The Time has Arrived... RPR's Rolls-Royce Build(s)!

[Chris Hall]

Ever thought of marketing these ? (he said, pleadingly)

[Robert Reid]

Ever thought of marketing these ? (he said, pleadingly)

Hi Chris:

Already talking to one of our OZ members who has a laser engraving machine and he wants to do them. We are already talking! Doing them 'my way' was very time-intensive and materials-intensive. Much of the day to make four hubs and a wrench. But worth it for my chassis!

I will let the other member identify himself when he is ready. But I expect these will be available soon!

Cheers,

RPR

[Robert Reid]

So today was a bit of a strange day, build wise. I finished a couple of small things before turning my attention to the transmission... The steering arm will wait until I assemble the axle on the chassis... and the steering column.

So first was to put the chassis plate on the coil box. Easy, but looks lovely!



Next was to do some work on the radiator. I have been trying to find some hex screen in the right scale to replicate the hex tubes in the original radiator. I finally gave up and decided to open up the mesh that came with the kit somewhat... taking it from .042" holes to .053" holes (or so.) That meant drilling 1900 holes today. Took under an hour and proud to say only broke one drill... and opened almost 1500 holes with one drill! I am not going to do the back screen as I may be crazy, but not insane. Here is the original vs. opened up screens. Remember that I cut out the center of the radiator so that we can 'see through' it as the original tube cores.



This little bit of psychedelica is brought to you by light refraction through the front and rear screens and a camera that probably can't deal with such artifacts! But it's pretty neat to see. The front is now epoxied in place and after polishing the shell, I will paint the inside (and back) black and fit the rear screen.



So here is a real RR transmission... at least the top view. Trying to find a good bottom view... as all the Ghosts we have in are at the warehouse right now. WIth their undertrays on. So photos are a PITA. But working on that. This shows the starter, shift fork guide and cover. Etc.



Here is the Armortek unit starting to come together. Some re-shaping and as I won't be running a motor through it... I can do some more interesting work with the sphere and inputs, such as the Cardan shaft.



That's all for today, except I'll be posting up some pictures of armoured cars in use in the inter-wars periods. Not sure if I'll add to the knowledge base, but some of the features may help.

Cheers,

RPR

[Robert Reid]

One of the things that I loved about building wood ship models is that each 'thing' was like its own kit. Lifeboat... its own kit. Sternhouse... own kit. Each mast was its own kit. So it is with an Armortek RR chassis! The transmission, today's big project, is like it's own kit!

I wanted to add details and so gathered some pictures of original transmissions. Which is more of a challenge than I thought because there are so many variants. But finally found some suitable pictures. Here are a couple of the underside. Which was where most of my time was spent today.



This one is a bit more of the connection between clutch and transmission. But shows the front covers.



First thing I wanted to do was add some detail to the transmission bottom. It looks great from the top, but I want to do the whole 360 degree thing and so used some blocks of aluminum pinned and epoxied in place to show a good representation of the bottom detail. I debated welding them on... but decided on aluminum pins and epoxy. Also attached the shifter tower and filled in the space where the cap screw would fit. Again, just made a cover and epoxied it in place then shaped it.



With the new metal attached to the bottom, it was time to make the machined transmission look like it was cast. So I used my little air-plenishing hammer (see the engine thread). After initially plenishing, it was sanded, bead blasted and then burnished to try and simulate the roughness of a sand casting.



Here is the underside with the new aluminum pieces attached.



With the plenishing and case prep done, time to install the details. I think the top bolts are a big big... but the holes were large. Most is done with 14 BA and 12 BA which looks really good! The 8BA is a hair big. But I'll leave it. The arms you will remember from the dynamo and starter builds. They are now attached. All this brass will ultimately be painted black. But for now looks lovely!



This angle shows the starter gear reduction device on the right. This transmits power from the starter motor through the transmission into the engine. If the clutch is pressed in... the starter just spins. Just a tip if you're ever trying to steal -- er -- start a Ghost!



