Member postings for Andrew Tinsley

Just not worth tinkering with. Replacement gauges are cheap and plentiful. I am sure making an adapter would be simple enough for a model engineer.

Andrew

This reminds me of the law passed down from above, that it is VITAL to get the tool dead centre if turning a taper. This has been repeated down the ages. If you don't get it centre height you will get barrel or pincushion type distortion that will ruin the job.

GHT debunked that theory and showed that you could be quite a way off below centre height before problems occurred (see A "Workshop Manual" by GHT.). It only took a very simple calculation to show that the claim did not hold up.

Andrew.

Lindsay have ceased publishing. So either a secondhand copy or a Kindle version is the best you will be able to do.

Regards,

Andrew.

Hello Howard,

The magic oil is simply something like SAE 40. There is a small vertical cylinder with a cap, near the valve lifter,which you fill with maybe a couple of cc of oil. . Using the valve lifter, you then slowly crank up the engine to the best speed you can manage and drop the valve lifter and off she goes.

This cold start solution is built into the engine by Petter and its use is explained in the manual. I am not sure how or why it works, but it is a very effective cold start device.

Regards,

Andrew.

Hello Howard,

The magic oil is simply something like SAE 40. There is a small vertical cylinder with a cap, near the valve lifter,which you fill with maybe a couple of cc of oil. . Using the valve lifter, you then slowly crank up the engine to the best speed you can manage and drop the valve lifter and off she goes.

This cold start solution is built into the engine by Petter and its use is explained in the manual. I am not sure how or why it works, but it is a very effective cold start device.

Regards,

Andrew.

Howard,

Thanks for your words of wisdom based on real life experience. Maybe I should not be a cheapskate!

Thanks,

Andrew.

Hello Nigel,

The AB1 diesel is in fact a very easy starter even when cold. As long as you follow the start procedure laid down in the manual. Mine has been outside in minus 6 Centigrade and started first time with the magic oil prime.

The overhaul was caused by neglect on my part. I have not had a power cut for a long time (The feed into the village was uprated). I pulled it out to check it still ran and give it an oil change, filter changes etc. Much to my dismay there was a large amount of piston blow by. Turned out that the inlet valve was open and condensation occurred in the cylinder, then rust.. I should have sealed off the inlet and exhaust tract before storage. Live and learn!

I have a nasty feeling that we may be heading for power shortages this winter, hence wanting to get it back together.

Andrew.

Hello Steve,

Many thanks for that clarification. I have had more of my fair share of Eberspachers so it is well within my comfort zone.

Just a quick follow up, do the heaters come with all the necessary bits and pieces, exhausts, heat exchangers

and tanks etc.?

Andrew.

Seems to be a lot of theoretical replies. To be honest I am only interested in practical results on this type of old Petter engine.

I am using 27 second heating oil in my central heating, so Noel's suggestions are relevant (yes it has the standard "add oil" device for starting). The AB1 is a stroked version of the AA1 thus giving a little more output. Oldiron seems to have a reasonable fix too.

Some people seem to think this is a modern diesel fitted with the latest gizzmos in injection pumps. Not so! it is a very simple and crude device which will keep running when all others fail.

Andrew.

Hello,

Are these diesel heaters like the Eberspacher, which if I remember correctly have a heat exchanger ? Looking on Ebay most of them seem to have gouts of flame coming from them. Trying to heat a workshop with these, seems to be asking for trouble, let alone rusting kit.

Could someone please clarify?

Andrew..

I have been overhauling this diesel generator set to cover power cuts in my rural area. I have since been confined to bed with a nasty infection which is limiting my mobility.

So I have been considering what fuel to use when I get back to finishing the overhaul. The handbook and workshop manual are helpful in defining the required fuel and pump diesel fills the bill. There is about 1£ per litre difference between heating oil and pump diesel. So it occurred to me to use the heating oil as a fuel.

Now the Petter AB1 is an old design and somewhat agricultural. I have run it for a short time, on heating oil during an emergency. So it certainly works.

However I have concerns for lubrication of the injector pump. I seem to recall that adding oil to the fuel overcomes this problem. Does it work? If so, how much oil and what grade would be best?

Injector pumps are not overly expensive, so I am happy to take some risk!

Andrew.

Another beekeeper here. I have the same tool and use it as Clive describes.

Andrew.

I looked up the magnets on the Zoro website. It describes the plating system and the reason why they are plated. Namely to protect against corrosion.

Andrew.

There are some surprisingly cheap and accurate capacity meters available on Ebay. Checked mine against a very expensive capacity meter and there is little if any difference in results! It takes all of the guessing out of the equation.

Andrew.

Coke is still a good idea for very large boilers (71/4" narrow gauge and larger). I used a coke bed with a small blower and a couple of large propane burners and did the silver soldering with help from an oxy-acetylene torch. You can't have too much heat with really big jobs.

I have read that coke can put impurities in the soldered joints as well as particulates. I have never had any problems , so a pinch of salt is required.

The difficulty I found was not getting overheated myself, I doubt, with my advancing years, that I could cope these days.

Andrew.

The quality of the Evri service is almost completely down to the guy doing the delivery. Right now we have a superb chap and the Evri service is excellent. Pity that should a good man has to put up with the Evri conditions and pay, he deserves better.

Andrew.

It isn't an electrolytic capacitor, so you can connect it either way around.

Andrew.

I usually buy carbon steel taps for those threads that I rarely use and HSS for those common threads that are regularly used.

Unlike most members, I find that HSS taps are the ones that break. I have yet to destroy a carbon steel tap (that is tempting fate!)

I normally get my taps from Tracy Tools or the Tap and Die Company. I have a special need for some largish odd ball taps and I get these from China. I can't afford the prices of UK suppliers for these items.

If you buy reasonable quality carbon steel taps (I use "quality" despite Dave's objection) from Tracy Tools, then I find them to be sharper than the HSS ones that they also supply. OK they do lose their edge quicker than HSS, but then it depends on the frequency of use as to which gives the better service.

I always use either a pedestal drill, or a unit made from a cheap Lidl electric power drill stand (like Howard) and better still, do your tapping in the lathe. Unless it is impossible, I NEVER tap a hole freehand.

As a rider, I did buy some taps and dies from Argos about 40 years ago. They were very cheap and would qualify for the description of rubbish using price as the determining factor. I still have them and most of them are still sharp. So cheap and nasty can actually be cheap and good!

Andrew.

Edited By Andrew Tinsley on 15/12/2022 11:35:04

Well that is interesting. I have always considered the iron to be a Weller. The elements are indeed 315, 370 and 430 degrees centigrade. I believe that the voltage is 24 V ac, from what I can recall. It certainly isn't 240 V ac.

Looks dubious if I can find replacement. Maybe I should retire the set when the last bit dies! If the iron isn't a Weller, I wonder which company made it? Just curiosity on my part.

Thanks everyone,

Andrew.

I am pretty certain that there isn't an RS catalogue number on the station. But I will brave the cold and go take a look in the workshop.

Andrew.