Thread: PK Douglas Compositors Saw

Nice little saw.
Be good with a bit of TLC.

Try soaking that nut and thread with brake cleaner a few times before the oxy step.
I can't help you with L or R, I've seen both on saws which is a bit scary when you think about it.

Have fun,
Alli

That brings back some bad memories. I did my apprenticeship as a comp and thankfully never went back to it after a stint of Nasho service.

I have had a few of these and now have a Hammond Glider (floor model).
I may have access to a bad copy of a catalogue somewhere.
These were made in Sydney by the same mob who made the shapers that every school metalwork dept had.
I assume you have removed the saw bade by undoing the 3 set screws.
H.

Clearout
A friend of mine has one of the shapers and is well pleased with it.
Two of the saw retaining screws undid although heavily rusted.
The third was a troublesome customer but eventually responded with a petite cold chisel. BSF countersunk; Ill have to make a replacement.
The drive end bearing retainer was rust free and moved freely but the other end is not budging even with oxy heat.
I am suspicious of a LH thread and am close to trying the 3/4 bar welded across the face for a large handle and some serious heat.
But which way to apply force?
Reminds me of Malcolm Fraser; life wasnt meant to be easy!
The rust on the rest of the saw has cleaned well with no pitting.
The motor has plain bearings and dates from 1948 but may not be the original.

Right; I have been thinking about this.The sawblade rotates clockwise with regard to the retainer so it must be RH thread like a push bike pedal crank.
The drive end should be LH thread if any.
Spindle is to RHS of blade from sawyers position.

Sounds like a job for Abraham Lincoln the DC welder. Not Washington DC.
Will report back.
Cheers
Tony

PS Ignore my inane talk of drive side versus saw side; the drive is on the blade end.
The non saw blade end has a grinding wheel for ?.
I have had it pulled apart for too long!
The physics still applies to the bearing retainer.

Originally Posted by AJOE123

Clearout
A friend of mine has one of the shapers and is well pleased with it.
Two of the saw retaining screws undid although heavily rusted.
The third was a troublesome customer but eventually responded with a petite cold chisel. BSF countersunk; Ill have to make a replacement.
The drive end bearing retainer was rust free and moved freely but the other end is not budging even with oxy heat.
I am suspicious of a LH thread and am close to trying the 3/4 bar welded across the face for a large handle and some serious heat.
But which way to apply force?
Reminds me of Malcolm Fraser; life wasnt meant to be easy!
The rust on the rest of the saw has cleaned well with no pitting.
The motor has plain bearings and dates from 1948 but may not be the original.

Right; I have been thinking about this.The sawblade rotates clockwise with regard to the retainer so it must be RH thread like a push bike pedal crank.
The drive end should be LH thread if any.
Spindle is to RHS of blade from sawyers position.

Sounds like a job for Abraham Lincoln the DC welder. Not Washington DC.
Will report back.
Cheers
Tony

PS Ignore my inane talk of drive side versus saw side; the drive is on the blade end.
The non saw blade end has a grinding wheel for ?.
I have had it pulled apart for too long!
The physics still applies to the bearing retainer.

Tony,

These look to be great little saws for appropriate material, I've seen Henry's one in person and can see reasons to have one in your workshop, so congratulations. These are often referred to as Printer saws, they were used for trimming the metal type I always thought this was the reason for the wheel, but looking further into it, it appears at least one purpose was to sharpen the blade).

As far as removal goes, if your anything like me, the best advice I can give at this point is put the welder down, give it a soaking, and walk away. Given what you have already done, I suspect you are missing a piece of the puzzle and risk breaking something if you up the force (perhaps not, but worth giving it some time, than risk breaking something). I'm sure someone will be by shortly to help.

Can we get some pictures of what stage you are at, have you looked for grub screws, can you see any of the thread, etc.

cheers,

Camo

I used quite a few of these back in the day and I never saw one with a grinding wheel. I can't even think why it would have one as grinding lead is not a really good idea on any day. They were used to cut lines of Linotype, strips of lead for line and para spacing and occasionally Stereo blocks. I saw a fellow student cut his thumb off at tech one day, it was fairly effective at that! he was the only person who I recall was injured on one which is surprising when I come to think about it. I cannot recall any specific tuition in how to avoid injury but it was so long ago I may have forgotten.

Originally Posted by Chris Parks

I used quite a few of these back in the day and I never saw one with a grinding wheel. I can't even think why it would have one as grinding lead is not a really good idea on any day. They were used to cut lines of Linotype, strips of lead for line and para spacing and occasionally Stereo blocks. I saw a fellow student cut his thumb off at tech one day, it was fairly effective at that! he was the only person who I recall was injured on one which is surprising when I come to think about it. I cannot recall any specific tuition in how to avoid injury but it was so long ago I may have forgotten.

Chris,

Makes sense. I had a look around and found this:

https://archive.org/stream/HillCurti...ge/n4/mode/1up

page 4, shows setup for sharpening blades.

Cheers,

Camo

The grinding wheel was for sharpening purposes? I never saw one as I said though memory fades after forty years so anything is possible. All our blades went out for sharpening and the ones at tech I presume did the same. They were a fantastic little saw with the fine adjustment for cutting length built in. There was a hand cutter as well which did single lines and worked like a small guillotine.

Cam
Lovely bit of dirty paper!
A lot of stuff makes more sense now. Grinding wheels for blade sharpening and for sharpening the trimmers located in the drive flange.
The Ben Franklin and the Douglas had a bit in common.

So! My problem has been solved with thanks to you all for your input.
Main problem, operator error!
One end of spindle RH Thread; Other end LH Thread as per earlier post.
Once the operator had worked out one end from other the retainer undid with heavy persuasion and no Heat!
The retainer is damaged but a skim in the lathe and two new pin holes will see things right.
The spindle cavity contained some evil grease; New bearings will be rubber sealed.
Will post some further restoration details as work progresses.
Cheers
T

Tony,

Glad you got it worked out, and no major damage. Looking forward to seeing more of this saw as you progress.

cheers,

Camo

I had one of the printers saws and gave it to a friend. I agree with henry the Hammond gliders look to be the best suited to wood working conversion. Crzypete @ Machine junkie is world know for converting these and here is that sub forum at his site, Lots in the archive there on these machines. The grinding stone is for sharpening the cutters knifes for the lead type that these saws cut. and many convert that to a slot mortiser.

Machine Junkie Forum

http://www.machinejunkie.com/forum/v...7d69e37d00a8f0

PDF rebuild

FWW did a artical back in 1983 on there use as woodworking machines and hereis a PDF on that.

http://vintagemachinery.org/files/PD...ond-Glider.PDF

jack
English machines