And the bottom side, with all its now metal. Plus inspection plates, drain plugs and some other features. You can see the starter gear again from this angle.



That's all for today. Tomorrow... probably work on a cannon. But we'll see!

The next big project is the rear axle, I think. As I have left the openings in the transmission so that I can use factory 'connections' or modify them to look like original. I have this ball cutter that I am dying to use...

Cheers,

RPR

[Robert Reid]

Just a bit of Sunday work before Easter Lamb...

Polished the radiator shell after fitting the front grill. Polished with sandpaper up to 1,000 then buffed. Then hand polished. It came out rather well!



After painting and applying the emblem. This is a Tie Tack from eBay. It is a fraction large, but is real cloisonne enamel.

Note the reflection of the camera!



One of the better looking parts on the chassis!

Cheers,

RPR

[Robert Reid]

The leaves are off the trees... the farm equipment is serviced and put away for the winter. Cannons mostly finished and new HMMWV project not here yet. So spending some time on the Chassis as we get ready for winter and real work!

The first thing was to finish the rear springs, which have been floating (annoyingly) around my modeling bench all summer. Nothing here much more complicated than the front springs, so I won't go into great detail. I put in a lot fewer leaves because an automobile chassis simply doesn't need as many leaves as a heavy armored car. So a more 'delicate' spring pack!



Here is a slightly closer view with the retaining shackles in place. Those are bent brass tube with 8BA brass threaded rod soldered inside.



Now it's on to the axle and torque tube. That has been on my bench much of the summer as I contemplated what I am going to do with it. Lots of small brass bolts and nuts for sure. But we'll see what else. Brake levers for sure... We'll see.

First, Kian and the team presented a bit of a poser... different numbers of holes! That is... I don't 'think' I drilled those. But maybe I did. Anyhoo... there are 16 holes on one... and 12 on the other. And that makes putting the bolts in a bit challenging. Solution was to mill off the 12-hole flange and I'll just bond the halves together with Loctite and put brass bolts/nuts in a single flange. It will look official, anyway!



Rear drums needed a bit of alteration to match right on with a Ghost. So one fin was cut off and the outside was tapered. The rivets are to hold in the inner brake ring for the hand brake. Some were riveted... some bolted. I decided to use 1/32" rivets rather than 14 BA bolts. I also cut out the backs of the drums to create room for brakes. Will I make brakes? I am not sure... Maybe one set of shoes and leave a backing plate off? It's something I'm contemplating.



One detail that has bothered me is the rear cover. Highly-visible on a chassis and while beautifully machined... the original had cast 'raised' letters not recessed. I ended up cutting back the inside of the plate a bit and using brass wire and cyanoacrylate, made raised lettering. Which I filed flat and then lightly bead-blasted. They look just spiffy and exactly what I was looking for! Under paint, they will be perfect.



With these details out of the way, it came time to align the rear tubes and axle halves. I cut scallops into the flange of the rear 'pumpkin' as on the original. And added extra holes to flanges, etc. As this will not be motorized, I was willing to remove material and thin flanges, etc. in ways that I would not do with an RC Armored car. But as this is static... lots of room to play.



Here is the inside of the drum and some additional close-ups of the machining/drilling on the axle itself. Next phase will be tapping a ton of holes, fitting studs and nuts. The 'blanks' that are supplied with the kit will go on my armored car chassis which will be under... armor. But this static display I am going all out on little fasteners and details. Even under paint... they will be really authentic-looking!



That's it for this weekend... As the weather turns, expect lots of updates! And as travel is a PITA, not going to go to my usual week of hunting in Ohio... so will have a long Thanksgiving weekend to work on the chassis. Once the rear axle is done... there is not a ton left to do before assembly. I want to figure out a way to 'lighten' the gas tank. Contemplating making a brass one. It will be a lot of work, but would be a really nice unit. Or milling out a lot of the center of this one and 'capping' the ends to create a lighter tank. Lots of options to keep me up at night.

