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).
Engine component choices, comparing timing gears and chains, with references to competitor vehicles like Cadillac, Ford, and Lincoln.
| Identifier | ExFiles\Box 178\2\ img159 | |
| Date | 3rd March 1934 | |
| -4- I apologise for writing so fully on this, but the money we spend getting timing gears quiet and the dissatisfaction often caused is the justification. The Morse Co. claim that spring driven crankshaft pinions or balanced cams are unknown to them as assistants in getting silence. An efficient crankshaft damper is a necessity. I believe that it would pay us to run the Cadillac 16, or any other big car that we get from America, 10,000 miles if only for proving the efficiency or otherwise of the silent chain. In our new designs it seems illogical that we should stay with the Ford car and have gears, rather than the Lincoln and have silent chain, without at least doing development work to see which by our own results is likely to be the better job. Incidentally the Morse Co. apologised for the extravagance of the layout on the Cadillac which costs, complete with chain, three sprockets and auto adjuster, 9/- per car. HYDRAULIC TAPPET CAMSHAFT. Here is the toe of the hydraulic tappet camshaft on the Cadillac. MORFLEX COUPLING. I send a pamphlet relating to this, and have samples. It looks a nice job for auxiliary drives, being easier to balance and having a longer life than the fabric coupling. I send you the Morse Chain layouts under separate cover. Also a preliminary Cadillac instruction book, which please do not lose. They have not even yet made any 12's and 16's this year due to new tools and strikes. I send you M.E.P. curves of the whole Cadillac La{L. A. Archer} Salle range, together with their timing. These will be of great value to me for reference, the minimum negative over-lap of 11° is interesting. The two axle ratios available on the 16 are 4.64 = 88 M.P.H. at 4500, and 4.31 = 95 M.P.H. at 4500. I shall go for the lower ratio. Ha/Rm.{William Robotham - Chief Engineer} | ||