Thread: TOS cyl. grinder lost handle

Having a look at a few photos on the web, it looks like it is just a lever.
These guys
http://www.weltec.ac.nz/SUBJECTAREAS...6/Default.aspx
Seem to have the same machine (photo right down the bottom of the page). Perhaps an email to them?

And this one shows a handle too -
46036737_1_1000x700_cylindrical-grinding-machine-tos-.jpg

Michael

More thoughts - Looking at the space where it should be and the handle pictured, I'm thinking that it is spring loaded with a pin so that the function is locked out unless the handle is pulled towards the operator first (pulls pin out of hole). Without that function I can imagine the handle being knocked with potentially catastrophic results. The horizontal hole in Phil's picture of the handle mount would be the pivot point. I can't understand why it would be removed though.

Thanks Michael,
why am I not surprised you would find a pic. I must have waded few several hundreds of pics and found nothing I could use.
Spot on about the spring loading and the pivot as it would be truly inspiring to see pieces of the rather large grinding wheel flying at me doing about warp 6.
As to why the handle has been removed I am only assuming it would be the first thing to be removed if allowing a heap of apprentices loose on it.
Only once did I see what happens when the wheelhead was wound up to the job and then the lever flicked over to advance towards the job which of course now means 'through the job'
The trade teachers were incredibly miffed while we all thought it was hilarious. Just to be clear, it wasn't me who did this.
I'm confident I can proceed with an appropriate handle for it courtesy of the pic you found as it was more the aesthetics I was after, the dimensions should be easy enough.
Just would have been nice if someone had one.
Thanks again.

Phil

Originally Posted by Steamwhisperer

why am I not surprised you would find a pic. I must have waded few several hundreds of pics and found nothing I could use.

I think it is part of the same collection of rules grouped under the general heading of "Murphy's Law". Personally I'm waiting for my shed pencil to show up - I know I've put it down somewhere and I've looked but can't find it. Logically it will show up soon when I don't need it, more than likely when I have found a replacement...

Google may be partly to blame though as I'm told it will filter results depending on past history. Says something about me when all I get is machine tool pictures. (I won't ask what sort of pictures you were looking at.)

I think I have a spare ball for the handle end if you need one

Michael

hmmm shed pencil. Mine is 3'16" allen keys.
I must have bought enough of those things to be the official east coast supplier.
I am sure that one day I will locate the black hole in the shed that is full of them. Normally buying something I have lost will immediately locate the original but not so with 3'16" allen keys
It is getting to the stage that once I have used the key I should just throw it across the back yard and save a heap of heartache. But I digress.
I attempted to wind the wheelhead in towards the job the other day and nearly got RSI doing it so will be making the appropriate handle.
Of course this is dependant on the sparky coming in to wire it up.
I am making a new valve spindle to suit the large engine at work which is well worn in the area where the gland packing sits. The better the surface finish and the more accurate it is in the area of not being tapered, the longer it will last.
I'll do a thread on the build when it is done.

Phil
DSCN2425.jpg DSCN2424.jpg

Originally Posted by Steamwhisperer

T
Only once did I see what happens when the wheelhead was wound up to the job and then the lever flicked over to advance towards the job which of course now means 'through the job'

I have seen it done as well... Not quite as bad as that though, but the workpiece which was between centres got thrown... The good looking guilty party shall remain anonymous though...

I've quite a few ball handles also if required, Black and about 30 mm diam with 3/8 BSW thread, courtesy of wheel chairs that I've dismantled.
PM me if required,
Regards
Kryn

Originally Posted by Steamwhisperer

hmmm shed pencil. Mine is 3'16" allen keys.
I must have bought enough of those things to be the official east coast supplier.
I am sure that one day I will locate the black hole in the shed that is full of them. Normally buying something I have lost will immediately locate the original but not so with 3'16" allen keys
It is getting to the stage that once I have used the key I should just throw it across the back yard and save a heap of heartache. But I digress.
I attempted to wind the wheelhead in towards the job the other day and nearly got RSI doing it so will be making the appropriate handle.
Of course this is dependant on the sparky coming in to wire it up.
I am making a new valve spindle to suit the large engine at work which is well worn in the area where the gland packing sits. The better the surface finish and the more accurate it is in the area of not being tapered, the longer it will last.
I'll do a thread on the build when it is done.

