Chris's Holly Pumping Engine Build

[propforward]

Good heavens! I stopped in for an update, looked at the posts up top of the previous page and nearly fainted! What wonderful work!

[crueby]

Good heavens! I stopped in for an update, looked at the posts up top of the previous page and nearly fainted! What wonderful work!

Strap in to the chair, keep your arms and legs inside the car at all times, and SCREAM on the downhill drop!   

 

[crueby]

This morning got started bolting in the first of the lower horizontal input pipes. So far I have 10 of the 12 socket head screws in and tightened down, the last two will wait till I head out on the porch to read-nap for a while and work out the kink in the neck from all that hunching over the housings - handy to be nearsighted, for this kind of work I just take the glasses off and can see the little parts up close!


The pairs of screws closer to the opening in the housing (the whole unit is upside down on the table) were able to be started using the ball end on the hex wrench, but the other pairs farther in had to be started with the short L end. With only 1/6 of a turn at a time worth of throw, starting and running in the screws takes a while. Really should have set these up to go in like the other connector blocks, where I could screw them to the pipes and then rotate them down to the plates. Too late for that now, so another couple hours of running in the screws like this. I was worried that there would not be room to make the wrench operate and would have to drill a small hole in the housing, but it just has enough throw for one facet of the wrench at a time.

[cnr6400]

 

Outstanding progress Chris! and a recommendation for screaming while going downhill too! Hard to beat that on any other hobby forum! 

[ddmckee54]

Well, if you're going to get into the shoulda-woulda-couldas... Then you shoulda made that access plate shown in the last picture removeable instead of printing it and the rest of the fitting as one part.  Then you woulda had a spot where you coulda reached all the cap screws with a ball-end hex wrench.  20/20 hindsight is a wonderful thing isn't it? Glad it's you and the elves instead of me putting this thing together.  Who's gonna write the service manual for this pump?

Don

[mklotz]

Chris, methinks you need to get a thin, ratcheting insert driver like this...

https://www.amazon.com/Neiko-03044A-Ratcheting-Screwdriver-Close-Quarters/dp/B000XYOUS6/ref=sr_1_31?dchild=1&keywords=thin+ratcheting+hex+driver&qid=1621616082&sr=8-31

My version, which came with my Chapman gun screwdriver set, is only 7/16" thick at its thickest point.  With a slightly abbreviated hex bit, I could slip it into a slot about 1/2" wide.

These type drivers work in both directions although many don't have a reversing switch; you flip it over to drive in the opposite direction.

Not applicable to your current task but perhaps useful to remember for future jobs is the fact that many of the 4mm driver sets come with a flexible driver extension, e.g....

https://www.amazon.com/ORIA-Precision-Screwdriver-Extension-Smartphone/dp/B07RDHLL9H/ref=sr_1_13?dchild=1&keywords=4mm+driver+set&qid=1621616877&sr=8-13

[crueby]

Well, if you're going to get into the shoulda-woulda-couldas... Then you shoulda made that access plate shown in the last picture removeable instead of printing it and the rest of the fitting as one part.  Then you woulda had a spot where you coulda reached all the cap screws with a ball-end hex wrench.  20/20 hindsight is a wonderful thing isn't it? Glad it's you and the elves instead of me putting this thing together.  Who's gonna write the service manual for this pump?

Don

I wish it was that easy - that hatch is at the level of between the input  and output check valves. There is another one on the far side of the force chambers above the check valves. They made those to let a service person (most likely an apprentice! ) climb in and service the valve beehives. If they needed to get underneath the lower valves they could open the pipe cap at the end and crawl down the pipe. For my setup, that doesn't help, the shop elves took one look and stalked off. Sigh.
The service manual will likely be written by the usual drunk dislexic swahili speaking chimpanzee with a broken typewriter!   

