var mainmess= "Making Black 5 from Don Young's plans" var backimage= "" var backcolour= "" var wind_colour= "#ffffff" var textcolour= "#FFC1FF" var bigfolder= "images-web/black5/smaller" var thumbfolder= "images-web/black5/thumbs" var prefix='t_' // the prefix for the thumbnails var wind_height= screen.height-100 var wind_width= "900" var pic=new Array() pic[1] ="IMG_0193" pic[2] ="IMG_0202" pic[3] ="IMG_1184" pic[4] ="IMG_0189" pic[5] ="IMG_1190" pic[6] ="IMG_0441" pic[7] ="IMG_2450" pic[8] ="IMG_0453" pic[9] ="IMG_0482" pic[10] ="IMG_0483" pic[11] ="IMG_0496" pic[12] ="IMG_0512" pic[13] ="IMG_0513" pic[14] ="IMG_0520" pic[15] ="IMG_0703" pic[16] ="IMG_0953" var picwid=new Array() picwid[1] ="200" picwid[2] ="200" picwid[3] ="200" picwid[4] ="200" picwid[5] ="200" picwid[6] ="200" picwid[7] ="200" picwid[8] ="200" picwid[9] ="200" picwid[10]="200" picwid[11]="200" picwid[12]="200" picwid[13]="200" picwid[14]="200" picwid[15]="200" picwid[16]="200" picwid[17]="200" picwid[18]="200" picwid[19]="200" picwid[20]="200" picwid[21]="200" picwid[22]="200" picwid[23]="200" picwid[24]="200" picwid[25]="200" picwid[26]="200" picwid[27]="200" picwid[28]="200" picwid[29]="200" picwid[30]="200" picwid[31]="200" picwid[32]="200" picwid[33]="200" picwid[34]="200" picwid[35]="200" picwid[36]="200" picwid[37]="200" picwid[38]="200" picwid[39]="200" picwid[40]="200" picwid[41]="200" picwid[42]="200" picwid[43]="200" picwid[44]="150" picwid[45]="200" picwid[46]="200" picwid[47]="200" picwid[48]="200" picwid[49]="200" picwid[50]="200" picwid[51]="200" picwid[52]="200" picwid[53]="200" var picheight=new Array() picheight[1] ="150" picheight[2] ="150" picheight[3] ="150" picheight[4] ="150" picheight[5] ="150" picheight[6] ="150" picheight[7] ="150" picheight[8] ="150" picheight[9] ="150" picheight[10]="150" picheight[11]="141" picheight[12]="150" picheight[13]="150" picheight[14]="150" picheight[15]="150" picheight[16]="150" picheight[17]="150" picheight[18]="150" picheight[19]="150" picheight[20]="150" picheight[21]="150" picheight[22]="150" picheight[23]="150" picheight[24]="150" picheight[25]="150" picheight[26]="150" picheight[27]="150" picheight[28]="150" picheight[29]="150" picheight[30]="150" picheight[31]="150" picheight[32]="150" picheight[33]="150" picheight[34]="150" picheight[35]="150" picheight[36]="150" picheight[37]="150" picheight[38]="150" picheight[39]="150" picheight[40]="150" picheight[41]="150" picheight[42]="150" picheight[43]="150" picheight[44]="150" picheight[45]="150" picheight[46]="150" picheight[47]="150" picheight[48]="150" picheight[49]="150" picheight[50]="150" picheight[51]="150" picheight[52]="150" picheight[53]="150" var txt=new Array() txt[1] ="The 3mm sheet steel for the frames and fabricated stretchers. Altogether I have 6 strips like that.
As you can see, it is cut into 6" wide strips 4 feet long for the throat on my bandsaw which, (even with the bit I cut out to do Simplex frames) is only just over 3 inches. So starting with 6" strips will make it practical.
Unfortunately, I had hoped the sheet would have been guillotined, but no! They cut it with a rather cute plasma cutter - an oxy-acetylene cutter on a little trolly which navigates across the sheet all by itself. That means I have rather nasty edges on the steel which will need to be ground flat before I even start the sawing.

There is an inspirational picture on the wall at the back of the bench! 26/10/2007" txt[2] ="The wheels and cylinders have arrived! - What a palaver at customs, but eventually beat them down to 10% of the cost plus postage.

Sadly one of the cylinders has a critical flaw and will need to be returned to Reeves in the UK - They were extremely helpful when I phoned and said they'd refund the return postage stc


The flaw goes quite deep and I think will impinge on the steam passage in the cylinder valve.

03/11/2007" txt[3] ="Under way at last! Wheels for the tender fettled and painted, baking in the Malaysian sun at around 70° C.

The axles cut to almost length from 7/8" BMS and the blank plates for the jigs for the tender and main wheels machined from chunks of rusty old plate plasma-cut to almost size.
That really taxed the lathe - maximum diameter that the chuck can hold.

I am not doing the wheels Don Young's way, but will make my own modifications to the method used by Mr Watanabe in Japan (see links page). 15/06/2008.

" txt[4] ="Tender wheels faced off on the back, bored and reamed to 16mm (can't get a 5/8" reamer here) and the axles turned almost to size (going rusty already despite Malaysian WD40 spray!). I like to paint wheels before machining as it gives a nice crisp line between the bare metal (or in my case - RUSTY metal) and the paint. Damage to the paint when clamping by the spokes for machining the front can be touched up easily with a little brush.

