wadkin JTA restoration

[wallace]

Don't panic just because there 3 phase. I run everything from a static converter. If you are just planning on one machine then VFD's are becoming very cheap now.

 

[wallace]

I've been experimenting with citric acid and phosphoric. The citric was pants then I read that it likes a bit of heat to make it work. A lot of people use an aquarium heater. I am quite impressed by the phosphoric, its really cheap and works with cold water. This piece is probably the worst for rust.



I had it in the solution for a few hours and then wire wheeled it.





I finally managed to get the bobbin off the spindle. I drilled the securing bolt out and once I tapped the top off it came off pretty easy.



A bit pitting on the spindle shaft but I'm happy



Top motor bearing looks good



I'm blackening a lot of the bolts so not much shiny stuff, Couldn't resist this guard though. Flapper disc to remove pain, filler and any casting marks. Then rotary sander in drill to level out and then through the grits on the ROS. Just needs polishing



I went on a little road trip recently and picked up a load tooling, theirs stuff for a pattern miller and LQ tooling plus a load of wadkin forstners

 

[wallace]

I have been prepping castings ready for paint.

I popped in to see my motor guy and he has made some progress, he's doing it when things are quiet to keep the cost down plus I'm in no rush

A coat of etch primer

The on/off buttons had been replaced at some point, this is the type that are supposed to be on it. I had these in my stash problem is the one on the right has a different orientation.

Clean up nice though

I took it in the house to show the Mrs, looks quite arty don't you think

 

[AJB Temple]

Brilliant thread. Thank you Wallace.

 

[SkinnyB]

Thanks for the tips on phosphoric acid, I had brought jenolite, but at 150 grams it does not go far.

 

[Ring]

Thanks for taking the time to show us your restoration god I love these old machines they just look so substantial compared to the tin versions we get nowadays .

Jim

 

[Heliotrobe]

I love these restoration threads that you do Wallace. Seeing these machines returned to life is brilliant. Thank you.

 

[wallace]

To fix the hinges that snapped I drilled and tapped for some bolts and loctited

I cleaned the electric door, just need to fill a few holes.

I popped in to see my motor guy, the motor was completed and he had taken some pics for me.

He had already put the motor together and tried it. By the sounds of it there is a duff bearing. I knew the big bearing was a bit dodgy because moisture must of gotten in and pooled at the bottom of the bearing, There was a small amount of pitting. He called his bearing supplier to get a quote but the price came back from £90 to £140 without vat. He offered to get the bearing through his business to save me the vat.

 

[wallace]

I got the bobbin motor put back together and tested, it worked fine.

I got the bobbing mechanism put back together

A bit bodge and zinc primer

While I had the spray gun out I did these

The isolator came out quite well

I've been dreading this part, trying to fix the broken castings.

I superglued the part together whilst I drilled and tapped the pieces together. My wadkin bench drill was perfect for this job.

I got some brazing gear and nickel rods, so I just need to V out and see which works best.

 

[n0legs]

Lovely work Mark as always =D>
Coming along a treat now mate, brilliant progress.
Pass my appreciation along to the motor man, he does beautiful work.

 

[furnman]

mark great work, love the isolator

 

[wallace]

The tables look rough but after a shave, wire wheel and scotchbright they are in pretty good condition.

For the long screw that adjusts angle of the table I decided to blacken it, to save on solution I put it in a pipe.

 

[swb58]

Lovely work Mark as always =D>
Coming along a treat now mate, brilliant progress.
Pass my appreciation along to the motor man, he does beautiful work.

I was thinking the same thing about the motor. It may be straightforward to those in the know but it's a work of art, it'll match the rest of the machine nicely. Looking forward to the in depth account of brazing. =D>

 

[wallace]

I don't know how in depth the brazing will be, I've never done it before, just watched a few youtube vids and give it a go

 

[deema]

Just a thought, why not just fabricate a new part out of I think three bits of steel rather than try to weld the cast part?

 

[wallace]

I would much prefer to keep the original bits, I think that would be fine for the hinges which wont be seen but theres a bit that is integral to the tilt geometry that would be hard to replicate. If the brazing goes pear shaped I have some cast nickel rods to try.

 

[wallace]

A good bit of progress, I got the wadkin logo taped off ready to spray. That yellow frog tape is cracking stuff. It doesn't bleed and comes off really easy.

A bit touch up with an artists brush and jobs a gud'n

I know the underside will not be seen but whilst the red was out it would be a shame not to

I had a go at brazing one of the broken casting and it did not go well. I bought one these http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/CASTOLIN-3050 ... SwAKxWVsT5
thinking it would work, it was pants. I think I need some proper oxy gear.
I got a friend to stick weld the parts. I just need to clean the pin and bolt holes out

I got the motor back from the winders and gave it a go to check the bearing, my heart sank when it wouldn't run. The spindle was just going back and forth. I took it back to the winders to have him check it out and on the first start up it took a little while to come up to speed but then each start up it worked fine. He checked all of the amps and speed and even put a load on it during start up. Everything was fine.

I got a new NSK bearing, the original was hofman. I noticed this before but I thought I would give it a try.

 

[swb58]

Sorry I didn't follow up with something of my brazing experience which is limited but I know when things look like they are going properly.

One thing you've got to have is a suitable heat source, especially with lumps like that. An oxy set is a must to give yourself a fighting chance.
I'd imagine that oxy propane would be OK, it's cheaper to use than acetylene but find out first from someone who knows.

 

[wallace]

Yeah it was definitely a heat problem. I got the impression that the torch I got was going to be man enough but I think I was just being cheap.

 

[wallace]

After getting the motor back together I tried it and it wouldn't work again. I then had a lightbulb moment and set another motor away to improve the quality of the 3 phase and voila.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CBl1pW0 ... e=youtu.be