8_10 Brass Cleaner

If the pits cannot be bored out, it should be perfectly possible to fit dry liner. You may be able to overbore and fit a liner back to standard. The big problem would be deciding how 'brave' to be when deciding the OD of the Dry liner, go too far and the casting is scrap! I have seen steam engine bores and barn engine bores repaired with braze. Would be quite difficult on this.

The trailer chassis is an Ex BT cable drum trailer. Hence the yellow paint

A heads up for Dan. There is a Halley chassis with what looks like a front axle for auction at Cheffins on 28th April http://www.cheffins.co.uk/lot/-562115-vintage-0

It looks like solder tape.

I would suggest that whatever it is, it is more likely lubrication related. The bottom bit, that is the portion adjacent to the rule between 70 and 123mm is identical to some flip lid drip feed oilers I had, also by the same manufacturer. They sold like hot cakes on e-bay.

Perhaps some sort of steel cage?. Remove the old aluminium lugs, make us some new in steel. Then make up an external frame picking up the studs for the lid, and the studs for the bits and pieces for the output and input shafts, with say a strap underneath for good measure, fixed additionally say with nuts and bolts to the sides of the case also? It would very much be a painstaking job of making the plates to pick up the existing studs, modifying the existing covers etc to suit, then making the framework a piece at a time welding, drilling and painting as you go until it is done.

Saurer?

Nothing to do with me, it belongs to a Shropshire oil baron who is restoring it to go behind his traction engine. I'll ask for a picture from the back for you.

Try again!

Is the basis of this what I think it is?

when you think what it would cost to make one if you needed one desperatley it was a bargain.

Wouldn't that do for Dan's Halley?

Modern tack has gone away from torques, often using an initial quite mild torque with a specified angle to finish, which obviously gives a known extension, whearas a torque setting doesn't, as the torque is a function of the total 'friction' achieved. Use copper slip or somesuch and your bolt at a certain torque setting will be considerably tighter and will have more pre stress than an identical bolt done up dry. Another point to consider is that often WW1 engines use aluminium, it is worth considering the known thread engagement and shear area before wanging everything up tight as you dare. I've pulled no end of studs in aluminium just using normal spanners. Similarly all of the metal we are dealing with is old, and likely crystalline to some extent or other. When it comes to cylinder heads and gasket failiure, the long and short of it is that assuming both are correctly flat they will seal, if it isn't clearly big torques will help, but it is treating the symptom not the cause.

Whats all this about torquing up old tack about?. A 1/2 whit bolt, even in mild steel isnt going to give up on a main bearing. It may rattle loose but it isnt going to extend enough under load to cause problems, so why pre stress it?. If the material is on the weak side the issue is as you have found you will be near the ultimate tension on the material and it will 'give up' as you found. I've been brought up rebuilding Austin 7 engines and the traction engine, we tighten most things with a normal length spanner by hand, the rule is as tight as possible by hand with no extra leverage. We've never had a bolt or stud 'go' in service, things that may rattle loose get split pinned (or lock nuts). Certainly I woud agree with the advice for new big end bolts, but some of the torques quoted for old stuff is ludicrous. Did they have torque wrenches in 1916, and if they did, were they that common?

TRY Cocks!

As with most lorries of this period, it is the transmission that will be the difficult items to find. Engines survived as they had use once the lorry was redundant. Chassis survived for many reasons, Axles survived because of uses for the chassis, and for use on trailers. Worm drive diffs are hard to find because they made using a rear axle difficult, an often they have bronze wheels worth money to the scrapman. Gearboxes are very hard to find because they were of very little use after the lorry was redundant. The tractor rear end has much merit, if you could find one that had hub reduction on the end of the axle castings, you may find something suitably geared. Just thinking out aloud, doesnt an Allis B have hub reduction on the outer ends of the rear axle?. The transmission would be suitably small.

Father has a pair of like new Mitchelin wooden wheels of similar design to them on the furniture wagon if they would be of any use. I don't think they have ever been used. They are a bit lighter in construction than the trailer in the 1st photo however.

Is this the Ex Western Welsh one Steve Richards had?

Anvils are worth good money. There used to be one on a wall outside a house in one of the villages I drive through between my house and where the traction engine lives. One day I noticed that it had gone. Turns out that it too had been stolen. There is also a plough and various other bits of iron tat on the same wall that are still there so I believe it is unlikely to be pikeys stealing scrap.

Right then here goes. Some of you will have noticed a recent purchase of a 1942 Merryweather Valiant Steam fire/water pump http://hmvf.co.uk/forumvb/showthread.php?26532-Merryweather-Valiant-Steam-fire-water-pump As you can see, it needs a coat of paint. Anecdotal evidence suggests that when found it was painted all over 'Khaki', and I have recently been speaking to an old boy whos employer bought one surplus in the 1950's and used it to wash out Sentinel Steam lorry boilers. He suggests that too was all over 'Khaki'. Now I've done a bit of digging, both on here and on various other 'fora'. It appears the specification that applied to military tack up to about 1942 was that it should be supplied in 'Khaki Green' G3. So it would seem logical that it is likely that this contraption was thus painted. Certainly no paint frothers will be able to tell me it is 'wrong'. Now then, I've found various recipies for 'Khaki Green', 3 bits of this, 2 bits of the other, a BS reference for 'Middle Bronze Green' as BS381C (2)23, and suppliers who will sell me their own take. This is all well and good, my take is that the shades would have varied from batch to batch and all these mixes would be more than accurate. I have one question, what finish would this paint have been? I have read reference to gloss, is this correct?. My next problem is heat, mainly due to the fact that there is a fiery furnace inside it, resulting in a steam pressure of 120PSI. Suffice to say it gets rather hot, and the existing green paint on it has suffered on this account. So I am looking for a source of 'Khaki Green' G3 that will take a little heat. Any ideas? One possible solution is that I have found a source of MoWoG engine enamel, those of you not sure what this means, this is the paint Morris Cars used on their motors etc, eventually enging up on the BMC and some BLMC junk. Whilst going by the description 'Middle Bronze Green' I do not know if it is near enough, but perhaps it could be?. Of course the finish is gloss. Any suggestions gratefully received.

Yes, fetched it from Farnborough on Saturday, and the vendor steamed it up for us. Its got a fresh boiler ticket It will get another steaming probably one evening next week, It came minus the hoses etc and I have pretty much ordered everything I need now.

That cart is certainly an original, though unlikely to have been specific to the Valiant we bought (the trolley didnt come as part of the deal however). I'm looking for one, if I cant find one I shall make one.

We have just aquired this. Apparently a wartime Merryweather Valiant fire/water pump. This one apparently was found in a Milton Keynes scrap yard unused in what remained of its packing case, still painted khaki. Does anybody know what the military used them for?, or any contemporary paperwork for one. And if anybody has a trolley as pictured I would be very interested.

Its a trailer chassis by Fodens of Sandbach, built in the late 1920's for use behind steam wagons or steam tractors. That one was an end tipping trailer. It was likely given to the museum by Jack Crabtree and is wasted at the museum, they look after nothing. I have a catalogue somewhere, I will dig it out and scan it. Here is a similar but lighter pattern Foden trailer I saved, it had a living van body built on it, likely from new.

Tested spring Company in Tividale, Birmingham. They'd help with the spring.