BenHawkins Posted March 6, 2016 Author Share Posted March 6, 2016 But, quite bizarrely, it is something that Estate Agents never seem to mention. All my friends need houses with massive garages and three phase yet all the new houses are exactly the opposite. This is obviously why the house we built won a "Built in Quality" award! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BenHawkins Posted March 6, 2016 Author Share Posted March 6, 2016 This weekend was spent visiting friends and a restoration show. The "modern" transport needed a few running repairs but there was still time to complete a few tasks. I put the next bend into the steering arm and increased the angle of the first bend then cut it short so it would fit the gap. This should put the ball joint close to the centre line of the axle. I think I will put another slight bend in it to bring it closer to the leaf spring and allow slightly more suspension travel. I carried out a very basic test of the oil pump by submerging it in oil and spinning the shaft with a battery drill. There was decent flow and I could not hold my thumb over the outlet so I guess that is a pass. Once I have purchased some thinner gasket paper it can be refitted. After cutting a new gasket for the timing cover I was able to fit it. There is a front cover that I need to make for the rear universal joint so I have roughly machined a ring of steel to make it from. Most of it needs to be turned to swarf but at least it will be a lot lighter when it is finished. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BenHawkins Posted March 13, 2016 Author Share Posted March 13, 2016 Having scribed some lines on the universal joint socket blank I was able to use a band saw to cut off the excess material. This reduces the amount of material I need to remove using the shaper/miller When I finished turning the front cover on the lathe I transferred it to the milling machine to finish it off. Then gave it a coat of primer. This cover allows a leather gaiter to be fitted to the universal joint. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BenHawkins Posted March 13, 2016 Author Share Posted March 13, 2016 I purchased the correct thickness gasket paper for the oil pump (important to keep the clearance on the gears correct) and have now fitted the pump to the engine. I then put a gallon of oil in the engine which so far does not appear to have made it onto the garage floor. I had to adjust the bends in the steering arm slightly. I was concerned about it limiting the suspension travel and was unable to achieve full left lock. I think this is now resolved but the big lump of metal needs shaping into a nice boss to take the ball joint. I also put slots in the nut so I will be able to fit a split pin. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BenHawkins Posted March 13, 2016 Author Share Posted March 13, 2016 I removed end caps from the drag link ball joints. The balls are prevented from rattling by a stiff spring and plunger. It was important to extract these as I was sure I would need to heat the assembly up to unscrew the rod and did not want to soften the spring. The slot and pinch bolt arrangement had allowed water into the thread and meant it took several hours of heating, oil and heaving on pipe grips to extract the rod. The other end was fairly greasy and came off with relative ease. In order to convert them to the earlier pattern I would have to weld up the slot, machine the end back and clean up the thread. I think I will just make a longer rod and keep them as they are as the parts are otherwise interchangeable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BenHawkins Posted March 20, 2016 Author Share Posted March 20, 2016 There have been a few distractions this week including a trip to Yorkshire for work, visitors on Saturday and gardening/DIY today. I just fitted a few tasks in, the first was to blast and prime the gearbox supports. I machined some 1-3/8" diameter EN3 steel down and threaded the ends. These will later become the front wing brackets. They need bending, trimming to length and then some convex steel welding to the ends. Back to the garage now to put another coat of paint on the bonnet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BenHawkins Posted March 28, 2016 Author Share Posted March 28, 2016 I had a number of other tasks to complete this weekend but still managed a few jobs on the lorry. I started with the drag link earlier in the week by blasting and priming the ball joint sockets. Then cut new threads on a longer piece of bar. Followed by giving it a coat of paint. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BenHawkins Posted March 28, 2016 Author Share Posted March 28, 2016 I flatted back the paint on the bonnet last night but now I have seen them in daylight I think there is a bit more work to do on them before the (hopefully final) coat of paint. We have had a power cut on one of the phases most of today so I couldn't use the lathe or mill. However I have been getting the shaper sorted recently and the vice squared up. I am running this on a single to three phase inverter and using a worm drive box to get back down to similar RPM to the original line shaft drive. It seemed like a good way to square up the universal joint socket after the band sawing. It is my first time using a shaper so I used relatively low feeds and speeds. I will flip it over and tidy up the other side before machining into a rectangle (well actually a rectangle with the corners missing). It should then be relatively easy to scribe the profiles on the ends and finish it off with a combination of the shaper and milling machine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charawacky Posted March 29, 2016 Share Posted March 29, 2016 I felt I had to comment on the rear spring hangers which I can see on the photo with the bonnets, they look absolutely wonderful, I assume they are original. Fabricated parts where the time has not been taken to create the look of a forging do not compare with forged items which are tapered and correctly proportioned. Keep up the good work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BenHawkins Posted April 3, 2016 Author Share Posted April 3, 2016 I felt I had to comment on the rear spring hangers which I can see on the photo with the bonnets, they look absolutely wonderful, I assume they are original. That is my 1908 Dennis (on another thread). There are three major components I am still missing; engine, gearbox and radiator. The hangers were one of the things I found most appealing when I went to see the chassis for the first time and looked under the floor. The rear most hanger in the photo is an original one; the front one is a replacement (fabrication from layers of strip) as the originals had been removed as part of the trailer conversion. This week has mainly been rather busy on a number of other tasks but I have managed to do a little more machining for the rear universal joint. