Member postings for Adrian Giles

Speedy Builders, - That was the one I was looking at,

Video on yootoob shows one being used.

But I don't know how to link it! 😡

Many years ago, when I first started work, I sold a hover mower to Charlie Watts. Some time later, his gardener came to us refusing to use the machine. It turned out that the blade had broken in half at the blade bolt during use! The bolt was still in place! Neither half of the blade was ever found!

Seeing Danny M2Z's post about the SAAB problems, reminded me of the Yootoob vid of Clarke & Dawe "The front fell off". Cracks me up every time, especially the ending with the ministerial car !

Aussie humour, brilliant!

Edited By Adrian Giles on 01/04/2017 14:21:53

Edited By Adrian Giles on 01/04/2017 14:28:22

ChrisH, - That was the basic idea behind it, but having the faceplate horizontal meant that it wasn't such a struggle to mount items without gravity making them difficult, without three hands. I can still see if it all runs true with a clock, and get a good idea of balance horizontally. The main advantage is with the four-jaw chuck, using two keys, it is an awful lot easier to centralise items if you can spin the chuck round to get to opposing jaws, without having to reach over the lathe to do it. I still clock and adjust once chuck or faceplate is mounted on the lathe.

Thanks Michael,

Anyone for 'horses doovers'😉

I knocked up a little turntable to fit the four-jaw chuck and the faceplate for my lathe, as I find trying to mount items on the latter without three hands a tad difficult. Gravity helps to hold things in place a lot better when the faceplate is horizontal, and you can centre things fairly accurately before mounting on the lathe to finalise the setting. II used a piece of 3" ally mounted in the 3 jaw , faced off , skimmed the length to size, just under the diameter to fit inside the chuck mounting bolts, turned down a section at the end 72mm to be a snug fit in the back of the chuck, and chamfered the shoulder. Parted off at 35mm , faced off the remaining slug and centre drilled. At this point I must own up that I did make a mistake, I had intended to turn a spigot for the bearing from this slug, but there wasn't enough left, so had to turn up a separate spigot, from brass, instead. I then drilled and bored a 13mm hole in the piece to a suitable depth, about 10mm, to take the lower end of the spigot. Drilled 6.5mm hole through remainder for locating screw to hold spigot to base. The piece was then reversed in the chuck and the base faced off, and the centre screw hole countersunk to suit a suitable screw. The body was then mounted in the chuck and faced, centre drilled, drilled and bored out to take the bearing as a snug push fit. The brass spigot was turned to fit the bearing centre and the base , leaving a small flange between the two diameters to leave clearance between the two main components. Press fit the bearing, press in the spigot, fit the base and fix with the screw. Stick on four rubber non slip feet, job done! 

Edited By Adrian Giles on 28/03/2017 21:37:54

It never ceases to amaze me with the blinkered thought regarding "listed" buildings. Majority of older buildings would have started life as a small dwelling, and grown with the owners wealth and family needs. Evolving over the centuries, to become what we see now. But the minute "listing " is applied, all evolution stops dead! Some of the decisions taken on replacement items like windows, kitchens, gutters etc, by the authorities, are downright stupid, and in some instances, backward! Common sense seems to have been phased out! It does seem sometimes that the authorities would rather see a building fall down than allow somebody to sensitively refurbish to a reasonable more modern standard.

Edited By Adrian Giles on 22/03/2017 23:41:09

As Clarke machines are 'similar' to others on the market, look on Arc website for spare parts. My CMD10 has virtually everything the same as the SX1, and as Arc carry most spares in stock, well worth a try.

A colleague at work bought himself a brand new Snap-on pair of side cutters. First job he did was to cut off the mains cable from a defunct hedge trimmer, bit of a pop and bang, mains was still plugged in and switched on! Blew a hole in the cutters, and he got them replaced under warranty!!

Hi Eric, those engines are superb, that Anzani sounds brilliant! I can only drool and try to make better quality cock-ups in future!

Not today but Tuesday, went up to Milton Keynes for a family funeral. Stayed in a hotel in Newport Pagnell, and went to Bletchley Park, amazing place! When you think that nearly nine thousand people worked there during the war, and they all kept what they did and knew to themselves for years afterwards, is astonishing. A real eye opener was the complexity and standards of engineering in those code-breaking "bombe" machines! Towards the end of the war they were producing up to two a week, at a cost of £7.5K each, bearing in mind that the house and grounds were bought by Mr Sinclair for just under £8K. Paid for it himself as the MOD prevaricated and he wanted to get going. Next day walked up the street to the Aston-Martin factory and had a look round their selection of second hand motors in the heritage centre, different engineering again, quite fancied a 1965 DB4, but couldn't quite justify the £795K they wanted for it, although it did come with a year's warranty.

I bought a way cover for my lathe from Amadeal, but I can't see it on their site now. Two magnets hold it to the headstock, and two to the saddle, concertina affair, very handy. Apart from the swarf sticking to the magnets!

You can't smoke a tube!😂😂

Thought I'd fettle my second engine, to take some photos to put in an album. I'ts a simple reciprocator, and I've been some time finishing it, due to getting impatient and starting on my Stuart Beam!

Anyway, started stripping it apart, only for the tension spring to launch itself into space! Even after fifteen minutes of searching, I still don't know which bit of space it's occupying! So, search my "resources " boxes, and eventually find a replacement, albeit slightly stronger. Finish off cleaning and polishing and start to re-assemble, struggle slightly to fit the new spring, but it goes on OK. All together, looking good, just connect up the air pipe to give it a gentle blow-through. Turns over four or five times, then something whizzes past my ear at a rate of knots, off into further space! It's the complete cylinder pivot pin, Spring, washer and nut, pulled itself out of the cylinder and launched itself to that space in the universe bits use when they don't want to be found!

Oh well, back to the lathe and start again😔

Both of our bedroom tv's have built in disc players, very handy!

Could be worse, could be a 'civil' engineer!😂

I'll get me coat!

Due to total lack of headroom in my shed, conventional lighting was out. Bought one of the 3metre led self-adhesive strips, and stuck it up in a U shape along the ceiling cladding over the bench. Absolutely brilliant, gives virtually shadow free light over my lathe and mill, can see my c**k-ups so much better now!😂

Nicked from another ME.

I am a self-taught model engineer, I didn't have a good teacher, but I was a good student!

Ade

My son, before he built a shed, had EIGHT monkey bikes in his lounge! Fortunately SWMBO was at ease!