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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).
Causes of various broken pipes in postwar cars, attributed to issues with aluminium pistons.

Identifier  ExFiles\Box 148\3\  scan0028
Date  4th December 1923
  
X2748

Wor.{Arthur Wormald - General Works Manager}
c. Hm.{Capt. W. Hallam - Head Repairs}
c. Hs.{Lord Ernest Hives - Chair}

BY8-P4.12.23.

ALUMINIUM PISTONS.

My criticism of the above has at least resulted in starting Hs.{Lord Ernest Hives - Chair} off on a series of tests to try and prove whether the troubles we have had on postwar cars, namely;-

a/- Broken Top Water Pipes.
b/- Broken Bottom Water Pipes.
c/- Broken Extra Oil Pipes.
d/- Broken Induction Pipes.

are due to, as I assert, the increased expansion resulting from a greater gas escapement down the sides of the aluminium piston skirt, or as H.{Arthur M. Hanbury - Head Complaints} asserts, due simply to the increased speed of the engine, owing to the axle ratios having been lifted.

In regard to R's proposal, it is worthy of notice that the increase of speed from prewar to postwar is something less than 7%, a factor which one is inclined to think is not sufficient to account for the troubles. On the other hand, I think Mx.{John H Maddocks - Chief Proving Officer} and EP.{G. Eric Platford - Chief Quality Engineer} will undoubtedly agree that we have had to increase end clearances on the Crankcase on the postwar car to allow for expansion in a manner entirely different from anything we had to do on the prewar.

Before we commit ourselves too much it would probably be best to await the result of Hs{Lord Ernest Hives - Chair}' experiments.

BY.{R.W. Bailey - Chief Engineer}
  
  


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