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  1. #46
    Boringgeoff is offline Try not to be late, but never be early.
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    I'm making the cranks out of 12mm mild steel bar. There are six of them so I made a jig to get them roughly the same. To true them I put one end in the chuck of the pedestal drill and at slowest speed chalk the high spot. I have found that the end in the chuck is the one to adjust to remove the run out at the other end.
    Geoff.
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  2. #47
    Boringgeoff is offline Try not to be late, but never be early.
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    I've made a mock up of the machine. With the two feed shafts that Michael made and the two connecting shafts and six bosses to hold the augers made by a friend down at Harvey. Still lacking the drive gears but I've connected a brace to the end of the second crank temporarily. The original machine has five cranks with provision for a sixth and evidence of wear to show that a sixth bit was there at some time, so I've set this one up with six cranks.
    Over the Christmas period I've had a few visitors give their opinions and one is that the machine was possibly mounted vertically boring downwards into the post.
    For the mock up I have fitted three 1/2" bits with a sleeve in the boss to take up the slack between the shank of the bit and the ID of the boss. The original probably had 1/2" augers with their eye removed as the shank of a couple I've got are the approximate diameter (3/8") as the hole in the boss.
    Every time I walk past it I can't resist giving the crank a few turns, the action of the connecting rods is mesmerising, (simple things amuse etc.)
    The difficult part next is to determine how the feed engagement mechanism was made. Being a fairly unsophisticated tool I'll have to ensure that whatever the solution it has to be fairly simple.
    As previously discussed Michaels feed screws are dual purpose. If we accept that the machine was mounted vertically, the coarse LH thread with pin drive engaged and crank turned backwards lowers the auger bits to engage the post. At this point the pin drive is disengaged and the 3/4" UNC half nut drive is engaged and turning the handle in the correct direction helps drive the auger bits through the post. Once the post is drilled the UNC is disengaged and the pin drive reengaged and still turning the crank in the correct direction the bits are raised from the post ready for another one.
    Clear as mud? Well I understand how it's going to work, the trick will be to make this part of it compatible with the style of the rest of it. Folks, I'm still on the lookout for the two cogs 26 and 10 teeth, I've had some offers of machining them or casting them and will look at those options if I'm unable to locate them at a clearing sale or the like, over the next few months.
    Cheers,
    Geoff.
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  3. #48
    Boringgeoff is offline Try not to be late, but never be early.
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    Default Update.

    A couple of days ago Michael G asked me how I was getting on with this project. Well not a lot has happened since December. I've made a pair of thread followers that would allow the machine to move forward and backward (up and down) and have also found a pair of cogs of the correct tooth number. The followers were made by drilling and tapping a 3/4 UNC hole in a piece of steel. A second 3/4 hole was bored adjacent to the first and the land between the two holes cut out with a hack saw. Then it was careful use of a file to where the threaded rod, when inserted, could be moved from engaging the threaded section accross to the smooth section. Next step was to drill and tap a hole in the end of the steel block to accept a 1/4 screw with the end filed down to engage in the coarse thread in the rod.
    The two blocks are attached to a carriage that allows me to demonstrate the principle of how I think the machine was used. If it was operated vertically I imagine that it would have been counterweighted to neutralise the weight of the contraption on the raising /lowering mechanism. Whether the drilling heads were raised and lowered to engage a post in a static carrier or the machine immovable and the post carriage raised and lowered, I'm not sure, but I'm leaning towards the former. Varying weights of the posts being bored would make it impossible to effectively counterweight the post carrier.
    The three photos sort of illustrate the above.
    Cheers,
    Geoff.
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  4. #49
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    Looks good Geoff. Original solution to engaging the different threads, I like it.
    Do you know what machine the gears came from?
    I put the word out around here and also checked out every old machine and junk pile that the owners would let me have access to and came up with nothing.
    I would be interested to know how well it works when it is finished.
    Regards
    Bradford

  5. #50
    Boringgeoff is offline Try not to be late, but never be early.
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    Hi Bradford,

    I picked up the two gears from a farmer between Toodyay and Bindoon, he had boxes of them in his shed, not exactly the same but right number of teeth. In discussion with my wife's cousin at Busselton last week he's sure the originals are off a hand winch.
    Since I saw you I've been to a number of clearing sales and turned up a blank as well.

    Cheers,
    Geoff.

  6. #51
    Boringgeoff is offline Try not to be late, but never be early.
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    Default Conceptual Replica

    The project is finally finished, after four a half years of procrastination and various other excuses. I've read this whole thread last night and don't think there's a lot more to be said about the history of this project.
    I must stress that the Stevenson tag on the photos is my cataloguing and not to intimate that this finished project in any way resembles the machine that Mr Stevenson made nearly a century ago. It is built off the remains of the original tool and is purely a concept of how a fence post boring machine may have worked.
    Mr Stevensons grandson (now in his mid 70's) came out for a look at it a couple of weeks ago and he was adamant that his mother told him that grandfathers machine was portable and carried from post to post to be drilled after they were planted.
    I have a number of reasons that I don't like this concept but I'm not about to argue against his (late) mothers recollection.

    The machine bores six 1/2" holes simultaneously. The post is laid in the tray and the coarse thread selected on the traversing shafts, the crank is turned clockwise causing the drill carriage to lower, the auger bits will be turning backwards. The two outer bits will contact the post first, as soon as this occurs cranking stops and the fine thread is selected and cranking proceeds, this time in anti- clockwise direction. The thread on the traversing shaft is roughly the same as that of the lead screws on the bits so as they are forced through the post they are also pulling themselves through. As soon as the six bits are through cranking stops and the coarse thread is selected and cranking in the anti- clock direction resumes. This pulls the bits back up out of the post which is held down by two pegs, once the bits are clear, the post is removed a fresh one put on the tray and the process starts again.
    Using pine I timed myself at two minutes to bore a post. Using a brace and bit on another post took me 2 3/4 minutes, bearing in mind I had to mark the hole placement prior to boring.
    I'd like to thank a couple of blokes, reading this thread you will know that the traversing shafts were made by Michael G, and BRADFORD for taking the time to come out here with a couple of cogs, thanks gents, your help was much appreciated.
    Apologies, my photos are not the best, if you want more info or specific details I'm happy to oblige.
    Finally if you're passing this way and want to come and have a look at it you're more than welcome.
    Cheers,
    Geoff.
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  7. #52
    Boringgeoff is offline Try not to be late, but never be early.
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    Default I got it wrong.

    Good morning all,
    Recently came to light a 1893 /94 patent by W.Smith of Bunbury WA for this machine. It was portable , on wheels, able to be wheeled from post to post to bore the holes after the posts were in the ground. The original owners grandson said his mother was sure the old man carried it from post to post, this version proves that correct.
    The patent, taken out a quarter of a century before the remains I've got were made, doesn't have the double threaded traversing screws. The carriage inside the frame were moved forward by the screws turning clockwise and withdrawn by reversing the direction, this return action was sped up by the use of a treadle linked directly to one of the auger cranks, bypassing the gearing of the hand crank.
    It's a pity the patent information hadn't come to light before I built the replica, but I'm still happy with the result.
    My replica will be on show at the HTPSWA stand at the WA Wood Show this weekend.
    Cheers,
    Geoff.
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  8. #53
    Boringgeoff is offline Try not to be late, but never be early.
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    I am going show the replica at the Vintage Machinery Rally at Waroona (WA) on 22 September. That may be the last time it's shown as I'm thinking pretty seriously of rebuilding it into a replica of Smiths original portable model.
    Cheers,
    Geoff.

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