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).
Wheel driver wobble, rear axle deflection tests, and proposed improvements involving new drivers and modified hubs.
| Identifier | ExFiles\Box 84\4\ scan0125 | |
| Date | 17th November 1936 | |
| 202 W/K.{Mr Kilner} KC. from Rm{William Robotham - Chief Engineer}/Gry.{Shadwell Grylls} Rm{William Robotham - Chief Engineer}/Gry{Shadwell Grylls}11/R.17.11.36. Thank you for your memo to GWH.{George W. Hancock - Head Chateauroux} about wheel drivers. We have for some time been aware that there was going to be trouble with this part of the car. We carried out some deflection tests to discover how much the rear axle bends under the normal weight of the car, and so determine how much wobble there is to be on the wheel driver. This amount was far more than we expected, being, approximately, 7 thou. In the present length of the outer splines of the driver. We have, therefore, put in hand some test pieces on wheel drivers of about half the present length, and twice the present depth in order to overcome this trouble. We had a design for longer drivers, but decided that these would give more trouble. We hope in about a month's time to have concluded the tests on our rig, and be in a position to issue an improvement. We hope this will take the form of a new driver and the modified machining of existing hubs. We are taking up with the Works your query about the finish of the splines in the hub. Rm{William Robotham - Chief Engineer}/Gry.{Shadwell Grylls} | ||