Fitting Heat Boxes To Lower Exhaust Manifold Shells

 Welded to the bottom of each manifold there is a heat box for Carburetor Heat. Before I can weld them on I need to adjust the shape of the weld flanges to fit more closely to the lower shell.

These are the heat boxes for the left manifolds.  I'm making enough for 3 motors.  Because of the slight variations with hand forming the shells the boxes fit better on the original manifold (in the back) than on the ones I made.

 The first step was to mark where the box sets on the shell.

 You can see how the shell is not a flat on the bottom as planned so the ends do not set down on the shell.

After a little reshaping of the flanges they fit snug to the shell.

All 6 bottom shells with boxes fitted for welding.

Outlet Elbow Ends Trimmed

 The round inlet end of the elbows were marked, band sawed and ground just like was done for the outlet end of the manifold.

For the outlet end of the elbow I followed a similar process.  I used the form block to mark the cut lines on the flanges.

To draw the cut line I started by using a straight edge to line up a block in the bottom of the opening so I could mark the bottom of the cut line.

 To mark a straight line in the curved outlet I used the Pin Contour Gauge as a guide.  The shape of each shell is slightly different so it made an easy way to create a guide for each one.  You just line it up wit the three marks and draw a line along it with a pencil.

I then cut off the scrap with the band saw like the inlet end, and ground the end square and smooth wit the belt sander.  A little deburring and the end was done.

Trimming Exhaust Shell Inlets and Outlets

 Around the inlets the welded flange is cut off to give clearance for the exhaust stud nuts.  The flange is also cut off at the outlet end for the elbow to slip over.

 I thought about all sort of complicated tools to mark the cut lines.  In the end I decided to use the old form block, which was setting around.  I drew the cut lines for the ends of the cut offs on the block.  Then I placed a shell in the block and drew the lines on the shell, using the lines on the block as a guide.

 To make the cuts easy I punched 1/4" holes in the corners using the line as a guide.  Normally I would center punch where I want the hole.  In this case the hole location is not that critical.  Instead I turned the Whitney Punch upside down and looked through the hole in the die to line up the edge of the hole with the line.  You have to clear out the slug in the die after each punch so you can see the line, but it worked fine

 I realized part way through that a red line was easier to see in the die hole than the pencil line I started with.

 For the outlet end I needed to first cut off the excess metal from the forming operation.  I had started making a tool for shaping this end during assembly, more on it later.  I decided it would make a good guide for drawing the cut line because it would stay square in the shell.  Just position it in the shell and draw a pencil line along it.

 I cut the end off with the band saw.

I could have used a supports for the shell while sawing.  I was able to tip the shell for half the cut and support the flange with a block of wood for the other half of the cut.

To clean up the cut I just used the belt sander and deburred the edge.

 Once the outlet end was cut off I just used the snips to cut along the lines I drew and to follow the edge of the tube to the hole.  You need left and right snips to do this.

They came out very good.  They're starting to look like parts which could make the manifolds.

Manifold Shells Trimmed

 All the manifold shells, enough for 3 motors, are trimmed to the scribe line.  As with the outlet elbows, I've sorted them into tops and bottoms because of the different width of the flange.

The next step is to trim the inlet and outlet ends.

Trimming First Shells

 I have all the outlet elbows trimmed.  You can see here how much gets trimmed off.

The marking tool made a line which was easy to follow with the band saw, just outside the cut line.

For the outside curves the belt sander made it easy to grind to the line leaving a nice smooth curve.

I still have the inside curves to smooth up and then trim the ends.

Trim Line For Exhaust Shells

 I haven't finished the exhaust manifolds because I've been busy on other things and I didn't like any of my ideas for trimming the shells and for forming the edge overlap bends.

I've had a great idea for marking the trim line on the shells.  It's kind of the reverse of scribing a line on a board with a marking gauge.  Instead of the guide being on the scale, the guide is the rounded end of the block of wood.

For a scribe I used a coarse thread drywall screw.  I drilled a hole at the distance for the flange on the lower shell and a hole 1/4" further out for flange on the top shell.  The edge of the top shell wraps around the edge of the bottom shell to make a nice finished edge.  You adjust the screw tip, for the line you want, to just stick out of the block.  Run the block around the part leaving a nice even trim line.

Too simple.

Tall De-rust Bucket

 I have some long thin Items which need derusting, tools, etc. but won't fit in a standard 5 gallon mud bucket I used before.  I hunted all over for a tall waste basket or something like it.  I didn't want something as big as a 55 gallon drum, just to much water to deal with.  My neighbor had a piece of 8" Schedule 40 PVC pipe which I cut to 36".  Free is not always cheap.  The cap cost me $45 even after the guy at the plumbing supply had pity on me and took off $10.  Still I think it is perfect for what I'm doing and will last for ever.

 For sacrificial iron (anode) I decided to use re-bar since it's cheap and easy to get.  I bent it to an "L" shape to work better on the bottom end of the part.  The process supposedly works better on Line of Sight between the part and the Anode.

My brother-in-law has a re-bar bender/cutter but a stout vise and large hammer will do.

In the long end of the bars I drilled a hole to bolt the bars in place and provide electrical connection.  I also ground the area around the holes flat to get better contact.  If needed I'll use star washers to improve the contact.

 I wanted the 6 bars evenly spaced around the inside of the bucket.  A quick measurement and the holes need to be 4 15/16" apart.  I placed them 1 1/4" down so the ends of the bars would not stick up past the top.  I'll cover the top to keep the rain out while cleaning the parts.

 A support stand made drilling the bolt holes easy enough.

 The rod are bolted in place with washers to space them from the flared end so they hang parallel to the wall of the tube.

The current is low but the wire end with a 1/4" hole are for 10/12 gauge wire so I used a scrap of 10 gauge wire to connect them together and make a pigtail for attaching the battery charger.  I used the red insulated wire to remind me the positive lead connects to the anodes,

 For a stand I used a mud bucket filled with concrete.  I positioned the tube in the middle of the bucket and poured in dry concrete mix, settling in down with gentile taps of the mallet on the sides of the bucket.  I left it down about 2" and poured in about a quart of water.  Concrete doesn't need much water to make the chemical reaction work.  The water is now trapped in the bucket so it will slowly cause all the concrete to react and harden.

After it set a day I mixed a little of the concrete with water to cap the the top of the bucket.  I want it to shed water when I have it outdoors for use.
I think we're ready for some water, soda and parts cleaning.

Propeller Hub for WWI 80 HP Le Rhone Rotary Motor

 Back in January 2013 I wrote about de-rusting a propeller hub and then discovering it was a metric hub.  I've just learned that this hub fits an engine from earlier in the First World War.  It's for an 80 HP Le Rhone rotary motor.  It does not fit the larger motors like the 110 HP version.  It may fit the 60 HP version but I have not found data for the hub on it and they only made a few hundred of them.

 The first piece of data was from The Handbook of Instructions for Airplane Designers, second edition, February, 1921.  This book was produced by the Engineering Division of the Air Service.  The focus is on the dimensions which are relevant to making the propeller.  The dimensions are:

A - Hub Shaft O.D. 60 mm (2.362")
C - Prop. Bolt Centerline Diameter 120 mm (4.724")
D - Hub Flange O.D. 150 mm (5.905")
E - Number of Bolts - 8
F - Dia. of Bolts - 10 mm (0.394")

On-line I found some drawings which show the dimensions related to attaching the hub to the shaft.

The shaft is 42 mm O.D. at the nut end of the shaft.
The taper increases the diameter as a 10% cone.
The threaded end of the shaft (where the retaining nut screws on)
    is threaded for 18 mm.
The thread has on O.D. of 40 mm and a pitch of 1.50 mm.

All of which says this hub works on an 80 HP Le Rhone.  With magnetic inspection for cracks and fresh nickle plating it would be ready for use.

Anyone need a prop hub for their project?
Some of the planes which used the 80 HP Le Rhone either as the primary or alternate motor were:

1913 - Morane-Saulier L
1913 - Morane-Saulier N
1914 - Nieuport 10
1915 - Nieuport 11 (Bebe)
1916 - Nieuport 21 (as trainers)
1914 - Bristol Scout C
1915 - Bristol Scout D
1915 - SPAD A-2
1916 - Sopwith Pup
1916 - Vickers F.B.12
1917 - Thomas-Morse S4c