Member postings for Henry Artist

Since it will be some time before you begin your new project you may find it beneficial to watch Keith Appleton's videos on YouTube.

Keith Appleton's videos

You may like to obtain and read "Milling - A Complete Course" by Harold Hall. It is book #35 in the Workshop Practice Series.

What an ingenious idea Jim!

It's amazing what can be achieved with very simple tools.

I find ER collets super useful for holding parts accurately on my mini-lathe. They are especially useful when a part is removed from the chuck to have other work performed on it before returning it to the chuck and being able to maintain concentricity. Or, as others have mentioned, if the part is to be turned round e.g. when you want to machine both ends of an axle.

Because collets grip a part more securely than a 3-jaw scroll chuck it will not spin in the chuck when doing things like using taps and dies. (Been there, done that, said some rude words...)

The thing with ER collets is they are designed to very accurately hold a part that is at least as long as the collet. So what do you do if what you are trying to hold is shorter than the collet? The best solution I have found, so far, is to first insert a bar of exactly the same diameter as what you are trying to grip. It doesn't need to be the same material as the part (just the same diameter), aluminium or even delrin/acetal will do.

Further to the excellent suggestions and guidance already given I would strongly encourage you to obtain and read "The Mini-Lathe" by David Fenner. It is #43 in the Workshop Practice Series of books. This book will guide you through setting up your lathe and using it safely.

You may also find "The Model Engineer's Handbook" by Tubal Cain to be a wonderful source of information regarding the machining of different materials.

Though your needs may be simple right now, once you have a lathe you'll quickly realise that many things are possible and in a year's time you'll wonder how you ever lived without one.

If you've built a steam engine how about a boiler as your next project?

PM Research do a couple of boiler kits. The materials supplied with these kits are an absolute joy to machine. The only problems I have with them is translating those oddball 'merican measurements into something sane (i.e. metric)!

GLR Kennions also do a very nice boiler kit.

If it must be an engine the kits sold by Bengs Modellbau are very good indeed. Most of the milling is already done for you so the only machines you really need are a lathe and a drill press.

And if you fancy having a go at something "a bit different" take a look at the casting kits available from TS Modelldampfmachinen...

Uri is a very talented artisan. I do like his creations and find his videos inspiring. However, my own work is more akin to that of G.I. customs and Engineer BrunS.

Welcome to the forum Dave

Have your neighbours previously complained about noise you may have made when carrying out activities such as DIY? Try playing with an angle grinder and some scaffold pole in your shed for an hour or so on Sunday mornings and see what their reaction is.

There are a number of options available to you.

Move your shed so it is further away from your neighbour's summer room or build another shed.

Improve your shed - concrete base and plenty of insulation on walls and roof. Few people enjoy being in a freezing cold workshop in winter and the insulation will absorb a lot of the noise you will make.

Convince your neighbour to seriously improve the insulation of their summer room. "Y'know without proper insulation that summer room is gonna be an absolute nightmare to heat come the winter. I bet your utility bills will be astronomical! Then there's all those problems with condensation, damp, and mould... Here, have this catalogue on triple glazing."

Thank you Andy Carlson for your very helpful comments.

And thank you to everyone else for generously taking the time to answer my questions.

Thank you for your suggestions Bill.

The Sieg C0 is the latest incarnation of the Unimat 3 (or 4?) and thus accepts Unimat lathe accessories. Interesting that the Cowells has a M14 x 1mm spindle. As well as a 3-jaw I also have a 4-jaw and ER25 collet chuck for the C0. I wonder what other Unimat bits and pieces fit a Cowells?

I have considered the Sherline and Taig (Peatol) lathes but (currently) consider the Cowells a more practical choice though I am happy to be persuaded otherwise (or at least my bank account would be).

Thank you for your insight, Andrew.

Do you have personal experience of using either machine?

Thank you for your reply, Howard.

I already have a C3 mini-lathe. I do like it but for turning very small parts the C0 has proved to be invaluable. It's much quicker to set up and the higher spindle speed makes turning small diameters (<5mm) so easy.

