The Home Machinist!

It has been my experience when a start cap dies, the motor will not turn but will hum. If you spin the motor, it will run until you shut it off as if nothing was wrong. Being as your motor is dead silent, and the wiring has been reworked, I would not venture any guess as to what the problem is witho...

Steve,

There is a great video on YouTube. You can look it up as I don't have the link for it. I was impressed as I didn't know HF sold anything like that. If my driveway was level, I think I would get one just for regular maintenance on vehicles.

Glenn, To answer your question, it depends on what you're planning to do when laying the rails. I recommend 12 lb. rail. I have an 18" gauge train and can use 8, 10, and/or 12 lb. rail and have it look in proportion. 20 lb, is going to look BIG. If you're planning on re-gauging your 12", then use th...

Steve,

Heat and rare earth magnets are NOT a good combination. Tack well away from the magnets and move them if needed.

Good Luck,

I agree with cbrew. If the damage is NOT affecting the operation, run it as it is. The only one who will know is you. If it IS affecting the operation, then I would machine the flange off as in cbrew's diagram and run it blind. Many locomotives had blind drivers for shorter radius curves. Good Luck,...

Steve, The quickest way to determine if it is the valve is leaking or not is to do what liveabroad did, put a good ball valve in the line to isolate the operating valve. If the bucket still bleeds down, you know it's the cylinders. Cranes use the same type of cylinders for boom lift and extension. B...

There's a visual I wasn't expecting!

While I can not make any comments about the high-frequency motor operation, I can make a few observations on hydraulics. Many people automatically resort to blaming a valve leaking for hydraulic cylinders retracting. If you take a moment to use a little logic, you may come to a different conclusion....

The name is tabwasher or tab washer. A quick search of the web will turn up just about anything you might need. Too many to list here.

Good Luck,
Terry

Gentlemen, Uhrich Locomotive Works in Strasburg, Colorado has or will make anything you desire. He has his own foundry, pattern shop, machine shop, and build shops. He also specializes in 15" trains, has built several of his own and for sale as well. Merrick is also another great place to work with....

That expiration date is only for eating it. If you're using it to make things slippery, the expiration year is multiplied by 100. Since that one is out of date, take it to the manager and ask for a disposal discount of $2. After all, they shouldn't be selling expired Vaseline, somebody could die fro...

The reason you are not supposed to spin bearings with air it two-fold. First: You have NO lubrication on a freshly cleaned bearing. High rpm with no lube spells short life of the bearing. Second: As said earlier, it's easy to exceed the rated speed of the bearing. When cleaning and drying the bearin...