Shed Matters 3

[Stanley]

I turned the bed casting over and refined it using first the 5/8" cutter I modified yesterday and then the normal 1" end mill. I finished up with all the necessary bits cleaned up and all square with each other. Tomorrow I shall break the edges and clean up. This has been another good hour producing nice results. No I am off for my breakfast!

[Stanley]

Only one image this morning. I spent the first half an hour refining the surface finish of the base and bed but not to the point where they didn't look like castings. Once that was done I drilled the lugs on the castings clearance for the 2BA bolts that hold the bed on to the base and for the holding down screws on to the base in the case of the base. Then I drilled and tapped the bed for two of the 2BA bolts and when they were tightened down, marked the bed for the remaining two bolts at the flywheel end. That was where I finished. I will complete that tomorrow. Now for breakfast!

[Stanley]

I carried on drilling and tapping for the bolts that hold the bed down onto the base. Once they were done I screwed the base down onto the temporary wooden plinth it will live on for a while while I carry on with fitting parts as I complete them. Next I replaced the vise on the bed of the VM and trammed it in to make sure it is parallel. That's where I finished up, quiet progress and I'm ready for breakfast!

[Stanley]

I started with the steam chest lid but didn't get any further because it had horrible cold short corners which were hard enough to destroy the cutting edge on my HSS end mill. I was forced to use it for some operations to achieve perfectly square cuts but then had to finish most of it on the grinding wheel. I finished up with a decent result but it's a 16th of an inch thicker than normal. I shall deal with that when I come to the studs that hold the steam chest and lid on to the cylinder.I had to sharpen the cutter on the T&C grinder three times..... Now for breakfast!

[Stanley]

This morning I focus on lids. The first one I tackled was the back lid. I cleaned it up and reduced its thickness before making the register for the bore fit. Then I moved on to the front lid. So far I have adjusted the register of the gland with the target on the bed. Tomorrow I shall address the drilling for the piston road and the gland. At no time did I have an easy grip on the lids, much of this work depends on friction. No mistakes and quiet process, just what we like!

[Stanley]

More careful work on the front lid. This included drilling it 1/4" for the piston rod and 1/2" for the piston rod gland. Only one pic needed. The cylinder now has two lids.

[Stanley]

I shifted my attention to the piston rod and piston. It took me 45 minutes to make the rod.... You might well ask why. The answer is that I had to make two because when I had almost finished the first one I realised it was an eighth of an inch short. I hadn't checked my measurement! So I had to find a piece of 1/4" rod and make another. Then I had a clean up of Mrs Harrison and went for a furtle in my treasure chests for a piece of bronze to make the piston. As usual they gave me a solution.
The bleeding obvious piece of advice based on this morning is measure twice before cutting once. And second, build up your treasure chests as soon as possible. Never time wasted and you should see the price of 2" diameter bronze rod today.....

[Big Kev]

I reckon this belongs here, it was in the museum in Prague.
A new project perhaps?

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[Stanley]

I was once asked to make something similar but declined on the grounds that fitting could have been embarrassing.....

[Stanley]

Today the focus was on making the piston, mounting it on its rod and ensuring it was a fit in the cylinder. It took me an hour because I had difficulty seeing this morning for some reason. However, I finished up with a job successfully done.

[Stanley]

This morning I shifted my attention to the crosshead and its guides. The material supplied by Stuarts is oversized and I suspect it is key steel. I say this because I had to do a very careful and thorough re-sharpen of my milling cutter before I could get a clean cut. I finished up after an hour of careful cutting half way towards guides ready for installation. That comes tomorrow. Now it's breakfast time.

[Stanley]

Only one task today, to cut out the rebate in the crosshead guides that eventually forms the bed for the crosshead to run in. Very careful milling and I got away with it. Then square the ends and mill back to the correct length. I am ready now to drill the holes for the holding down bolts. But today it's time for breakfast!

[Stanley]

Today is fixing the crosshead slides to the bed. First I marked the hole positions for 5BA clearance on the slides and drilled them. Then I marked the bed with witness marks on either side and did the same for the slides so that they are always mounted in the correct position. Next I marked the position of one hole in each of the slides. Tomorrow I shall drill and tap those, fit the slides and mark for the other holes. I didn't want to start that today so spent the rest of my hour in the shed cleaning Mrs Harrison, harvesting the non-ferocious swarf and leaving everything ready for tomorrow. Now for breakfast and second sleep.....

