Member postings for James Alford

John.

I used Sifbronze. I used whatever variety was cheapest, to be honest, mostly buying it in 1kg packets from CupAlloy.

James.

If you have a compressor, why not try? I was brazing a very large copper sculpture in the free air, without any firebricks.

I saw these devices, but they were more than I could justify, especially as I had a compressor.

James

This is the page which set me thinking. https://sites.google.com/site/gypsytinker2012/how-to/make-a-mako

My first attempt worked well, but the flame was rather bushy and lack direction. My second attempt was much more effective. It had a longer, narrower tube and more slots. I experimented a lot with sheet rolled into a tube to slide up and down the base part to try and get the optimum length.

The details below are for the first version which I made. I shall post a picture of the later version if you wish.

I had a disused oxy-acetylene torch and made a new nozzle to fit onto a swan neck. The sketch below gives the main dimensions, none of which seems to be too critical.

I made my torch before I had my lathe working, so everything it rather loose and wonky. I brazed it all together and it works.

I connected the air line from the torch to the hose from a compressor and the gas line to the propane tank. I have blow-back arrestors in both hoses. I use the torch with the compressor and propane set to full.

The settings on the torch controls themselves is quite critical and needs careful setting. However, once the right combination of gas and air is found, the flame is quite compact, extremely hot and very noisy.

This short video shows the torch running. The flame is off-centre, mainly because the whole thing is a little wonky. **LINK**

Edited By James Alford on 23/05/2019 21:26:29

I needed to do a lot of brazing on a large copper structure, but could not justify the cost of oxygen bottles or the gas. I fabricated a compressed air-propane torch which I ran off from a small compressor. It was no doubt less efficient than oxy-propane, but was still more than powerful enough to braze the structure well.

I made the torch using ideas from the web. It took a while to fine tune it, but the cost was negligible.

James.

Edited By James Alford on 23/05/2019 07:18:03

I live in Aylesbury (Buckinghamshire).

Snap.

James.

Thank you for the suggestions. If I see the person who gave it to me again, I shall ask her whether she has any idea what it is. I believe that the tools were her husband's who has, I think, died. Knowing what he did for a living might give a clue.

James.

Edited By James Alford on 02/12/2018 11:37:38

Edited By James Alford on 02/12/2018 11:33:35

I was posting from my phone and could not work out how to add the pictures............ Reverted to the laptop.

Can anybody identify this tool? It came in a box of old tools given to me recently. The button on top is part of a spring loaded plunger. There is a blade which travels to the end when the button is pressed. The blade travels in two slots to keep it steady. There is no evidence that as ever been hit with a hammer. It is well made, but there are no manufacturers' marks on it.

James.

Edited By James Alford on 02/12/2018 11:19:39

Edited By James Alford on 02/12/2018 11:20:20

Edited By James Alford on 02/12/2018 11:21:43

Thank you.

James.

Do the 0 MT arbors which you have found fit fully or do they protrude a long way? The only items that I have found so far are too long to fit properly.

James.

RevStew:

I was given on of these for Christmas three or four years ago: it came from E-bay, but it would have been a lot less than £835 (probably about £180) although it did not have the screw-cutting gears with it, just the standard leadscrew.

I have not made anything large with it yet, just small tools, an adjustable height tool post and an attachment for an an oil line for a car.

I am pleased with it: it was not worn and everything works well. The biggest frustration is the difficulty in finding fitments for the headstock with the correct thread. Someone kindly sleeved and re-threaded a metric chuck for me and I have made my own collet holder which seems to be accurate. I also fitted a DTI on an arm to allow accurate turning, mainly because I struggled to read the calibrations on handwheels. Overall, a nice lathe which is easy to use and I am very much a beginner.

James.

Edited By James Alford on 25/11/2018 09:22:18

Edited By James Alford on 25/11/2018 09:22:39

Is there a tool charity near you? I recently bought an Austin Seven which needs a complete rebuild, including body. I need some Whitworth and BSF tools to work on it. I have yet to visit the shop, but they tell me that they have a box full of the things through which I can rummage. I suspect that AF would be available.

James.

I use a compressor regularly, quite late in the evening. I bought a "silent" 24 litre Orazi compressor from Amazon for £130.00: they do a smaller one for under £100.00. They are also on E-bay.

It is not silent, quite, but you can hold a normal conversation with ease when it runs. I only have a 14' x 8' garage, but if I am not next to it, I do not always realise that it has fired up if I am making any other noise.

**LINK**

Regards,

James.

We must be lucky around here as the two larger local breweries, Chiltern Brewery and Rebellion, turn out a good variety of beer, including some decent traditional ales. Nothing like the Brakespear Old or Weathered's Winter Royal were, mind.

James.

And I aspire to a larger garage sized 9' by 16' to house a workshop, bicycles, an Austin Seven and sundry garden bits and pieces...... Some of the workshops described sound about the same ground area as our house!

James.

I finally got around to fitting the 8mm belt that I bought a while ago and used the lathe for the first time in ages the other evening. The difference was quite remarkable, with not a hint of slipping, even when parting off.

It seems to have made the machine much less frustrating to use than before when the belt would slip with the slightest provocation.

Regards,

James.