Steam Tractor 3/4" (Rudy K)

[Kim]

Thanks Dave!

Yes!  Those are the ones I've seen before.  And yeah, I've always meant to go back and add some "legs" to my hold-down helper.  But I've never done it.  I set it up higher on things to move the center of gravity some, but the legs would be much better - get that center of gravity up and forward so that more weight goes into the point.

Thanks for posting those pictures, Dave,
Kim

[b.lindsey]

Neat idea. I suppose one could also make several sets of screw in legs at various heights as needed too. May have to explore this further....thank for the pictures Dave.

Bill

[Don1966]

Still nice work Kim and your soldering skills are looking great as well. Did I say .....I........like......


 
Don

[Kim]

Thank you Don!
Kim

[Kim]

Today we made Canopy Supports.

There are three of these.  One mounted on the boiler casing, centered on the front of the canopy, and two in the back mounted to the cab.

The one that mounts to the boiler is a little more involved, so I started there.  First, I cut a piece of 1/16” brass plate for the support, filed it to size, then drilled the appropriate holes:


I used filing buttons to round the ends of the support plate.


After annealing the brass, I bent it to shape around a spare piece of the boiler casing material.


The piece that holds the upright is a length of 3/16” brass rod.  I sanded the end a little bit to help shape it for the support plate.  Then I drilled the 3/32” center hole and cut it off.


While I was at the lathe, I did the 1/4" holders for the back supports.  These were also quite a simple turning job:



For the final pieces, I cut 3/32” brass rod for the supports themselves.  The two back ones needed to be threaded 2-56 for about 3/16”.


And here’s the whole Canopy Support family!


Next we silver solder them up. Here’s the front support fluxed up with some solder on it, ready to be heated.


And after heating.  The point is just the hold down to keep the part from falling over during soldering.


Here’s all three supports soldered and ready to mount!


But first, I have to make the mounting holes in the boiler casing:


And tap it for the 2-56 screws:


Here’s all the supports mounted in place.


Next session will be the canopy itself.

Thanks for checking out my progress!
Kim

[zeeprogrammer]

Nice job!

What did you use to clean up the soldering? The parts look great.

[Don1966]

Every piece is a plus buddy and your soldering is very well done.......



 
Don

[Kim]

What did you use to clean up the soldering? The parts look great.

Thanks Zee,

I use Sparex as a pickling solution.

But after washing it up, I use fine abrasive wheel (Scotch-Brite Fiber Disk (fine)).  Its very gentle but takes off that outer pink layer that I get after pickling.  It can round off the corners of things some, so you want to be a little careful with it if you want to maintain nice sharp edges.

Kim

[Kim]

Don,
Thanks!  You gave me a lot of help as I was first learning to silver solder, and like you said - it will get easier as you do it more.  I'm still not that good, but I do find its not as harrowing to solder now as it used to be!

Zee, maybe THAT'S one of the ways I feel I'm getting better?  Not dreading some operations as much?  (sorry, wrong thread, I know )

Kim

[Dave Otto]

Nice update Kim!

Dave

[b.lindsey]

The canopy will be a nice addition Kim. Looking forward to seeing how you fabricate it.

Bill

[crueby]

Parts are looking wonderful!


For the pickle, I too like the sparex2 for brass and copper. Its not good on steel, for that a cheap alternative is the muriatic acid from the home center, or even white vinegar.

[zeeprogrammer]

Sparex...I hadn't heard of that one before. Finally found it on Amazon.
That's something I need to look into. I've made some parts recently that need soldering but have been putting it off.
In part because I'm not set up to ensure I'm safe but also because I want to be comfortable with the rest of the process after soldering.

Zee, maybe THAT'S one of the ways I feel I'm getting better?  Not dreading some operations as much?  (sorry, wrong thread, I know )

Hee hee. That's a fun thread. It helps to build confidence in oneself when you see so many people either in the same situation or who have been in the same situation.

Great forum.

I just saw Chris's post. Crud. Leave it to him to raise more questions. Chris...are you suggesting to use muriatic acid after soldering steel? Interesting. I have that because of my pool. Can muriatic acid or white vinegar be used for cleaning brass?

[crueby]

I have not tried muriatic acid on brass, since I have a jug mixed up of sparex. Vinegar works on anything, but it is slow since it is weak. If you have muriatic try it on a brass part and see, should work. I put some in a wide mouth plastic bottle so can cap it, use a hdpe plastic, make sure the lid is same. Dont use metal lid or it will eat it. As with any acids, plenty of ventilation and protect eyes. Flush with water when done soak in ng. I use fine brass wire twisted on part to suspend in the acid, which is why I think its fine on brass parts, since the wire came out fine, nice and shiny. Some like stronger acids since they work fast, but stronger means more risky to you.
Even sparex is acid, just comes as a powder. Its made for fine jewelry making.

[steamboatmodel]

A bit faster then vinegar is citric acid a lot safer then muriatic or sulfuric. I switched over to Citric when my family was younger.

Gerald.