Stuff you have fixed today

[Pigeon_Droppings2]

Just use push fit flexies on them taps next time?

A friend who is a plumber told me not to buy unbranded taps. He reckons they make them from the parts scrap bin...when they fail it's impossible to get parts because even the original maker doesn't have a clue.

 

[MattF]

I’d be perfectly happy with a simple on/off switch,but inside there’s 5 wires to connect,wouldn’t know where to start.odd as the previous same one didn’t buzz.

Post a photo of it. I'm sure someone on here will be able to guide you in simplifying the setup.

I never bother with NVR's on my gear. Keeps good practice & common sense on form. Much prefer toggle switches.

 

[Other Daniel]

Post a photo of it. I'm sure someone on here will be able to guide you in simplifying the setup.

I never bother with NVR's on my gear. Keeps good practice & common sense on form. Much prefer toggle switches.

Post a photo of it. I'm sure someone on here will be able to guide you in simplifying the setup.

I never bother with NVR's on my gear. Keeps good practice & common sense on form. Much prefer toggle switches.

Nnnaaaahhhh.....!.......
You're just setting yourself up to being caught out one day.

 

[Blobber]

Just use push fit flexies on them taps next time?

A friend who is a plumber told me not to buy unbranded taps. He reckons they make them from the parts scrap bin...when they fail it's impossible to get parts because even the original maker doesn't have a clue.

They were on flexi hose which aren't stretchy hoses unfortunately

 

[MattF]

Nnnaaaahhhh.....!.......
You're just setting yourself up to being caught out one day.

I'm no stranger to danger.

 

[4String.]

I'm no stranger to danger.

Presumably you've met my ex-MIL (Rawmarsh) .

 

[Blue Chips]

I fixed up an old hand-crank magneto phone over the past few evenings. (Please excuse any technical or terminology errors, as I’m not an expert on old phones).

A couple of hours of research suggests that it’s a Western Electric "subscriber set," consisting of:
- Model 400K magneto “desk set box” (this was apparently a 300K model that had been modified later in its life to a 400K model).
- Model 202H desk set phone, consisting of a D1 mount/base and an F1 Bakelite handset.

This is what it looked like when I bought it (cheap) at a local antique mall. The inside is shown as found, except for two spot welds I made to repair the staked-in posts that hold the bell gongs. I have no idea (yet) if it was wired correctly.

For any aficionados of telephonic esoterica who might be reading this, I'm afraid that I can’t contribute much. I’m not sure when the 300K desk set box first appeared, although I found a 1912 Western Electric bulletin listing a “300-K” model with a 5-bar 48-A magneto, which is the one in my unit. The 300K continued to be manufactured for quite a few years after that.

D1 oval telephone bases/mounts were manufactured from 1930-38. “IV 36” is stamped inside mine, which could be a manufacture date of April, 1936. I read somewhere that the F1 handset was introduced ca. 1936 in Bakelite like the one I have, and later it went to plastic in the 1950s. Subscriber sets were often upgraded over the years. Conceivably, back in the 1910s, a subscriber could have had the wall-mounted 300K desk set box, paired with a “candlestick” desk set phone that was later replaced with the D1 base/mount and F1 handset, perhaps when the desk set box was upgraded to a 400K, which had a newer “anti-sidetone” induction coil.

I stripped off the old black paint with a liquid citrus-type paint stripper and applied a coat of varnish. I left most of the old stains and dings in the wood intact, as those are part of its history. The rear panel was broken in half and warped. I clamped it in multiple directions while gluing to straighten it out. I also re-glued the corner box joints. Here is the rear panel, before and after gluing and varnishing it.

You can see where “300K” had been X’ed out and “400K” stamped into the wood. “COND” was also X’ed out, as the condenser connection location had apparently changed.

To disassemble the D1 desk set mount/base, I needed a pin-type spanner to remove a round nut that secured the cradle to the base. A few minutes with a hack saw, a file, and an extra socket yielded this new tool, which worked perfectly.

The inner workings of the D1 were in good shape. I suspect that the phone had been stored in a dry location since being taken out of service. The diecast D1 base was scratched up and had spots of corrosion, so I blasted it lightly with fine glass beads and repainted it. I used a satin finish instead of gloss, since I wanted to more or less match the patina/sheen of the Bakelite handset, rather than making it look like a shiny new reproduction.

