Minnie TE Long term project

[Jasonb]

Comming alonge nicely Joe

Its not quite as simple as setting a rotary table at and angle and milling slots, the slots actually need to follow a helix around the rim, thats why it would be more like cutting a multi start thread. Each of the rear strakes need to be twisted slightly to follow the same helix before being rivited on.

J

[Zadig]

Comming alonge nicely Joe

Its not quite as simple as setting a rotary table at and angle and milling slots, the slots actually need to follow a helix around the rim, thats why it would be more like cutting a multi start thread. Each of the rear strakes need to be twisted slightly to follow the same helix before being rivited on.

J

I don't see how this cannot be done comfortably on such a small scale - keeping any error to an aesthetic minimum.

The helix is hardly discernible on the bigger scales. Twisting is only necessary to bring the strake in line with the rim. If the rim was machined as per the front wheels then the helix is already incorporated. It would only be the sides of the strake that would not follow and I cannot see how this would be noticeable to an extent that would offend the eye.

[Zadig]

Now I have thought about it, I can see my error. Ignore my last remarks.

[Joe d]

Zadig  I enjoyed building the pillar tool, haven't quite finished all the extra bits for it yet.  The biggest problem was finding somewhere to bolt it down.  It really does make tapping less nerve wracking.  I've started reading your thread about your Burrell, wish I had both the room
and the machinery to tackle one that size.

Mexican Jon:  I suspect that I learned that trick on one of these fora, essentially a factory-made form tool.

Jason Thanks

Joe

[Zadig]

Joe, I thought the pillar tool looked like a bit of quality, I had a vain hope that it was Chinese!

[Joe d]

Hi Zadig

It's from George Thomas' plans, got some really nice castings from Gary Martin in the US a little more
affordable here than shipping them in from the UK.  Like your gear cutting, still finding the occasional
bit of cast-iron dust here and there...

Joe

[Joe d]

Some more progress:

but first, here's the obligatory beauty shot.... a coat of primer to stop any rust while they sit around waiting for me to finish everything else


Wheels done, decided to carry on with some front-end stuff (was still waiting for stock to arrive)
so cleaned up an off-cut of the boiler barrel, and slit it lengthwise on the mill


once cut, opened it up a bit by pushing it over a piece of stock the same diameter as the boiler shell, then soldered in a little piece of copper
to fill the gap.  This then becomes the smokebox, so set-up the handy-dandy indexer again to lay out some rivet holes


That done, started on the perch bracket by rolling a piece of steel for the baseplate


and bent up another piece of steel and silver soldered them together


Then made a hole in the bottom of the bracket,  turned up a bronze bushing, and milled a steel fitting for the push pole, and soldered them
in place


two pieces of flat bar get a turned spigot on each end which is then threaded, these are riveted in place to provide studs for securing cover plates fore and aft (which were straightforward hacksaw and file work)


more to come...
 

[Joe d]

the story continues...

milled the fork which will hold the front axle:



turned a retainer for the inner end of the fork, tapped for a setscrew


turned the pin that will hold the axle, and here's what it looks like behind the cover plate


So only have the axle, a couple of washers, and the hub covers to do and the front wheel assembly is done.....
and a very good thing too, as my pal the mailman brought me this:


so I can get back to the rear wheels!

Cheers, Joe

[vtsteam]

Still watching and and quietly applauding every step Joe! 

[RobWilson]

  Front wheels look cracking Joe 


You seam to be flying along with this build     

  but must ask  , how did you musket shoot ?  did you hit anything ? 

Rob

[Joe d]

Steve

If you clap really loud, and the wind is from the sou-east, I could hear you!

Rob:

Thanks, Mate.  The flintlock came out nicely if I must say so myself, get it on the range a couple of times per year,
grouping is good, playing with sight adjustment still (fixed blade and v-notch) got the fall of shot on the centre of
the target horizontally, still got to bring it up a bunch.  This is pretty easy, file a little off the front blade, fire a string of shots,
measure how far up it moved, repeat. 

