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).
Visit to Rubery Owens regarding their methods for painting steel wheels.
| Identifier | ExFiles\Box 160\1\ scan0067 | |
| Date | 20th January 1939 | |
| To By.{R.W. Bailey - Chief Engineer} from Rm{William Robotham - Chief Engineer}/Gry.{Shadwell Grylls} c. Hs.{Lord Ernest Hives - Chair} c. Da.{Bernard Day - Chassis Design} c. Da{Bernard Day - Chassis Design}/Ev.{Ivan Evernden - coachwork} VISIT TO RUBERY OWENS. Yesterday Les.{Ivan A. Leslie} and I visited Rubery Owens ostensibly to discuss wheel prices but actually to discover how they made such a good job of painting on top of chromium, which they use in the centre for the steel wheels on Talbot and Daimler cars. They were very willing to tell us all they knew, and when we have sample discs to our design have offered to show us how to mask them and spray them so as to get a satisfactory joint between the chromium and the paint. They say that the secrets of success of this operation are, firstly, that the paint must end in a hollow so that the edge is not chipped by stones etc. and secondly, the use of special paint and primers made by Pinchin and Johnson. For a black disc they use one coat of heavy bodied spraying synthetic black, No.K.19665; for any other colour they use a primary coat of FJ.016 synthetic standard primer, light grey W.13452. They say it is immaterial whether the paint finishes on burnished or unburnished chromium. The examples they showed us prove that this is so. They are no longer doing this job for Talbots who have taken it over themselves, but who would doubtless show us or Park Wards the correct use of the masks. As regards design of steel wheel PD.341, they say that it is unnecessary to have such a large cover disc, maintaining that the type used on the 4-litre Talbot is adequate from the appearance point of view. If they were to make such a cover disc for us, including the centre pressed octagonal nut, they would charge us, in stainless steel about 7/-od. each with a £200 tool cost. They cannot understand why we were so worried about the cost of painting the wheel itself. They even said that apart from the time necessary to match exactly the colour of the car they would spray steel wheels for us at about 1/-d.{John DeLooze - Company Secretary} each. | ||