my stuff

[DennisM]

Time gets away fast when your trying to do several jobs at the one time, something has to give way and it was the model engineering that suffered the most, anyway I'm slowly getting back into the swing of things.
I partial assembled the spring rigging on one side of a bogie just to check that all is almost as good as I can get it

everything is so close to the side frames of the bogie, so no room for error when I summon the courage to drill the hole for the spigot
on the base of the spring keep

I think I will have to dis-assemble the axles and relieve the axleboxes just a whisker as they seem to tight on the up/down movement within the horncheeks, well it will happen over the next few days or so, I've a funeral to attend tomorrow, cheers Dennis
ps all 8 mil/vehicles + 2 trailers passed the full rego/inspection so I'm right for another year,,.

[DennisM]

Another day spent in the shed doing what I do on most days work on the never ending story of my 'P' class engine/tender, anyway if I don't do it nobody will.
I had to disassemble the bogies and relieve the axle boxes of a whisker or 2 as the axles were binding when the brake end frames went into position, all good now, I took the tender frame/bogies out of the shed and sat them on the frame for a image shoot and some motivation when I feel a bit slack

and from the drivers side

I didn't want to waste time n effort fitting the springs to the rear bogie as they were all due to be stripped down yet again, all 8 springs had to be dismantled as I wanted to squeeze in another steel leaf to each set, each spring has four steel leaves starting at the top followed by 5 Tufnol (laminated plastic material) then the bottom leaf steel, it can be quite challenging getting them all back into place, you need 3 pair of hands 4 eyes

The spring keeps had to have a locating dowel in the base, this consists of 0.125"dia x 0.125" in length steel dowel, very small n fiddly, I had to resort to using Artery forceps to get them in n out of the 3 jaw chuck

thankfully I didn't drop any, as I would not have even bothered to look for it/them, a small dab of Loctite and press them home using the vice

it has taken me the best part of 9 hours over 2 days to make the adjustments to the springs, all 8 are complete, here are the 4 for the lead bogie

the next job now is to fit the brake rigging on both bogies, I will have some time up my sleeve but if I need a T/A to help I'm buggered as she will be in Rockhampton for the next 6 days, ah well, just me n the Poodle Patrol, cheers Dennis

[DennisM]

Another day another set of problems to think through, I have the tender chassis upside down with both bogies fitted so I can get my head around how to with the brake rigging and the fitting of the bogies to the chassis, as everything is tied in together

still quite a few more items to be made regarding the brake rigging where they are fixed to the bogie carriers, I have made heaps of small parts

anyway I will work my way through it all eventually, it's just that I hate going back over things that I haven't thought out properly, cheers Dennis

[STDDIVER]

Great work Dennis - love the post!\

Frank

[DennisM]

Saturday morning early I purchased a short length of flat bar 32mm x 8mm x 200mm, I had to make 16 of these

needless to say I haven't got that far into it as yet, the only way I can cut the bar into a length that I can fit into the vice on the mill/drill
was to mark it and cut it with one of angle grinders in this case a Metabo

then set it up after marking it out, using a 0.040 thick slitting saw in the mill

and after a short period of time I had cut one off, only another 7 to go

the first few were spot on 0.236" aka 6mm

but very soon there after for some unknown reason they all ended up 0.010" undersize, I don't think it will make any difference
as they are fixed into place with 32 8BA bolts, the brake hangers with the brake shoes hang off them, anyway maybe it's about time I bought a metal cutting band saw, cheers Dennis

[DennisM]

Well it's nearly 2 years since I was prompted by forum users within this site by asking "what's with the Loco" as it was in the background of an image long since gone through fotodropit, anyway I'm still making progress albeit slowly, as most of you would know I have many interests including 10 of Solihulls finest on the road + 1 deceased S2A suffG and I like shooting/hunting wild pigs++, anyway back on topic.
Last month I was cutting strips of steel using one of my many slitting saw blades using the mill, but they were inconsistent in thickness, some were up to 0.010" some others were +/- some differences, this had me puzzled for a while, but I figured it out,the milling vice was pushing the blocks up on the backend thus cutting uphill, so after much umming n arring I bought a new metal cutting bandsaw

this machine cut the steel to size in under a minute, and no discrepancies on either end, so I cut the 8 pieces I needed to yield the 16 matched blocks

here are 5 of them with their No43 clearance holes for 8BA bolts

It took some time today to figure out how to clamp the little blighters in pairs as they had to be cross drilled No30, anyway as usual I managed slowly, all the blocks were numbered 1 through 8 as pairs

then clamp them together with some difficulty at times

then clamp in one of my many vices drill through using a No30 drill

Next task was to figure out how I could clamp the 4 blocks to the main frame stretchers for part of the brake rigging to lever back n forth, it was duly overcome without too much bother


Now came the task today Saturday 23/12/17 very warm n sweaty 39.5c tomorrow 43c expected, anyway just like everyting else I thought of a way to clamp the items in situ to transfer (spot) then using a No50 drill (tapping size for 8BA) it appeared to be fine but I thought it coud be better

so I bit the bullet and cut the brake ring that I had machined some time back, there was no turning back now

this allowed me to center the brake hanger shaft close enough to be good enough

and in around 1 hour or so I had the both ends mounted ready for spotting with the No43 prior to drilling No50