The bottom of the D1 was still covered with the original “woven wool felt,” which was dirty and moth eaten. I had read that leather (suede?) may have been used sometime in the 1930s, and it was easier to find than woven wool felt of the right thickness, so I replaced it with leather. It was a bit tricky to re-fit the internal spring strip that secures the covering, but I finally got it snug.

The handset’s rubber “retractile” coiled cord was still in good condition. I’m no expert, but it appears to be a different kind of rubber (natural rubber, perhaps?) than the more recent synthetic rubber handset cords, which might explain its longevity. I don’t know how old the cord is, but I did see a rubber retractile cord mentioned in a 1935 catalogue. The cord was caked with years of grime, but it cleaned up nicely with the help of a test-tube brush. The number card holder was missing, but I found an original card holder on eBay and installed a card in it.

The bells (gongs) and escutcheons on the desk set box originally had a black “japanned” finish, but I read somewhere that it wasn’t unusual for telephone users/subscribers to dress up their phones by removing the scuffed and scratched black finish and buffing the brass, so I think I’m respecting its usage history by buffing them, and they can always be refinished in black, so buffing is not irreversible.

I kept the original wiring harness. Note: When I bought this, I noticed that several of the wire connections were loose or totally disconnected, and there was one broken wire, which I soldered. I do NOT know if it was wired correctly in the first place, and I do NOT know if it is wired correctly now. Since the colors of most of the wires have faded over the years, I will have to trace each wire individually, which I plan to do in the future.

I also cleaned and lubricated the magneto, which cranks smoothly. As an added touch, I applied a couple of new decals to the door and magneto and pasted an old circuit diagram on the inside of the door, which I “think” is probably correct for this phone. I'm only planning to use this for display purposes, but I'd still like to get it right.

Here’s what the subscriber set looks like now.

I almost forgot to mention that when tested separately, the magneto and the bell were both in working order!

 

[GRW]

A 1998 Honda EX1000 Suitcase Generator!
I dug this battered, really grimy sorry-looking thing out of the "dead & just sitting there waiting to be scrapped or stripped" pile in work, where its been for what seems like forever.
Clearly the wee genny hadn't had any tlc /mtce when it was working, and working was many years hence.
It wasn't seized, so... hmm....
I didn't expect too much, but thought "I could do with one of those" (& thought I might at least learn something) - so thought I'd take it home, fiddle about & see of I could get it to run - & then (if successful) see what I could see about the output.
Chucked it in the van, & picked up some E10 unleaded on the way home.

Compression was good and the engine turned over with no nasty issues, so I put a bit of oil in it, faffed for ages last night cleaning the dinky carb, fresh fuel - and got it running - sweet as a nut, smooth, no knocks or rattles! Result!

Checked output - running a couple of hundred rpms slow, so tweaked that - but voltage was only 25vac. Damn, but it had to be expected, and thought "at least its not zero - so there's hope".

I'd already had a peek at the windings with a torch (looked clean & ok) the wiring and the in-circuit Capacitor (which was measuring out as good) - so was starting to think it might be more serious....but as a last resort I thought I'd try & see if I could kick-start its excitation by plugging in a small light.
The voltage crept up and it got to 130vac - encouraging!

There was a old travel size hairdryer in the drawer - no loss if it went magic smoke so I plugged that in, and voltage crept up to 190!

Switched the dryer up to 2 (prob a bit more than the genny should handle tbh), and while the engine laboured some, the voltage held at 200-ish.

Reduced the load and I had 240v at 52Hz.
Well happy with that!

I need to run it on load for a while to prove it - but so far it looks positive that I might have a decent enough little genny - for a few hours work, half-a-can of carb cleaner & some petrol

 

[MattF]

Seriously, where are the photo's? You know the rules.

 

[Dieselman 63]

New end piece for the Tommy bar of a Parkinson’s Samsonia vice. Nice bit of lathe and vice work.

 

[GRW]

Seriously, where are the photo's? You know the rules.

Ask, and you shall recieve .......

