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WW1 Thornycroft restoration


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Well, we went to Beaulieu Autojumble last weekend but no great 'finds' unfortunately. We did see lots of friends though and a number from this forum which was wonderful although it is most disconcerting to be recognised! We also met an enthusiast for 'Radmill' lighting equipment. He has a significant collection of them but surprisingly, no gas generator so he was very interested in ours. It seems that ours is a lot rarer than we thought which is interesting to hear although somewhat unfortunate as we want another three! It looks like we will have to make them. Oh well.

We are still making some progress. I started on the headboard in Father's car-port before bringing it back here to Leicester for completion. This is now done and it is ready for the paint shop.

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Adrian has very kindly given the sump a light sand blasting so that we can see what we have.

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It appears to be a casting fault as there are several cold-shuts in the area and possibly a crack along the inside. I made the fatal mistake of poking it with a small screwdriver and going right through!

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I have some repair paste but think that a patch might make an appropriate period fix instead. I shall try that solution tomorrow.

On the subject of fuel tank sealant, I have written to the suppliers to see if a second coat would be an acceptable solution. We will have to see what they say.

Steve   :)

Edited by Old Bill
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I have managed to do a bit today and have fitted the patch to the sump. It started out as a bit of 20swg copper from the drawer suitably annealed.

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Then a bit of tapping around using the bossing mallet and a panel beaters hammer, annealing between each go. I annealed it about twelve times altogether.

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I drilled and tapped the casting for 2BA. The casting is horrible in this area, full of porosity and only 1/8" thick.

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Then just screwed it down.

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I shall seal it with modern silicone instant gasket which I think is forgivable in this case but that will have to wait until I get down to Devon again.

Wing mirrors next. It never had any but I have tried driving without and it is scary as hell! They will go on the cab frame under the wing nuts.

Steve   :)

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Great work! A piece of rubber under the patch will do. I have a very large (vintage) patch like this on my big Wisconsin.

(a large portion of the bottom of the cast aluminum oil pan was smashed out at one time)

If any one asks just tell them its a bullet hole from back in the day.

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19 minutes ago, dgrev said:

The real problem is going to be getting all the entrapped oil out of the metal. Otherwise the silicon is not going to take. Nor will any other sealant/adhesive etc.

Something oil-based would work. Maybe a mixture of linseed oil and Whiting. Very age-appropriate. 

(We call it putty now)

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7 minutes ago, Richard Farrant said:

I have used a Loctite adhesive that worked even if there was a trace of oil or grease ( the Loctite rep told me this and his demonstration sold it to me). It consisted of the adhesive in a tube and a small aerosol which was the activator. It was an excellent permanent joint.

What number locktite was it Richard, sounds like a useful thing to have in the toolbox.

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If you go on the Henkel (loctite) web site they have some very detailed explanations of what the products can achieve and in what environments. The chemical industry has come on a long way since the days of these vehicles and sometimes the old ways are no longer best.

who in WW2 would have thought gluing aluminium together was a good idea?

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10 minutes ago, armouredfarmer said:

What number locktite was it Richard, sounds like a useful thing to have in the toolbox.

 

i am not sure of the number off the top of my head, but think it also had a name, could have been Multibond. Apparantly it was used by truck manufacturers to bond body panels on cabs.

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I have many years ago used a Locktite thread locking product that was not affected by oil on the parts. It literally got under the oil and pushed it away from the surface. You could even apply it after the bolts had been torqued up and it still worked. Great stuff. It works by wetting the surface better than the oil does in the same way that oil wets the surface better than water does, which is why water will not wash oil off a surface completely. Excellent idea Richard.

David

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10 hours ago, Richard Farrant said:

 

i am not sure of the number off the top of my head, but think it also had a name, could have been Multibond. Apparantly it was used by truck manufacturers to bond body panels on cabs.

Possible multi bond 330 

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Well, that one has prompted some discussion!

As it is non-structural and not pressurized, I think that four screws will be enough. I can always add more if necessary. With only four, however, I won't be able to get a good pressure on a gasket, rubber or otherwise so I think I will go for the liquid solution. Silicone seems pretty good but I will have to clean the surface fairly well. I shall use cellulose thinners to get a good clean ring around the hole. Oil in the hole won't matter too much as I am not trying to fill it. As long as I can get a continuous ring around the hole, I am sure it will be fine.

Many thanks for all of your thoughts!

Steve   :) 

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2 hours ago, Old Bill said:

Well, that one has prompted some discussion!

As it is non-structural and not pressurized, I think that four screws will be enough. I can always add more if necessary. With only four, however, I won't be able to get a good pressure on a gasket, rubber or otherwise so I think I will go for the liquid solution. Silicone seems pretty good but I will have to clean the surface fairly well. I shall use cellulose thinners to get a good clean ring around the hole. Oil in the hole won't matter too much as I am not trying to fill it. As long as I can get a continuous ring around the hole, I am sure it will be fine.

Many thanks for all of your thoughts!

Steve   :) 

Steve,

Just a small point, if you were intending to paint the sump in service colour as original. The paint will not adhere over silicon and will 'siss' or fish eye in that area. Just saying.

Tomo

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3 hours ago, Old Bill said:

As it is non-structural and not pressurized, I think that four screws will be enough. I can always add more if necessary. With only four, however, I won't be able to get a good pressure on a gasket, rubber

Steve, 

Have you thought of making a patch for the inside to match the outer one, then you can bolt the 'sandwich' together? 

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