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Post by milly on Apr 8, 2023 14:24:11 GMT -5
Today I put on some large penny washers to spread the load as metal on the cage part was like biscuit tin. The main frame was 2mm out. I remember when being trained when I started on Heavy Goods Vehicles in Portsmouth one of our tests was to mark a round bar and chiesel it down to a flat oblong and file it from there and all sides had to be equal and the flats had to be within one thou tolerance. The old engineer who taught us would look at people's pieces and tell them exactly how much it was out by on which corner or flat just looking by eye and then get out the engineers blue and prove he was right. A lot of people dropped out because it had to be done before you could move on. I finished mine and he threw it in the scrap bin. I asked why do we do this just to be thrown away and he said to see if you got the tact and tenacity to learn the trade.
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Post by jackrides on Apr 8, 2023 15:00:46 GMT -5
A 55 year old plastic gear? Damn shame They didn't keep using the same material and accuracy.
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Post by FrankenMech on Apr 9, 2023 19:05:40 GMT -5
I worked on a used Craftsman R110 30" riding mower I picked up last fall. The steering is shot like most of them. There are plenty of videos on the troublesome steering and interlocks on U-tube. None of the videos I have seen have shown how to fix the steering properly. The rack teeth wear and the bracket steering shaft hole wears causing the steering mechanism to jump teeth. I also found out why the brakes didn't work on mine. The brake pedal arm was disconnected from the brake control rod, all fixed now. I bought a new steering rack assembly and promptly modified it to take a bronze bushing in the bracket and added two more nylon rack stabilizing supports and a grease zerk for the rack assy. The two replaceable nylon rack supports will help keep the rack aligned with the pinion. I also added a washer on the steering shaft to keep the rack aligned with the pinion. Hopefully better support along with the bronze bushing will keep wear down and add life between repairs. MTD redesigned the steering rack assy but actually made it worse.
The Craftsman R110 is the same thing as a Troy built TB30R, one cub cadet model, and a variety of other mowers all built by MTD ( More Trash Designs) with Briggs and Stratton 4T 8-12HP engines. Some newer models have hydrostatic transmissions. Mine just has a reliable old 6-speed gearbox that is easily rebuildable. I am also rewiring the ignition switch and getting rid of most of the stupid troublesome interlocks except for the seat and brake. I am making a few other modifications to suit my needs; adding a fuel shutoff valve and good fuel filter, adding an oil drain hose, a deck wash, trim the front of the deck housing to expose the blade, and a front lifting point also. It is much easier to work on stuff if I lift the front end with a winch and stand the whole mower with the front in the air. I don't bend over so good anymore and I don't kneel down. I may have to lift the ass end up also. I wish it had a pull start. I never leave any purchased machine stock, it is just not in my nature to do so.
The 30" mower will fit through my gates and only uses one blade and a simple belt arrangement. I only have a quarter acre to mow and half of it is covered with a house and concrete. A 30" riding mower will probably take longer to gas up and check the oil than mow, just like my old self propelled mower. I need a rider because I can no longer push a lawnmower over uneven terrain. I will have to make a few landscape changes. I am sure I will need my string trimmer and hedge trimmer in places. My ex planted the whole damn yard with perennial flowers and I have to mow around them and weed them. I usually use roundup and other weed/brush killers rather than pulling crap by hand. It all gets mowed down in the fall which is why I trim the deck to expose the blade. It works better on tall shit that way.
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Post by fuzzyruttin on Apr 12, 2023 23:15:18 GMT -5
The small things that matter, like, this year's inspection sticker matches the vehicle. Edit: One of my oldest babies is almost 20 years old.. 2005 S2K! The other, 2005 Tacoma, is a rusted out wreck waiting for a cold replacement. Edit edit: the Ruck is 2008
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Post by rollingbender on Apr 20, 2023 23:07:49 GMT -5
Rewiring the pedal board for my guitar/keyboard rig. It looks like spaghetti right now but it should be able to tidy it up into something at least halfway presentable.
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Post by 90GTVert on Apr 21, 2023 5:51:27 GMT -5
The pressure washer blew a relief valve a few days ago, so I replaced that. The older riding mower thew a belt a couple of days ago. I went to replace that and found both the blade drive belts bad and a thin spot in the deck with a long crack and two holes. Cleaned the area and welded in a plate before painting it and replacing the belts. That mower is approaching 25 years old, but still cuts well. The deck is just getting worse and worse and I suspect it won’t be that long before the whole mower is replaced. It’s already got other patches in the deck and deck wheel mounts have had to be welded back on. Maybe it’ll surprise me though. That was yesterday. Today's bonus task will be trying to figure out why my rear facing GoPro keeps freezing video but the audio keeps going. Error checked and long formatted the card already to no avail. Latest firmware. Error checked and reformatting the card again now because it can cause errors every time it freezes. Just reset to factory. Will run it and see and maybe swap out the brand new memory card if it still does it. I bought 4 of the same card. 1 is in the helmet cam working great, but maybe a card with some error my PC doesn't see.
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Post by FrankenMech on Apr 21, 2023 12:23:27 GMT -5
Maybe visit a mower graveyard and see if you can find a replacement deck? That deck has been beat to hell.
