johnsmachines

machines which I have made, am making, or intend to make, and some other stuff. If you find this site interesting, please leave a comment. I read every comment and respond to most. n.b. There is a list of my first 800 posts in my post of 17 June 2021, titled "800 Posts"
February 20, 2019

A Long Drill Bit

I have not been looking forward to attaching the Trevithick Dredger Engine to its base.

I needed to drill through the steel plinth and the wooden plinth, and then through the top part of the base.  Trouble was that the boiler and engine were in the way.

And it was not feasible to tip the whole assembly upside down and drill from underneath.

Ahah! what about a long drill?   I measured it.  The drill would need to be 450mm long!  Even a long drill bit, ferociously expensive, comes at a maximum length of 150mm.

So, I made a long drill bit, 5mm diameter, 600mm long

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That is a new 5mm cobalt drill bit, silver soldered into some 8mm drill rod.  Could have been a bit shorter, but it was long enough.

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Using the long drill bit, I was able to drill through the steel support, and through the top wooden layer of the base.   Then bolted the parts together.   And was then able to place the engine and the wooden layer on their ends, and to drill the remaining holes from below, confident (fairly confident anyway), that nothing could go wrong.   As in the above picture.

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Meanwhile, I had added the valve which controls the boiler feed pump output, and connected it to the boiler feed pump.

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Boiler feed pump valve.  This valve was left over from the vertical boiler project.  Just right, when I have repainted it.

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Next I must drill a 5mm hole through all layers of the base.   150mm!  4 holes, one in each corner.   The long drill made today will not do because the 8mm shank is too thick.   I must make another long drill, with a 5mm diameter shank.  Watch this space!

 

 

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February 20, 2019

Moon

I know that this blog is titled “johnsmachines”, but I do get interested in “other stuff” too.

I came across this video on YouTube yesterday.  It runs for 4 hours.

The footage was shot by an amateur astronomer, through telescopes which anyone can buy.  A 9.5″ Celestron  reflector (Schmitt Cassegrain I think),  and an 80mm Orion refractor.

I used to be an amateur astronomer, and still retain an interest.  One of my worst decisions ever was to give away an Orion 10″ reflector about 10 years ago.

Anyway, back to the video.  It shows the surface of the moon, concentrating on some interesting areas.  Following are some screen shots.  It is titled “Live Moon Surface Observation”.  Worth a look.  Suggest jumping to 28minutes and watch maybe 5 minutes, zooming in and out.

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80mm refractor.  Look at the protruberance in the top left crater.  Looks like a clenched fist.  That is really unusual.  Impact craters often have a central spike, and it is thought that the moon has had volcanic activity in previous aeons.  But there is no atmosphere to cause wind erosion, and no surface water.  Just traces of ice in the depths of craters at the poles.  So how could that shape have arisen?   And look at the bottom right crater…. that rectilinear shape.   Circular shapes are meteor impacts, in many case impacts upon impacts.  So how do you explain straight lines like these?

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The same craters through the reflector scope.  Image reversed.   Look closely at the areas surrounding the craters.  Do you see the other rectangular and square shapes?

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Close up of the fist.  Pixellation appearing.

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Earth’s moon is strange.

It is the largest moon in the solar system relative to the parent planet.

It is much less dense than earth. (why? if it is made of the same rock).  (5.51g/cm vs 3.34g/cm.  Thought to be due to Earth’s metal core.)

It almost exactly blocks the disk of the sun during a lunar eclipse.  Coincidence?

The other side of the moon always faces away from earth.  Until the space program, no human had ever seen the other side of the moon.  The other side, incidentally, is quite different from the side which we see.  Much more cratered, no large flat areas.  Presumably most meteors come from the direction away from the sun (because they are scooped up by the gravitational field of the sun).

One moon day is exactly the same length as a lunar month.  It is the only moon in the solar system where this applies.  That is why the other side of the moon always faces away from earth.  Another coincidence?  (correction.  Pluto – Charon also exhibit this behaviour, so it is not unique, just unusual.  Thought to be due to “tidal locking”- thanks Gene).

OK.  I know.  You came to this site to look at my machines, particularly the Trevithick dredger engine.   I am still fiddling with small details which are not very photogenic, but necessary before I run it on steam.  Currently hooking up the boiler feed pump.

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I was intending to pull apart the pump to show you the components.  It is more complicated than the exterior shows.  Piston, O ring, 2 stainless steel balls, one spring.  I machined that 3 way junction box from a gas fitting, adding the delivery union to the top.   Nothing tested yet.  I hope that it works!

 

 

 

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