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).
Body construction and mounting for models with demountable cantrails, such as the Sedanca, Cabriolet, and Drop Head Coupé.
| Identifier | ExFiles\Box 92\1\ scan0291 | |
| Date | 24th August 1936 guessed | |
| Bodies with Demountable Cantrails. Sedanca, Cabriolet and Drop Head Coupé. Body Construction and Mounting. The construction and mounting of the Closed Body has been dealt with earlier in this book. Bodies with a demountable top, in particular the Sedanca, the Cariolet and the Drop Head Coupé, call for a special treatment, in view of the fact that they do not constitute a framed, box-like structure, and have a much reduced torsional rigidity compared with the fixed-head body. The Sedanca and the like bodies consist essentially of two rigid units, the scuttle and screen section in front, and the rear compartment and luggage boot at the rear. When the de Ville Extension is open, these two sections are united only by the body bottom-sides. It is essential therefore that the bottom-sides have the maximum rigidity, especially with respect to vertical bending. This may be achieved by the use of a deep vertical edge plate running continuously from the face of the scuttle to the rear wheel arch, constructed of plywood to which has been screwed a sheet steel edge plate, or of Plymax. There is no need to cut a door in this edge plate to give access to the petrol filter on the off-side as in the case of this class of coachwork the filter will be accommodated elsewhere on the chassis. The screen pillar, above the waist-rail, is a cantilever, which has to take the thrust of the de Ville extension arm when closed. The pillar should therefore be re-inforced, if made of wood, by completely panelling in sheet steel, prior to panelling with sheet aluminium, and this steel panelling should extend in the form of a gusset down to the bottom side as shown in Fig 'b', sheet 4, and Fig.'a' sheet 6. This gusset prevents the fore and aft movement of the pillar, whilst the Dural tubular struts shown also in Fig.'b', sheet 4, prevent any transverse movement. | ||