It has been too cold and rainy to work on my mower. A doctor doubled a blood pressure medication called Amlodipine for some fictitious high blood pressure readings. That med caused my legs to swell up really bad and kept me from working on the mower most days also. The grass has continued to grow though. I still have fuel system problems to sort, a ruined ignition switch to replace, troublesome interlocks to remove, and oil to change. The steering repairs and mods went well. The brakes did not work because the control rod wasn't even connected.
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Post by 90GTVert on May 1, 2023 10:32:56 GMT -5
Not sure if this really counts as work, but I've been working on getting a few friends together. My friend with the old Buick Wildcat is putting it in a local car show Sunday. I told him I'd come out. Then I got in touch with 4 other friends. Most of them haven't seen each other in 10-15 years. I've never been a people person as far as liking crowds or get togethers, but I had a big group of tight knit friends when I was younger and I've been trying to get in touch with anyone I haven't seen for years lately. We've already lost 2 of us to accidents years ago. One moved across the country. Many of the rest of us are within 20 minutes of this car show and all of us are car/bike enthusiasts. It sucks not being around people that are practically family for that long for no good reason. All the years of never reaching out certainly didn't work out, so lemme try it the other way. So far at least 4 of 6 of us are showing up and I think I'm riding over with the friend with the sport bike that I've mentioned on the forum before. Only obstacle now is the weather.
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Post by rollingbender on May 4, 2023 10:28:04 GMT -5
Made a 26” wok for my turkey fryer burner out of a disc blade.
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Post by rollingbender on May 7, 2023 2:14:01 GMT -5
Working on developing a new skill. Electroplating! One of the products that I make for my side hustle is a small part machined from solid brass. Most of those that I sell are just polished and then lacquered (to preserve the shine) but a few are plated. In the past, I would not keep careful track of the plated parts, sell one I don’t have in-stock and then scramble to ship some off for plating while I gave my customer my best apologies for late shipment. How hard can it be to plate metal? Turns out to be pretty easy, the equipment isn’t all that expensive and the chemicals involved won’t kill you (very quickly). So, I purchased a DC power supply, a couple plastic containers, some leads with alligator clips, some pieces of 99.6% pure nickel bar stock and a couple jugs of chemicals. First, I practiced by defacing some legal US coinage. Then, after I figured out voltage, amps, and time, I pulled a few parts from my “drawer of shame” (where I throw my accidents and mistakes) and plated a few parts. (Top part is nickel plated, bottom part is raw polished brass) I just went from an average lead time of two weeks from the plating company to 1/2 hour doing it myself! Now I need to find some scooter parts that I can plate!!😎
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Post by 90GTVert on May 7, 2023 7:18:57 GMT -5
The pressure washer seized while washing the house a couple of weeks ago. Showed only a spec of thick sludge on the dipstick. I checked it the day prior to it seizing and it showed a little low so I added a very small amount of oil and then showed just over full. I’m now wondering if the sludge in there was so thick that it stuck in the dipstick area on my prior checks and made me think something was in there. I tried PB Blaster in the plug hole and taking the top covers and pull start off to try to turn the engine with a big ratchet to no avail. I took the pump off just to be sure it wouldn’t turn then, and of course it didn’t. Took it apart to have a look. Markings on the crank and rod/cap. Some can be felt with a fingernail. I got the piston moving with the wood end of a hammer. The piston has scuffing, but appears to be sort of what I’d expect in a ~15 year old washer. Rings seem OK and the cylinder looks good. I figured I’d it’s apart and I can feel anything on the rod and crank, I’d like to replace those. A piston kit with a rod is only $25 more than just a rod, so might as well do that. New gaskets and seals. The cart totals $252 in parts. Damn. That’s a lot to rebuild one of these myself. I checked a few sites and Wal-Mart had a pressure washer on sale for $248 with a bigger engine, higher pressure and more GPM. Sold. No wonder it’s a throwaway world. I think I’m gonna just put the old one back together with sealant instead of new gaskets and see what happens. I don’t feel comfortable selling it, but maybe a friend could use a pressure washer for free that may or may not last. If someone washed a house once before it failed it would be worth it. Can get scrap folks to come pick them up so it’s not a hassle to get rid of later.
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Post by FrankenMech on May 7, 2023 8:45:24 GMT -5
That will buff out. Back in the dark ages I just cleaned up many a mower engine like that, polished the parts, adjusted some clearances, reassembled them, and fired them back up. A few careful strokes with a file on a rod cap etc can fix clearances. Small engines like that were 'stone fence technology'. Changing the oil occasionally helps prevent problems like that.
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Post by 90GTVert on May 7, 2023 18:16:30 GMT -5
Changing the oil occasionally helps prevent problems like that. A 49cc 4T scoot; I'll change the oil every 500 miles. A piece of small 4T equipment... maybe I'll change the oil. I'm bad about it. They should have been two strokes. lol I was actually wondering if I could get a 2T to bolt to my underpowered push mower. I need more power... and how cool would it be if my push mower had a tuned pipe?
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Post by FrankenMech on May 7, 2023 23:21:50 GMT -5
I am not sure what the legal status of 2T engines and 2T powered equipment is anymore. I have a 2T powered weed eater but not anything else. I had a 2T Lawnboy mower back in about '77 but I could not keep a lower crank seal in it. It would be cool though if they had 2T engines for sale. Maybe some are available somewhere I don't change oil in equipment often enough either.
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Post by milly on May 12, 2023 13:05:50 GMT -5
Today I dropped off a couple of posters for our meetings in the local auction room and did not look at anything 😊
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