Well bugger!

Ok so. This week I wanted to get this engine running on air. I really shouldn't put these kinds of dead lines on myself ... It NEVER works out!! Damn them!...

So the issues I ran into is I need to weld a plate into the cylinder block, to make life easy for future hydraulic tests. So I can blank off the regulator/ cylinder block from the boiler. But ... I can't get it welded till next week.... Ass!!!!! 

Well so other things been going on! 

Started painting things!  The boiler/smokebox is having a new coat of hight temp black satin, the smokebox door is being filled and painted.... So that's at least something, 

The tank is also something that's been on the bench, ... It's been cleaned and de-rusted, and had a coat of varnish on the inside!... May seem a little random, but..... I figured... It's waterproof which will keep the water and air off the steel work, plus a new drain bung and a few other bits, 

Frames starting to look good! 

Anyways that's about it, pece!

Well it's all getting a little bit exciting!

If your into that kinda thing!! 

It's been interesting looking at the stats from this ere blog, the biggest hit is from America of all places!!  So to everyone who does read this..... Hi!!! And thanks for sitting through endless pages of drivel in the vague hope of finding something interesting!

Anyways, less drivel and more interesting things!! 

The week has seen excitement! I'm getting somewhat keen for all this, the cylinder block is complete, apart from valve covers (which need to be off to set it up) and the high pressure piston cap, mostly because I haven't had it with me to bolt on! But I'm really pleased with the result! The block realy is a work of art! 

All that's left is 2 new valve stem seals as the old ones are off centre and just wrong! And a quick once over with some gasket paper,

So now that's done, and the crank, the boiler was next and so I plugged it all up and gave it a Pre-test test! And I'm over the moon, 2 drippy fittings but that's it!

So all that's left now is an official test and I can get this lot back together!

I've left the painting of the frames up to the old man, he seems keen to get on with something so that's being done so hopefully in a few weeks that will be ready for the boiler/engine plant, as I hope that by the end of next week there may be a video of the re-birthing chuff! At least on air anyway! 

Things did slow somewhat due to the wedding which was hilarious, (weddings normally are when your dressed as a pirate! ) but back to the front and work will commence! 

 

Once I run out of excuses to be a pirate!  Yah harrrrr!!!!!!!!

The aforementioned "hump day"

Hahahahahahah!!! Hump day! 

Right now I've done that, I'll start by saying, don't expect this to make sense, it's one of "Those days" I'm afraid! One of those days I make as much sense as a inflatable dart board,

However music is keeping me partially grounded so things aren't all that bad. This week I've been on a drive to do these rods. Pain in the ass job! But gotta be done, straight forward cut/ weld/ machine job... Yea .... Right!!!! It's taken many hours to do all this! Luckily I have some time at work whilst these big castings are machined!! 

 So after some machining they start to take shape. The holes in the back are just for the radius to make them look all smart and tidy!

 The next 2 up on the mill, one in the fixture being machined to length,

 

Job one complete! Make them the right length!!!! Now to tidy up! 

 

All 4 now just waiting to be drilled so I can bolt em to the straps! 

Weather ill get much more done this week I don't know. Mums wedding is coming up on Friday so weather ill get much more done remains to be seen. 

What's next, well once I can get all this together I could get the block and bits back up on top of the boiler... But I don't really want to do that right now, I'm planning to plug the boiler up without the block up on top, so It can be tested so that's the next issue to work on, plugging up all the holes to get this thing through a hydraulic test.... 225 psi should be interesting!!!!!!!

.... Have faith! ( or at least that what I keep telling myself!) 

Rock n' roll!!!

Rounding up the weeks work!

Well its the end of the week and I've been busy!

so i thought i would add a quick one up here to show some stuff that's been going on 

First of all the Foden works, 

I've been bashing on for a while with this and although I've lost steam ( yes the pun is intended!) things have slowed.. its been a LOOOOOOOONNNGGG week!

First some pictures ( just for James who likes pictures) 

 New eccentrics and straps are well on their way to being done, the crank has been tided

The frames have come along, the steering rack is back on, and a new steering bracket made

the pistons being ringed for the first times in its life

 the valves now machined to the right size! they were over 1mm wrong!

new pistons in the bores, with rings! and all that stuff! 

so that's the Foden work pretty much wrapped up! 

the rest of my week has been taken up with a lot of band related stuff, a new single on its way and a video to go with it so its all been massively hectic! so that was a day messing round at Fawley power station and a night videoing in a wood land surrounded by fire! 

for anyone interested the web site for the band is 

http://www.roziichaos.com

https://www.facebook.com/RoziiChaos

So yea.... hectic times! 

hopefully ill get some more work done as soon as i can! 

Laters!! 

Length matters!

Or so they tell me!

Seen's as I've pretty much finished the eccentrics and a straps, I've started looking at the rods. Now I know They are wrong and all over the place so my idea its to chop the back of them off, weld on a plate and re-machine the plate, so I've started doing some maths! ( yes it did hurt!) 

Now I know what my rod length needs to be (4 5/32" between centres) I can get to it, but thinking ahead I've made a fixture! (cleaver huh!?) 

So this should (he says hoping!) hold the rods for machining, to get rid of the nastiness I was left with! 

You may be able to see the scribed lines, the furthest from the dowel is where the end of the rod will be, the one further in is the line at which I shall cut and weld the rod

Hopefully it will look something like this soon! Ish..... Maby!

..... Well this took up a good few minutes of my day, back to reality I suppose! 

Bored now!  Laters!