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).
Letter to G.W. Hancock in France regarding a Bentley's exhaust valve failure and clutch 'jaggering' issues.
| Identifier | ExFiles\Box 83\4\ scan0164 | |
| Date | 20th April 1936 | |
| 47640 To G.W. Hancock, Esq., Hotel de France, Chateauroux, Indre, France. Hs{Lord Ernest Hives - Chair}/Rm.{William Robotham - Chief Engineer}7/KW.20.4.36. We are going to let 22-G-V do one day's running here before it goes to France, in order to see there is nothing stupid about it. Another Bentley exhaust valve has failed on the test bed; we should therefore like you to watch your valves closely for stretching, and if they go at all you had better remove them at once to avoid a head dropping in the cylinder and writing off the engine. We note the Bentley clutch is jaggering badly. This being so we are sending out another centre plate to be fitted. We are naturally anxious to know if there is any explanation for the deterioration of the clutch. When you get the new plate you will be able to tell us whether the cushioning has collapsed, or whether the back plate is distorted, or whether oil has got on it, or whether the jaggering is due to any slack in the engine mounting. Naturally we are very concerned about the trouble. While you are examining the clutch, please let us know if the liners have worn at all. Incidentally, we are sending out a propellor shaft damper with 22-G-V which we should like you to try on the Bentley to see if it has any effect on clutch jaggers. Strangely enough, the Bentley clutches which have so far gone on test have given every satisfaction. You will of course remember that the clutch we have put on the Bentley has the same fabric as we have standardised on the 20/25 because we thought this was better. Actually the Bentley clutches on test have a different fabric. Our move to improve the Bentley clutch is to put a cast-iron flywheel on it and run the Hyco material which has given us such excellent results on the Phantom III. We note that Hamilton reports slack in the drive. Is this anything to do with clutch jaggers ? | ||