Member postings for Dave Jones 1

The one I have heard, is that during the beginning for the second world war, the merlin engines that the british built did not require a gasket due to the finish of the parts. When the plans were given to the Americans for Packard to build under licence, a gasket had to be added as they could not finish the pieces to the same quality. I am not sure how true it is, but a nice story all the same.

I have a few 8 sides rivet snaps dated from the 1940's (or so they are stamped). Is octagon steel something that you cant get anymore, I dont think I have seen it advertised anywhere

I was just going to make a few punches, using a hex as a handle and then turn the punch section down to a round (in my opinion more visually appealing than necessary). Now I remember I have a got a tub of case hardening powder in the garage and I may well some some en1a hex laying about.

Thanks for your advice, ill look into a suitable alternative.

Regards,

Dave

Morning all,

I have been looking around the internet for most of the morning for supplier of hex silver steel or hex tool steel for some punches. Trouble is I cant seem to find anyone that sells it, i have looked through the smaller hobby suppliers and the large industry guys and I cant seem to find any. Is it available and can someone point me in the right direction. I am looking for 10 to 12mm across flats.

Regards,

Dave

Not come across this site before and it is packed full of old british engineering companies, viewable by town/speciality etc.

**LINK**

As already suggested, a unimat would be ideal. I started out with a unimat 3 when I lived in a flat, and never had any complaints from downstairs/next door

Sorry to hijack the thread, but I have a similar problem with a misplaced 1/8" hole drilled through a copper boiler. Could anyone advise if it would be safe to use a 1/8" solid copper rivet to fill the hole and then silver solder over it after it was fitted? If it makes a difference its a 3 1/2" gauge northumbrian boiler if that makes a difference.

Dave

Know you weak points..

As mentioned above quick look around the workshop should point out any weak points, although the front of your garge door make look better protected than fort knox, the single pain window on the side is an easy target. A discrete grill over the inside of the window may make it look like you spend you time like a cage animal, however it stops other getting into your workshop then it is worth it.

Almost forgot to add, if you need any further advice or want to know what is useful to have security wise these days, a quick phone call/visit to your local police station is always a good bet as they are quite upto date on the latest and greatest devices.

First of all, apologies if this is in the wrong thread, however I am sure it will be moved to someone more relevant if necessary.

Moving swiftly on..With the clocks going back and more hours of darkness during the day over the winter, there is never a better time to review your workshop security so I have included a few common 'hints and tips' to keep things safe and secure.

Be aware of what you have got..

This sounds relatively simple but that 6 foot square copper sheet you bought 30 years ago for a few quid is worth more than that now, so a quid wiggle around in the scrap corner should allow you to adjust you insurance (or in some cases include you garage/shed in your house insurance).

If you cant afford to lose it, dont leave it out there..

That 5" gauge copper boiler you have just finished spending 3 months non-stop making may well be a work of art, however it will be gladly welcomed with open arms by the questionable scrap dealer. In return you insurance company will more than likely reward you with a few hundred pounds in return for you effort leaving you to start again. Although somewhat light humoured, it is worth bearing in mind before locking up for the night, I am sure that the domestic boss wouldnt mind you part finished project living under the kitchen table overnight.  Unfortunately is someone is determined enough and has enough time then they will get in eventually, so it is best to thing of your locks and bolts as a deterant as opposed to making your workshop completely burglar proof.

Dont show off..

If your workshop is in view of the road/footpath be aware that as well as allowing a bit of natural light on your work, you are also showing off the contents of your workshop to members of the public walking/driving past. Allowing the unscrupulous to make the decision as to whether it is worth coming back after dark or not. The same goes for workshop photos on the internet, bearing in mind these forums are viewable to anyone, common sense would dictate not to publish you address. The same goes for hanging a sheet/curtain over the window at night making it a bit more difficult to see what is inside.

All singing/dancing products on the market..

There are plenty of products on the market for garage/shed security, however before purchasing adjust your mindset slightly to that of the burglar. You can spend a small fortune on a glow in the dark hi tensile welded to the floor device to stop the garage door being lifted up, however in reality all you are doing is saying to someone walking past "I have something in here worth protecting", and whilst the door is unopenable the small window/thin roof is not. Along similar lines are the smart all singing and dancing shed alarms, you know the ones from B&Q (or similar) that have a 20 second delay allowing you to enter the code before disabling it. Trouble is, it doesnt take 20 seconds to find a hammer/brick/rock to put through the alarm rendering it useless. Personally I use a wireless doorbell with a PIR sensor attached. The bell parts lives in my bedroom letting me know if someone is in my garage overnight (these are also especially good at letting you know at 3am that you have locked next doors cat in the garage overnight).

Security lights/CCTV...

Security lights are always good and recommended and usually relatively cheap and effective. CCTV cameras can be picked up relatively cheaply these days, however I would be somewhat dubious spending a small fortune on them as a hood/hat/balaclava renders them relatively useless. Also make sure they are nice and visible alerting any questionable characters that they are there.

Include some variations on your locks...

The bog standard garage door locks are not particularly effective to the seasoned professional and can be defeated in a short space of time. Therefore it is wise to include a couple of different types on bolts/locks such as a padlocked brenton bolt etc, or the simlar padlocked locks that protect the padlock from bolt cutters.

Speak to your neighbours...

Common sense really but a quick word in the neighbours ear before you go away for a few days means they will (hopefully) keep an eye on things whilst you are away.

Do your own detective work..

If you are unfortunate enough to have your workshop broken into, it is always worth having a quick phone around yourself. Anything metal related is more than likely to end up a scrap yard and the apple nevers falls far from the tree, so a quick ring around local scrap yards is always worth a try.

Repeat visitors..

If you have been unfortune enough a things have been taken it is worth bearing in mind, that common sense would dictate that those things would be replaced in a few months when insurance claims have been completed.  It is therefore worth while upgrading your security afterwards and it is definately not a case of it has happened and therefore it wont happen again

Edited By Dave Jones 1 on 07/11/2012 14:25:15

My opinion is that the models we make are essentially a kit of parts. At the beginner end of the spectrum if you had the time/funds to make each part upto exhibition quality then you would be well on the way to an exhibition quality model (with enough not upto scratch parts to make about a dozen working but not upto scratch models). Myself however, with a full time job, mortgage, little one etc I am just happy to get a few hours in the workshop without being distracted, if the finished article works and looks acceptable then its good enough for me!

Afternoon all,

I have been having a rummage around (as I seem to own things I dont even know I have!) and I have found a reprinted bound volume of ME 1933 volume 68. reprinted by argus in 1977. I have had a look around the internet and it would seem that a dozen or so randomly selected volumes were reprinted in the 70's. What was the reasoning behind such a random selection of volumes to reprint? Does anyone have a full list of the ones that were done?

On a seperate note, when did adverts begin appearing in ME? just out of interest

Regards,

Dave

Edited By Dave Jones 1 on 09/01/2011 10:46:11