Colchester Student Mk1 Won’t Start

[Herman van der MerweParticipant @hermanvandermerwe76509]

Posted by Richard Kirkman 1 on 11/06/2020 22:16:23:

I'll take lots of pictures tomorrow

The O ring is on the lever shaft. It seals fine so I'm not going to bother to replace it

Thanks, no O-ring on mine! OK, no gaskets as well …

[Phil WhitleyParticipant @philwhitley94135]

Richard, make sure the thickness of the neoprene gasket you have made is not going to interfere with the running clearances on the shaft, I notice that one end of the boss is machined for a shim or spacer? Also the shear pins should be made from aluminium, dont be tempted to use steel or you will lose gear teeth! I made some on my brothers Raglan Loughborough training lathe , a real back breaker since it was designed for schools and we are both over 6 foot!

Phil

[Richard Kirkman 1Participant @richardkirkman1]

Some progress today, the filler, the brake oil seal and the toggle switch arrived. So looks like we get post twice a week these days.

I made a silly decision to try some paint stripper on the headstock cover piece, so now it looks like i'l have to paint it properly. And If i'm painting one piece, I may as well paint a few more. And if I'm painting a few more, I may as well paint the whole lathe… Another can of worms opened

I'll have to get the lawnmower done first I think. Otherwise there's not enough space for parts and cleaning.

It has been stripped completely, but not photographed. It had more layers than I was expecting. Thinner in some places than others, so its been repainted when the old paint wore through, but the top grey is not very thick at all.

Pictures for Herman

It's peined over on one side so it won't come out. It could possibly be made a bit longer, but it works fine I think

Then I mixed up some filler. I didn't need much but I had to make a little bit as I was unsure about mixing, but It hardened nicely. I've sanded it down, I'll fit the seal tomorrow.

[Herman van der MerweParticipant @hermanvandermerwe76509]

Thanks for the photos. So there is a sleeve in the flange and in the sleeve the shear pin fits? So this sleeve is peened into place?

Paint stripper … and that is how the journey starts … ask Phil and myself! All the best, see you in next year

[Richard Kirkman 1Participant @richardkirkman1]

Posted by Herman van der Merwe on 12/06/2020 22:20:26:

Thanks for the photos. So there is a sleeve in the flange and in the sleeve the shear pin fits? So this sleeve is peened into place?

 

Paint stripper … and that is how the journey starts … ask Phil and myself! All the best, see you in next year

Yes I do believe that there is a sleeve there. See the pictures. I suppose you could just make it from one piece if you had a lathe and some aluminium.

I know exactly where this journey is going, and it's a slippery slope that descends into madness! (For me at least. I'll have to get a compressor and spray paint it properly, unless I can get the hvlp sprayer to work better and stop throwing out chunks)

Once the lathes complete I'll need to find another old machine to restore…

Next year will be here before you know it

Edited By Richard Kirkman 1 on 12/06/2020 22:53:56

[Richard Kirkman 1Participant @richardkirkman1]

Another productive day. Still splitting my time between the lawnmower, lathe and woodworking projects. Perhaps I have too much on my plate!

I spent some more time cleaning the rest of the paint off of the headstock cover, then I put a coat of primer on it. I'll sand it back then do another coat. It'll be better to paint everything at once with the sprayer, so I'll wait to do proper coats.

I sanded back the filler fully, then put a bit of silicone on the seal and spread it around. Then I used it in with a socket. It went in very easily. Just waiting for the other seal to arrive then I'll install that too.

Then I worked on fitting the new light switch. It didn't fit in the same hole as the last switch, but a quick bit if chiseling later, and it fit snugly.

I'm very happy with it, much more fitting than the red switch

The lathe is currently in as many pieces as it ever has.

So I started stripping the few parts that were already off that need to be repainted

Stripped and wire brushed, ready for some primer at some point!

[Herman van der MerweParticipant @hermanvandermerwe76509]

Looking good. What primer are you using?

Anywhere I can see what your woodwork looks like?

[Richard Kirkman 1Participant @richardkirkman1]

Posted by Herman van der Merwe on 13/06/2020 21:16:05:

Looking good. What primer are you using?

Anywhere I can see what your woodwork looks like?

It's just the tractol red oxide primer that's suitable for the tractol paint I'm using

The link should take you to an album of what I've been up to for the past few years. Not much woodworking since I got the lathe last September. It's taken up a lot of my time. If only I worked as quickly as you, I need to learn your time traveling tricks!

