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  1. #1
    Join Date
    Nov 2004
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    Millmerran,QLD
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    73
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    Default Harbs Spindle Moulder

    I may have mentioned in the past that back around 2000 I bought the woodworking machines from a joinery that had been established in the mid fifties but shut down by the late eighties. The gear had just been sitting there. I have previously posted links to the jointer:

    24" Jointer

    the Festo Framing saw

    Festo Framing Saw

    and the Robinson Thicknesser

    Robinson Thicknesser

    This one is a Harbs Spindle Moulder:

    It have been languishing in the far corner of my friend Gavin's shed all this time. Recently he passed away quite suddenly from cancer: He was a lot older than me ( 5 months!) and always maintained I could leave the machines there as long as I wanted, but now the property has passed to his daughter and her husband. They are tidying up the place and it became apparent that the time had come to make other arrangements for their storage.

    It was quite a battle moving them as Gavin's tractor with a Front End Loader was working when the machines were positioned in the furthest corner. This was no longer the case. I had to skid machinery out on 8m long 75mm RHS. This was some other bits that needed moving and the principle of how it was done. The dirt floor represents some difficulties and my greatest fear was that the machines would slide off the platform (three layers of mdf with timber guides beneath to locate on the RHS):

    P1050511 (Medium).JPG

    You can see some other gear in there including a table saw, a Stroke Sander (pedestals only), a line shaft, motors and a huge dust collection fan, which is almost completely hidden from view.

    P1050512 (Medium).JPG

    The Stroke Sander pedestal does not look that significant, but it was heavy enough that I was unable to even stand it up. However, that could be more of an indictment on my physical abilities .

    P1050513 (Medium).JPG

    To get the equipment out of the shed I had to use the 8m rails twice. I started by using come-a-longs. Then I realised I could move the platform 100mm at a time with a crowbar dug into the dirt floor and levered, which was quicker: Finally I twigged that once on the platform propper, I could tow the platform with my vehicle. The proverbial exponential learning curve!!

    Back to the Spindle Moulder, which I estimated weighed in the region of 500Kg and seemed like it was twice that weight! Possibly somebody has an old catalogue that would confirm or debunk this estimate (Matty, are you out there as you have a seemingly endless source of these old catalogues?). I did look briefly for some information on the net but did not come up with much on old Harbs machinery.

    IMG_20190912_162930 (Medium).jpgIMG_20190912_163006 (Medium).jpgIMG_20190912_162947 (Medium).jpg

    The cutter block is old style without safety limiters. I forgot to measure the shaft diameter, which I am hoping will be 30mm, as it was German made, and may lend itself to a modern, safer cutter head.


    IMG_20190912_163017 (Medium).jpgIMG_20190912_163024 (Medium).jpgIMG_20190912_163040 (Medium).jpgIMG_20190912_163049 (Medium).jpg

    It had to be dragged up the same 75mm rails (with intermediate supports along the 8m length) onto the ute. Once I came to unload it there was another problem. My old 580C Case backhoe had a starting issue and I used a screwdriver across the terminals, That worked and I repositioned the backhoe. When I came to restart the contacts failed again and in trying to make a better contact I damaged the starter solenoid. Instead I resurrected an old gantry and lowered the Moulder with a chain block

    IMG_20190912_163112 (Medium).jpg

    It is sitting in the open with a tarp over it until I can move it under cover. Any more information on the machine would be appreciated. I know that the previous owner acquired it in the middle fifties, but I don't know if it was brand new at that time.

    Regards
    Paul
    Bushmiller;

    "Power tends to corrupt. Absolute power corrupts, absolutely!"

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  3. #2
    Join Date
    Nov 2011
    Location
    Melbourne
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    Default

    Paul,

    You have had a busy few days by the look of it.
    I have a soft spot for vintage machines, they just don’t build them like they use too, an know Paul I am not referring to our keepers [emoji849].
    But that spindle moulded looks scary [emoji33].

    I hope you are still counting to ten when you have that up an running?

    On the next load to be picked up could you clamp or spot weld a spreader bar between your rails,at the end,then drag the whole thing out with the mighty power of GENERAL Motors Holden.
    Rails and machine all at once ?

    Cheers Matt.

  4. #3
    Join Date
    Aug 2008
    Location
    Melbourne
    Age
    34
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    6,127

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by Bushmiller View Post
    The cutter block is old style without safety limiters. I forgot to measure the shaft diameter, which I am hoping will be 30mm, as it was German made, and may lend itself to a modern, safer cutter head.
    IMG_20190912_163040 (Medium).jpg
    That cutter style is actually extremely safe and is pretty much identical to modern replaceable-insert rebate heads; the entire body is the safety limiter and it won't allow you to feed too aggressively. More of an issue would be finding new blades for it.

    Given the age, it might be a 1 1/4" (31.75mm) spindle; some companies still make heads in both 30mm and 31.75mm for legacy compatibility with the old industry standard due to the number of machines still using it, but most sharpening places (and probably quite a few people on the forum) will be able to bore out a 30mm head if you need to.

  5. #4
    Join Date
    Nov 2004
    Location
    Millmerran,QLD
    Age
    73
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    11,096

    Default

    Thanks for that information Elan.

    I had, wrongly, assumed that because it was an old machine it must not have included any safety devices. Did some moulders have a square block and is that what was in the back of my mind? I do have some other cutters somewhere that came in a box of bits and pieces. I will have to dig them out. I have also assumed that because it is a German machine, it will be metric, but again not necessarily the case.

    Regards
    Paul
    Bushmiller;

    "Power tends to corrupt. Absolute power corrupts, absolutely!"

  6. #5
    Join Date
    Nov 2004
    Location
    Millmerran,QLD
    Age
    73
    Posts
    11,096

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by Simplicity View Post
    Paul,

    You have had a busy few days by the look of it.
    I have a soft spot for vintage machines, they just don’t build them like they use too, an know Paul I am not referring to our keepers [emoji849].
    But that spindle moulded looks scary [emoji33].

    I hope you are still counting to ten when you have that up an running?

    On the next load to be picked up could you clamp or spot weld a spreader bar between your rails,at the end,then drag the whole thing out with the mighty power of GENERAL Motors Holden.
    Rails and machine all at once ?

    Cheers Matt.
    Matt

    I have a different plan in mind for the next sortie.

    Still have all fingers and even more confidence since Elan's vote of confidence.

    Regards
    Paul
    Bushmiller;

    "Power tends to corrupt. Absolute power corrupts, absolutely!"

  7. #6
    Join Date
    Aug 2008
    Location
    Melbourne
    Age
    34
    Posts
    6,127

    Default

    Moulders initially used square blocks, but they were phased out a long time ago for safer and quieter alternatives.

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