There is a strange discrepancy on Don Young's plans. The tender axleboxes are outboard from the wheels, and the axle is supposed to be turned to 0.623" which seems reasonable enough, a couple of thou for running clearance with a 5/8" hole - BUT when looking at the plans and the write-up by Don, it asks for the axleboxes to be bored to 16mm!? That's almost 7 thou clearance - odd - anyone else noticed that?

I will opt for the axle being a couple of thou (0.05mm) below 16mm, which is my reamer size and allow for the required slop for bumpy tracks to be accomodated by the 1/16" lateral clearance between axleboxes and horns.

Oh, by the way, for those who decry Chinese tools, I took my 6" 3-jaw chuck to bits and cleaned it all before starting on this project. It now grips a piece of 7/8" BMS to within less than a thou one inch from the jaws - same for 10mm bar too!! 18/06/2008 " txt[5] ="Fed up with getting burnt by flying swarf and the disgusting smells generated by the heated cutting oils, so I thought I'd try suds on the mill, using a brush to apply rather than the complexities of a pump etc.

Worked like a charm, I could take bigger cuts at a higher feed rate and still not get the workpiece more than just warm. Nice finish too. These will be the axleboxes for the tender

And here's a picture of the finished wheels mocked up on the axles plus the two bits I've milled out to make the 6 axleboxes - I thought I might as well record this before they go rusty.

Don Young asks for gunmetal axleboxes, but there ain't no gunmetal in Malaysia!



And now the axleboxes bored and bushed - the hole is meant to be off centre - for some reason it's nearer the top of the axlebox. 25/06/2008

" txt[6] ="Making a start on the frame steel for the tender.

The only reason for this picture is to show the advantage of having the workbench the same height as the bandsaw table (or vice-versa)

Note the absence of the laser cutting equipment - I have to do it the old fashioned method here! 13/02/2009" txt[7] ="Trueing up the rough cut tender outer frames - 2 feet long, so it had to be done in two passes even on that mill! 21/02/2009" txt[8] ="Pipping out the holes on the tender outer frames. The rusty bit of steel bar (it was bright-mild!) pointed to by the red arrow, is set absolutley parallel to the milling table by using the edge finder at both ends. The frame steel is pushed hard up against it and clamped in the middle.
As I'm not drilling through, only making pips with a centre drill, the steel is hard down on the table.

The imperial/metric conversion is making my brain physically sore today! Almost wonder about DRO's, but then again, I wouldn't trust them! 23/02/2009" txt[9] ="Lazy way of cutting the holes in the tender frames. Because I make my own bandsaw blades and join them with silver solder, it's relatively easy to undo a join, thread the blade through a hole in the metal and rejoin it. 01/03/2009" txt[10]="Another lazy way of getting a good finish on the holes - a bit of a linisher belt wrapped round a rod with a groove for the start, and held in place with a yellow rubber band. When the abrasiveness starts to fade, it's just a matter of undoing one turn of the sanding belt. 05/03/2009" txt[11]="Outer frames now drilled and shaped - better job than laser cutting!!! The holes for the axle horns and axle-box keeps will be drilled from the horns and keeps.

And a mock-up with the wheels - obviously, with no springs, the axleboxes are bottomed out!

Rusting already, so the frames will be given a quick sand and a coat of primer as there will be a fair time gap before the stretchers are fabricated and the inner frames done. 10/03/2009" txt[12]="Eugene from the Philippines fettling the wheels for me 27/03/2009" txt[13]="Rivetting the horn blocks - I made a little clamp specially for the job as a normal toolmaker's clamp stuck up too much and fouled the drill chuck. A mere 84 rivets to hold the horn blocks on. Notice the cigarette paper for clearance!

And the outer frames now with all the horns on - the dreaded rust is getting in again!

Spring hangers next to be fabricated. 5/04/2009

" txt[14]="Starting to make the bits for the spring hangers - milled from 5/8" steel bar. These will be cut into twelve pieces, shaped and drilled for the spring bolt, then brazed to a 2.5mm backplate. 18/04/2008" txt[15]="Starting on the buffer stocks.



The plans call for a complex way of making them in two pieces, so as no-one is going to dismantle them, I decided to make them in a simple fashion, the same way I did the Simplex ones. A flat back plate with a hole for the socket to fit into. As there won't be a bolting flange on my version of the socket, I shall silver solder the two parts together.

I followed the plans and made the 15/16" square, but with the M2 nuts I have available instead of 8BA, it doesn't look right, so a bit of poetic licence and I will make the back plate 1" square instead. 21/09/2009" txt[16]="Buffer stocks finished and sprayed with Halford's zinc primer courtesy of a friend in Southampton. Those of you who make 5 inch gauge will appreciate the size of the crab (for Tel's benefit), and at long last I've found a source of gin and tonic - JB eat your heart out - only 3 quid for a litre. 01/04/2010" txt[17]="" txt[18]="" txt[19]="" txt[20]="" txt[21]="" txt[22]="" txt[23]="" txt[24]="" txt[25]="" txt[26]="" txt[27]="" txt[28]="" txt[29]="" txt[30]="" txt[31]="" txt[32]="" txt[33]="" txt[34]="" txt[35]="" txt[36]="" txt[37]="" txt[38]="" txt[39]="" txt[40]="" txt[41]="" txt[42]="" txt[43]="" txt[44]="" txt[45]="" txt[46]="" txt[47]="" txt[48]="" txt[49]="" txt[50]="" txt[51]="" txt[52]="" txt[53]=""