Cheers,

RPR

[Phil Woollard]

Beautiful work as usual keep it coming.

[Robert E Morey]

Awesome details Robert. I really like the raised letters on that housing. Lots of tiny brass parts for the letters. You are really doing this kit justice.
Best regards,
B

[simon_manning]

Great to see you back on Robert, keep it coming for the winter months, regards simon manning.

[Armortek]

First, Kian and the team presented a bit of a poser... different numbers of holes! That is... I don't 'think' I drilled those. But maybe I did. Anyhoo... there are 16 holes on one... and 12 on the other.

You didn't drill them Pierce
We had a few questions about that over the last 2 years or so. We did that so that the parts could not be rivetted or bolted together. Although not an issue on a static model, on an RC model, those two parts in question do need to rotate against each other.
On the real thing, the torsion tube would have twisted (and done its job that way) - in reality, on a scale model you would not get that degree of twist, so the compromise was to allow the two parts to rotate against each other.

[Robert Reid]

First, Kian and the team presented a bit of a poser... different numbers of holes! That is... I don't 'think' I drilled those. But maybe I did. Anyhoo... there are 16 holes on one... and 12 on the other.

You didn't drill them Pierce
We had a few questions about that over the last 2 years or so. We did that so that the parts could not be rivetted or bolted together. Although not an issue on a static model, on an RC model, those two parts in question do need to rotate against each other.
On the real thing, the torsion tube would have twisted (and done its job that way) - in reality, on a scale model you would not get that degree of twist, so the compromise, was to allow the two parts to rotate against each other.

That makes total sense!!!

As I am sort of working on doing an actual working sphere out of brass... I think I can still get it to work.

Old School ball-cutting apparatus... it's on my "Let's try this just for the hell of it..." list.

Static models give lots of room to play!

Cheers and thanks for the info!

RPR

[Robert Reid]

This weekend's project is designed to answer the "Poser" from last weekend. Need to make a working sphere. At least working enough for a static model. The sphere is one of the iconic parts of a Ghost. On a RC armored car, the factory solution is utterly brilliant. But I wanted something that was aesthetically identical and would look nice on a static model.

So here is what we are trying to replicate. It's the sphere. Which is how they controlled the rear axle with its rigid torque tube. It's a ball inside a ball... lapped together with a level of precision that boggles the mind. Because in Edwardian times, labor amounted to nothing. While perfection was where the money was.

Here are some pictures of the original sphere setup. Tomorrow, I think I will have some pictures of the replica. If I am not hospitalized from digging out 50 yds of phone line that broke... in the middle of roots, debris and detritus here at Schloss Nitrocellulose. Debating just having a heart attack now to save myself the distraction later.

Here are some pix to give you an idea of what we are trying to replicate!!!

















Tomorrow some insight onto how this got replicated.... but for anyone interested in the actual design of the Sphere... here it is!

Cheers,

RPR

[Robert Reid]

So the Ghost chassis really need a sphere... like a real working one. Even though it's a static model. Some things just need doing.

But before I could properly make one, I needed to make a proper dividing head with a chuck on it. So I converted an old lathe chuck with a mounting plate and set it up to hold round work. The dividing head is actually just my small rotary table. But with a proper chuck on it... it becomes a dividing head. Without having to buy one. And when you have a dividing head and an adjustable boring bar... and set your milling machine head at 45 degrees... you can cut perfect spherical cups (or balls). In any diameter that your boring head can reach out to!



So by setting up a brass chunk, I was able to make to inside spheres, just right to take a nice old steering ball pin from (no coincidence) a Rolls-Royce Small HP... and adapt it to be my inner sphere. Here we see the head spinning as I rotate the table, gradually scorping out a perfectly spherical outer sphere.




Once the boring bar work was finished, I had two perfectly matching inner spheres where my ball pin would nest with nothing but rotary movement. I actually cut the 'cups' a bit deep, then gradually cut back the mating faces on the lathe until the ball was perfectly mated. The ball was machined so that it still has a post that will fit into the rear of the transmission. I'll be making a plate to cover the hole in the transmission...



