Thread: Elliot 8-18 Surface Grinder

Originally Posted by Machtool

Are you sure you dont want to de-grease it and clean it up a bit, for pictures in the morning?

After all you have only been sitting on your aXXX for the past 12 hours.

Goodnight bloke, Glad you made it home in one piece.

Phil.

You're a very funny man Phil!

Thanks for the advice and the god wishes.

Well it turns out that the fun and games are yet to finish. I was attempting to remove the sg from the trailer with the same engine crane I used to get it on and something has bent and now it's out of wack at the base and does not want to sit level. Now I'm stuck with a sg on a Bunnings hire trailer!
When the Grays OH&S dude asked me what my engine crane was rated to, " replied "today it's rated to 1060Kg" whats the SG weigh? he asks and I say 1060Kg!

I have a back up plan. I have a gantry setup with a chain block. It will lift it no worries but I will have to put it together and it's cumbersome. Oh well, I'll get there.

Simon

Originally Posted by Steamwhisperer

Well done Simon, let the fun begin!

Phil

Hi Phil, thanks for your support! What you mean let the fun begin. As you can see from my last post, it hasn't ended!

Simon

Sounds like fun gantry wrestling

OK. It's off the Bunnings trailer, and safely (yet unceremoniously) sitting on the shed floor. Bunnings trailer back at Bunnings. Job done!

Well, that was an interesting and intense 48 hours! Would I do it again? not sure, ask me a 6 months. With work and family commitments there is every chance that whatever comes up for auction with Grays is going to have a pickup time that is incompatible with my life. Last week friday was a pickup time but I had other commitments that included relaxing in a log cabin for 5 days.

Yesterday was my only opportunity but it meant driving to Sydney straight after a 14 hour night shift. Luckily it wasn't busy that night, I took a gamble on that and it worked out. I took as much stuff as I thought I would need. Andre was instrumental to my preparation since he had the forethought to post a pic of the lifting technique required as per the booklet. I was able to find a bar that was "made for it"!

My home made engine crane was barely adequate (as was pointed out in a previous post) and TBH I really had no idea if it would even lift the thing. My backup plan was to wait until someone else arrived and then slip them some cash to put it in my trailer. I was there at 7:30 am and was prepared to stay til 4pm if need be but in the end I got away by 10:00am.

The whole machinery auction setup seems a bit like jobs for the boys to me. Here's some of the info they give me in the auction sale info:



PLEASE NOTE: Forklifts and general load shifting equipment cannot be used on site due to the restricted site access and general site layout.

Yet, when I get there they have two guys from their "preferred contractors list" using forklifts to load the machinery. Of course they were going to use forklifts, what else would you use! The guys from Grays were really good. They saw what I intended to use and they went and asked if the contractors would give me a quick lift onto my trailer. The answer was "yes" for $250. That's a five minute job ? For the time I was there, they were sitting on their arses doing nothing anyway. Even the Grays guy thought it was a bit steep so he proceeded to help me load. A little later a second guy from Grays arrived. He was the OH&S supervisor. He also helped me load and between the three of us we got the job done. Take that useless, overpriced contractors!

While I was loading I glanced over and noticed the forklift contractor about to reverse into a machine, he was on full lock and didn't notice it. I yelled out to him and he ignored me, I yelled a second and third time which then got his attention. I pointed to what he was about to hit and then told him I saved his and saved at least $250 damage, you goose!

Anyway after tying the sg down and doing final checks, I was off. The first 50Km were really nerve racking. Driving through Sydney traffic and on rather old poorly maintained roads at times. I felt every bump, pothole and uneven bit of bitumen. If you drove on these roads with just your car, I dare say you would never notice the bumps!

Anyway, I got onto the M5 and it was highway/freeway all the way home. After some pretty atrocious bumps, it was apparent that the grinder wasn't going to move and my nerves calmed somewhat.

As Phil mentioned I checked and retensioned the straps once I got out of the rat race, I checked every couple of hours after that but no adjustments were needed. I also checked the tyres for wear and temperature as well as the axle stubs near the wheel bearings. All was going well.

It doesn't matter how prepared you are or how well you think you have loaded the machine, you really do need to have nerves of steel driving 900Km with a tonne of machine on the back. The level of concentration required was quite exhausting. Thank god for cruise control, I reckon it must reduce fatigue by about 50%. Driving at 100Km/h on a 110km/h highway is also great. Never have to slow down or get caught behind someone doing 1 Km/h slower than you. Everyone else is doing at least 105 - 110Km/h including the trucks.

I burnt 310 Litres of diesel on the 2000Km trip, that's $480 plus there was the trailer hire of $120 and my accommodation (dodgy caravan park) $30 and M5 fees which I'm yet to pay. All up it cost me about $650 plus 48 hours of my time. Not sure what it would cost to pay a machine removal company to do it, maybe not much more. BUT, it was an interesting experience.

Oh, a very special thank you to Raj and Kurt from Grays for their professionalism, kindness, and their awesome customer service!

Cheers

Simon

Some pics. The height adjustment has two scales. 0.001" per div and if you push in the dog it reverts to 0.0001" per div.

Crossfeed handwheel:



Various hydraulic contols which im obviously yet to learn interesting, it can do criss cross grinding to obtain a pattern. Didnt know you do that with sg.



Hydraulic pump setup.


1.5 hp spindle motor and flat belt. Two different pulley sizes to give 2 speeds.


Chunky motor for 1.5 hp!

Some frosting for the hand scrapers out there!

The front cover is fibre glass !

Heres the other hydraulic pump I got. Have no idea what its connected to or what it does. Looks like it slides in and out on a dovetail

Well that sound like fun, the grays boys were helpful I thought you would get a free forklift for sure.
. When I picked up my 750 kg mill with a 6x4 I almost fillped the car. Atleast you have an adequate towing vehicle.

Nice work Simon, a successfull move by all accounts. Good looking machine.

The table hydraulic feed is reversed by the tabs on the front edge of the table, flipping the lever backwards and forwards.. The speed will be controlled by a flow regulating valve. There will be stops on the side for setting the cross feed limits.


Ray

It looks like you now have part of a Mimik hydraulic copy attachment, nothing to do with the surface grinder I would say.

Some more pics. I just wipped the table off to expose the traverse ways.

Time will tell if its a good machine...


I think the little wheels are meant to sit in oil reservoir and lubricate the ways. Yet to find out how they are kept replenished.
Simon

Hi Simon,

Good to see it home safe. Thanks for the pictures.

Originally Posted by simonl

it can do criss cross grinding to obtain a pattern.

Not so sure about that.
As I understand it (from talking to Phil about this feature on his grinder) its so you don't get a "bump" of crossfeed at the end of each stroke. (but then I'm a forgetful old man these days, best wait until Phil shows up )

The "other hydraulic pump" looks to be connected to a tool slide off a lathe, maybe? not so sure.........

Stuart

Ok. Those little wheel things sit in a small reservoir and are fed underneath. The overflow then feeds into a hole directly over the cross feed ways...

The traverse pinion also sits in an oil bath.

Looking under the removed table



I think it may be a little bit big for my needs!

Simon

This is what I read jn the brochure and the manual Stuart.



Simon