What did you do today? (2013)

Paint the b***y kitchen.

Overpainting blobby textured ceilings - only one worse job than that - using textured paint.

Ah well, I've got all tomorrow evening to recoat half a wall and tidy up

Neil

<covered in white spots>

This afternoon, changed two flexible front brake hoses, changed brake fluid, changed an inner and outer track rod and fitted a new catalytic converter ........ on a Renault Espace, THE domain of anorexic double articulated fingers, and I've anything But!

The Gods were with me Big Time though, because apart from wielding a burner and a very big hammer and crowbar on the track rod end nuts and studs, all the steel brake pipe unions came undone eazy peazy, no brake pipes emulated corkscrews or snapped off, no bleed nipples snapped off or needed crap drilling out, no manifold nuts or studs sheared off and the rack boot didn't split when dragging it off the knackered a very rusty track rod!
I did have a mild wobbly when I saw a black sooty deposit on the lower heatshield joint of the exhaust manifold, as that would have meant a feat of contortionism fit to tax Houdini to get it off, but it turned out to be burned grease blown out from a nick on the inner driveshaft boot ......Big oily wipes of brow in relief, changing the boot will be very small beer compared to a manifold on that brute!

After all that good fortune, I managed to miss the deadline for buying a lottery ticket for tonight .......... bugger!

John.

Hi Neil

You complain about " Overpainting blobby textured ceilings " I've found that the best way is to cover up EVERYTHING! ( including yourself) select a medium pile roller on a long pole and thin down the emulsion paint. Go over the ceiling at least twice but, with thinner paint, it is quick and easy to do.

I have found just one easier way with the sitting room - quite recently finished. My No1 son (an artist) volunteered to decorate for us. My wife cooked lots of splendid meals ( she is very good and enjoys doing it) and I found it the most enjoyable decorating exerience I've ever had!

Norman

Edited By NJH on 21/08/2013 22:24:18

This is a warning- Management complaining about vast amounts of "junk" laid about. So built another shed for storage of material and spares. Spent a lot of time and sweat filling new shed. Yesterday changed engine oil on my motor. Drained hot and left all morning. New cheap oil has no pouring spout and motor to far down the hole to pour cleanly. look for funnel, find funnel eventually and clean, funnel to big to fit motor, look for oil jug, fail to find. Modify petrol can pouring spout. Job done ! 3 hours for a 10 min. job. Moral- don't put stuff away. PS found small funnel and oil jug this morning, just standing there in plain view.

Thanks for the warning Gordion, I'll bear that in mind

Ages ago I made stop-gap aluminum v-pulleys for my lathe, so I could replace the blown DC motor with a countershaft and a 1/HP motor. Incidentally, this has started to rattle a bit.

I've converted to a VFD, and want to do the job properly, so I am fitting a poly-v belt.

I completed my two poly-V pulleys, so I removed the bodged single-v pulley from the motor and fitted the new pulley - it needed gentle tapping into place with a nylon faced hammer - that won't rattle like the old one

I then dismantled my countershaft to fit the other pulley. Bear in mind this was another bodge to get the lathe up and running so I turned it using my mill as a 'vertical lathe' with the tool held in a vertical slide.

Well I must have been lucky to turn one end down to a push fit on a 10mm bore ball race, because it looks like I turned the other end a bit slack...

This is what it looks like now, worn down even though the ball race is a free as when it was new:

For the record it's worn away over 1mm of diameter, the bore of the ball race appears to still be nominal size. Now I have to bodge it all back together to make a new countershaft - a decent fit this time!

Neil

If you can catch a kipper you must be the best fisherman the world has ever known. In my world kippers are smoked and that is very difficult in the sea.

It's a red herring

The Herring is a lucky fish,

From all disease inured.

Should he be ill when caught at sea,

Immediately - he's cured!

Spike Milligan

Well Neil

Poetry eh? It made me chuckle so here is a little gem I heard on the radio the other day - it appeals to my rather twisted sense of humour :-

I wish I was a glow worm

A glow worms never glum

'Cos how can you be grumpy

When the sun shines out your b*m!

(Sorry - I'll go and tidy the workshop now.)

Norman

Edited By NJH on 25/08/2013 10:59:44

a solution to the lost funnel - use the top off a 2-liter cola bottle. One can shape the "bell" to suit the application. I came across this idea once while changing oil in a sailboat - the engine was tucked under the cockpit. And the oil does not wet the surface - every last drop runs out of it.

Thanks Bruce, used a bottle, many a time. Due to management induced clear up no bottles left, nor 5 ltr. plastic containers.

