Member postings for Alan Donovan

Hi Tim.

I am sure I have the Brake Hub is correctly located - although I am happy to be corrected on this.

Please see photos below.

Best regards

Alan.

Hi Michael.

Thank you so much for that lead, the cable being offered by the UK distributors is not the one being offered by CSML for my particular frame number. In fact they offer two alternatives - so I will investigate this.

Thank you again.

Alan.

Hello again.

Thank you for your continued interest in this puzzle.

The outer cable at the handlebar end is correctly engaged. It looks 'off square' because it is being pulled sideways as it is shorter than required. The inner cable terminations connect up with the brake lever and the hub as expected. If the inner & outer were just 100mm longer respectively, it would be prefect.

The brake drum lever is installed as per the pictorial references I have. Thanks to the Grindstone Cowboy for his link, these pictures are very reassuring.

With respect to installing the brake hub itself incorrectly - the brake lever side has a cast U shaped feature that locates with a spigot on the inside of the 'nearside' fork leg. So there is only one way it can be assembled. It is also the reaction point for the torque when braking.

Thank you all.

Alan.

Alan.

Hello again.

Thank you all very much for your continued suggestions.

Ian & Noel, I feel sure everything is correctly installed - but I will check that tomorrow.

It appears a custom made cable may be the easiest route to success.

Thanks again and best wishes.

Alan.

Hello All

Wow, I didn't expect to get such a brilliant response from so many people. Thank you all SO MUCH.

Just to respond to your various comments.

I did try David Silver, unfortunately it was too short. Their salesman was brilliant as he did measure their cable for me to check if it was suitable. So five star customer service for David Silver. I will look up John Oldfield and talk to them on Monday

Phil P - A Beautiful bike. The renovation standard has been set.

Are the Bars stock? - I assume you mean handle bars - They look the same as those in the part list and the Haynes manual - so I am assuming they are. The handle bars have no risers as they bolt directly to the yoke.

With respect to the fork legs I believe they are correctly fitted in the yokes - again they are as per the Haynes manual, but I am open to any advice / guidance you may wish to give me. However the lower fork is stamped K3 and I think (maybe) it should be K1 for this year of bike. I am not knowledgeable enough to know the significance of the K3 and the K1 references and whether this affects the overall length of the forks, or if the K3 is the original fit, but they have the same physical appearance as those in the parts manual.

With respect to all the other suggestions I will systematically try them all until I achieve success.

Again - Thank you all so much for your contributions.

Best regards - Alan

Hello all.

This is a long shot - but I know many of you will have an interest in ALL things mechanical, so I hope it is acceptable to post this query here.

I am currently rebuilding a Honda SL125s registered in 1975. This was purchased as 5 boxes of bits - not a built bike. Even the engine was stripped down to its component parts.

The front brake cable has now been fitted and has been found to be too short (as can be seen by the taut outer cable in the photographs). A returned purchase (even shorter than current unit) and subsequent investigation has shown that the correct length brake cable appears to be unavailable - although there are plenty of allegedly correct cables from most suppliers. All being too short. The current fit has an outer sheath of 1120mm long, and inner cable with all attachments of approx 1250 long. I believe that I need an extra 100mm on both of those lengths for it to be a 'comfortable' fit.

My question is - has anyone out there had a similar problem with this bike, and did they manage to find a suitable alternative brake cable. If 'yes', do that know what the cable came from and better still a Part No. for it.

I did say it was a long shot ............. but nothing ventured, nothing gained.

The photos below show the end fittings.

Well ......... fingers crossed!

Best regards to all.

Alan.

Bob / Michael.

Many thanks for your detailed replies.

Best regards - Alan.

Hello all.

I am currently reading a book on the maintenance and repair of clocks, and it is a very interesting read. However, there is reference to an 8mm watchmakers lathe with respect to the authors toolkit, but no information on what the 8mm refers too, (not that I can find anyway).

I suspect it may be something to do with the collet, but would appreciate some feedback from those who know.

