What Did You Do Today 2025

[DiogenesParticipant @diogenes]

Thanks very much, both – I mirrored the moulding above and below the middle bead and it was a bit of a b****r figuring out the depth & infeed for the fly cutter I used for the elliptical moulding – it’s a bit more bull-nosed than I’d like but it’ll come right after priming and sanding; lesson learnt – next fly-cutting form tool will have a more distinct ‘datum’ that can set to a known radius before we start.

[DellParticipant @dell]

I made a taller copy of my Pultra P type tool rest for my recently purchased Pultra 17/70,I used an original base to save me having to mill a T slot but everything else is shop made including the flip over part, not a perfect copy but close enough for me.

[DiogenesParticipant @diogenes]

Looks like you had a very satisfactory outcome there, Dell.

[bernard towersParticipant @bernardtowers37738]

whippet con rod finished tonight lots of little set ups with very little machining and seems to fit the crank ok, time will tell!

[Sonic EscapeParticipant @sonicescape38234]

After moving almost the entire workshop about 2000 km west half a year ago, I still had the feeling that I had lost something. It seems that I was right. Today I found two lost boxes with all kinds of tools. Including my collection of small abrasive stones. It’s interesting to rediscover things that you forgot you had.

[Julie AnnParticipant @julieann]

When machining a part recently that required the vertical head on the horizontal mill to be tilted one of the T-bolt clamps broke. Having finished the machining I decided to take the head apart and look at the T-bolts. The result was one T-bolt broken, one T-bolt that has been brazed and two ordinary bolts. Plus two nuts 1/2″ long and two standard nuts. Clearly I am not the first to have had problems!

I decided to make a complete new set of T-bolts:

The nuts are made from 0.6″ AF hex EN1A and the bolts from EN16T as I had it in stock. The thread is 3/8″ BSW and the threads are screwcut. Everything back to together and working:

Julie

[DiogenesParticipant @diogenes]

Nice clean work – looks like if one isn’t careful with the choice of spanner it’d be easy for the ring to ‘cam-over’ the bolt shanks and put considerable sideways thrust on it – awkward..

[DiogenesParticipant @diogenes]

Soldered the beads into the panels – still have ‘keystones’ to do but need to order some stock for that..

[Diogenes]

On Diogenes Said:

….looks like if one isn’t careful with the choice of spanner it’d be easy for the ring to ‘cam-over’ the bolt shanks and put considerable sideways thrust on it – awkward..

Got it in one; access is poor for nuts that will be used frequently! I suspect that is why the bolt broke in the first place. I’ve ordered a 3/8″ BSW spanner that should be better than the adjustable I’ve been using.

Julie

[Nigel Graham 2Participant @nigelgraham2]

Another small step forwards with my steam-wagon.

I spent the day lagging the boiler.

 

The string is sisal garden twine, more likely to withstand the heat than plastic cord.

I am not sure what the matting is, only that I bought it from EKP Supplies. I have not yet obtained the sheet-steel for the covers but the odd shape will necessitate fairly involved developments for them, and practice with cardboard or some old galvanised sheet I have.

 

The two black crinolines on the barrel, one close up to the smokebox, are of thick plywood liberally treated with preservative. How well they will survive remains to be seen… I realised a problem when making them. The smokebox, a slice of standard steel pipe, is significantly larger than the boiler barrel, in fact more than an inch larger diameter than the vertical outer firebox, and this would make the cladding very awkward unless I fit a reducer. This is in the profile of the forward crinoline, but it does not show in the photo.

Yes I know the injector is at a very odd angle. I have now set it right!

The creamy-coloured disc on top is part of a special boiler-lifting cradle, here used to support the flanged sheet-steel, lower cladding support ring around the bottom of the firebox while that is disconnected from the top cladding cover. Both components are spun, using a chunky bronze (or copper?) bar held in the tool-holder as the pusher.

The chassis’ large red plate is a bit preliminary but it or a replacement will become part of the transmission-gear frame.

 

I found an oddity on the front wheels yesterday, only (harrumph, lots of ) years after making them. The hub in one is drilled and tapped to take, eventually, a Stauffer-type grease-cup. The other should be, and isn’t! I have no idea how I managed to miss that, but it cannot now be provided in the same way. It means the plain bearing can be lubricated only by oiling the outsides and hoping some will penetrate the bearing; but I might be able to remove the wheel and drill a diagonal oil-hole.

[DiogenesParticipant @diogenes]

Can you drill the axles and lubricate from the ends?

[Nigel Graham 2Participant @nigelgraham2]

I could, though not easily.

