Took my collection of Walt internals to see a Metallisation expert last Friday. I was hoping he could build up the worn components and rework back to standard spec.
Oh dear ! His opinion was that these ancient pieces of engineering were unrepairable. Too time consuming (expense!) if he could but too badly damaged/repaired by previous owners to enable datum points for the machining to be re-established.

Walter old chap.....It's just you and me from here on in......The world is a cruel place.

This is NOT the end ! It's a new beginning !

Crankshaft....still fighting...

Greetings and thanks for looking in on the progress of 'Little Walt'
Eeeeh poor Little Walt...he's not in the best of shape. However he's in the right place.
Crackleport's Motorcycle Hospital. (Better known to ale flagon lifters and pickled onion suckers as The Old Sidevalve Bar.)
If you read my previous blog entry you will know it was a big day when the crankshaft gear finally cried "Enough, I give in". I was now on a roll.........Walter old chap I whispered. We can make you live again....I'm sure we can...
Attention was then turned to the crank-pin nut that some careful previous owner had welded to the flywheel.
Careful grinding, drilling, filing with the occasional tickle with a cold chisel was the order of the day. I knew the nut was a lost cause before starting so no attempt to save that part was undertaken. But further damage to the crank-pin had to be avoided at all costs.

Good job I still had my trusty Linen Tester magnification lens close at hand because eyeballing at close quarters is a wonderful thing. I can see the thin line that suggests the crank-pin and the nut are no longer welded together. Only now to separate the nut from the flywheel......easier to say than do and certainly a lot quicker to write than do also.

Fast forward a couple of hours and the nut has held its thread for the last time.....Hurrah !

The remains of the nut are scattered on the workshop floor, the crank-pin is loose from the flywheel.
Time for a cuppa.
Keep tuning in bloggers and maybe leave a comment ....Little Walt needs all the support he can.....these are his darkest hours.....

Dusting Cobwebs and big blowlamps

Phuff...........Phuff..........Hello! and welcome back to The Legend of Little Walt Blog..
It's me,  Uncle Albert, blowing cobwebs away from the pages of the previous jottings
Aaahh, now where was I ?
That's it, poor Little Walt had been down to surgery in 'The Old Sidevalve Bar' hospital and things didn't look good......mind you he is an old codger of 88 years so I guess a bit rough around the edges is ok...
However.......
Remember the welded conrod ? the chiseled crankpin nut ? and worse still the other crankpin nut that had been welded ? How could you forget ? I couldn't

I've been on holiday this week and what better way to spend 2 days of a holiday than fighting a reluctant vintage crankshaft..?

Little Walt has 2 gears ! Drive is direct from the crankshaft to the gearbox. From each side. Choose which side is driving by way of the selector and Bob's your uncle (no Albert is) high or low speed. Hey, that's pretty impressive for 1925 technology in my books.
I wanted the gear off the crank so I could access it's condition before writing an full engineering repair list.
Bearing in mind the parts are irreplaceable forethought before action would be a good idea and delicacy during Modus Operandi would help too......Can I do that? I'll try.....
Blimey, that there gear is stuck like a stuck gear in a gear sticking competition.....Gentle prising....Nope still stuck.......firm prising......nope........bearing puller........nope......
3 hours later under microscopic inspection I find some previous 'caring owner' had welded the gear to the shaft......Chuffin hell !
File.......file.......inspect.......file....file......inspect. I was looking for that tell tale sign of a crack proving that the weld had broken through.....but, I was filing into the shoulder of my precious. valuable irreplaceable gear...
A catch 22 situation....stress levels rising...
Note how some muppet has badly damaged the end of the crankshaft....Well peened in...
IT WASN'T ME !!!!!!

As soon as I saw I had filed through the weld I fitted the bearing pulley and tightened....and tightened more...

nope, no joy.
Big Bertha (The Old Sidevalve Bar residential blowlamp) ! Get some heat on it.......
Blimey, now things are hotting up. Just at the point of near hopelessness a 'crack' was hear across the land...The gear had shifted..
But still wouldn't pull with the bearing removing tool...

Soak in oil, Heat, crack, tighten, soak in oil, heat, crack, tighten. That's how it went until the gear got stuck again.....half way off...half way on...teasing, frustrating, No! Damn annoying more like.
Time to forget delicate....Tougher action needed, nothing can survive my Big Bearing Pullers!  .
Noooooo not the big bearing pullers

Happiness is a loose gear and a steaming hot crankshaft..........
Inspection revealed that the gear was on a taper, why it's sticking on the crank during removal has yet to be determined, and why it was welded on by previous owner is still a mystery too.....

More to follow, stay tuned.
Albert over and out.