File, Print, Done...

Maybe I am just a geek a heart, but it seems that I am continuously amazed by technology.  Burt21 over on the H.A.M.B. contacted me to draw a CAD model of a fuel block that he wanted to eventually cast in aluminum.  We talked about possibly machining a female mold that his foundry man could use to make a male form from.  I suggested that we try this place: 

http://www.printo3d.com/ 

File, Print, Done...



The surface finish didn't turn out too bad.  There will be some hand finishing required, but should turn out really well.  Apparently, the process prints every 0.010" so you will not be able to get a perfect part, but still, I am impressed. 

Rust Repair Continued...

Rebuilding the structure of the fender proved to be more difficult than the fender itself.  I started by cutting away all of the rust, then rebuilt it all as close as I could to the original.

Spots welds always finish things off...

Now, on to the driver's side.

Rust repair....

A good friend of mine dropped off a plethora of front fenders for his '65 Chevy truck.  Of course, each one had either some rust or some dents.  I started on the passenger side first.  The fender on the left was by far the most solid of the bunch, so that is the one I fixed.  It was pretty well mangled near the bottom of the door so I took a large section of the blue fender to graph into it.  I specifically cut it in a region that I could get in behind it after it was all welded up.  Doing this way also allowed me to fix the rust spot while the "patch" was off of the underlying structure. 

 The pic on the left is of the  repaired rust spot on the "patch" panel.  With no fender structure underneath, the back side was accessible the finish the repair with a the hammer and dolly.  On the right is were I started to finish the weld of the "patch" to the original fender.  I do most of the initial grinding with a die grinder and them follow up with the 2" right angle grinder. 

The outside skin is done, now I have to rebuild the inner structure...

Louver lover...

I've always like louvers....although they can be over done sometimes.  Actually, come to think of it, they are overdone quite a bit.  Regardless, I have been thinking about building a louver press for sometime.  If I am to go to the effort of welding a frame and machining all of the components, I want the machine to be more than just for louvers.  My idea is to build somewhat of a universal frame that can accept different attachments such as, obviously, a louver die but also possibly a bead roller attachment or a shrinker/stretcher attachment.  Just think, the possibilities are endless!

As my buddy Tom says

One thing at a time...

So, for now, I will first focus on the louver press.  Most of the louver dies currently commercially available are either crap or look way to industrial.  They all have flat profiles and no style.  I figured I could do better.

These are Rev A of the louver die collection.  I wanted a 2 1/2" wide louver with a crown to it.

They were made out of  O1 tool steel then heat treated after the machining was complete.  By they way, O1 doesn't cut too terrible with the correct tooling.  This was actually one of the first projects on #406

With the dies made, I have begun designing the frame.  I had several lengths of 4"x4"x1/4" tubing that with serve for the basis of the frame and I plan on covering the sides with 1/4" plate.  I want to run some analysis to make sure that I limit the deflection to an acceptable amount.  I still have quite a few details to work out, but here is somewhat I am thinking,

FU chatter...FU



I'll take that in HD please...

480p from a phone isn't that bad...

But HD from a cell phone is always better.....



Duals always are better....

Things have been moving slowly around the shop.  I am deep into refinishing some funiture and since this is not Vintage Woodworks, I will spare you all the details.  Anyway, I still wanted to post something, so I dug this up from the past project folder.

I had a customer that wanted me to split an exhaust manifold for a 218 dodge flathead in a '47 plymouth coupe.  I repeatedly told him that I have never done this but he was adimate that I give it a whirl.  Besides, I always wanted to try and why not make some cash on the side doing it? 

I started with a couple of original manifolds.  One had a couple of broken tabs so it was sacarficed as the donor manifold for the outlet.

The unwanted parts were cut out and the nesaccary pieces were fitted with as close of fit as possible. 

Cast iron can be a major pain in the ass to weld, but it doesn't have to be.  By taking your time and using the correct materials and procedures, many of the common complaints can be avoided.  First and foremost, it is imperative that you be able to control the heat during preaheating, during welding and during the cool down period.  Cast iron is brittle and has virtually no ductility.  When heated, cast expands at a tremedous rate and when it cools down, the forces of the contraction can be much high than the tensile strength of many filler materials.

For this project, I tried a cast iron rod and flux that my locl welding supply sold me.  I do not know if it was me or if it was the material, but I could not get it to join two pieces together.  It was fantastic if I was trying to build material up for machining.  So, I ended up using a 308 stainless rod.  Stainless has a high nickel content and the nickel is what makes this process so user freindly.  As you weld, the molten nickel rod mixes with the high carbon cast iron.  The nickel allows the carbon to dissolve to form a high nickel/carbon mixture.  As the part cools, the carbon seperates out into graphite ant the molten nickel/carbon mixture turns into a material mostly made up of nickel with graphite dispersed in it.  The mixture now has enough ductility to be able to contend with the forces associated with contraction of the cooling material and thus, not crack.

I used my BBQ grill to preheat and cool the cast at a controlled rate.  I preheated it to as high as the grll would go and then used a torch to get the areas where I want to weld to a very dull red.  Once I was done welding, I placed the manifold back into the grill and slowly lowered the heat over several hours until it was cool enough to handle.



mmm, tasty



Once everthing was cool, I ground the welds down and visually checked for cracks.