Wadkin CO restoration

[wallace]

Here we go again This one has been outside for a couple of years and is pretty rough. The strange thing about this one is that the whole thing is aluminium. It dates from 1948 so maybe made from old spitfires

 

[Random Orbital Bob]

Strap in and lock on folks....here we go again

 

[giantbeat]

ohhh goody!!! you should be on telly doing these things...

 

[yetloh]

One thing I seem to remember from somewhere is that in the immediate post-war period aluminium was a lot easier to obtain than steel; the reason that many relatively low production cars of the period which were not likelly to contribute to exports were made largely from aluminium.

Jim

 

[JonnyW]

Excellent. Looking forward to that beast coming back to life.

Also. That's a really good comment there giantbeast. How about some youtube videos?

I've been to the supermarket and bought some Doritos, dip and a few tins. Now let's see the magic happen.

Jonny

 

[wallace]

I did think about some vids but not sure how interesting it would be to watch me sit and sand a chunk of metal for 2hrs

 

[Ring]

Love all your restoration posts a video would be the icing on the cake.
Jim

 

[Random Orbital Bob]

I did think about some vids but not sure how interesting it would be to watch me sit and sand a chunk of metal for 2hrs

If well edited they could work but I think just more gratuitous pictures of hefty lumps of beautifully restored (before and after) cast iron in all its glorious shapes is what the kids want

 

[wallace]

I find the taking to bits really fun for some reason. I used to always get wrong for taking my toys to bits as a kid





On trying to take the spindle to bits I had some problems getting the blade clamp off. It would normally just come off with a puller, but it was having none of it. And then I bent the disc. You normally get a feel for how much pressure to put on something and I didn't think I'd gone too heavy handed.
I took the spindle out and it became clear why I bent it. It had been repaired by brazing. To get the spindle out I put the nut back on to protect the threads, cover with wood and hit with a big boy hammer oh and heat it up.

 

[Woodmonkey]

If it's not a stupid question (or even if it is) what is it??

 

[wallace]

Its a chop saw, it has a 14" blade. Its meant for fast production of straight cuts. The catalogue says upto 30 cuts per minute using the foot pedal

 

[Woodmonkey]

Wow sounds deadly!

 

[giantbeat]

I did think about some vids but not sure how interesting it would be to watch me sit and sand a chunk of metal for 2hrs

If well edited they could work but I think just more gratuitous pictures of hefty lumps of beautifully restored (before and after) cast iron in all its glorious shapes is what the kids want

thats what i was thinking, just set up a cam & edit it down, or another good one is the time lapse camera, that would be good.

i do enjoy a good video, watching somone scrape away rust & rebuild something is far better than James Martins British Cooking Bake Sunday Oven Bunch or whatever my other half keeps watching which seems to be on every day with only a 5 minute break.

 

[dickm]

If it's not a stupid question (or even if it is) what is it??

Was going to ask that myself if noone admitted to similar ignorance!!
But intrigued by the TWO vee belts used to drive it. What sort of power is there to need that much muscle?

 

[t8hants]

+1, I was to shy to ask!

 

[thick_mike]

+1, I was to shy to ask!

He asked what we were all wondering!

 

[wallace]

Heres a close relative of the saw I'm doing a CL



For the Australian contingent, this was stuck into the same catalogue



Because this is cast aluminium I'm taking extra precautions when dismantling. Things are getting a good soak in plus gas and like this bit a little heat.



I thought the bearings in the pivot a little overkill. The pivot on the mitre saw I did was just a bushing.



I was taking a pic of a box of parts and noticed the end cap for the pivot broken.



Looks like its been cracked for a while.



Everything is stripped ready to de gunge

 

[wallace]

A tad more progress. On checking the parts out I noticed there is a base coat of green paint. I wonder if its war paint or some kind of etch primer.



I have been debating how to do the blade door. Do I do the wadkin in red like normal or leave it aluminium.



In the end I went all Boyd Coddington

 

[wallace]

Todays efforts.



This piece is getting sprayed so I just cleaned up the casting with a flapper disc.



I just wire wheeled the foot pedal



The motor is pretty rough



One end bell is cast iron and the other ali



The fan is made from aluminium and is in bad way, I wonder if it will weld

 

[MattRoberts]

I could look at your progress for hours - it's remarkably therapeutic!