Great War truck Posted July 3, 2015 Author Share Posted July 3, 2015 The extra pair of hands from Scotland and the finished job! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Great War truck Posted July 4, 2015 Author Share Posted July 4, 2015 There are several bits and pieces associated with the Back Axle assembly and a minor one to be dealt with is the Tie Bar underneath it. The original was still in situ on the Salisbury Plain Axle but it was very heavily corroded. The actual steel strap between the forged and threaded ends was originally 2” x 1/4” but that had become paper-thin in places. A lot of the rust on and around it had to be chipped away and then some heat on the securing nuts enabled us to get them off. The actual steel strap was beyond redemption but the ends looked as if they could be used again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Great War truck Posted July 4, 2015 Author Share Posted July 4, 2015 The old tie bar was first of all sand-blasted so that we could see what we had there and also to make it more pleasant for handling. The five 5/16” iron rivets each end were removed by drilling, filing and hammering to release the forged threaded ends and this was completed quite quickly and easily – a little surprising really where it had spent so many years in the open. We decided that we could use the original ends again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Great War truck Posted July 4, 2015 Author Share Posted July 4, 2015 A new strip of 2” x 1/4” steel was cut to length for the new strap – the ends of it were inserted into the original end forgings, clamped up and drilled through 5/16” for new 5/16” rivets. Temporary nuts and bolts were used to hold it all together prior to riveting. The Tie-bar has a bend in the middle and this was formed by squeezing in it the vice. It may have to be adjusted but initially, it looks fine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Great War truck Posted July 4, 2015 Author Share Posted July 4, 2015 With very significant help from David from over the Border, the nuts and bolts were removed one at a time and replaced with the 5/16” snap head rivets which were peened over cold. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Great War truck Posted July 4, 2015 Author Share Posted July 4, 2015 Compare with the old one! Job done! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
.303fan Posted July 4, 2015 Share Posted July 4, 2015 Nice to see progress I love the rivit work, what tools are needed for those? Land rovers use aluminium dome rivits... You guessed it, i want to learn it. Can't wait to see the result on the road. If you go to the war and peace, we can meet up for some talk. Was it you lot who had the WW1 truck stuck in the mud? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Enigma Posted July 6, 2015 Share Posted July 6, 2015 After years of following the restoration threads I shouldn't be in awe anymore....but I still am. Great work guys. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Herbert Posted July 7, 2015 Share Posted July 7, 2015 Sorry to reawaken the brass plate etching subject but I understand that it is good to apply the black or whatever paint that fills in the etched surface before removing the resist film. that way you haven't got to clean it off the un-etched surface. I don't think that there is any reasion that the brass can't be polished before etching as long as it is very clean and certainly has no protective film of wax or anything else from the polish. David Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Asciidv Posted July 9, 2015 Share Posted July 9, 2015 Just to add the final piece of information to what David has just said, commercially made name plates do not use black paint for the infill. There are a number of chemical blacking solutions available for brass some of which are described here; http://www.modelboatyard.com/blackening.html Barry Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dgrev Posted July 9, 2015 Share Posted July 9, 2015 Barry That is very interesting, thanks for the info. Are you aware of a similar application for aluminium? Regards Doug Just to add the final piece of information to what David has just said, commercially made name plates do not use black paint for the infill. There are a number of chemical blacking solutions available for brass some of which are described here; http://www.modelboatyard.com/blackening.html Barry Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Asciidv Posted July 9, 2015 Share Posted July 9, 2015 Doug, Yes, there is a similar range of blacking solutions for aluminium. However the normal way of colouring aluminium is through anodising. An aluminium oxide film is created on the surface of the aluminium by an electrolysis process. This film can then be dyed any colour that you like. The film also provides corrosion protection. Home anodising kits are readily available on ebay and they do work very well. I can see us veering off on another tangent now so we better wait for the boys from Devon to provide new content! Barry. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
8_10 Brass Cleaner Posted July 9, 2015 Share Posted July 9, 2015 Doug, Yes, there is a similar range of blacking solutions for aluminium. [ATTACH=CONFIG]105857[/ATTACH] However the normal way of colouring aluminium is through anodising. An aluminium oxide film is created on the surface of the aluminium by an electrolysis process. This film can then be dyed any colour that you like. The film also provides corrosion protection. Home anodising kits are readily available on ebay and they do work very well. I can see us veering off on another tangent now so we better wait for the boys from Devon to provide new content! Barry. if you boil an egg with something aluminium, the aluminium will go black Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dgrev Posted July 9, 2015 Share Posted July 9, 2015 Barry Thanks for the reply. Is it sold by the same people that sell the brass blackener? If I can't obtain it in Oz, then egg time! Regards Doug Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tharper Posted July 10, 2015 Share Posted July 10, 2015 (edited) Not to beat it to death but I thought I would provide some more info on DIY etched plates. I use a product called PNP Blue http://www.techniks.com/ Its used to etch circuit boards. I create my artwork using AutoCAD but any graphics program will work. The artwork is transferred to the PNP Blue using a laser printer. (remembering that it has to be mirrored) and make sure you print on the proper side. I usually make artwork for both the front and back with registration marks. Once folded the brass sheet can be inserted and the ends stapled to from a little envelope. By masking both sides of the plate it