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Redherring Posted April 3, 2016 Share Posted April 3, 2016 I thought you might be interested in the Leyland equivalent. That's 'Rugby' guarding my collection of Cardan shafts; that sit between the gearbox and the shaft to the worm drive (or bevel depending upon model). Robert Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BenHawkins Posted April 10, 2016 Author Share Posted April 10, 2016 I thought you might be interested in the Leyland equivalent. That's 'Rugby' guarding my collection of Cardan shafts; that sit between the gearbox and the shaft to the worm drive (or bevel depending upon model). Robert Thanks for posting those. Quite a similar arrangement to the way this Dennis universal joint. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BenHawkins Posted April 10, 2016 Author Share Posted April 10, 2016 I spent the weekend in London at a centenary event for the fire engine that got me involved in this rather silly hobby. However on the way to the event I picked the magneto up from servicing. The magneto coupling is not one I have seen on anything else. The middle section of the coupling was missing (looking at the wear marks it looks like it might have been quite worn) and a piece of rubber tube was secured on the outside with a jubilee clips. I think I will replace the worn pins and make the missing part from black acetal or tufnol. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BenHawkins Posted April 10, 2016 Author Share Posted April 10, 2016 I have carried on roughing out the universal joint outside profile. Whilst the shaper was traversing I straightened the gearbox selector rods in the press. They have turned out well. The pitting will not reach the gland packing so I don't think it will be a problem. I still need to make a replacement for the (broken) 3rd/4th gear selector rod. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BenHawkins Posted April 17, 2016 Author Share Posted April 17, 2016 We clamped the gearbox in again with the straightened selector rods. Now that there are a few more parts in place it is good to see it does not hit any of them. The shaper has been working away for several hours to rough out the profile. Before turning the universal joint around and starting again. A couple more hours to go before transferring it to the milling machine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BenHawkins Posted April 17, 2016 Author Share Posted April 17, 2016 Whilst the shaper was working away I was able to rough out a blank for the final rod to link up the hand brake. I cut two lengths of 3/8" EN8 steel to length and we started to assemble the bonnet. A trial fitting of the drag link. It looks like I need to shorten it by 1/2" and the steering arm needs one of the bends adjusting slightly (again). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andypugh Posted April 17, 2016 Share Posted April 17, 2016 You might have been able to do the internal shape with the shaper too, there should be a long-nosed tool, You need to lock the clapper box, though. However, I am left wondering why you didn't have the outer profile wire-eroded too? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BenHawkins Posted April 23, 2016 Author Share Posted April 23, 2016 You might have been able to do the internal shape with the shaper too, there should be a long-nosed tool, You need to lock the clapper box, though. However, I am left wondering why you didn't have the outer profile wire-eroded too? With quite a large discount the internal profile cost 200 pounds to wire erode because the socket is so deep, the outside would have cost a further 400 pounds. So deciding to use the shaper was purely a matter of economics. The internal tool for the shaper was not long enough and although I could have made a longer one I was not convinced I would be able to get sufficient accuracy with my limited experience on the shaper. It was also an opportunity to play with the shaper. It is time to move the socket to the milling machine so I have machined a plug to support one end. Having finished machining the flats on the eye bolt for the brakes I drilled the hole. It just needs rounding off now. I warmed up two of the wing brackets to put the bend in them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BenHawkins Posted April 23, 2016 Author Share Posted April 23, 2016 I think I finally have the steering arm bent correctly so I should be able to get full travel. The parts book lists felt as fitted to the bonnet brackets so I have riveted some on. Then with a bit of fettling was able to fit a bonnet side and hinge pin. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andypugh Posted April 23, 2016 Share Posted April 23, 2016 That's starting to look quite a lot like a vehicle, isn't it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BenHawkins Posted April 24, 2016 Author Share Posted April 24, 2016 That's starting to look quite a lot like a vehicle, isn't it? Sometimes I even surprise myself with what can be achieved with a pile of rust and thousands of hours! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Asciidv Posted April 25, 2016 Share Posted April 25, 2016 Sometimes I even surprise myself with what can be achieved with a pile of rust and thousands of hours! .....thousands of hours AND a glamorous assistant. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BenHawkins Posted May 2, 2016 Author Share Posted May 2, 2016 This weekend we took the Chivers (or Shivers) Jam Van to Brighton again so no time to work on the Dennis. However during the week I milled a flat on the brake lever followed by drilling and tapping 1/2"BSW, turned and threaded boss and silver soldered it. After fitting the pivot shaft I cross drilled and used a taper pin reamer so it could be held in place with a taper pin. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flandersflyer Posted May 4, 2016 Share Posted May 4, 2016 [ATTACH=CONFIG]113248[/ATTACH] I like houses that have 3 Phase Electricity! How are you getting the 3 phase? is it coming in from the DNO or are you artificially creating L2 & L3 with capacitors? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BenHawkins Posted May 8, 2016 Author Share Posted May 8, 2016 How are you getting the 3 phase? is it coming in from the DNO or are you artificially creating L2 & L3 with capacitors? It is true three phase supplied via cables from the national grid, one of the advantages of converting a building from industrial to domestic use. I have mainly been doing building work and tidying the other garage but managed to fit in a few tasks such as fitting the brake lever. Then adjusted the radiator alignment so we could fit the other bonnet side. We placed this petrol tank in place so we can get a better idea of pedal/floorboard positions. And finally checking how the gearbox support frames will look. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.