Because I have been unable to pursue my interests outside of model engineering this year I find that my finances are in a much better state than usual. As the year draws to a close my thoughts turn to improving my tiny workshop and finding a replacement/upgrade for my Sieg C0.

I have been really happy with the performance of the C0 but since I now have the opportunity to upgrade what should I go for?

I already have a mini-lathe for "larger" turning jobs and before anyone says "Myford" I honestly don't have the room for one!

Most of the "small" turning jobs I do on the C0 are less than 20mm diameter and within 75mm of the headstock.

The materials I work with are brass, mild steel, and aluminium.

Whatever machine I get it should be new (I really don't need yet another restoration project) and calibrated in metric. A compound slide for taper turning is essential and handwheel scales that can be re-set to zero are desirable. Oh, and I really, really like having a QCTP.

Machines that I have given serious consideration to and can afford:

1. Proxxon PD 250/E
2. Cowells 90 ME

I welcome comments from the owners of either of these machines as well as suggestions for other machines I may have overlooked.

A Geiger counter might be useful...

They're not cheap to buy though quartz fiber dosimeters can be obtained for a reasonable sum.

If it turns out to be a ferrous metal you could do a Spark Test. Section 7.4 of "The Model Engineer's Handbook" by Tubal Cain has the details for this.

The next test would be to determine the specific weight and density of the material. For this you need to know the weight (easy enough to determine) and the volume it occupies. To calculate the volume either measure it or immerse it in a liquid and see what volume it displaces. Then it's just a matter of looking up the density of the material you have.

If it happens to burst into flames when immersed in water then there's a good chance it was a bar of sodium...

Not all solder pastes are the same.

The solder paste I use for silver soldering has a melting point of 630C. The solder paste I use for soft soldering melts at 183C. Both are supplied by Bengs Modellbau and are better than the solder paste sold for electrical repairs.

I use different sizes of gas torch depending on the join I am making. For model engineering gas torches are better than soldering irons.

Further information on solder pastes can be obtained from Felder GmbH.

Posted by Levent Suberk on 15/08/2017 18:11:58:
Very beautiful mod Henry. Chimney is different. It is very good idea to add figures. Figures are from Dr. Who series?

Thank you.

Modifications include - different chimney, new axles and hub caps, tyres, pressure gauge with syphon, steam valve and displacement lubricator. Adding a Bix gas burner has definitely improved performance especially when running outdoors.

It will now happily trundle along at a scale speed on about 15 - 20psi. It is one of my favourite steam toys and always a pleasure to run.

The figures are indeed from the Dr Who series. They are approximately 1/16th scale and are not expensive.

I have seen other Wilesco engines where the modifications have been taken much further - even to the point of having something that looks like a scale model of a real traction engine rather than a steam toy.

Gel fuel can be obtained from catering suppliers. It burns with no smell and does not produce noxious fumes as it is intended for heating food. You still need to operate your engine in a well ventilated room though. Open a door or window to the outside world.

Wilesco's range of steam toys are the most sophisticated made today and represent good value for money. I have no doubt that you will soon be looking to add to your collection. How about the D18? Or if you like constructing things, the D415?

It is very easy to modify Wilesco steam toys. Here are some pictures of a D415 I modified.

In the pictures it is running on gel fuel though now it has a Bix gas burner system which gives a longer run time and is controllable.

Congratulations on your first steam engine. I am sure you will soon have more!

The D100E kit is an excellent introduction to toy steam engines and simple electrical circuits. I'm sure you'll have lots of fun.

As an alternative to the smelly (and expensive) Wilesco fuel tablets many people prefer to use gel fuel (also known as Sterno, chafing fuel, etc). Just line the burner tray with aluminium foil first. Putting hot water in the boiler will increase the run time.

Happy steaming!

As well as low temperature solder paste I also use silver solder paste (55% silver content) for very small and neat brazed joints. I get my silver solder paste from Bengs Modellbau. It's not cheap but a little goes a long way. There are some helpful videos on the Bengs website.

It is a product that is commonly used by jewellers so you might like to check out the companies that supply the jewellery trade in your own country.

Extruded aluminium mitre box and razor saw work for me.

OK so the picture shows a piece of brass angle being cut but the principle is the same.