If the author runs an 8mm lathe watchmakers lathe, I assume there are other sizes available. Are they specified in a similar manner?

Lastly - are watchmakers lathe collets manufactured to some form of 'engineering standard' and where could I find this information or standard.

Any help would be greatly appreciated and many thanks in advance for your replies.

Best regards, Alan.

Hello Mark.

My knowledge of Bantam compound slides is minimal so my reply is based on three assumptions.

First, I assume the gib is trapezium shaped in cross section. Second, The gib is cast iron as suggested by Alan Jackson. Third, You have access to a surface plate.

I would suggest that you scrape the gib flat. You don't say whether it is bowed along the length of the sliding angled face or the gib to compound slide mating face. Either way, I would suggest that both faces are scraped to flatness, then there should be no other stresses or distortions introduced on re-assembly.

It is a suitable method for both cast iron or steel (whatever your gib is made of) and as a slow but 'gentle' process for correcting the distortions, you are in control of the process all the way through, whereas machining the distortions out is a little more 'aggressive' and may not remove the bow completely.

One other thing you may wish to consider - if the gib is BENT straight - is it possible that the one or two of the gib fixing holes will then be out of alignment with the mating hole in the compound slide itself.

Best regards to all.

Alan

Hello.

Just a thought reading the original post. This response is slightly off subject and it is worth stating I am not a caravan owner. If this a genuinely 'new' caravan bought last year and the tracking system 'died' in January of last year - I assume that it has had less than 1 year of use. Could you not claim a replacement unit from the tracker manufacturer?

Another observation is that it is slightly cheaper (in this case) to let the insurance company carry the increased risk of non-recovery (£60/year) than be proactive like Peter, and fit a theft deterrent at (£95/year). Having made that statement, I personally would still fit the tracker as the additional £35 per year is far better than dealing with the stress and trauma of handling a potential insurance claim, plus there will still be a significant cost penalty to you if you should need to replace a caravan - i.e. insurance payout versus retail price.

Alan.

Hi all.

Thank you all for your input. Here is some feedback after your comments and suggestions.

After considering all responses I have decided to go for, what may be, a slightly unusual approach.

This is the refurbishment of an existing locomotive and I have found that the two bulkheads upon which the regulator mechanism is mounted are neither parallel to each other or axially inline. Therefore it has been necessary to 'manipulate' a section of the steam pipework to set the regulator housing in the correct alignment for a (hopefully) successful assembly with the regulator and stem. This requires the exact positioning of the three components that make up the regulator housing assembly.

Therefore I have chosen to use Hylomar with hemp packing for the two threaded joints on the copper pipe. Hylomar for the higher temperature and pressure rating and hemp to provide a 'tight fit' to the threads so that a firm but exactly positioned joint will result.

The finished joints were cleaned up after assembly to remove superfluous sealant and hemp to ensure it shouldn't become detached and block any steam passages.

All being well there should be a photo of the 'regulator housing assembly' below. The rule shows how the copper pipe has had to be manipulated to align the regulator housing (the RH end) with its mating components

Alan.

Hi.

Thank you for your input. It is very much appreciated.

I will certainly have a look into the Loctite option before I make my decision on which product to use.

Alan.

Hello All.

It has been necessary to replace the regulator on a 'Betty', all the parts are remade or refurbished and I now need to install these within the boiler. The original regulator does not follow the drawings, but I am trying to keep to the existing 'design and build' as much as possible. It is similar to the 'Simplex' regulator arrangement. I have three threaded connections, two are within the boiler itself and the third is in the bulkhead (smokebox end). The smallest thread is 3/8" OD. Connections are copper to bronze or bronze to bronze.

Reference to 'Maisie - words and music' (p72) suggests using 'plumbers jointing' to make the joints steam-tight. I have a few questions relating to this.

1) Are we talking about 'Boss White' or similar here? 2) Does it need to have hemp added? 3) Previous posts have suggested Hylomar (I assume Blue Hylomar) - which I feel more confident about as it has an aviation pedigree and possibly a higher working temperature. 4) Would you add hemp to the Hylomar - in this case?