allows the etchant to work all the way through around the perimeter and create any holes etc. If you don't do this than you will have to protect the back of the plate. (I good layer of packing tape works well) than cut to final shape by hand and drill any holes etc. The brass sheet is prepped by making sure there are no burrs etc. around the edge and going over it with very fine steel wool followed by a washing in lacquer thinner You have to be very careful not to get any finger prints etc. on the brass. The next step is to transfer the image on the PNP Blue to the brass sheet. Heat is important. I usually heat the brass in the oven. Once the PNP Blue is in position I go over it with a hot clothes Iron (no steam) to transfer the image. A quick dunking in ice water and you can peel the backing off. Front of plate ready to etch: Back of same plate: Any blemishes or scratches in the masking coating can be touched-up with a permanent marker. Then its to the acid bath. I use Muriatic Acid cut with hydrogen peroxide. The trick is to get enough ratio of acid to Hydrogen Peroxide that will allow the acid to work quickly but not lift the mask. I good trick to help prevent this is to apply permanent marker to the cut edges of the plate. During the etching process I make sure to agitate the solution so the areas being etched are always exposed to fresh etchant. And... here it is right out of the etchant and after a quick rinse in cold water. Note the registration makes that allowed me to align the front and back masks so all the holes and the perimeter would be cut through. A washing in Lacquer Thinner will remove the mask. Painting: Yes you can use chemical blackeners - unless the original was done that way I do not. Typically after a clean-up and polish with fine steel wool I spray on the background fill. I like to use off the shelf rattle can enamels. To ensure the paint is fully cured I bake the plate for a bit. Once I am sure that the paint is fully cured wrapping a piece of 800 grit wet/dry paper around a hardwood block I set to work removing the paint from the high spots. Its important to work slowly - let the sand paper do the work not muscle! Sand across the whole plate not just one portion. Also make sure you are working on a hard flat surface. (I have a piece of polished granite countertop I use) I frequently rinse the sand paper in soapy water - this helps prevent galling. Do not over sand! Its fairly easy to remove all the relief. Once the background is in than you can add any other colors - sometimes I end up using a toothpick to carefully "drop" the paint into place. Sand again than polish with very, very fine steel wool and your done. Here is a motometer face I made for a collector. The face has been silvered. I hope this helps! Best regards, Terry Edited July 11, 2015 by Tharper Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Great War truck Posted July 10, 2015 Author Share Posted July 10, 2015 (edited) Steve called in briefly at Devon HQ on his way down to Cornwall and was keen to try the Tool that he had previously made to form the flat faces for the Bolt Heads, which hold the Brake Drums to the wheels, by counter-boring. The construction of the tool was described previously on page 183 of this “blog”. The tool was held in an ordinary electric hand drill, running at a slow speed to do the job, and worked perfectly. Perhaps just as importantly with so many of these holes to be counter-bored, the tool retained its cutting edge and showed no signs of being blunted! Edited July 12, 2015 by Great War truck Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Great War truck Posted July 10, 2015 Author Share Posted July 10, 2015 The final two pictures show the completed job and with a trial bolt inserted to test the clearances. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gritineye Posted July 10, 2015 Share Posted July 10, 2015 Not to beat it to death but I thought I would provide some more info Off topic or not, some marvelous info has been passed on in the last few posts, thanks folks I've learned a lot! :thanx: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dgrev Posted July 10, 2015 Share Posted July 10, 2015 Terry Thank you for taking the time and effort to explain your etching process. Your work is very impressive! Regards Doug Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Great War truck Posted July 17, 2015 Author Share Posted July 17, 2015 The tie-bar mentioned on pages 188 and 189 has now been painted and fitted to the Back Axle. It is identical in overall length to the original and this overall length is greater than the distance between the facing ends of the two fixture points on the axle - by design – so it has to be “sprung” in. The tie bar has already been bent into its finished shape but to make the “springing” manageable for one man, a short length of round stock was placed under the centre of the tie bar on top of the centre of the inverted axle and the first end of the tie-bar inserted but right through its final position. The other “floating” end of the tie bar was pressed down by hand until it roughly faced its final fixing point and then tapped with a mallet until it met with the hole where it had to go. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Great War truck Posted July 17, 2015 Author Share Posted July 17, 2015 Once the Tie-bar was aimed in the right direction with the “loose” end just going into its housing, it had to be centred up and tapped or levered into its final resting position so that it was in the centre of the axle. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Great War truck Posted July 17, 2015 Author Share Posted July 17, 2015 Job done! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Asciidv Posted July 18, 2015 Share Posted July 18, 2015 When you see the size of the axle casting and the flanges, you would wonder if the tie bar would possibly ever make any difference? Barry. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gritineye Posted July 18, 2015 Share Posted July 18, 2015 I was just wondering the same Barry, but the when you look at the leverage on those probably plain steel flange bolts with all that bearing surface hanging out, then the tie bar would relieve the strain on them I somewhat. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gordon_M Posted July 18, 2015 Share Posted July 18, 2015 You could postulate ( at this time on a Saturday - even ) that there was an earlier version of this axle with just the bolted ends, but when impact loaded the ends either broke or sheared this flange bolts. The strap and ends might have been the fix. Cast iron is tremendous in compression, less so in shear, which is what those flanges would be seeing lots of without that strap. 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.