I took extra care using the 8BA taper tap, as they are prone to snap off if you get 'ham fisted' so it was gently gently and I managed to do all 16 holes without breaking a drill or any taps

at around 1600hrs I had completed both ends on the lead bogie, I was ready for a cold 'Toohey's New beer'

it is still to be fitted with another bar on the rigging plate, and some of the clamps etc have the incorrect length of cross pins in them and of course they don't have too many split pins in them as it all has to be dismantled to paint, damn it, anyway wish me luck tomorrow with the temp that high I just might consume too much beer and stuff something up, anyway cheers Dennis
ps Last Sunday I wanted to start 112-501 S2A 88"GS she would start, would only run with fuel tipped down her throat then cut out, it was 38c and I was working out in the direct sunlight, the fuel pump was removed and a faulty diaphgram was the issue, so I had lunch and left all the tools on the wingtops that are painted Olive Drab, I reckon the tools could have cooked an egg, man were they hot, anyway I kicked them into the shaded concrete area and got some others out, the issue was fixed but I was too stuffed to be bothered getting my Series 1 55 86" out for a run, I took it for a run 2 days later, anyway the fun of owning way too many Land Rovers,,.

[Philthy]

Fantastic progress here mate, you must be well pleased.

I’m wondering what do you use as a metal preservative to combat surface rust during the build? Thanks for sharing.

Merry Christmas
Phil

[DennisM]

G'day Phil, mate the rust you can see was caused by 20+ years of neglect at present I'm not putting anything on any parts as it will have to be dismantled some parts grit blasted and etch primed/painted flat black, but is still some time away yet, cheers Dennis
ps Merry Christmas to you n yours as well,,.

[DennisM]

And the fun of owning too many Land Rovers continues, as I have had a few issues that have been sorted out, last weekend it was this one's turn

I'm getting it ready for a 1,600k round trip in March to Corowa as this year it's the "Year of the Land Rover"  first time ever, so we are going to try n topple the jeep boys with numbers, anyway the springs on it are H/duty to compensate for the weight of the 106MM Recoilless Rifle + ammo which I don't have, so I stripped the springs down cleaned them off using
a cup wire brush and flap sander, very dirty job to say the least in 40c+ heat

and as usual 2 new center bolts had to be made


in total it took me about 9 hours over 2 days to finish the job, I greased the springs before re-assembly.
Today it was my 110 (Oct 1984 model)

 it was making a rubbing noise when the foot brake applied from the left rear, I think I will have to strip it down in a few weeks time and have the wheel cylinders sleeved in stainless steel, I did take it down and cleaned the area with brake cleaner and re-assembled it for the time being.
I have managed to get some time in the shed, despite the searing heat that we have had over the past few weeks, I had assembled (just to check) components on the tender and from what I can see it is all OK

and with the body in place


at this stage I stopped working on the frame etc as I had run out of small split pins

 so I looked in the net and ordered 50 from Polly engineering but even those are a tad too big although smaller in eye size than the brassy types in the previous image, I'm still looking for the very small eyed types, not having much luck atm.
So not to stagnate there were a few other items that had to be made for the tender and it required the steel to be machined on a taper, I also knew that I had not made the 4 hand/grab rails for the loco either so I set about making all 8 of them while I had the machine set up, here is the first batch of 4 for the tender, quite a few turning operations just to get the 4 of them ready for the next phase

taper turning to 1/2 a degree (or as near as my eyesight would allow me to get)

a lot of fun and concentration, one false move and the game is over, I had to keep reminding myself to reset the compound slide and not to use the carriage other than to reposition the compound slide, anyway all went well no
stuff up's

next phase was the hand/grab rails for the locomotive, they were similar but different in lengths etc

and between moving from one end of the workshop where the loco/tender are

and back to where the plans and lathes are, just as well I have a concrete floor LOL

if I walked back n forth once I did it a hundred times in an hour just making sure

I didn't stuff anything up which is good all went well, this is how n where they fit on the loco itself, I will still have to mark n drill the holes for them to be mounted on the running boards and cab sides

anyway that's a quick overview of the past 4 weeks or so, cheers Dennis

[Mick]

You continue to amaze me Dennis,

Looking forward to seeing you and your GB at Corowa.