Have to ensure that I don't do this right before going through airport security, black powder sets off their little
sniffer machines

Joe

[RobWilson]

Good to here your getting some range time  aye I bet the GSR is a total body thing after a few rounds 

Rob

[Meldonmech]

 Hi Joe,

                    The Engine is coming on really well, and looking great.

                                                                  Cheers David

[Joe d]

Thanks, David.

chucked a piece of flat bar in the 4-jaw and turned a spigot on each end, this was then drilled and tapped for
a retaining screw.  Moved over to the mill and made some angled cuts


hand filed some decorative chamfers on the edges, some straightforward turning to make the brass hub covers


and here it is all together.


still have some cleanup to do on the axle, but pretty much done!

Cheers, Joe

[Pete W.]

Hi there, Joe,

That's looking very good.          

Please could you explain how the front wheels are retained on the axle?

A second question, please forgive me for being thick: you've marked-out fixing holes on the smoke box - does the boiler shell protrude forward of the smoke box tube-plate?  Surely the smoke box fixings don't penetrate the pressurised part of the boiler?          

[Joe d]

Hi Pete

Thanks for the kind words.

The end of the axle is drilled and tapped, once the wheel is on there is a washer slightly larger than the axle
diameter held on with a cap screw, all of which is hidden by the hub cap.

As to your second question, hard to tell in the photo but yes the shell extends a good 1/2" beyond the tube plate just for that reason.

Cheers, Joe

[Joe d]

Well, started having at the nice bit of brass that came in last week.

Well hidden inside there are some rear-wheel hubs screaming to come out...

Set up in the mill to carve off some of the excess material


then mounted on the dividing head for a lot of passes to round it over, went with very small increments which leave me with next to
no clean up to do to remove the facets left by the indexing as they are really slight


changed to the other centre to mill the smaller radius


once that was done, still on the same centres started to mill out the inside of the hub.  So far once around with an end cutting mill,
next will go around each side of this slot with a 1/8' ball nose cutter, taking off another 1/16' on each side bringing the slot to size,
and giving me a nice little radius at the root.


Once that's done, remount once again on the other centres, and finish off the slot milling.

However, that's for tomorrow, it's time 

Joe 

[Joe d]

Made some progress with the wheels.

Went around the material with the ball nose cutter to finish off the slots


Then a lot of back and forthing, in the 4 jaw in the lathe to face the end, in the bandsaw to cut off, back in the 4 jaw to reface, cut off, turn some spigots, cut off, etc etc, then faced the cut sides and end up here:


put the centre sections on the rotary table to mill the slots for the spokes


made up another jig to install the spokes


and here's one done ready for some rivets


Looks like a wheel now.

Cheers, Joe

[Zadig]

They look lovely Joe, you'll be booking your steam test for the end of the month at this rate.

I was at a plant and machinery auction the other day and had you in mind for a long while. There was a construction book for the Minnie by L C Mason. I was tempted to bid for it for posterity, but things were going on elsewhere and I didn't get to see it go through - pity.

[Joe d]

Thanks for that,  Zadig.  I do in fact have a copy of the book, worthwhile even if you weren't building one as an aide
in understanding the relationship of the various bits to each other.

Incidentally, have finished reading the 120+ pages of your project:  all I can say is WOW.  Looking forward to more,
so get busy 

Cheers, Joe

[Joe d]

 Well, have hit one of those really enjoyable milestone moments in the project:

Soldered the hub bits together


Got the rim turning true in the 4-jaw, finished boring the axle hole and ran the reamer through it,
and did the final facing of the hub


and here we are, standing on our own 4 wheels:




I'll have to make another slightly shorter fork for the front axle, got a bit of an upwards tilt at the moment, but that won't take long,
meanwhile  it sure is nice to see it on wheels!

Cheers, Joe

[vtsteam]

By gum if it ain't a tractor! 

[mexican jon]

Well Done That Man 

[Jasonb]

Upwards tilt is a good thing see my reply elsewhere.

[RobWilson]

    Bloody marvellous Joe 


Rob