Meddings Pacera Quill Removal

[Ian WestlakeParticipant @ianwestlake17243]

Hi

I recently purchased a Meddings MF4 Pacera drill and am in the process of stripping it to clean/change bearings. However, I'm stuck at the removal of the quill; I've removed the pulley from the top of the spindle, and the return spring, and the quill is free to move up and down, but I can't get it free from the casing. I believe the issue is the star wheel handle hub/pinion gear shaft the engages with the quill to raise/lower it – I can't for the life of me work out how to remove the star wheel hub so that I can then remove the pinion gear and shaft. Does anyone have the solution?

I think the star wheel hub needs a retaining pin removed from it (it has a pin sticking out of it), but the pin is in a blind hole, and so no way of drifting this out.

Thanks

[Ian WestlakeParticipant @ianwestlake17243]

[Simon Williams 3Participant @simonwilliams3]

Hi Ian, I've got a poorly one of these in a bucket of bits, and yes you do need to remove the star wheel hub. On mine there is a 5/16 dia (approx.) taper pin right through the hub, but the stub of the small end was sticking out so I just knocked it out with a hammer and punch.

You can't see the through hole in this piccy, but it is a through hole, promise! What you can see is that the end of the shaft with the thread (of a sort ) in it which carries the return spring ia bout 5/8 diam, the end where the star wheel sits is about 3/4 diam, and is supported in a bronze bush behind the star wheel hub. The pinion is larger than the ID of the bronze bush, so it has to pass out of the hole the other side where the ratchet wheel of the return spring adjustment sits. Thus you've got to get the star wheel off the pinion shaft first.

There must be the far end of the taper pin buried in the paint – has it been filed back flush and filled/painted over. Got to be something there you can hit wiv an 'ammer.

Once you've got the pin out, the star wheel boss is a good fit on its shaft and will need persuasion to get it off. But off it's gotta come. I toyed with drilling and tapping a bolt hole in the centre of the hub so I could screw a "pusher" in, but managed to weasel it of with pry bars at the edge.

Unfortunately mine has got bigger problems – I bought it off a friend of a friend who was selling up for retirement, but on cleaning it down I found that the outer cast iron casing of the quill is cracked. Bother!

If I hadn't paid so much for it it would have gone for scrap the same day. As it is I'm waiting for a week's snow so I've got nothing better to do than remake it!

As if that's not bad enough here's the state of the spline –

Somebody had a good old scrunch up that day!

Oh, and of course the gears are on their last knockings – but I expected that and allowed for that problem when I bought it.

HTH, if you need any more pictures it's all in bits and you're welcome.

Simon

[Ian WestlakeParticipant @ianwestlake17243]

Hi Simon

Thanks for the detailed response, although having checked my Star Hub, it doesn't have the locking pin going all the way through. I took the hub back to bare metal and it just shows machine marks. Hmm, truly confused now as to how to get the pin out.

Fortunately mine seems to have seen better days – the gears are all in good condition, as is the pinion gear for the Quill, with only a slight bit of wear that can be felt by fingers, however more than acceptable for the age of the machine, and the limited home use it will get from me. And, it's a different Universe compared to the Clarke metal worker it will replace, even with wear. For a start, the quill doesn't rock from side to side like the Clarke does!!

If you do end up scrapping your drill, I'll take the pulleys off your hands (I'll pay for them), as those sort of spares are worth having. And the other parts (gear box housing, levers, etc) I'd be interested in. Let me know if you get rid.

My bearings need replacing, but not surprising.

Thanks

Ian

[Mark Davison 1Participant @markdavison1]

I've just bought a 1960 MF4. How do I take the top pulley off the gear box. It looks like it has a taper bush but I can't remove it, it is stuck tight.

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