What does the forum think? I am open to any guidance and any alternative suggestions.

I assume the joint sealing products and system will have to be approved by a boiler inspector, so I would welcome an inspector's point of view as well.

Best wishes to all and 'Thank You' in advance.

Alan.

Edited By Alan Donovan on 26/06/2019 17:28:42

Hello again.

Dave, I have reviewed your photos and unfortunately your method of measurement is probably giving you exagerated readings with respect to the measurements taken and the assumed inaccuracies.

Two of the readings (appear) to be taken over the barrel keyway, therefore you will not have measured a 'true' diameter. It will be less than the true diameter as you have lost the 'crest' of the diameter, on one side only, to the keyway (I hope that makes sense). The third reading is taken in a different position which will give a true diameter.

In this case, I would also recommend using a micrometer rather than a digital calliper to measure these diameters as it is easier to get consistent results with a micrometer. You will then have a more accurate assessment of the actual barrel diameters and wear. I am confident it will be much less than the 0.008 inches it currently appears to be - as you say you have a 'tight' barrel.

I am curious to know what the final readings are - should you chose to follow this up.

Best regards Alan.

I agree with Bizibilder

I would recommend finding a Myford cabinet. It is a single unit, they are robust and (most importantly) designed for the Myford lathe. They already have the drillings in the correct place. They can be used with or without a drip tray, although I would recommend going for the drip tray and (genuine Myford) raising blocks. These can be purchased and fitted later - if finances cannot stretch to everything straight away.

Just take care if you are buying from an auction site - I recommend you have a good look at the cabinet before purchasing.

If I remember correctly, the Wxxxx cabinet comes in 3 pieces which have to be bolted together. I feel a one piece unit (as is the Myford cabinet) is much better for this application.

I hope this helps you come to a decision.

Hello All.

Some years back when looking to buy a Myford lathe, there was an advertisement for a Myford in the local newspaper. I phoned and made the appointment to view the lathe and was assured it was in good condition. I arrived at the house and the lathe was on his drive (thankfully a dry day). While looking at the lathe he advised that he had just finished renovating it, "The slides were quite rusty so I polished them up with emery cloth"- he said.

I politely said I would 'think about it' and left. Obviously I did not buy.

It has a good ending though.

I had seen a few more lathes and was unhappy with them or the sellers were asking 'silly money'. I was visiting my mother and 'out of the blue' she told me a friend of hers was selling up his workshop and he had a Myford lathe. This was a complete surprise as I did not usually discuss engineering and lathes with my mother. I contacted her friend and saw the lathe. His interest was steam locomotives and his workmanship was (in my opinion) outstanding. I felt that the lathe had been well looked after and so I bought it. A good purchase, I am very pleased with it and continue to use it.

Hi.

I cannot help with the collet chuck bit unless you manufacture one yourself, but could you use a Dremel or similar (some of the hobby store units are quite cheap). This would remove the need for the flex-shaft and seperate drill.

Best regards

Alan.

Hello All.

Two very interesting photos by Michael Gilligan.

This looks familiar, is this Papplewick pumping station (outside Nottingham) by any chance?

Alan.

You would have (up to) 6 different drill bits.

For example;

A componet may have a particular hole feature that is drilled through, threaded and have two additional counterbores. In this instance four of the six pillars would be set up as such.

Pillar 1 - Drill through

Pillar 2 - Deepest counterbore

Pillar 3 - Shallowest couterbore.

Pillar 4 - A tap to thread the hole via a self reversing tapping attachment mounted in the drilling machine.

A single operator would have the componet in a 'jig' and move it to each pillar 1-4 sequentially to complete that operation. On completion, the componet is removed from the jig, a new undrilled componet clamped in the jig and you drill the new componet as before. Before CNC this was how 'mass production' drilling operations were performed.

I hope this helps

Alan.