Day 3 - Engine

More time was spent on sanding the covers, taking the grit down and finer to 360 then 600 we also used 2 scouring type pads to smooth even more. The 600 grit was water flatted. After flating, polishing could begin - we used the large poilishing wheel with rouge and the results were quite spectacular. While polishing the covers heat up quite extensively.

Halfway through 600 grit

Trying out the polishing wheel

Half and Half

Straight after polishing

Many of the engine studs needed to be re-plated, so Craig had a job working on these, they were first pickled in acid to get rid of rust and coating, then they were vapour blasted to get rid of dirt buildup in the threads, then it gets wired and submerged in the electro-plater for the required amount of time then it gets neutralised and they come out looking like new.

The results - post plating

For the conrods the test machining process of the previous day worked very well so Roger repeated the process on the actual 2 con. rods we are going to use. The tops were flatted to take them down a size then they were milled to take away the oval, then checked with marking ink to check surface fit and edges chamfered to get this fit precise - quite a precise and timely process.

Once conrods were resized the rough edges on the shafts were filed to smooth them out and reduce possible weakness in the future. They were then sanded to smooth the filing marks, bead blasted and then vapour blasted for a brand new look.

The top brass bushes then needed to be pressed in which was done with heating the con rod end with a flame and clamping down the bush to press it in. Once they were pressed in the bushes were reamed so there was a good fit with the gudgeon pins.

In the engine casing the cam shaft bushes neede to be removed , this was done by threading a large tap into them, heating the casing with a flame and drifting the bushes out.

My nephew Michael working on metal bead blasting the head which is cast iron, but someone liked the idea of it being alluminium so drenched it in some kind of silver paint. Over the years all the paint has gathered in the fins and has proved quite difficult to get out. In the end we resorted to scraping it out with a marking pick.

The engine gears were vapour blasted to get them back to new and then sprayed with some lubricant so as not to attract rust.

We also started working on getting the casings true and even on the mounting edges so as to ensure a good seal between casings. We used 80 or 100 grit sand paper roll glued to a marble base, and then sanded.