I actually managed to do some home engineering this weekend; largely because it rained non-stop on Saturday and most of Sunday.

Saturday: Finally got the step ladder and a set of folding steps hung from the rafters in the workshop, so that I don't keep tripping over them when I don't need them. Fixed the lathe, yipeeeeee! Ever since I did a rush turning job a couple of weeks ago for a client, and a long spiral of swarf disappeared under the headstock, it's made a clicking noise that gets worse with higher spindle speeds, and is related to spindle speed. I took the cover off the headstock gear box but couldn't see anything amiss, no missing teeth, which is a relief. The headstock is sealed, as it uses splash lubrication from an oil bath in the bottom, so I couldn't see how the swarf could have got in, but you never know. I then dismantled the splash guards to get to the two V-belts from the motor to the headstock. Nothing evident there either; although the belts looked a little tatty, so for the sake of a few quid I'll buy and fit a couple of new ones. The existing ones are at least 10 years old. Further careful listening seemed to indicate that the noise was coming from the gear train from spindle to powerfeed gearbox. I'd already extracted some swarf from here, but dutifully undid everything again. After inspecting each gear for missing teeth, there was the problem, a couple of bits of swarf embedded in one of the tufnol intermediate gears. Removed them with a poking device I made at school ahem years ago, and magically the lathe is quiet again, even on top speed.

Made a new washer in silver steel for a self-releasing tap holder for the Britan repetition lathe so that the dog clutches work correctly.

Hacksawed through six inches of half inch gauge plate to make a blank for a milling cutter; also made a mandrel to hold said blank to turn the outside and ultimately mill the cutter shape.

Sunday: Faffed about on the computer and then spent the afternoon milling out said cutter. It's for cutting the splines on the crankshafts for my traction engines. Here's the progress so far:

Just need to draw file to get rid of the machining marks, cut a keyway and harden and temper it. Also stripped down, cleaned and re-assembled two more self-releasing tap holders.

Monday: Went up to gliding club near Corby and flew the tug for the day; a Wilga as seen in my Odds 'n' Sods photo album. And wrote this missive.

Regards,

Andrew

Andrew

Sickeningly perfect!

How do you plan to make the keyway? Broach or slotting head perhaps?

Muzzer

Murray,

I'll hold my breath and rotate the ram on the Bridgeport to bring the slotting head into play. I need to cut some keyways in some spur gears, and the blanks for the two start steering worms as well.

Regards,

Andrew

Wow Andrew, your post took this thread to 500 comments! Here's a contribuition to reaching 1000!

This afternoon I visited Derby SMEE's track in Morley. It's a lovely spot, and though the site is fairly small, they have wrapped a third of a mile of dual gauge track (5" and 3 1/2" in by using a tunnel and a bridge to make three loops. there is much electrified pointwork and light signals. I think I understand how they work! Lots of nice big oak trees.

Because of the crossovers, some of the gradients are best described as vicious! 1 in 75 they said (I estimate 1 in 10). My wee shunter slowed right down in a few places, and came to a halt on two really steep sections - in part I think this was because my batteries weren't fully charged, as the wheels weren't slipping (when first fitted the wheels slipped easily when I tried to start too fast on a gentler gradient).

There was a second hand Maxitrack Swallow which was playing a few tricks on its new owner - not least a whistle jammed on for about five minutes that needed careful adjustment with a brummie screwdriver. I also got a ride behind the same chap's 5" diesel outline - very smooth, fast and powerful.

The ground level track was a very different experience to a raised track, and seemed perfectly OK for smaller gauges. I can see why it might be thought a little unstable for public running, though. Good tea too, although i forgot to grab some cake in my excitement!

All in all an enjoyable visit and I hope to go back soon. Big thanks to Derby SMEE.

Neil

A couple of pictures of Southam, Hudswell Clarke diesel shunter number D604, relaxing after enjoying a workout at Derby SMEE.

Don't models look better in their natural habitat?

Neil

Made a batch of ally heat shields for the hydro.

Next weekends two day Midland Championships could be interesting as there might be class records in the IC classes and maybe Electric hydroplanes broken?

Hope weather stays calm no strong winds or downpours.

Had a problem with the computer a naughty search provider got onto it deleted it and any programs connected to it.

My Kaspersky did not notice it, Emails OK but put a link to a web page on and my friends Norton 360 says suspect and dangerous.

Sent the suspect to another friend warning him to check it first with his Norton and it came up OK.

My security is set at maximum and done numerous scans and it comes up no threats.

Any suggestions?

Trend Micro Housecall is also worth a try.

It's free to use, and is kept bang up to date.

MichaelG.