LINK

[Herman van der MerweParticipant @hermanvandermerwe76509]

Posted by Richard Kirkman 1 on 13/06/2020 22:18:07:

It's just the tractol red oxide primer that's suitable for the tractol paint I'm using

The link should take you to an album of what I've been up to for the past few years. Not much woodworking since I got the lathe last September. It's taken up a lot of my time. If only I worked as quickly as you, I need to learn your time traveling tricks!

LINK

Nice work! That vertical belt sander looks familiar. Did you build it off plans from the internet?

Time travel is easy if you have the correct car!

Question for you and Phil. What red is the real British red? Postbox red or signal red? I want to redo the insides of the headstock and gearbox. Maybe this was the same paint as the tractrol red oxide primer you used? I tested on how to remove it and only thinners makes it soft and you can remove it a bit by rubbing with a rag.

[Richard Kirkman 1Participant @richardkirkman1]

Thanks, Herman, The sander did receive inspiration from various articles online, but not plans as such.

Maybe that's the issue, I still can't drive so I don't have a car!

Take a look at this, probably RAL3001 or similar

LINK

[Phil WhitleyParticipant @philwhitley94135]

The red paint traditionally used to seal the inside of castings is a product called Glyptal, https://www.hisco.com/glyptal. It seals in any stray grains of moulding sand, and fixes any porosity in the casting.

Phil

[Herman van der MerweParticipant @hermanvandermerwe76509]

Posted by Phil Whitley on 14/06/2020 11:54:02:

The red paint traditionally used to seal the inside of castings is a product called Glyptal, https://www.hisco.com/glyptal. It seals in any stray grains of moulding sand, and fixes any porosity in the casting.

Phil

Hi Phil, yes that is also what I was told over here. So to make sure, I took a sample panel from the lathe with me to a guy in the knowing and he said it is not Glyptal. Main reason is that it did not exist in those days.

I hope it is not Glyptal as it is unaffordium over here … and for these two reasons I am trying to find a solution to what will match the original paint.

Edited By Herman van der Merwe on 14/06/2020 15:01:36

[Herman van der MerweParticipant @hermanvandermerwe76509]

Posted by Richard Kirkman 1 on 14/06/2020 10:44:19:

Take a look at this, probably RAL3001 or similar

LINK

That link's page is chopped …

[Phil WhitleyParticipant @philwhitley94135]

Your mate is pulling your leg Herman, Glyptal dates back to 1926!!

Phil

[Herman van der MerweParticipant @hermanvandermerwe76509]

Posted by Phil Whitley on 14/06/2020 15:11:56:

Your mate is pulling your leg Herman, Glyptal dates back to 1926!!

Phil

Most likely he is taking a chance then … The thing over here is all the real experts have departed shores, physically or spiritually.

I will find out what Glyptal costs for 500ml over here.

Edited By Herman van der Merwe on 14/06/2020 20:52:44

[Phil WhitleyParticipant @philwhitley94135]

TBH Herman I use red oxide, but you must let it fully cure before it gets any oil on it or you end up with red oil! Glyptal was developer as a non yellowing oil proof paint.

Phil

[Richard Kirkman 1Participant @richardkirkman1]

I've not been very busy the last few days with the lathe. I've been working on the mower and a really fancy bowl

Anyway, I decided to strip another piece of the lathe today

I will take off the machine tag at some point

And I flattened the primer on the headstock cover, so it'll get another coat of primer when I get around to it. I need to start spraying the primer so it goes on more evenly

I'm struggling with stripping the paint from parts. The stripper leaves a very stubborn gooey mess behind which is tricky to remove. Are there any tips or tricks to help it go a bit better? Or a better type of stripper?

[Herman van der MerweParticipant @hermanvandermerwe76509]

Posted by Richard Kirkman 1 on 17/06/2020 17:26:09:

I'm struggling with stripping the paint from parts. The stripper leaves a very stubborn gooey mess behind which is tricky to remove. Are there any tips or tricks to help it go a bit better? Or a better type of stripper?

I used normal brake fluid. Brush it on and leave for at least 12h. Then the layers paint and grey putty filler goes soft and you can brush this off with a stiff dome wire brush. Some areas we resorted to using a heat gun and a flat scraper sharpened every 15 minutes to a dead flat end. Stripping takes forever and ever. Two weeks of constant cleaning and donating quite a bit of blood to get the stand clean ….

