Classic cars forum & vehicle restoration.

[peter scott]

I know this is for a specific make but could be of general interest and find an answer more readily here.

A friend in Australia asked:

Peter ,

I was wondering if you could ask on the forum if anyone these days knows about the original plating method for Rolls Royces in the 20s?

The fittings weren't electroplated, but had a shim of [ I think] Nickel silver -" german silver"] soldered on.

Cut neatly to fit and presumably shaped somehow for the curved surfaces.

I wonder if anyone still knows how to do it

I saw a group of RR Silver Ghosts at an international rally and all had been done with electroplating,..... and spray painted : >(

I wonder if this skill is at the cusp of extinction, or perhaps even gone

Regards,

Ed

Anyone know or have thoughts?

Thanks,

Peter
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https://www.nostalgiatech.co.uk
1939 SS Jaguar 2 1/2 litre saloon

[Ashley]

I think everything R-R was dull nickel plated until about '52 when the switched to cadmium. All plating was done in house to their exacting standard and that includes chrome. Unlike any other British car, everything on a Rolls was unique to them. They didn't share a single switch or lock even.

SUs and Lucas stuff was made to their design on the later cars, so bear that in mind of you're considering one. It all costs a fortune and until 1985, they even made all their one nuts and bolts.

[peter scott]

Thanks for your reply Ashley. Perhaps I shouldn't have used the word plating in the title. What Ed is looking for is information regarding a separate outer skin of nickel silver and not an electroplating process.

Have you ever come across this?

Thanks,

Peter
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https://www.nostalgiatech.co.uk
1939 SS Jaguar 2 1/2 litre saloon

[V8 Nutter]

I have no idea about Rolls Royce plating, but I am pretty sure Ashley is wrong when he says RR made everything. I believe they have used the following G.M. designed if not manufactured components, automatic transmissions, power steering, A.C., hydraulic tappets, electric window lifts, and electric seat mechanisms.

The story goes when R.R. first started using Hydra matic transmissions they made them under licence, they tightened the tolerances and clearances and the transmissions didn't work. After that they bought them direct from Cadillac. I have also heard of restorers fitting Cadillac hydraulic tappets, because they are so much cheaper.

[Ashley]

[47Jag]

Peter,

I have a feeling that Ed's original enquiry may be related to pre-war Rolls Royce plating. I found this on Youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cjnZGQZAoHU which seems to relate to Rolls before BMW took them over.

On the gearbox question, I'm pretty sure that Rolls built their own Hydramatics under licence. I worked on Rolls for a short time in 1964 doing all the crappy jobs like removing the auto boxes from S2 Clouds. The torque converter was bolted to the flywheel/adapter plate with about 20 5/16 nuts. The Cadillac equivalent had 4 bolts doing the same job. The S1 Cloud used the same gearbox without problem but they were only 6 cylinder 4 1/2 litre ??? As soon as they went to the 6 1/4 litre V8s the transmission just wasn't up to the torque and would burn out after 3-4 years which were still covered by the Rolls warranty.

Art

[Ashley]

You're right Art, a friend of mine used to say that a good engineer was the chap who could design something for a pound when everyone else was spending a fiver and R-R twenty!

There's a hotted up A35 in the workshop today having a supercharger fitted and a complete front suspension/steering overhaul. I think the bill for everything was about £300 and for similar and larger on a Cloud it would be over £3000.

People marvel at the complexity and beauty of R-R mechanicals, but they weren't particularly reliable, very few even now know how to work on them correctly and they cost an absolute fortune to restore or repair. And then they aren't worth enough to justify the expense.

IMO R-R's expertise is and always was aero engines. They made the best of two wars and they still make the best now.

[peter scott]

[Ashley]

As I said, everything was dull-nickelled by R-R, but external fittings were provided by the coach builders.

[goneps]

[SpiggyTopes]

Thanks for bringing us back down to earth.

It is good to be reminded of these things and not get carried away too much.

[Keith D]

IMHO Rolls-Royce can get away with murder when they can build an engine that sounds like the Merlin under full power. That whistling howl! Wow! Fabulous! Raises the goose bumps on my skin and the hairs on the back of my neck!

Keith

[Ashley]

And all aero engine companies, car companies, all companies make mistakes and pursue flawed ideas, it was just that R-R did better and still do the best.

They went bust in seventy one trying to build a technically very advanced engine for the Tristar and if the Government hadn't bailed them out and they hadn't sorted it out they wouldn't be one of the largest and best now and I believe the only company to make an engine suitable for the A380.

Cars were different, IMO they should have accepted that Model T Fords gave as good an account of themselves as Silver Ghosts in the deserts of the Middle East in World War One and learnt from the genius of our Henry.

[alanb]

I can remember an old saying, that it wasn't what went into a RR that made it expensive it was what they rejected.?
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old tourer


Morris 8 two seater

[Ashley]