Merlin Grinder ?

[ianjParticipant @ians]

Morning.

Spotted this partly buried in a local scrap yard.

I've searched the internet for information with no luck.

Any ideas?

Ian

[ianjParticipant @ians]

[Chris Evans 6Participant @chrisevans6]

An interesting find, I know nothing about it but is it worth saving ?

[JohnFParticipant @johnf59703]

Looks like a valve grinder ? Garages used to have them 

Edited By JohnF on 08/02/2016 09:45:06

[will hawkesParticipant @willhawkes78155]

hi ian it is a valve refacing grinder ,the collet holds the valve and is adjustable to different degrees the other end is for truing up the end , i have an american black and decker version which i have a modified fittining for sharpening drill bits , a very handy tool, i had one made by wolf years ago,but it may be old but it get used a lot , will

[CirclipParticipant @circlip]

Although it's in a remarkably clean condition, best walk away from it. It belongs to an age when things were repaired rather than skipped.

When it costs £100 for a "Mechanic" to lift the car bonnet, just think how fast the pulse generator of an electronic cash register will be running when it comes to getting to the point of actually putting a spring comp– don't even go there.

Think it's more likely to be a Diesel injector pintle grinder, Merlin made various machines for Injector and pump servicing.

 

Regards Ian.

Edited By Circlip on 08/02/2016 11:17:44

[John Stevenson 1Participant @johnstevenson1]

No it's a valve re-facer.

Used to have one at the truck garage and a B&D one.

The motor is missing from this one.

[CirclipParticipant @circlip]

Sure you haven't still got it ?????????

Regards Ian.

[RobboParticipant @robbo]

"When it costs £100 for a "Mechanic" to lift the car bonnet"

They're called "Technicians" these days Ian.

[Michael GilliganParticipant @michaelgilligan61133]

Posted by Circlip on 08/02/2016 11:15:00:

Although it's in a remarkably clean condition, best walk away from it.

.

I beg to differ

To me, it looks like an excellent basis for a Tool & Cutter Grinder, and I would welcome it with open-arms.

MichaelG.

[MuzzerParticipant @muzzer]

The insides of most engines these days don't see daylight between the assembly line and the scrap yard. Same goes for most of the myriad accessories and controllers dotted around the vehicle.

Back in the 80s, an engine had a carb, starter, alternator/dynamo and a distributor – and a massive gap between the engine and the body that you could almost stand in.

Nowadays, most cars have between 50 and 100 microcontrollers and every cavity is crammed with components, cables, hoses and reservoirs. Yet despite the proliferation of complex components, the reliability and lifetime of the vehicle and its parts has improved significantly since the 80s. You can still buy shoddily made vehicles if you insist but the better engineered models will often exceed their 160k mile / 15 year design lifetime without much more than routine servicing. When you think about that, it's pretty remarkable. As the song goes "they don't make cars like they used to" – thank god.

[will hawkesParticipant @willhawkes78155]

michael thats what i have done i can now sharpen tools /drills /cutters with my modified h hall version made from his drawings and i still use it for valves on the old panther motorcycles that i repair i find it being used at least once a week , will

[ianjParticipant @ians]

So it's a valve grinder then.Thanks to every body for your suggestions.

Ian

[steveteeParticipant @stevetee]

With scrap prices at the level they are now I'm sure the scrap yard would be happy to take a few quid for the grinder. I wouldn't have even left it there, I would have hoiked it out there and then. Somebody on the forum would be glad of it, surely ( waving hand from the back of the classroom). Anything would be better than it being broken up for scrap and sent off to China to be made into bendy pillar drills etc.

The company I once worked for were taken over by the losers in the last lot . As they asset stripped the company they scrapped a Waldorf – Coburg Planar mill with a table length of nearly 100 feet as they ' didn't want the competition to get their hands on it'. Criminal really.

[John Stevenson 1Participant @johnstevenson1]

Posted by stevetee on 08/02/2016 22:06:43:

The company I once worked for were taken over by the losers in the last lot . As they asset stripped the company they scrapped a Waldorf – Coburg Planar mill with a table length of nearly 100 feet as they ' didn't want the competition to get their hands on it'. Criminal really.

.

That's common practice.

What would you sooner do sell an old machine for a few pounds and go into debt to buy some new equipment only for the opposition to undercut you and force you out of business ?

Not criminal, just sound business sense.

The last 4 machines I have parted out have been broken up as the sum of the spare parts was greater than the resale value of the machine.

We are not talking hobby stuff but industrial and who wants big second hand machines ?

If you buy new the tax breaks allow you to now offset the whole of the purchase price against tax in the first year so it makes sense to keep scrapping and buying.

In March I will be scrapping a perfectly good but old CNC mill because I need the space and have to spend some money or give it the tax man, remember they make the rules, you have to interpret them.

It probably has a resale vale of £1,000 IF I could get a buyer plus I have to dismantle it carefully to get it out and then reassemble it again, so by the time that happens it's true resale value is bugger all.

Scrapping it means it goes out in big fractured lumps and the god stuff is probably worth £1500 on Ebay as components.

Just logical business sense.

A few years ago we were paid to scrap 3 full size laser cutters with 12' x 6' bed sizes. we could keep anything we wanted off the machines except for the laser. These were lifted about 12' in the air in the car park on a fork truck and dropped, then swept up

The new machines cost nearly 1/2 a million pounds each and the company is still in business.

[Neil WyattModerator @neilwyatt]

Posted by Michael Gilligan on 08/02/2016 12:11:48:

Posted by Circlip on 08/02/2016 11:15:00:

Although it's in a remarkably clean condition, best walk away from it.

.

I beg to differ

To me, it looks like an excellent basis for a Tool & Cutter Grinder, and I would welcome it with open-arms.

MichaelG.

+1

[John McNamaraParticipant @johnmcnamara74883]

Yup… Nice find.

If were near my patch I would already be driving.
Cheers
John +2

[Tractor manParticipant @tractorman]

Never abandon good machinery to the melting pot. Someone will find a home and a use for it. There looks to be a standard wheel and tool rest at the left hand side so maybe it’s not a valve surfacer after all. ?

[JohnFParticipant @johnf59703]

Ian, this might interest you

**LINK**

[Author]

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