Andrew Rowe Posted March 10, 2016 Share Posted March 10, 2016 The green colour you see is only primer, the DBG is darker and Flat, cheers Andrew. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adrian Barrell Posted March 10, 2016 Share Posted March 10, 2016 Really nice work. I'm very envious of your shed, a world of difference to what you had when I was there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Packhow75 Posted March 10, 2016 Share Posted March 10, 2016 Really nice work. I'm very envious of your shed, a world of difference to what you had when I was there. Agreed - cracking job! And... lovely shed! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrew Rowe Posted March 15, 2016 Share Posted March 15, 2016 After 4 coats of white for the interior, it was time to mask out, so the external hull could get it first coat of DBG on. It took most of a day for the masking out, and rubbing down with scotches.Pics show before and after. The external hull will also get 4 coats in the next two days. Cheers from The Tank Factory. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Enigma Posted March 15, 2016 Share Posted March 15, 2016 Nice, looks like a big Jacuzzi.:red: Kidding aside, impressive work. A pity we probably won't see it in the metal...I mean flesh over here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robin craig Posted March 16, 2016 Share Posted March 16, 2016 I am interested to see the hull on it's side, was that better for painting the inside? I am considering dong that for a project ahead of me. Will you be replicating any data plates at all? Great progress Robin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jdmcm Posted March 16, 2016 Share Posted March 16, 2016 Lying on its side sure beats lying under it to try and paint the bottom! Fantastic work Andrew! John Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrew Rowe Posted March 16, 2016 Share Posted March 16, 2016 I have found painting the machine like this is way better, because you can get at every angle and good even coats without having to walk anywhere on the Tank itself. I turn the Tank over both ways. Painting time is approx 1/2 hour per coat ,(whole Tank ) with 2 litres applied each time. Consumed approx 8 litres of top coat for the inside. I am even thinking of assembling parts inside the Tank with it on it's side, as once again, way better access, you do not have to keep climbing in and out as more often than not once you get inside, you find you have forgotten a nut or bolt or something! It does help though that I have over 10 tons overhead capacity in my gantry cranes. The Valentine has it's original makers plate, so no need to replicate that, nearly all parts we are using are original. Cheers Andrew. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrew Rowe Posted March 17, 2016 Share Posted March 17, 2016 (edited) I have been testing the DFT ( dry film thickness ) of the paint in the last day or two while it fully hardens, at the moment we are around an average of 200 microns which is really good, as there will be at least another 2 coats applied when the Tank is finished. A while ago I had started making the test bed for all of the electrical gear. The two generators , the rotary junction block, the turret hand controller, the turret motor and the regulator. Today was a combination of quite a few weeks of work for the electrical department. We finally managed to hook all the wires up for the big test. We have re-wired the rotary junction block, as wires had fallen to bits through old age. There are about 9 connections that run through this. The flexi-able leads all had new wires run through them to make them as good as new. When the main power switch in the Tank is turned on, power runs directly to the hand controller to energize the turret motor, that's why if the Tank is not in use it is advisable to turn the master switch off, so to avoid draining the batteries. We turned on the test bed motor, and we found we were discharging and nothing worked!. The wires on the amp gauge were the wrong way round. So start again, this time the reading is 20amps charging and gradually fades back to 5amps, which I think is what we are looking for, and also the generator warning light correctly goes on and off as it should do. The test bed runs at about 1450rpm and all the pulleys are original ones and right size that will be used on the engine. Next was to sort out why the hand controller was not putting any power into the turret motor, this took another couple of hours as we have found out that the electrical wiring diagrams in the manual do not match up with what should be happening in reality. They were showing 24V going in when 12V was required to energize, and 12V connections on one drawing and showing they were Earth on another! But it worked!, quite a few sparks coming off the brushes, but once I had run it in several directions for a while the brushes have "bedded" in and now no sparks and a smooth action from the motor as it engages from the moment you turn the handle for R/H or L/H rotation. It has a reading on a scale 0-50, not sure what this really relates to, but when we first got it going it only started from the 35 position, now it powers up as you approach position 5 on the scale, very pleased with the idea of setting up a test bed. Cheers from The Tank Factory. Edited March 17, 2016 by Andrew Rowe Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrew Rowe Posted March 23, 2016 Share Posted March 23, 2016 I checked on progress today on the Detroit 671 model 6004 at the engine rebuilder. Good progress has been made after a few holdups sourcing some .003 thou shims to go under the liners, so they could get decked to the right height. The pistons had turned up in their boxes with no gudgeon pins either, and this had not been noticed until the pistons were getting put in! The blower is getting overhauled at the moment, and the housing has been found to be not the best, so this has been changed out for another complete blower unit. We are using N55-series injectors , which have all been overhauled. I believe this to be a better injector than the old HV6's and HV7 ones. This will put the engine at about 180HP. Doing this change requires