Member postings for Andrew Tinsley

Hello Mick,

None of the 920 websites including Steve Bedairs actually shows anything much of practical use. I have - the manuals from Grizzly and Chester and again one can get a rough idea of where the pulley bushes go, but it is a bit of a fiddle!

Thanks,

Andrew.

P.S.It would be a shame to break the lathe and sell it as spares, it has had very little use.

Deleated!

Edited By Andrew Tinsley on 09/02/2018 19:53:56

Hello Old Iron,

It is all a bit of a puzzle, certain things have been dismantled ,like the change wheel set up and the pulley system! He has made a direct drive to the headstock from the motor, which is screwed to the bench rather than bolted to the machine!

It is no use asking the poor chap, as one is very unlikely to get any sort of answer, unfortunately.

I can make the change wheel bushes and set that up, because the holes are extant. But the pulley system is a bit more difficult. I am going to have to make a new bracket plate and play with the existing pulleys and pulley wheels to get some idea where the pulley bushes go.

I think it is one of those jobs that will be easy as soon as you get stuck in. Too much thinking probably makes the job seem much worse than it actually is!

Thanks,

Andrew.

At last I have the Chester 920 lathe in my workshop. seems in good condition and requires the usual upgrades.

it came from a fellow modeller who has been stricken with Alzheimer disease. He has unfortunately done some very strange things to the machine including throwing away the splash back and gear cover door. This isn't much of a problem, but he has done some even stranger things with the motor and associated pulleys!

The pulley wheels are mounted on what is called a Bracket plate (part nos P4000201) which is screwed to the side of the headstock. Now this bracket plate has been thrown away! I have most of the bushes and all of the pulleys.

Can anyone who has a 920 do dimensioned sketch of the bracket plate? The hole positions for the pulley bushes and idler gear is really all I want. I would buy a bracket plate from Chester, but they need a picture of the spare part, which I have not got!

I just hate trying to lay out something like this. I always seem to get it wrong! However I might just have to give it a try.

Andrew.

You can get lucky. I purchased a similar one from Woolworths a good few years ago. They are as accurate as a pricey Japanese caliper that I have. Battery life is remarkable too.

I have seen other cheap ones that were rubbish. There seems to be little rhyme or reason to the quality or accuracy.

Andrew.

It is the mounting bracket for a Dewhurst Forward / OFF / Reverse switch.

Andrew.

Well that seems to have panned Hackworth valve gear comprehensively. A friend's Romulus has not heard how bad it is. Which is fortunate, as it works extremely well in practice.

Andrew.

Edited By Andrew Tinsley on 05/02/2018 16:01:38

Thanks guys,

I have tried all the local flooring companies with no joy. I did mean lino, not oilcloth as I first said! As for oil tempered hardboard, I shall have to start googling for a supplier, it is something I have never come across!

Andrew.

I have had little luck with finding the old style oilcloth, that was used for surfacing workbenches of yesteryear.

Several people said that they used oiled hardboard these days. Now I am not too sure what oiled hardboard is unless it is bog standard hardboard with oil poured upon it?

Is this what is meant by oiled hardboard? Or is it a little more subtle? Any particular oil and how much?

Why should one use oil anyway, I would have thought that dry hardboard was just as good??

Regards,

Andrew.

Fruit press?

Andrew.

Hello Bazyle,

There seem to be very few people about, when did you take your photos? I always have to fight to get near anything of interest! Come on tell us all when this slack time is.

Andrew.

Catsan is about the best cat litter I have used. Don't quote me but I believe it to be Fullers earth. You will have to grind it up if you want to use it for casting purposes.

I don't have a clue if it suitable for casting, but my cats love it!

Andrew.

Hello Neil,

Your support of Chinese manufacturers who do comply with the CE regulations is to be wholeheartedly supported.

Unfortunately many Chinese companies do not warrant such support. There were several companies in China that sold counterfeit equipment into the EU based on the products of the company for whom I worked. All CE marked and looking kosher. The first counterfeit product actually beat us to the market place. They must have seen the item concerned at a trade show before we launched the product in the EU and US!

I know of quite a few very reputable Chinese companies, who realise that they need to comply with the regulations of the markets that they sell into. Their products are excellent and they compete on a level playing field as far as abiding by the regulations.

Their are other Chinese companies that are simply beyond the pale.

Andrew.

Edited By Andrew Tinsley on 20/01/2018 16:48:00

Herbert

You are absolutely spot on. Any corded product intended for home or commercial use should be tested by an independent test house. Any individual that declares the kit to be compliant must be an idiot unless he has lots of third party insurance!

The item that I referred to, was sold by a well known German manufacturer and made in the UK by a subsidiary of theirs. They INSISTED that any product made in the UK was certified by an accredited test house. I had to use one in Copenhagen as that test house offered the fastest turn around time.

They also certified the product for sale in the North American market at the same time.

Andrew.

I was plagued with continual logging on. I could leave the forum page on the screen and come back 20 minutes latter to find that I had to log on again!

Initially I could stay logged on for months without a problem, shutting down the computer didn't log me off.

Now the site has reverted to me logging on and staying logged on come what may! I don't think the problem has been with my computer as nothing has been change on it for a couple of years. Something a bit odd with he site methinks.

Andrew.

Hello John,

Not really knocking the 920 lathe, BUT there are some serious deficiencies, some of which you mention that you have fixed and others that you must be happy with. You get what you pay for, so no quibbles there.

I would not even consider buying a new 920 lathe, but if you are happy with yours, then fine, that is what this hobby is about!

I don't have the 920 lathe yet and the deal may well fall through for other reasons. However if someone wants to virtually give me a little used 920 lathe for absolute peanuts, then I will take it! I intend to sort out the deficiencies and then pass it on to a disabled friend who wants to indulge in some model making. It is easier for me to do the mods, so I shall not be using it myself.

So that is the reason I am getting the lathe, it were for my use, then I simply would not bother! But well worth while if it gets someone else started in the hobby!

Andrew.

Hello Chris,

Doesn't seem to be many suppliers in the UK selling Huanyang inverters for £90! There is a guy in Germany selling them for that sort of cash. Where did you get yours from?

Andrew.

In a past life, I had to get CE approval for a piece of kit that my company intended to market. One had to use a test house to certify everything before you could market the product in the EU.

One thing that amused me was the mains lead, which was sourced in China. It had no CE mark, I asked the company if they would get the leads and plugs CE certified. No problem they said the next batch will have the CE mark and by the way did I want any other markings on the product?

It turned out that the company would certify their products with the appropriate markings without any testing. SO BEWARE any Chinese sourced products with CE marks, the marks are probably faked!

Andrew.

Hello John,

I am aware of your success with Huangyang VFDs and also those that you have installed for friends. There is another person on the forum who seems to have a professional interest in inverters and his opinion is that they are a pretty poor piece of kit!

As ever on forums such as this, there is a wide range of opinions. I suppose I am always a touch pessimistic with Chinese kit and have to say there is some good stuff around and a perhaps larger amount of rubbish. I might just be tempted to give the Huangyang kit a try. perhaps against my better judgement!

Is there anyone UK based who supply them and actually give some form of warranty? Also do the Huangyang VFDs include filtering or is that extra?

One thing is for certain, I would not risk my hard earned cash by buying direct from China!

Andrew.