I had envisaged putting the wheel on the milling-machine and drilling diagonally into the hub itself.

However, I looked again more carefully with the vehicle back up on that bench for today’s gripping episode, and to my relief found I had in fact drilled both hubs. Cobwebs and grime had hidden the one I could not find while the wagon was on the shed floor!

I’ve still to make the grease-cups, but I squirted some oil down the holes.

I may, longer-term, make new stub-axles and bushes anyway. They are a bit shaky, and also I think making them quarter of an inch longer will slightly but usefully reduce the rather large turning-circle at some cost of heavier steering.

…..

Right, that’s the lost hole found. Now, what the hell have I done with one of the wagon’s two crew seats? How do you lose a 6 X 5 X 4 inches wooden box, painted in light grey primer? And the blast-pipe connection. That might in said box, with its hinged lid.

[DiogenesParticipant @diogenes]

..always nice to find that younger-self didn’t let the side down..

Did you ever find the lost water-tank?

[Nigel Graham 2Participant @nigelgraham2]

LOL!

Yes, I did find the tank, thankyou. I’d forgotten I’d lent it to the driving-truck for a loco.

Still not found the wagon seat and exhaust connector.

Today’s tasks included painting the red lines on a pair of gauge-glass backing-plates for the R.A. Barker made protector. I cut them from 16swg or slightly thicker brass sheet, engraved three longitudinal grooves using a very thin parting-tool in the shaper (a manual Drummond), painted the plates overall then filled the grooves with red gloss.

A very rough and ready experiment with a spare glass revealed the opposite effect of a line on the glass itself, by shrinking rather than magnifying the stripes. It wil be interesting to see what happens when mounted properly, but provided they differentiate water from steam I’ll be happy.

 

Incidentally, do any of our suppliers stock glass tube-cutters? I don’t recall seeing any advertised.

[DiogenesParticipant @diogenes]

Blackgates?

[JasonBModerator @jasonb]

Quite a few small tube cutters on ebay

[DiogenesParticipant @diogenes]

Slowly but surely moving forwards…

[JasonB]

On JasonB Said:

Quite a few small tube cutters on ebay

When I was a lad there used to be a fad for making drinking glasses by cutting the tops off bottles. If I remember correctly this was achieved by filling with water to the desired level and then plunging a red hot poker in. I suppose it works by differential expansion. Would it work if you had the tube held vertical in a container of water and plunged a red hot ring around it.

I must admit I’ve always done it by putting the tube protected with shrink sleeve in the 3 jaw and scoring with a hand held glass cutter. Raggy end tidied up wit a diamond file used wet.

[Martin KyteParticipant @martinkyte99762]

I remember that Duncan only I seem to recall that you floated a layer of oil on the water. I never could make it work although at aged 10 I probably gave up too easily 🙄

I would love to know how exactly it was supposed to work.

[Mark RandParticipant @markrand96270]

Did the first proper metal work for the year in the shed today (woodspoiling and tidying don’t count). It was only to mill a bit of 2.5″ x 2″ x 3 ” steel down to 1 7/8 sq x 3″, but it’s a start. Would have been quicker on the bandsaw, but I didn’t think of that until I was sweeping chips off the floor. 😀

[SillyOldDufferModerator @sillyoldduffer]

Forgive me if my memory misfires, and I can’t find my junior Chemistry Book in which the method is described.   But I think a line was scribed around the vessel with a diamond, then it was filled with water to that level, and finally the sharp end of a red-hot poker was applied to the scratch.  On the outside, not plunged into the water.  The heat cracked the glass due to differential expansion, which I guess is concentrated by water cooling the glass below meniscus, whilst glass above heats rapidly.   Once started the crack runs around the weakened scribe mark.

The plunging method might work, but the temperature difference would be on the low side.  I don’t recall any mention of oil.

It worked unreliably when I was 12 partly I think because glass had changed as much as my lack of skill.  Maybe my poker was too small…   Old-fashioned soda glass expands a lot when heated, so folk were advised not to pour boiling water into drinking glasses.   Later glass is much tougher.  I remember thick heavy milk bottles being replaced by thin ones circa 1970, possible because a stronger glass was available.

Anyone successfully made any Prince Rupert’s Drops?

A teaspoonful of molten glass dropped a metre into a bucket of cold water should solidify into a tadpole shape.  The head is very strong, but the tadpole disintegrates with a bang when the delicate tail is broken.  So far I’ve failed to get make one, probably because my glass isn’t traditional soda glass!

Although the small explosion is only an amusing novelty be sure to wear eye protection,

Dave

 

 

 

 

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