Shed Matters 3

[Stanley]

Today is a clean fresh start from scratch but this time doing it the right way instead of being over confident and just sailing on without thinking. The piece of stock is centred ate each end, cleaned up and the PCD of the crank pin centre marked on the end. The position of the cut to get rid of the excess metal is marked and this time that is the first job, get it under the mill and cut out the major part of the excess out. That's for tomorrow....

[Stanley]

A quiet and purposeful hour and a half in the shed. I cleaned the bed of the mill and rubbed it down with a diamond hone to get rid of any dings... Then I mounted the stock for the shaft on the bed and sat in the gap for holding down bolts which ensures that it is exactly in line with the bed.
Then I sorted out an HSS parting tool and mounted it on the lathe. I checked the centre height by facing the aluminium stock and then went back to the mill and started cutting. That's where I finished up and where I will start again tomorrow.

[Stanley]

A good hour and a quarter. I continued milling excess metal out of the blank. Half way through I stopped and re-sharpened the cutter. That sorted it and b y knocking off time I was down to my target. Tomorrow I shall cut the flanks of the excess.

[Stanley]

This morning I cut the flanks of the metal left in the stock. I have cut both sides and the crank pin is inside the metal left in the stock. I sharpened the 7/16" cutter before putting it away. Cleaned the chips up and replaced the bigger cutter in the mill. Tomorrow I shall reinstall the vise on the table of the mill and set the stock up in the 4 jaw ready for cutting the crank pin. A productive hour with no dramas. This is how I should have made the one I scrapped. We live and learn!

[Stanley]

Only one pic needed this morning, I spent almost an hour installing the stock in the 4 jaw chuck and then a quarter of an hour actually cutting the crank pin. Then I stopped, I am in no rush and I find this all very stressful after the last disaster! A good morning, I am pleased.

[Stanley]

I was in the shed early, I wanted to get this morning over with. I don't enjoy high stress machining these days....
I cut steadily in 10 thou increments until I had it down to 3/8" diameter. Then I cut the right flank down to the pin with the cutter slightly inclined into the flank which is how I have cut the other side. Then a polish of the pin with emery before inserting a 7/16" spacer using Loctite. This is to stop the gap distorting under the pressure of the centre.Then a change over to the big 3 jaw SC. I have broken the edge of the cut and marked the 1/4" webs. Then I set up ready for cutting the legs of the shaft down to 3/8" diameter. I didn't start cutting, I want the Loctite securing the spacer to cure. A good hour and a quarter. I am a happy bunny!

[Stanley]

Only one pic needed this morning. I have spent an hour reducing this side of the crankshaft. I'm not down to target yet, I shall do that tomorrow when the stock has cooled down. You can see from the colour how hot it is! I have kept up with blue swarf removal. Boring work but essential.

[Stanley]

I finished the leg I was working on yesterday. It was cold so I could get accurate measurements. I remembered to leave the bearing journal at half and inch and finished the rest to 3/8". Then I reversed the stock and started cutting on the other leg. Here's where I ended up....



One small matter to report. After about ten years I declared my diamond hones worn out, they have done well. One, the fine one is in the kitchen now on sharpening duties on my knives. Here in the shed I have three new ones. They are expensive but very good value....

[Stanley]

Only one pic this morning. I spent less than an hour in the shed. The job this morning is to get this leg of the shaft down to size. I have got it down to just over half an inch but can't finish it because it's too hot to measure accurately. So I stopped, cleaned the chips off Mrs Harrison, fitted the HSS cutter I shall use to finish and left it to cool down. Tomorrow I shall do the final cuts and the shaft will be finished.... Nice!

[Stanley]

The final touches on the crankshaft. It's nor perfect of course, I'm an old fart who can't see properly but It's a perfectly serviceable crankshaft for the current Stuart Number 9 engine. It is now an ornament on the kitchen table until it is needed. It does me good just to look at it after all the dramas I created by being careless! There's always a way back if you have patience....

[Stanley]

This morning I an getting a straight edge before I start on the pleasure of building another engine. First I cleaned up my surface plate, re-oiled it and put a clean tablecloth on. Then I refitted the vise on the VM and trammed it in using a ball bearing running along a piece for ground gauge stock which is more accurate than anything I shall be making! Then I touched the cutter up before re-installing it. The next job was to change the chuck on Mrs Harrison for the most accurate 3 jaw and getting the flywheel ready for machining. A good morning with solid progress. The crankshaft looks lovely sat on the kitchen table, the best sort of ornament!

[Stanley]

A nice quiet hour and a half. I have done all the turning on the flywheel and bored it for the crankshaft, a perfect fit. Polishing and finishing will come later. This is just a good solid start and all the sizing is correct.

[Stanley]

I started the day with some hand work with a round file to clean up the flash on the spokes of the flywheel. Then I turned to the cylinder casting and cleaned off the worst of the flash with the grindstone and chipping and filing. Then I did something I hate, I turned a piece of wood down to plug the bore so that I have a place to mark the centre of the bore but that won't happen until I have done more work on the cylinder casting.....
PS. Needless to say I cleaned up all the wood chips!

[Stanley]

The task this morning was to machine the reference faces of the cylinder to size and Mark the centre of the bore on the wooden plug. This has been done and I am ready to bore the cylinder tomorrow. Nice progress and a good hour and a quarter.

[Stanley]

Boring today..... I set up and centred the quill using the mark I made yesterday then drilled the wood core 1/2" to give me a start with the boring head. Then I bored the cylinder. The target was 1.5" but I hit a problem with metal quality in the bore. Rather than complain and ask for a replacement I did the best I could and once I had reached an acceptable bore I called it finished at 1.35". We're not driving 600 looms! It will do and nobody will ever know.

[Stanley]

Only one pic this morning.... No need to bore you with pics of the VM at work. All I'll say is that the cutter I touched up the other day is cutting beautifully. The job was to get the steam chest rough milled to size and shape. Tomorrow I shall start on the lid.....

[Stanley]

Only one pic needed. I spent over an hour and a quarter in the shed before shopping and spent the time carefully refining my cylinder castings. I made good progress and now I'm ready to look at the cylinder lids. But that's for tomorrow.

[Stanley]

A quiet hour on the castings. I put register marks on the cylinder, steam chest and lid and then set to to finish the back lid including putting the PCD on for the holding down bolts. Very careful work as the hold on the lids is very marginal. That's why the centre is used to retrain the lid while I am working on it. All went well.

[Stanley]

The focus this morning was on the front lid. Quiet careful turning and I never had what you'd call a firm hold but it's done and is as near perfect as I can get it.....

[BobH]

Hi Stanley, did you hand file the oval profile on the front of that cover?

[Stanley]

Haven't touched it yet Bob but the ends were turned to the same radius as the face at the base. I doubt if I'll do anything to the profile beyond painting it black.

[Stanley]

Base castings today. First I cleaned the lathe, touched up the HSS cutter and checked it for centre Then I did some old fashioned fettling using files and the grindstone. I finished up with two clean castings ready for further work under the vertical mill. But that's for tomorrow.

[Stanley]

More work on the base castings including some very risky work holding! But all is well, I shall continue with them tomorrow. An hour and a quarter of solid progress.

[Stanley]

More work on the base castings. The main elements were the beds for the crankshaft bearings and milling the face of the target end. I have a bit more to do to size the hole in the target face for the cylinder lid and two mounting bosses to finish. I shall decide on that tomorrow but we are getting very close to castings ready for fitting.

[Stanley]

I forgot to mention. When I finished this morning I had a chip chase and sharpened my every day milling cutter before re-installing it ready for tomorrow. Standards are being maintained!