[crueby]

Chris, methinks you need to get a thin, ratcheting insert driver like this...

https://www.amazon.com/Neiko-03044A-Ratcheting-Screwdriver-Close-Quarters/dp/B000XYOUS6/ref=sr_1_31?dchild=1&keywords=thin+ratcheting+hex+driver&qid=1621616082&sr=8-31

My version, which came with my Chapman gun screwdriver set, is only 7/16" thick at its thickest point.  With a slightly abbreviated hex bit, I could slip it into a slot about 1/2" wide.

These type drivers work in both directions although many don't have a reversing switch; you flip it over to drive in the opposite direction.

Not applicable to your current task but perhaps useful to remember for future jobs is the fact that many of the 4mm driver sets come with a flexible driver extension, e.g....

https://www.amazon.com/ORIA-Precision-Screwdriver-Extension-Smartphone/dp/B07RDHLL9H/ref=sr_1_13?dchild=1&keywords=4mm+driver+set&qid=1621616877&sr=8-13

Hi Marv,
That little ratchet is the type of thing that would help in a lot of situations. I do have this one, which is made for getting at Ford headlight bolts down inside the frame, it has a gearless clutch inside so it can operate on very small lever angles - I got it during the Marion shovel build, was perfect for getting in between the frame rails. Its too big for this use, but gets a lot of use on the models:

I do have a big set of the Wiha drivers, even those are too long for this:

Your post does give me ideas though, need to send this one to my shop elves research division, and have Elfbert Elfstien come up with a quantum ratchet driver. Seems do-able to make a very small one that could take short lengths cut off of hex wrenches and get into smaller spaces. I've never looked into how the stepless clutch ratchets work, imagine its something like the ball clutches I've seen on builds in this forum - might have been on one of the Otto Langen engines? They may be too large a diameter, but maybe with just one ball on axis with the handle. Or just a very small gear with ratchet, needs to be at least 12 teeth to do half-steps of a hex wrench. Would make a good group project design/build for the forum!
For size judging, this is the space I am working in, and the screw is a little over an inch down the tube:

I just finished getting the last two screws in for this side of the pump, next back out for another read/nap on the porch and do another session to start the other side later. Might need cookies too - need to get another bag of them out of the freezer!
 

[crueby]

Outstanding progress Chris! and a recommendation for screaming while going downhill too! Hard to beat that on any other hobby forum! 

[RReid]

You might be able to connect your hex stub to your ratchet with a length of soft plastic tubing, like Tygon. That would allow you to turn it from an offset or angled position. A kluge-master's u-joint for low torque applications. Final tightening might need another idea.

[crueby]

You might be able to connect your hex stub to your ratchet with a length of soft plastic tubing, like Tygon. That would allow you to turn it from an offset or angled position. A kluge-master's u-joint for low torque applications. Final tightening might need another idea.

That's a possibility!

[crueby]

Late afternoon saw the last of the screws in to connect up the lower pipes, so I got it flipped over and set on the base. Started running in all the screws to hold it all down on the base - still a bunch more to go. Here are a few pictures of it so far. Once the rest of the screws are in to the base, I can start putting the frame rails back on again.

[propforward]

 

[Craig DeShong]

This looks absolutely fantastic Chris.   

[derekwarner]

Yes....looks supurb  . ...

However I still believe the check valves in the upper plate are of different internal construction  to check valves in the lower plate

The lower check valves open under vacuum, an admit water to the volunetric capacity equalling the swept volume of the water piston

So, could the upper plate check valves be bi-directioal? ........[free floating ball]......which would fall under vacuum of the suction stroke, and also allow water to enter the air chamber, but this is limited in water height by the stroke/volume of the water piston

Then, during the pressure stroke the lower check valve closes, and the bi-directional upper check valve also closes so sending the pressurized water on its merry way, leaving the water [level previously explained] trapped in the air chamber?
--------------

The bi-directioanl check valves would look externally to be identical, but internally have different porting or the omission of a spring in the ball chamber....so is there anything hidden in those original drawings ?

Derek