The Home Machinist!

Word of caution when drilling thru boiler shells, make sure the drill bit can't grab as it breaks thru and go in deep enough to poke a hole in a boiler tube. And that a tap will not project thru and do the same. Saw it happen to someone once on a copper boiler and the tube had to be replaced.

Rob

I pipe my bypass line back to the tender and position it where the discharge can be seen thru a port when the bypass is open. Puting your finger against the line shows if its pumping pressue as well. Not a gage, but works well for me on 3 locomotives.

Rob

I put large band clamps around the smoke box and kept reposkoning them as I machined it. I machine it with a plywood plate with a metal center plate I, the middle and the other end in a 4 jaw chuck. Machined it half way and the turned it around and machined the rest. I also had dowel pins in the joi...

Yes, I had to machine down the OD of my Allen Ten Wheeler aluminum smoke box.

Is the splinded shaft
Large enough to drill and tap with NPT thread. Spilt the shaft with 2 or 3 saw cuts and then put on a pipe plug to rap and the shaft into the female part. There are flush pipe plugs that would not stick out when assembled.

A used one inch wide x 42 inch belt sander, invaluable for deburing, chamfering and rounding edges on parts.

I built a ash pan with the sliding sloted dump simular to Steve's. I extended the slider on the back side and added a screwed on boss that lets the sliding for to be pulled open and pushed shut with the poker.

Works great.

Rob

I have had that happen to me on my 1928 9" South Bend. It happens when the cross slide was set at very shallow angle to the bed. That ment the tool holder was almost 90 degrees relative to the crosslide, in which case it is not very rigid. I had had it set to do a very shallow taper on a valve ...

It depends on the value gear type wether or not there is any movement at center Johnson placement. But you need to adjust the valve position at to have equal opening when the piston is in front and back dead center when the Johnson bar is in full coward position. And then checked for same when set i...

Oh yes graphite dulls tool steel cutting surfaces quickly, we used diamond coated carbide tooling for machining graphite like used to make EDM electrodes where I used to work.

Rob

You can get next day shipment from McMaster Carr or the other major suppliers. Little more cost but fast service. I agree with not using bent eye bolts for lifting. Nothing but an accident waiting to happen. I would bolt on a piece of angle iron drilled to make a lifting eye in a pinch. That I calcu...

Where I worked, which was a major corporation all lifting equipment was inspected and tested on a periodic basis. This was regardless of age and manufactures ratings. Everything had a stamped metal tag attached with a tamper proof attachment. I too have a cheep engine hoist, chain fall and motor cyc...