Member postings for ian weeks

Thank you ,gentlemen for your help. Especially "circlip 'for the article. I am now in the position having sourced bits and pieces from the workshop and internet to start . I could go down either ME article road, (12v) or capacitor path using circuit from internet. I think will be 1st option but the fly in the ointment is obtaining 2 suitable "bobbins" / coil formers. The ME article uses sheet tufnol (easy) and tube tufnol ( hard to source except in industrial lengths/ prices).

I have some 40mm and slightly larger "nylonie" material, fell of a skip decades ago!

I could turn it down but not sure if suitable. I assume any non conductive material would suffice.

Anyway , if plan A fails can always use bobbins/ coil for a plan B .

Thanks again Ian

Dear All,

I have decided to try and build a remagnetiser for some old hornby dublo locos I have as well asa Bing alternator I am restoring. One project leads to another! Rather than re invent the wheel I have been reading as much as I can. I have seen reference to an article in ME in the early nineties (vol 177, 3942). I have taken ME since the mid 80's and they are all stored in the loft. Unfortunately I cannot get at them due to the fact my son has crammed it while he has a house extension!!!

If any kind soul could scan it for me I would be most grateful and happy to make a donation to a charity of choice. Also If anyone knows of a more modern take I should like to know .

Thank you Ian

Dear Bazyle [and others],thank you for your replies.Sorry for delay in replying but only just had time to get in the workshop to check that the spindle was indeed 4mt.You know how it goes ,your sure it is 4mt but as soon as you state that it will turn out to be 41/2 mt. IT IS 4mt with the nose 2"x10tpi.The "c" spring clip I referred to is used to keep the sector arms in place on the spindle and add some downward thrust to stiffen.The set of gears I have is as you state, only has one 24T They are 14 DP,1 inch bore with a single keyway. The one original plate I obtained is 9 rows of holes with one hole in the other face for the locking pin which I took to be used for compound indexing.I have now registered with homeworkshop .org and are awaiting their approval.I would indeed be interested in the excel tables as have just bitten the bullet and set up computer and internet in shed! Thanks again for the info,

kind regards Ian

P.S. I think I might get time today to mark out the Quadrant.

Dear All, I would be grateful if anyone could help me with some information regarding a 4 1/2 inch swing Elliott dividing head. I recently aquired one and it has turned out to be a little[!!] beauty when cleaned up. Like most of these its change gears ,quadrant , sector arms and washer have long since parted company. Luckily I have had lying in the work shop for years a full set of 1 inch gears [rising by fours ] which I suspect originally came from a dividing head.I have made a new handle and detent based on the one on my theil dividing head. I will base the sector arms likewise [unless I can find an original set somewhere]. I have the plates ready to drill and the steel for the Banjo. However i should like to know the centre distance of the 2 parallel slots on the original banjo and Ideally a source of the spring steel 'c washers'[dont know the correct term]. I have tried all the usual sources and second hand suppliers to no avail. Can anyone let me know the dimensions and a supplier,

Thanks in anticipation Ian

P.S have got a manual from ebay which applies to7, 8,10 and12 inch swing but no mention of 9 inch swing model

Dear all,

I have always had an interest in optics ,rekindled by my friend and boiler making mentor a few years ago when he gave me several books on telescope making and a 10" mirror he ha just ground[!]. Recently I have been looking at some old binoculars and decided that they needed re collimated. This set off the usual quest for more information- is this a prerequisite for a project or just procrastination?. Having read several articles, one on the internet[google sun images method for collimation of binoculars] really interesting. I tried a 10 minute lash up rig and the principle seems to work .However the watery yorkshire sun and the freezing wind suggested a search for a more standardised source of parallel light ,preferably warm and indoors. thoughts of light sources and lenses swiftly moved to musings on laser pointers as a light source. then it struck me I might be reinventing the wheel and someone one the list has probably already built a binocular collimator and found all the problems , fixed them and is on to his mK 6 b already.

Hence the question -anyone made one or got ideas

Regards Ian

All this because given ww2 kershaw 6x30's in need of TLC

Wow thanks guys, A lot to think about in your replies,Will digest it all over the next couple of days . Certainly agree re blades with my hand piercing saw it is true you get what you pay for in blades. Only other thought I been given is to consider a proxxon machine but I have absolutly no experience of these.

