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).
The performance of a Borg & Beck clutch plate, detailing issues and proposing modifications.
| Identifier | ExFiles\Box 129\3\ scan0018 | |
| Date | 5th January 1936 | |
| -2- Hs{Lord Ernest Hives - Chair}/Smth.2/RW.5.1.36. The best Borg & Beck plate tried up to date has .048" cushioning (Bentley has .030"), and .018" run out, leaving .022" actual separation. This plate has woven F.F.L. facings of standard size. Owing to manufacturing difficulties the plate has been provided with T-slots only, the U-slots of the usual Borg & Beck arrangement being omitted. This plate was at first quite free from jagger and as good as the long plate reported on above. After 1,000 miles or so it commenced to jagger, but not so violently as the standard clutch. We have removed the plate from the chassis, but so far cannot account for the deterioration. We are about to try the following modifications. (1) Moulded facings, as recommended by Borg & Beck instead of woven. (2) Weaker springs. (3) U-slots in the driven plate as well as T-slots. Meanwhile our recommendation for the first SpectreCodename for Phantom III cars is that we should use Borg & Beck plates with both types of slots, moulded facings and standard springs. The plates rivet on to our standard hub. The crimping should be as on our latest experimental plates. We should send the Hubs to Borg & Beck so that they can true the plates up on their mandril before despatching to us. Hs{Lord Ernest Hives - Chair}/F.LL.Smith. | ||