changing the "rack " and also 6 of the fuel pipes are slightly longer on one side, as the inlets to the injector are slightly offset on the N-series, as opposed to the old HV's. Elongated hole liners have been used, brand new. We have also gone for a brand new 24volt MT39 starter motor with 11 tooth profile. These replacement starters have a higher torque and cranking speed than old originals. The only problem is the tooth diameter on the new one is about 3mm larger, so I had to employ the talents of the local specialist hydraulics company that has a wire cutter, so this cog was CAD drawn up to the new diameter and profile of tooth was recut for depth and diameter. This was all done to match up with the original 103 tooth ring gear at about 400mm diameter for the engine. Just out of interest the clutch used is 15 &1/2" diameter x 10 spline at 1 & 3/4" diameter x 3/4" thick. Once the basic engine gets back to my wkshop we will proceed with all the extra bolt on parts, blower , water pump , oil cooler, etc. Cheers from The Tank Factory. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrew Rowe Posted April 2, 2016 Share Posted April 2, 2016 Well, fresh in this week is the new Fuel Tank. I engaged a specialist stainless sheet metal fabricator to craft a tank as close as we could get off the original. The tank is made from 2mm stainless and has all the correct baffles and will use original brass fittings from the old fuel tank, that was too far gone. I have opted for stainless as these give far less trouble in the long term, through my experience , and keeps the fuel nice and clean. The finish of the tank will stay as polished natural stainless. Just as a bit of technical info, the Mk5 Val uses a larger fuel tank, 40 gallons for the Detroit power pack, and the AEC 190 power packs in the MK3 Valentines use 31 gallons as a main tank and these also have a pressure tank of 5 gallons extra, ( total 36 gallons ). The last couple of pictures show an electrical junction box for up in the turret. This box takes power in from a conduit running up the inside of the turret basket from the RBJ under the turret basket and then distributes power to the radio and also the interior roof light. It also has small "spikes " on the top , as it is also used as a footstep when entering the Tank from the commanders hatch. This coming week we are aiming to start bolting parts on the hull, so I look forward to this progress. We have completed the instrument panel wiring, so we should soon be seeing "real " progress. Cheers from The Tank Factory. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
draganm Posted April 3, 2016 Share Posted April 3, 2016 beautiful work on the tank, I weld a fair amount of thin walls stainless, mostly 16 gauge, and it really welds pretty cleanly as long as you get the edges to but up tight before welding. Any gap and it just crawls away from the weld puddle. What I don't have is all the forming and rolling equipment that whoever made the tank had access to, feeling a little jealous. The fab stuff is surprisingly hard to find used, people just seem to hang onto it. I have a shear and a bending brake, but would love some rolling capability too. Seems like anything above 18 gauge is hydraulic though, and your fuel-tank is 14. That takes a good amount of force to form or roll. BTW, Is the Mk-V truly powered by a single 6 banger diesel, is it supercharged? or is there a pair working in tandem? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrew Rowe Posted April 3, 2016 Share Posted April 3, 2016 The Mk V is only powered by one 671 engine that has a blower ( supercharged ) on the side that I think produces a constant flow of air of only about 5lb. And remember this engine is a 2- stroke. This same engine can range quite a bit in HP , depending on the setup . The Sherman M4A2 has the twin Detroit's , one going one way and the other going the other way. There was probably landing craft or PT boats that used a similar twin configuration as well. Cheers Andrew. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adrian Barrell Posted April 4, 2016 Share Posted April 4, 2016 The Sherman M4A2 has the twin Detroit's , one going one way and the other going the other way. Both engines in the 6046 go the same way Andrew. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrew Rowe Posted April 4, 2016 Share Posted April 4, 2016 I stand corrected........again, I must have been thinking too much about boat engines, I am sure they go in different directions ( the boat one's ) Following pictures show the final drives being fitted to the rear of the Valentine. Each unit weighing in at around 420kg's. First we do a trial fit for all bolts, before being greased up for installation.There are 16 x 3/4" bolts in total that hold each unit on. 12 off x 4" long and 4 off x 2&3/4" long, some threaded into the hull and others with nuts on. Extremely neat fit with mating to the hull, no margin of error from manufacturing. Cheers from The Tank Factory. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Niels v Posted April 4, 2016 Share Posted April 4, 2016 (edited) What grade of stainless steel have you used and are the tanks mounted to the hull with rubber mounts or directly to it? I have seen a lot of stainless steel tanks crack due to vibrations, and have been told that stainless should be more prone to this type of cracking. Edited April 4, 2016 by Niels v Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrew Rowe Posted April 5, 2016 Share Posted April 5, 2016 The fuel tank is made from 304 stainless and 2mm thick. The internal baffles and the thickness of the fuel tank and the fillet welds at the ends which are recessed in avoids any problems that you suggest Niels v. The fuel tank is isolated from the main hull by 10mm rubber that sit in some sheet metal cradles, and all this is solidly fix to the main hull, thus avoiding any movement. Fuel tank cracking usually happens because the tanks are made too thin , ie. ( flexing ) 0.9mm , weld preparation of the joints poorly done, and poor workmanship and design. The first couple of pics show the brake shafts that go through the final drives, these have a correct way around that they go in. Important that these are not forgotten, as when all the steering clutches are bolted in the backend of the tank, you cannot put these in later! Next couple of pics show the middle track support roller housing, held on by 8 x 1/2" bolts. The final pic illustrates an interesting British engineering design on how to use 12 bolts to hold a dust shield on! Cheers from The Tank Factory. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrew Rowe Posted April 6, 2016 Share Posted April 6, 2016 The first pic shows the rear transom, that the steering clutches and the rear bevel box mounts to. The next one shows it installed. It has a 10mm packer each end that you put in once the main part has been bolted to the hull floor with 15 x 3/8" x1" long countersunk bolts. The 3rd and fourth pics show the rear bevel box mounts and how they are fitted to the hull, also using shims and packers, I did not use all the shims shown in the picture as some were back up, as I was not too sure on what was required until I had done the job. The last pic shows the L/H heli-hub clutch throw out unit being installed and test fitted after I had bolted the flexi "donut " hub onto the final drive. This is held on with 3 x bolts to the final drive and 3 x bolts to the heli-hub. It was a snug fit as it was lowered in and it appears that all holes will line up. When bolting up, the final drive can be spun by hand, when you rotate the "donut " Cheers from The Tank Factory. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrew Rowe Posted April 10, 2016 Share Posted April 10, 2016 Work continues on the suspension housing components to the hull. The first pic shows the front track adjusting hub and related components ready for mating to the hull , then it gets craned into position for test fitting and bolting. The hub rotates around the cast mount on the hull in an eccentric fashion and this is how the track is tightened or slackened. It basically pivots steel on steel with grease in between. The last couple of pics show the sections that go into making up the speedo cables that connect to the L/H wheel station. These of course have been all been totally stripped and re greased. Cheers from The Tank Factory. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrew Rowe Posted April 16, 2016 Share Posted April 16, 2016 Some internals are starting to go into the hull. The regulator has been taken off the test bed for fitting. Shown are the components that are required for the fitting. There is a sheet metal shield followed by electrical board insulator and then the regulator itself. This all goes in the inside front L/H corner. The speedo cable components go in first, then the conduit for the regulator, because there is a bolt that holds a conduit clip in behind the regulator, so you have to get the sequence right! All this work now makes the instrument panel ready for fitting. Next couple of pictures show it mounted and also one of the main battery switch mounted to the L/H side also. The drivers vision block door is shown, this is getting ready for install as well. I have started to jig up the mudguard brackets on the side of the hull. The track guards will be also jigged up once the track has gone on, as it is easier to block them off the top of the track for fitting. Cheers from The Tank Factory. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andypugh Posted April 18, 2016 Share Posted April 18, 2016 also a pic of the ever elusive fuse cover .Cheers from The Tank Factory. On a whim I have created a 3D model of something a bit like the cover. (It is something I have done for a living, took me 15 minutes this lunchtime) If you give me the actual dimensions (base size, corner radius, thickness, height to underside of clip with the right spring-load then I can modify the model into something you can get 3D-printed. http://a360.co/1S5nK1G The link should take you to a web-based model viewer. Let me know if it doesn't, there might be problems with permissions. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrew Rowe Posted April 18, 2016 Share Posted April 18, 2016 Thanks Andypugh, I will look into it today. The link did not work at this stage. I still have not been able to sight an original one. I can work out the dimensions from my base, and the spring clip height ,and then we would have to guess the curves of the lid off the drawing from the parts book , that I had posted earlier....... unless someone can give us dimensions of the curves from an original. I would have thought there were a few of these surviving from early war, or were they all left at Dunkirk? Cheers Andrew.:laugh: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andypugh Posted April 18, 2016 Share Posted April 18, 2016 The link did not work at this stage. Strange, it works for someone else I asked to try it. What web browser? Someone mentioned a "Continue" button to be pressed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrew Rowe Posted April 19, 2016 Share Posted April 19, 2016 (edited) Yes it did work , I was just probably too impatient .The dimensions for the cover are: 113mm wide, tight, and 121mm top to bottom , tight. I think the cover thickness would be around 2mm. These dimensions are for the inside of the cover. I think the measurement to the under side of the wire clip should be made around 58 -59mm to give about 1mm or so of tension on the clip. Diameter of the clip is 2mm. The radius in the 4 bottom corners of the lid are 1/2". I think the sides would step up about 1&1/2" before the curves start toward the top. See picture on page 13 of the posts, look how the sides come up at different heights and is a smooth curve over the top .Hope this helps, Cheers Andrew. Edited April 19, 2016 by Andrew Rowe Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andypugh Posted April 19, 2016 Share Posted April 19, 2016 Yes it did work , I was just probably too impatient .The dimensions for the cover are: 113mm wide, tight, and 121mm top to bottom , tight. I think the cover thickness would be around 2mm. These dimensions are for the inside of the cover. Model updated, and PM sent to move this offline for a bit. http://a360.co/1S5nK1G Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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