Thanks again Ian

Could members of the group give advice on which scroll saw to purchase. My wife has asked what I want for Xmas and I have been thinking for some time about a scroll saw for delicate work. Still doing 'big [5"" work] but recemtly due to less mobility back to smaller 4mm P4 stuff at times . Thinking about scroll saw that would handle delicate stuff for big work but mainly 4mmscale/ maybe O guage/s7 nickel silver loco frames etc. There are a bewildering array of scroll saws available . Any experience /advice welcome -regards Ian

thanks to you both.I shall get in touch with Diane soon David.Before doing so, I shall ,rather than copy the Hemmingway drawing,take your advice Graham and play with drawing package and tidy it up as well as I think resize it as the fabricated casing for the gearbox[1/4 mild steel plate] is slightly larger than the cast casing. Thanks again Ian

Dear all,

Two christmases ago my wife bought me the castings from Hemmingway to make a gearbox for my myford. Its been a long process . I cut the gears and innards firstt [and made a spare set for my mentor harold ] He decided to fabricate his 'box' and did so in a weekend. I persevered with the castings but have given up and likewise fabricted the 'box' in an afternoon!!.

It is now commig to fruition and have just the front cover to saw and file and the will need to make the brass plates. I have decided that i just want to get it running and can't be bothered with etching the brass plates.

does anyone know of a company who would do such a thing?

Regards ian

Dear All ,

Just a quick note to say thank you for your advice and a special thanks to michael and Martin for the Excel advice and program. Hope to get time to play with these this weekend. As an aside ,having taken a little trouble with the table I am pleasantly surprised and I wont be as quick ,rash or cocky in future in dismissing the quality of these Indian products .I may just have been given a surprisingly well made one but having played the other night and randomly spotted holes in some scrap .and then transfered the 'scrap' to my Theil dividing head and re spotted the holes to compare-- they were [sorry] spot on!!

just have to make or badge some 'fingers for it now as these were missing when I was given it.

Kind regards and thanks again Ian

Dear all

Thank you for yor helpful replies .Yesterday had a few spare minutes so a light touch with a wire brush and some paint and its as good as new . The ratio of worm to wheel is 1:72 and I have 4 division plates which I think cover the divisions as supplied by the cincinnati company for their tables [but mine is a 715e 8 inch as supplied by various indian manufacturers] The dividing attachment and plates appear original [not bad quality but definitely not up to my theil] However the fingers are missing [or perhaps never existed]. So last 2 tasks are to fabricate some fingers and work out suitable mounting sleeve and to track down a printable dividing table for 1:72 ratio and laminate it .I know I can do each number from scratch but I'm lazy and the table that came with the Theil Is laminated and hangs on the machine- soo handy. I have found a table for 15 and 18 holes but not for those I have - any pointers to helpful sites would be appreciated [ Also if I have to do it myself will have to learn to use a spread sheet and that is what my at presenly t absent offspring are for!] Regards Ian

dear all , thank you for your helpful advice . yesterday took the backplate off and inspected the worm main gear and worm shaft . Play was in the worm shaft. the handle end had been fitted with a detent and division plate . with the detent arm 'nipped between 2 nuts. was a simple task to adjust these to take up back lash and now very smooth. also with aid of Myford oil gun gave the oiling points [and the room /my shirt/ most of the garden] a hefty dose and this had a magical effect. Only down side was put back on before counting teeeth on main gear. when I get a chance will do so . Thanks again Ian

Dear All , Some advice needed. Some years ago I was given an 8" rotary table by a friend who had replaced it with a shiny new vertex model .It came with the warning that it was solid but a bit "uneven". I have not needed to use it till recently when I discovered that the 120deg holes I was spotting were more 118-122 spacing. There is backlash but the markings seem very well and evenly marked . I had thought I had been careful about the backlash but it seems I will have to adjust this out if I can . I do not know the manufacturer[?Indian] and have no manual. I cannot identify how to adjust for the back lash.Any advice would be appreciated[ If it needs tota stripping no matter it owes me nothing and might be an interesting project-if it ends up dud so be it -Ian