A Toy Model T Tank Truck

From a plan in the "GREAT BOOK OF WOODEN TOYS" by Norm Marshall and Bill Jones, published by Fox Chapel Publishing Company, Inc.

Some notes on the toy and the book:

• A purist might object to my use of wood screws to attach/reinforce the fenders. The plan calls for sanded-flush dowels to do that. I'm not a purist, and sanding dowels flush is a pain in the neck. Aesthetically, I have no problem with the odd metal fastener on a wooden toy. Needless to say, any such fastener must be absolutely secure.
• Norm Marshall was a brilliant designer -- all of the projects in the book are exquisite. The workmanship evidenced in the photographs is sublime.
• That said, I take exception to the book's subtitle -- "More Than 50 Easy-to-Build Projects". Hmmm. I suppose that 'Difficult-to-Build' would not advance book sales, but it would be closer to the truth. A reasonably good execution of the toys' plans demands a well equipped workshop, and a pretty good mastery of the machinery and tools therein. A marginally equipped beginning woodworker is likely to be frustrated. