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"

Category: John

March 12, 2019

Next Project

The Trevithick dredger engine model is almost finished.  Currently applying some paint.  And getting it ready for the final boiler inspection.  I am guessing about 2 weeks.

I have chosen a spot in the house where it will sit, and will post a photo in due course.

A few people have been asking if I have decided what to make next.  In terms of a major build, the answer is no, I have not decided.  I have considered a few possibilities.  Those possibilities include a model of Stephenson’s “Rocket”, Trevithick’s “Catch Me Who Can” or “Pen-y-darren engine”, a Shand-Mason fire engine, or even another cannon.

What I will do, is to complete several unfinished projects, and if a major project becomes obvious, imperative, then anything is possible.

The unfinished projects include…

  1.  An Arduino controlled rotary table.  The mechanicals are made.  Just need to dive into the electronics.
  2. The Southworth steam powered boiler feed pump for the vertical boiler.
  3. The CNC controlled tool post milling attachment for the Boxford CNC lathe.
  4. Paint the Bolton beam engine.  Lag the cylinder.  Install a cylinder oiler.
  5. Finish the triple expansion model marine engine.  The lagging, the piston rings, the gaskets, the oiler and oil pipework, and painting.

Looking at that list, I really do not need to start another major project.

And sometimes it is nice to sit back, and enjoy the glow and satisfaction of previous projects.  It does sound rather self satisfied, no?  So here is a selection of videos, mostly first runs of newly completed projects.  Most are YouTube links, but one or two will run directly.

This was the first model steam engine which I made about 5-6 years ago.  It is a Bolton 7 single cylinder mill engine, and this was the first occasion I had run it on steam.  It was a very exciting moment, seeing it actually running on steam.

Next came the Bolton 12 Beam Engine.  Still a crowd favourite.  The beard was ordered off by SWMBO not long after this.

Then a couple of Stirling engines.  How they work is still a mystery to me.

 

Then the problematic, difficult triple expansion engine, which took 3 years and several extended breaks to get to the working stage.  Still not finished completely.  Stuart Tankard’s boiler.  Since then I made a vertical boiler.

And somewhere in there I made this little reversing engine for the club competition.  Alas, it failed in action.

And 3 cannons came out of left field.  They started as a CNC project, but then took on a consuming interest of their own.  About this time I saw the necessity of learning how to put together a video.  Still learning.

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The 6″ vertical boiler.

And finally the Trevithick dredger engine.  The historical aspects of this engine, the genius of Trevithick, the fact that the engine works…. has been marvellous.  The engine is looking quite different with some paint applied.  And the propane burner is significantly better than appears in this video.

So, if you are still with me after all of those videos, congratulations on your stamina.  It is  therapeutic to take stock sometimes, and to wonder about where making all of these engines is going.  It was not to any plan.  Still no plan.  Just enjoying the moments, the days.

4 Comments
September 4, 2018

New Skills in Retirement.

When I retired from my profession almost 4 years ago, I had an aim to become proficient at in CNC machining, and 3D CAD drawing.

I have definitely improved in those areas.  Trouble is, that as usual, the more that you learn, the more you realise that you need to know.

And in making some items, you encounter the need to learn skills entirely unexpected, like bronze brazing.

And all the while, your eyesight is deteriorating, your memory has gone somewhere (I forget where), and by mid-afternoon, all you are thinking of is sitting down with a good red.

One unexpected skill which has surfaced, which I am really enjoying, is cooking.

My wife, who is still working at what she loves,  announced a couple of years ago that since she is now the bread winner, that I could take over the cooking.  That was OK.  In fact it was something which I wanted to do when I was a teenager, but my rather traditional Mum did not think was appropriate.  So except for doing the camping cooking and barbeques, I did not cook until in my late 60’s.

Then I started cooking the evening meals.  And really enjoying it!  And my wife loves the freedom from the chore.

Trouble is that I detest shopping.  So the solution was a box of recipes and ingredients delivered once weekly.  HelloFresh.  It has been superb.

Then recently the cardboard box was not delivered.  Or at least it was not there at 7am on my doorstep, having been delivered at 2am.  A date stamped photograph was proof of delivery.  So it had been delivered, and stolen.  I am suspicious by nature, and having had no thefts here in 40+ years, I wondered about the delivery person.

Hellofresh took no responsibility.  I had no evidence to support my suspicion.  So we ate toast and cereal and take away for a week.  But I was really pissed off.

So I have spent several days installing a surveillance camera system.  I had installed a similar system some years ago in my workshop, so I felt reasonably confident that I could manage it.  Buying the system was straightforward.  Seems that they are commonplace.  4 cameras.  Recording machine with 2 terabytes of hard disk!  And connected to the Internet, so I can see what the cameras are seeing at any time, on my iphone!  And get alerts if the motion plus heat detectors are triggered.  Amazing!

Trouble is that I had to install the system myself.  It seems that the legal system has pushed professional installers to extinction, by making them legally responsible for thefts where systems are in place.

And at 68, I did not enjoy getting up and down ladders installing cameras and cables.  Or scrambling about amongst the spiders and crap under the house.  But at the time of writing the system is in place.  And working.    Another retirement skill.

And the clarity of the 4K pictures is outstanding.

What I will do if the alarm is triggered is another question to be pondered.  This is Oz, not US, so going outside with guns blazing is not an option.  Thank goodness.

2 Comments
November 7, 2017

SNORING

Stay with me.  This is about a machine.

For years, maybe decades, SWMBO has been complaining about my snoring, and demanding action.  From her description of the events in our bed, I was experiencing apnoeas (stopping breathing altogether) which lasted up to 20 -30 seconds each time. Sometimes SWMBO wondered if I would actually start breathing again.  Sometimes, she admitted, she wanted to hold a pillow over my head to quieten the snoring.

I have tried nose drops, plastic gadjets to widen my nostrils, elastic straps to support my lower jaw.  I even paid my dentist to make a prosthesis to stop my lower jaw from sagging backwards.  That prosthesis was expensive, and worked a bit.  But it became totally useless after I had some unrelated dental work which changed the fit.

I had heard about CPAP machines being used to treat snoring.  From my work as an obstetrician, I knew about these machines being used to help premature babies with their breathing.  CPAP is an acronym for Continuous Positive Airway Pressure.  It reduces the amount of effort required for each breath of the baby, and has saved many babies’ lives.    At some stage someone found out that CPAP is effective treatment for snoring.

Normally, to obtain a CPAP machine, one has to have sleep studies by spending a night in hospital hooked up to monitors, and be assessed by a medical specialist.

From my wife’s description I had no doubt about my diagnosis, and I decided to self diagnose and treat my condition.   “A lawyer who represents himself has a fool for a client”  also applies to doctors who treat themselves.  And normally I agree with that description.  But in this case I did not relish the thought of a night in hospital, which I was sure, would be pointless because it would be sleepless.

So I discussed my situation with my GP.  And I was pleasantly surprised when he said go ahead with my plan to buy a CPAP machine from overseas, and give it a try.

The CPAP machine cost me $AUD600.  If I had bought it locally it would have cost $AUD 1500-1600.  It arrived about 6 weeks after the order onEbay.  I had no idea what size face mask was required, so I ordered the “medium” size.  Turned out it was  a nose mask, and medium seemed to fit nicely.  The machine itself seemed well made.  All of the plastic bits fitted well.  The electronic screen was clear and lit up quickly on power up.  There was a CD for installation of the software on a Windows computer.  It installed and opened, but would not function.  An enquiry to the seller revealed that the computer time-date setting needed to be in YYYY-MM-DD format, and it all worked well after that.  The program asked for age, height, weight etc.  I was a bit insulted when my BMI of 27 was described as “FAT”.

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The CPAP machine and nose mask.   The tubing is much longer than shown.  The perspex tank contains water to humidify the inspired air.

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The CPAP machine

 

I could find no instructions, so I left the machine on the default settings.  Some weeks later I found an instruction booklet in a side pocket of the storage case, but it did not offer any information about settings.  I guess that normally there would be a doctor doing the settings, based on tests.   Fortunately I have a friend who is using a CPAP machine for sleep apnoea, and the default settings of my machine were very close to the ones which were prescribed for him, so I continued with the default settings.

First night.   I was warned by my friend that it takes about a month to become used to the CPAP, so I was not too perterbed by the mask and tubing waking me up every time I moved.  My wife had the best night’s sleep which she has had in years, because I did not snore AT ALL.  The machine makes a low whirring noise, which is barely noticeable.  Being forced to nose breath, because the positive pressure almost totally stops mouth inspiration, is a very odd sensation, but I was very aware that the 10cm of water pressure was profoundly affecting my breathing.  I was totally unable to deliberately snore while awake, and when asleep I was not snoring at all even when flat on my back.

First week.  I fiddled a bit with the pressures, but the default 10cm water pressure (0.14psi) seemed best.  I used the air humidifier.  The air is filtered.  Several times I woke and ripped the mask off, but after a month of use, that happens rarely.

First month.  I got the software working eventually, and I was delighted to see that I have had no snoring events or apnoea events at all.  My duration of sleep has gradually increased from an hour or two each night, to 5-6 hours per night.    My wife is absolutely rapt.   Her only complaint is that I sometimes remove the CPAP in the morning, then go back to sleep for another hour or two, during which time I revert to snoring.

I like to read in bed for an hour or more before I drop off to sleep.  I cannot wear my reading glasses with the CPAP in place.  So I read until I become sleepy, then pull on the mask and turn on the CPAP.  Usually I am asleep within minutes, which is a big improvement on pre-CPAP.

Either that, or I listen to podcasts with earplugs.  But the CPAP tubing and earplug cables do tend to get a bit tangled, so I usually read.  It helps to pin the CPAP tube to the pillow, with a lot of slack to allow for turning in bed.

So, after a month I have noticed that I never nap during the day, compared with most days pre-CPAP.  My tinnitus (ringing in the ears) is much less pronounced now.  I do not feel sleepy when driving.  I would like to say that my energy levels have improved, but that does not seem different.  I am hoping that my borderline high blood pressure will have settled, when next checked.

Overall, this has been a major improvement in my life. IFLT.  (technology, not Trump).

 

 

6 Comments
October 12, 2016

More Scale Stuff

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There is the 1464 Turkish bombard (black), 17 tons, 307kg granite ball;  the 1779 long naval gun off USS Constitution or HMS Victory 24lb balls; and a 32lb carronade.  All 1:10 scale.  Interesting to see them together on my kitchen table?

5 Comments