 

[The_Yellow_Ardvark]

Ask, and you shall recieve .......

I ask for £1,000,000 or world peace.

 

[GRW]

I ask for £1,000,000 or world peace.

But you'd take the Mill if you had the choice

 

[The_Yellow_Ardvark]

This Old Plane 4 Engine came my way the other day.

I have the box and instructions. The engine is complete, but in need of some work.

It spun nicly on compressed air, but when is steam this blow by is not a good sign. The exhaust port is blocked. So the steam pressure blows past the piston block.

The fix is to remove the piston, clean all the parts and reassemble.
Getting the spring pressure can be a pain.

Here is finished, in steam and running very nicly.

 

[The_Yellow_Ardvark]

This hand/home made twin piston steam engine was aquired by me a week or so ago.
The image here is me messing around trying to find the height for a make shift burner.

The Boiler did not have a safety valve when I got it. In the past some one had tried to tap a 3/8 thread into the copper plate.
So I had to enlarge the original hole to take a Brass boss. This allowed me to solder in a Mamod boss and safety valve.



This shows the twin pistons, they are off differance size, no need for that.

It also shows the cross head screws and the tatty wood.

The modern pop rivets did not suit the engine, so I removed them and replaced them with copper ones.

The new safety valve is now fitted.

Fitted to a nice bit of oak, brass screws.

It now steams nicly, but with little power. The two psitons are un balanced. Yes I could sort that out, but for now I am keeping it as original as posible.

As I was messing around with wood. I made this base. What can not be sean is the block inder the base to remove the weight from the thin curved base.

 

[The_Yellow_Ardvark]

This 1902 Bing Engine was saved by me. I knew it needed some work. The seller told me the seals had gone.

Oh yes. It had to be the worse ones that also failed. This is not a common issue. But it is difficult to rectify.

It is difficult as 90% of the time the glass bent tube breaks. They are not easy to find. I was very lucky mine did not shatter.
The the failed seals are easy to see.

Back in steam and now leak free. Even the seals inside the whistle have been replaced.

This was heading to be fire wood, but I knew it to be a hard wood.

Finished.

 

[Prajna]

More fixing for Antonio (my best 'customer' for welding jobs so far). A saw horse that he had attempted to fix by tacking a bolt on with pigeon poo (no 'before' pictures but I did still have the bolt I ground off):

I ground off the bolt and pigeon droppings, squared off the end of the cross member and remains of numerous attempts at a join on the frame, cut the top of the joint at the other end of the cross member so I could square everything up a bit, rewelded the two joints and stitched on a couple of fillet plates to brace everything:

There was also a rake that needed it's handle sleeve stuck back on and a weird kinda hoe thing he wanted stuck on to a scythe handle. All thinner stuff than is easily managed with a stick welder but I got there in the end.

Oh, the rake was bent and missing a tooth, so I squeezed it straight(er) and made a new tooth from some 3mm plate and stuck it on.

Tuesday I will attempt to plate and brace up another friend's caravan where the corner of the floor has rotted out and the steady is rapidly pushing its way through the floor. Wish me luck.

 

[brightspark]

picked the teapot up today full of red hot tea and the handle snapped off and tea all over .wifey couldnt believe how fast i let go and got away without been scalded .plenty of practice at work when you get a good shock you dont hang about cleaned it up fluxed and soft soldered it back on. good as new apart from the paint damaged

 

[bricol]

Only a little job, but pleasing. My dad's Felco Handy Lift - I remember seeing him use it 45 years or more ago to lift stuff in and out of the attic of the house in Kinson (my mum will be upset, I should have said East Howe ) Bournemouth.

When I was considerably bigger, I used it to remove and refit engines, while it was tied to the rafters of the garage.

The back side of the winding spindle snapped off some time ago - been meaning to do something about it for ages, so having offered my advice on the shoulder screw request thread to drill, tap, lock in a set screw to form a new thread, so that's what I did. Metric, rather than the BA thread it would have had, but its what I have, and it now works again. Did require some rummaging for some BA sockets to get it apart and back together again.

 

[Barking Mat]

Rewelded a broken balcony on a boat. Stainless Steel arc rods.