30-04-2018, 06:29 AM
(This post was last modified: 30-04-2018, 06:34 AM by Tony Press.)
The excellent Pre War Dealerships site has a 1932 Larke Hoskins (Sydney) advertisement that includes a note regarding the fitting of the Humfrey Sandberg Free Wheel for an extra 10 pound.
I haven't seen this before and did some research-
Motor Sport Article May 1974
An even better-known device was the Humfrey-Sandberg uni-directional clutch. It was a product of Humfrey-Sandberg Ltd. of Transport House, Victoria, who had registered offices at Imperial Chemical House, Millbank. This was again a free/"jammed" roller-race mechanism, claimed to obviate local loading of its circumference and not to rely on special friction surfaces or powerful springs for its engagement. Engagement was effected by a ratchet-reducing-gear operable through the very smallest of practicable radii or angular movement. Used as a free-wheel behind a car's gearbox it was claimed to save from 15% to 30% on petrol bills, conserve engine oil, reduce the frequency of decarbonising (which dates it!), and reduce wear on engine, transmission and tyres. A stubby auxiliary "gear" lever actuated the free-wheel lock.
The Humfrey-Sandberg was intended as a ratchet-reducing-gear applicable to all kinds of feed controls, for mechanical paralleling or series-ing of prime movers, and as the main clutch for low-starting-torque electric motors, etc., by manual or centrifugal operation. As a free-wheel it was made for the Austin 7, the Austin 12, the six-cylinder Morris cars, Morris-Oxfords up to 1929, and Morris vans, and was an option on AC, Alvis, Armstrong Siddeley Twelve, Jowett and MG cars.
Patent-
title = "Free-wheel clutch with skew rollers",
number = "1834843",
author = "Willis, Humfrey John Charles",
year = "1931",
month = "December",
I haven't seen this before and did some research-
Motor Sport Article May 1974
An even better-known device was the Humfrey-Sandberg uni-directional clutch. It was a product of Humfrey-Sandberg Ltd. of Transport House, Victoria, who had registered offices at Imperial Chemical House, Millbank. This was again a free/"jammed" roller-race mechanism, claimed to obviate local loading of its circumference and not to rely on special friction surfaces or powerful springs for its engagement. Engagement was effected by a ratchet-reducing-gear operable through the very smallest of practicable radii or angular movement. Used as a free-wheel behind a car's gearbox it was claimed to save from 15% to 30% on petrol bills, conserve engine oil, reduce the frequency of decarbonising (which dates it!), and reduce wear on engine, transmission and tyres. A stubby auxiliary "gear" lever actuated the free-wheel lock.
The Humfrey-Sandberg was intended as a ratchet-reducing-gear applicable to all kinds of feed controls, for mechanical paralleling or series-ing of prime movers, and as the main clutch for low-starting-torque electric motors, etc., by manual or centrifugal operation. As a free-wheel it was made for the Austin 7, the Austin 12, the six-cylinder Morris cars, Morris-Oxfords up to 1929, and Morris vans, and was an option on AC, Alvis, Armstrong Siddeley Twelve, Jowett and MG cars.
Patent-
title = "Free-wheel clutch with skew rollers",
number = "1834843",
author = "Willis, Humfrey John Charles",
year = "1931",
month = "December",