Phil
DSCN2425.jpg DSCN2424.jpg

G'day Phil, your project reminds me of a similar one I had a few years ago on my Ajax A2 pump. As I recall, the main shaft in the wet end is 3/4 brass about 12" long. It had worn similarly to yours in the area where the shaft passed through the gland, and it became impossible to stem the leak from the gland due to the waisted worn section hammering the packings no matter how they were adjusted. A new shaft was over $100 IIRC, a complete ripoff for a 12" X 3/4 brass shaft with reduced diameters, and an inch or so of 1/2" thread on each end, so I just turned the whole shaft major diameter till I had removed the worn section. From memory it was about 10 to 15 thou that was removed to give me a uniform diameter that passed through the gland, and no more major leaking, just a few drips per stroke.
I don't know if the same approach will work for you or not, as hot steam is a different animal to cold water, but that pump has just over 100PSI operating head, so it does have pressure, perhaps not as much as your engine, and certainly not the heat that you have to handle.
I look forward to your fix, Regards,
Rob.

Originally Posted by Ropetangler

G'day Phil, your project reminds me of a similar one I had a few years ago on my Ajax A2 pump. As I recall, the main shaft in the wet end is 3/4 brass about 12" long. It had worn similarly to yours in the area where the shaft passed through the gland, and it became impossible to stem the leak from the gland due to the waisted worn section hammering the packings no matter how they were adjusted. A new shaft was over $100 IIRC, a complete ripoff for a 12" X 3/4 brass shaft with reduced diameters, and an inch or so of 1/2" thread on each end, so I just turned the whole shaft major diameter till I had removed the worn section. From memory it was about 10 to 15 thou that was removed to give me a uniform diameter that passed through the gland, and no more major leaking, just a few drips per stroke.
I don't know if the same approach will work for you or not, as hot steam is a different animal to cold water, but that pump has just over 100PSI operating head, so it does have pressure, perhaps not as much as your engine, and certainly not the heat that you have to handle.
I look forward to your fix, Regards,
Rob.

Many thanks for the offer of a ball for the end of the shaft, I was going to make a ball turner but with a dire shortage of engine drivers and boiler attendants at work I have been pressed back into driving and firing duties.
I have a few maintenance days coming up but won't be able to spend much time making one so I just may be taking up your offer.

Hi Rob,
those dimensions are eerily close to my dimensions. The spindle also has some pretty deep galling in along it shaft which if I machined out, wouldn't leave much shaft. I would then have to bush out the gland collar to suit. This engine is 138 years old and as far as we know, so is the valve spindle. Highly unlikely to be the same age but we don't have any provenance on it so can't be sure.
We are going to have a crack at getting some provenance on it but this requires reading through the shire engineers reports for the Ballarat city councils meetings one by one (we are going to do this shortly).
The main reason for me is so I can have some fun on the cylindrical grinder.
This valve is used 5 times every day of the year ('cept Christmas day) so cops a fair floggin'. It is also our largest engine and the last thing we need is a failure while trying to stop it, something we have to do in an emergency if someone, pffft, 'when' someone ignores the 'do not enter' sign and walks in while the engine is running.
This valve also has a weird setup on the part that winds the valve in and out which means I can only undercut the part where the gland packing does its sealing thus creating a whole world of pain removing old packing, not impossible, just painful.

Phil

[QUOTE=Steamwhisperer;1855612]hmmm shed pencil. Mine is 3'16" allen keys.
I must have bought enough of those things to be the official east coast supplier.

It took me a while to work out what a 3 foot 16 inch allen key was.http://d1r5wj36adg1sk.cloudfront.net...ctions/doh.gif