[Richard Kirkman 1Participant @richardkirkman1]

Slow progress. I've been busy with the mower and other things. The cover is all stripped now, it was a nightmare. I'm getting a bit of a method going to get it clear quickly.

I've decided I'm going to paint the inside of this, and the gears that are covered by it, red. While keeping the outside grey. It will hardly ever be seen, but I want some red on it somewhere!

More mower work to be done. I'll probably strip the tailstock next as that'll be a nice section to do.

The wheels in the background are the 4 wheels that make up the mowers seats roller, took ages to clean all 4 of them and to get them ready to paint, now they're the nice ransomes green.

Looking forward to this week's video Phil!

Edited By Richard Kirkman 1 on 19/06/2020 21:09:19

[Herman van der MerweParticipant @hermanvandermerwe76509]

I would seriously recommend you first apply a coat of zinc chromate primer onto the steel before using any body filler or putty. Otherwise the steel will oxidize under the putty/filler and lift it and create an area of loose top coat.

[Richard Kirkman 1Participant @richardkirkman1]

Quick update

Seal arrived for the forward reverse shaft, So I've fitted that with the silicon RTV sealer too. Hopefully it won't leak

Then I finished cleaning the aluminium completely, then i finished smoothing the filler and lumps in the casting, then did a coat of primer on the inside.

There are a few loose parts on the lathe that are tempting me to strip them, but i must concentrate on the lawnmower!

[Phil WhitleyParticipant @philwhitley94135]

Hi all, Richard, you need to put an etch primer on the aluminium or the paint won't stay on, it is a difficult metal to paint, the yellow dust coat in my pics of my lathe rebuild are the etch primer. Once I had removed all the repainting on my lathe with thinners (acetone) I flatted the original paint finish, and feathered out the edges with a sander where the original paint was missing, I then etch primed all the bare metal, and used high build acrylic primer till the repairs dissapeared, then denibbed it and put the finish coats on. Stripping the lathe back to bare metal will be torture, and if the paint stripper gets to the original filler and starts to soften it, that will all have to come off as well. Much better to remove all the repainting, then rub down and prime the bare metal, and use cellulose stopper or fine surface filler on any noticable defects, then repaint. Nice Bowl!

Phil

Edited By Phil Whitley on 20/06/2020 15:03:42

[Richard Kirkman 1Participant @richardkirkman1]

Where would I be without your help!

Any idea what the easiest way to strip what I've done is? Same as normal paint even though its just primer? Or will I be able to dissolve it with some thinners or something? I'll go try putting some different things on it

I'll get some tractol etch primer at some point. Maybe Monday.

I won't strip the whole cabinet since most of the paint is fine on that, but it's badly damaged on the bed, headstock, and gearbox, so I may as well strip completely. Plus, my brother has just finished his degree and will be moving home this Friday with nothing to do, so I may have a personal stripper

I bought a Moore and wright protractor since I've never had anything to measure angles in the garage before. Anyway, the box it's in is pretty crappy, so it looks like I'll have to put my woodworking to good use and make myself a box!

[Herman van der MerweParticipant @hermanvandermerwe76509]

Hi @Richard, as I said, the only thing that worked to soften the paint and putty was brake fluid. As @Phil said once you start you need to get to bare metal otherwise the old filler and paint will react with the cleaning stuff you use and most likely with the new paint you paint over with. Then you need to apply a zinc or strontium etching primer to lock everything up tightly against oxidation. Only then can you apply a filler primer.

I am resorting to sand blasting on the bed as you simply cannot reach into the bed cavities. The sand must be very very fine so as to not damage the old steel.

If I could choose, I would do all my paintwork in 2K. It is a bit more expensive, but then you have a lasting paint job.

[Richard Kirkman 1Participant @richardkirkman1]

The red oxide primer that I put on this morning came off quite easily with just white spirits and a good old rub.

I hadn't thought about the bed cavities. Another excuse to buy a compressor perhaps

The paint stripper I have been using has softened the paint and putty well enough so far

As a hobbyist, I think tractol will be tough enough for me, especially if it hardens properly. I don't plan on getting rid of the lathe any time soon.

Correct me If I'm wrong, but my takeaway is, for aluminium I need to use an etch primer then normal paint. And on all parts that I put the paint stripper on, I must remove all of the paint back to bare metal as to not leave any soft. Also, I must prime, whether etch or normal before I use the filler.

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