Cheers,

Mick

[DennisM]

Thanks Mick, I sometimes wonder myself LOL cheers Dennis 

[DennisM]

It has been a while since I last posted, I have travelled some miles in my Series 2A 88" gunbuggy where we travelled on the roads less used, I had great company, there were 7 Land Rovers and 3 jeeps in our convoy I did 2,100k's (1,300miles) in my 2A luckily it didn't rain, actually cold at night but warm n sunny through the day, here is an image of the 3 Series 2A gun-buggies that were in the convoy

at the event in Corowa 39th GPA swim in there were 6 gunbuggies in total, it will be a long time before there are 6 together again, I was away from home for 10 days, and only home for a bit over a week when we headed to Cooma for the 70th Land Rover event this time I didn't rough it we stayed in a motel and I drove our 1984 110 Isuzu County, I believe that there were 1500 registrants for the event,

In no time at all it was looming up for Anzac day 25th April and that takes some getting ready for only to have a lot prep work ruined because of the rain

and to add to the sadness my mate John shown driving the lead vehicle last year, passed away just before this event

and then there was the issue with the right rear axle on my 1955 Series 1 86", it had developed a leak which with the semi-floating axle means a bit extra work, so I had said after Corowa/Cooma & Anzac day it would be rectified so out with the gear to do the job, jack/stand spanners/brake hose clamp etc

all stripped in no time and axle removed, my little tool 1/2" hex brass internal thread 3/8"UNF 3/16" S/steel ball to stop flow/loss of brake fluid

the offending bit which will need a bigger press than mine

and the new bits needed, I have the choice of using leather or neoprene

it is now with Rumbel's garage in Dungog.
Now back to today as it did rain on Anzac day and all Land Rovers got a good soaking which I wasn't happy about so over the past few days when time permitted (my T/A's (aka wife) birthday) so I had to do the right thing anyway I managed to get 2 out last Thursday 3/5/18 as the weather was perfect, so these 2 got a run out the bottom of Mt Bright

and this Series 2 C/R

today Saturday 5/5/18, I managed to get 6 of 8 out for a run, the S2A 109 workshop truck got a long run to get the wind into the creases in the canvas, and some heat into it as well hopefully it is dry now

a few people stopped and asked about the vehicles whilst they were parked out on the street, some people have no idea about them at all


anyway all parked up again under cover n tarpaulins, one vehicle does need a new battery, I will wait until the auto shops have specials on.
In the workshop I have been pushing ahead slowly, I have been working on the tender body, I had to figure out how to assemble it but keeping in mind that I wanted to soft solder the body when I was ready too, so I decided to use quite a few 10BA round head screws which to the untrained eye are just ever so slightly different in shape to the solid brass rivets that are all over the body

lots of them anyway I had bought prior to heading off the Corowa a quantity of 10BA screws and 10BA taps, they have certainly had a work out and so far so good I haven't broke one

the steel screws were removed and new brass ones in, but it was only temporary as I had to drill using a No55 drill (tapping size for 10BA) so a side had to be removed

all holes drilled No 55 then refit the side transfer holes using drill press, all those dots had to be drilled

it sure takes some time to line everything up square etc and clamp it using engineers clamps

and after hours of work
but that wasn't the end as I still had the other side to do, which has been completed now, and then redrill the outside plates using a No 51 drill, clearance size for 10BA, next task was
the front of the tender, the drawing shows 2 doors which were on the full sized locomotive but I deemed them impractical so I decided not to go that way, but I had a more pressing issue, the coal floor had to be screwed
using 7BA brass Csk screws, but with the depth of the side wall of the tender my tap/wrench was way too short
so was the drill, so I had to make some tools like extra length drills you can buy some sizes in long shank drills
but not in the sizes I needed 5/64" tapping size for 7BA

and about a minute or two later I had my long shank 5/64" drill, a little heat & silver solder

next issue was the tapping wrench n tap were too short

so out with a short bit of silver steel to make a holder with a grub screw

and in no time at all problem solved

it is still to be used and I will have to remember to be very gentle with it.
I now needed to fit the tender body back onto the frame just to check a few things,

and I found a mistake
the hand pump outlet appeared as though it was going to be an issue, so I made a nipple to check

I love turning brass LOL the finished nipple/union with my drawing that I knocked up

and it did foul the inside frame of the rear section of the tender by approx 1/8" damn it, now I had to make
a modification to the floor of the water tank section of the tender

so a plan was hatched to fix the situation which meant fitting the frame on the upturned body

area marked out and where the nipple/union should be etc, the old fitting un-sweated from the floor

suitable thickness plate cut to size and marked out and drilled for 12 x 1/16" dia brass rivets

then transfer the holes very carefully, and with my T/A assisting set the rivets after making a small
setting tool

then another refit everything and mark the position of the hole for the nipple/union and soft solder it all

and the underside

and that's about where I am at this point, I have cut the front of the tender body as I'm not having doors
on it, after some lawn work tomorrow I might get an opportunity to do a bit more anyway cheers Dennis

[STDDIVER]

Great to read more of he thread Dennis - Great work as always.  We had a wet Anzac Day in Portland but it dried out for the 11am parade.  My mate, veteran Ernie passed away during the year as well, as well as Ron so two less for this years parade - Lest we forget -
Keep up the great work mate, truly inspiring -

Frank

[FFRMAN]

WHAT!!  the Workshop Land Rover got wet?

Also are you painting the train O/D or DBG? Lol

[DennisM]

Yes Scott, it got wet, if it wasn't for the status of the day it would not have been out at all, cheers dennis ps nice n dry now though