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).
Secret memorandum discussing the proposed alterations to create a Sports Model, including plans for three experimental chassis.
| Identifier | ExFiles\Box 65a\1\ scan0127 | |
| Date | 5th October 1927 | |
| 78770 Secret To. BY.{R.W. Bailey - Chief Engineer} from Wor.{Arthur Wormald - General Works Manager} c to R.{Sir Henry Royce} c to Us. c to BY.{R.W. Bailey - Chief Engineer} Wor{Arthur Wormald - General Works Manager}1/T,5-10-27. SPORTS MODEL. He., BY.{R.W. Bailey - Chief Engineer} and myself met yesterday in order to form some idea as to what alterations are going to be made to our standard chassis, in order to produce a Sports Model, and to consider your memo BJ17/E3-10-27, and also the important points set out by C.. BY.{R.W. Bailey - Chief Engineer} has not got full particulars of the alterations that are going to be made to the engine, and possibly to other parts of the chassis. He is going to spend some time looking up all the information he has, and then it may be necessary for him to see R.{Sir Henry Royce} and E.{Mr Elliott - Chief Engineer} at WW.. At present he has only been able to instruct the Cylinder and Cylinder Head alterations, the agreed Crankcase design is not yet available, he is getting out a scheme to WW's instructions to submit to them, but a number of features cannot be decided upon from information to hand. C. is quite right when he states that extensive alterations are contemplated in the design of the chassis. The engine, we believe, will be almost entirely changed, and different both in appearance and performance, so we think that it is out of the question to recommend to you making two types of chassis. Indeed, R.{Sir Henry Royce} in his memo R1/W1-10-27 to you states that he feels that most of the modifications will improve the performance of both the Sports Chassis and the ordinary Chassis, and in addition, will be lighter, simpler, and less costly, and he does not propose that there shall be two chassis. So we now recommend that we make experimentally three sets of the proposed alterations to be incorporated in the standard chassis, one to be used by R.{Sir Henry Royce} at Le CanadelHenry Royce's French residence, one for the 10,000 miles test, and one for Experimental purposes at Derby, these to be rushed night and day wherever possible and produced in the least possible time, so that when these chassis are being approved and accepted, the modifications will improve the ordinary chassis and also enable us to sell an improved Sports Model with an improved body. We do not think it would be of any use making more than three, as of course, it must not be known that we are making big alterations, because we always have material in the main which will last us five or six months, in order to keep up continuity of output. In addition, we shall need to make Jigs and Tools to produce the modifications quickly and at a right cost. [Signature] | ||