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).
Recurring issue of 'frame jellying' and tests on potential solutions.
| Identifier | ExFiles\Box 28\5\ Scan077 | |
| Date | 7th March 1932 | |
| 8457 To R.{Sir Henry Royce} From Hs.{Lord Ernest Hives - Chair} c. to Sg.{Arthur F. Sidgreaves - MD} c. to WDr. c. to E.{Mr Elliott - Chief Engineer} c. to By.{R.W. Bailey - Chief Engineer} c. to Da.{Bernard Day - Chassis Design} RE. FRAME JELLYING. This complaint still crops up periodically. A very good example is 20-G4, which is running at Le CanadelHenry Royce's French residence. When this car was sent away the amount of radiator movement was considerably greater than we get on standard cars. As a chassis, or with test equipment, the fault does not exist. It is only after the body is mounted that it occurs. We recently had a Phantom ll London Trials Car with a very similar body to 20-G4 which was very bad from the point of view of lamp and radiator movement and steering. This car came to the Works for attention, and after checking up all the points it still remained a definitely unsatisfactory car. In order to make this car satisfactory we fitted to it a flexible spring shackle, the result of this was that the steering was very much improved. There was still more movement on the lamps and wings than one would like owing to the steering being practically free from shocks the wing movement is much less obvious. We are returning the car to Sales with the spring shackle fitted and we are pressing on with the standardisation of this feature as it is a very definite improvement. /but We have also been carrying out tests with the radiator mounted solid on to the engine. The object of this was to increase the inertia of the engine, the radiator when filled with water does this to a considerable amount, this allows us to use more damping on the friction dampers and keep the front end of the frame more steady. With the inertia of the radiator added to the engine one can keep the frame steadier in front but there is a certain amount of radiator movement which does not exist with the centrally mounted radiator. We have had a report from Rm.{William Robotham - Chief Engineer} in U.S.A. in which he states that although some of the makers are making elaborate frames for box section and very stiff, he has tried no car where they have got a satisfactory solution to this problem. We think it is worth while continuing our tests trying to increase the inertia of the engine so that frame dampers can be more effective. Hs.{Lord Ernest Hives - Chair} x5380 | ||