[Stanley]

Only one image needed. This morning the job was to drill and tap for the 6 5BA bolts that secure the guides to the crosshead. I was already set up and so it just needed 45 minutes of careful drilling and tapping under the pillar drill. The picture is of the bed at closing time with all the bolts fitted. No point starting anything else in the time I had left.
Now for breakfast!

[Stanley]

This morning was the start of making the bronze bearings for the crankshaft. The job was made much more difficult by the fact that the stock supplied by Stuarts was far too big and mismatched, they had been very badly cut. I could have cut them back to what I wanted but it seemed such a waste. So my time was spent finding two pieces of scrap in the treasure chest and cutting them back to accurate blanks for the bearings. I'm glad I took the trouble. Not only have I rescued two pieces of scrap but I haven't wasted the material in the Stuart stock. Now for breakfast!

[Stanley]

I started by making the fop brass surfaces look pretty and then got into cutting the slots in the bottom brasses that allow them to sit in the bed casting. I had got two brasses that fit by closing time and checked the clearance for the cheeks of the flyshaft. Tomorrow I shall finish work on the brasses . Now is the time for breakfast!

[Stanley]

This morning the task was to finish fitting the bearing bronzes for the3 flyshaft, drill the top brasses clearance for 4BA and drill and tap the horns on the bed 4BA and fit the studs. Then fit the caps and their nuts. It took an hour and a quarter but is a good step forward. I am ready now for my breakfast.

[Stanley]

The first job this morning was to make sure the holding down studs for the top brasses were properly bedded in the horns of the bed and that includes Loctiting them. Then I set the bed up under the pillar drill and bored the brasses to accept the crankshaft. Once that was done I fitted the brasses, that included cleaning up the faces after boring and drilling the oil holes all the way through into the bearing. I am almost finished with that after over an hour in the shed. I shall finish the job tomorrow. The next job now is breakfast!

[BobH]

Coming along nicely Stanley. I haven't been in the workshop so much recently, too many clinic appointments. Today's time is 3:15 so I did manage a bit on the trailer for the Clayton Steam wagon. I pressed the rubber treads onto the rims after deciding not to glue them. They are a good tight fit so in the unlikely event that they do slip I can glue them then. I assembled the wheels to the axle and adjusted the brakes. The drum brakes were bought as conversion kits for bicycles, less than £15 each.

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[Stanley]

Those Tyres don't look as though they are going anywhere Bob. Lovely to see you posting. You are very much in my thoughts. I like the brakes and well done for thinking sideways!

[Stanley]

The first job was to make sure the crankshaft was a good fit in the new bearings. It was on the tight side but that's what I was aiming for. It will soon run in to a perfect fit. I built it up, tightened the bearings and used the drill to drive it until the initial tightness had eased. Then I broke everything down and refined the castings ready for painting which is the next job. I got everything ready for this and then knocked off early, I do not want to be rushed, my painting is bad enough without imposing further handicaps! Now for breakfast!

[Stanley]

The results from 45 minutes in the shed and yes, it's not good but I have big problems with painting as I can't see properly. In case you're wondering, the flywheel has been painted and is hung up to dry. It will all come right as I build the engine, I'm just glad I have got this stage out of the way!

[Stanley]

I have declined the shed this morning for two reasons. It will be good to give the paint I put on yesterday another 24 hours to harden and secondly I have a busy day ahead and need to go to the Co-op for early doors shopping. I shall relax for half an hour......

[Stanley]

The aim this morning was to remove the overpainting, refine the components and build the engine up on the temporary plinth ready for the work that remains and the fitting. The flywheel was re-finished in the lathe and at the conclusion I was starting to make a spacing collar to go onto the crankshaft to give the flywheel more clearance from the base casting. An enjoyable hour and we are making progress.

[Stanley]

Only one image needed this morning. I spent 45 minutes doing just one thing, mounting the flywheel on the crankshaft after making and fitting the collar that ensures it has a sensible clearance from the base casting. One confession, I had bored the flywheel over size so I knurled the crankshaft to take up the slack...... Now for breakfast!