MR RICHARD T TRENK SR wrote:
> I still liked the old 1914 Claudel on which I was involved. My 1920
> Buick K45 has the very FIRST compound carb. which is a two throat
> with a primary and the secondary operating on increased air velocity,
> just as we saw "reinvented" back in the early 50s in the USA.
>
> In answer to one message received from the list, the full name of the
> carb. is" Claudel-Hobson" and surprisingly....it actually found it's
> way onto a Sunbeam at one time.
> In 1925, Sunbeam came out with a new sports car based on their Grand
> prix contender . This was another design by the chief designer for S.
> T.D. Ltd , Louis Coatalen. What a great mind he had, and what a joy
> to know him and absorb cutting edge info at that time.
> The 1925 3.0 litre six cylinder he designed had twin OH cams, seven
> main bearings, twin carbs. Cams were shaft driven by helical gears
> and it was LOUD above 3000 rpm , in fact I would say it actually made
> a high pitch howl sound and conversation was impossible at speed.
> While the sports car was a good seller, it placed well in only one
> major event....the 1925 Le Mans, where it beat out such cars as the 3-
> litre Bentley..to finish 2nd . I have a scar today, from being burned
> on the hot engine while leaning on the exposed exhaust pipe.
> The model carried on into 1931 with good sales but not much in the
> way of race major wins.
> The two Claudel Hobson carbs helped produce 105 bhp at 3800rpm and
> top speed for this two seat roadster was about 90-92 mph (at a time
> when 70mph was considered a VERY fast car).
> Naturally, I was involved with carb services and training during this
> period.
The 3 litre wasn't the only Sunbeam to receive Claudel-Hobson
carburettors. They were widely used across the Sunbeam range before and
after the First World War. They seem to have first appeared on Sunbeams in
1910 (presumably an earlier design to the one Dick describes) and faded
out of the range around 1930.
Russell (wishing I had a 3 litre)
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