With the outer ball cut 'inside' It was time to make the outer features. I actually forgot to take a picture of radius-cutting which put the outer radius and flange on. But the flange and the rear boss were machined on and will accept the torque tube. It is bolted on with 12 nuts on studs on the real thing. Thanks to the beauty of a rotary table with a degree wheel, putting 12 exactly spaced holes in is as easy as turning 30 degrees and drilling a hole! Easy peasy!



Next came the scallops that, again, are part of the original... see above post. Again, dividing head and a 1/8" mill made short work of the features.



And here we see the flanges getting drilled to hold the two sections of sphere together.



Now that I know the halves will bolt together perfectly (with the ball inside to align things) it's time to work on the torque tube itself. It will be over-long now that the sphere is fitted. But before cutting it, I made up a matching flange that will carry the torque tube and bolt to the rear outer shell of the sphere. It slides into the torque tube, which will be shortened to position the axle. Had to remove the factory sphere



And here we see the almost-finished unit after turning up the posts to fit on the inner sphere. They will anchor the ball to the chassis allowing the outer pair of cups to rotate around it and control the sphere. The original has a very complex universal joint inside... But I will draw the line at making that Besides, the ball is solid. But this shows the entire arrangement including the flange that is loosely inserted into the torque tube for the photo. The nuts are adopted from 2BA castle nuts.



I have not finished all the mounting... or adding all the studs. Most will be 8BA and 10BA . I figure that between axle, transmission and various flanges, I will have something like 100 studs to fit next weekend. But you can also the 'plate' on the back of the transmission that now carries the ball for the torque tube.



The sphere will get hung from the crossmember and then the diagonal bars will connect the whole unit securely to the rear crossmember. Hopefully next weekend. The hard part is done. The machining on that sphere was a bit of an interesting process!

Cheers,

RPR

[Vince Cutajar]

Great description of making the inside cup.

Vince

[Robert Reid]

So only got about a half day to work this weekend... expecting 7" of snow on Monday... Great. So spent most of the weekend getting farm buttoned up.

But spent a few relaxing hours fitting studs, nuts and getting the torque tube and axle ready for next steps and stages. A lot of 8 - 12BA fasteners tapped in. Final set the length of the torque tube. Did a bit of reshaping on the pumpkin itself... to get rid of the sharp edges. And fitted up the side tubes, torque tube and rear cover. Though there is a lot more work I am going to do on the axle assembly itself.

No real deep descriptions of things this week... just some pretty pictures. Not far from having a rolling chassis, though! Need to get a gas tank done, too. That needs some pondering.



Drum in place with hub just resting there for now. Going to make some brake backing plates and cruss shafts, but not going to go as far as shoes!



Wheel in place just for a pretty picture!



The heart of the project last few days... is the sphere itself. I still have to make the attachments and the braces. But it works as it should! And looks like it should!



Another angle on the sphere showing the output flange from the transmission. Once everything is braced in, the rear axle will be able to fully articulate as intended through the sphere. Which will be the only thing holding the rear axle on! Just like in the real thing. A shame it will be static... it looks like it wants to run!



Torque tube flange... worked around Kian's odd hole set... Sorry Kian! But now it looks like it should!



Rear axle with all its studs and 8BA, 12 BA and 10 BA studs and nuts on it. See my 'translation chart' in the engine thread for how it all translates to 1/6th scale. Also did a bit of re-shaping on the pumpkin to get rid of the sharp edges and make it look a bit more sculpted like the original. Not important on an RC Armored car... but makes a chassis look great!

I think I toted up the time on trying to do the modified chassis vs. the stock chassis. And I think I could probably do a stock chassis in about 40 - 60 hours. Which is what I'll do under the Armored car. And I'd end up with an amazing model. I think I have 20 hours just in the rear axle so far. But damnation, doesn't it look amazing? This is what modeling is all about. A blank canvas and time is relaxation!

Cheers,

RPR