fed quickly on to the fabric faces. With this in view I have had 14 grooves cut in one washer on either side diagonally. On the other I have drilled 65, - 1/8" holes. This is to see which one gives the best result, and should get over to a great extent the initial stickiness. The only other way of dealing with the trouble is to have damper wheels with a larger rim, to obtain more inertia load at lower speeds, to give a more even slip. The stickiness is definitely the cause of the rattle in the engine gears as we have daily reported. The loss in load is due to the polishing of the Rabestos washers. G W Hancook G.W.H. | ||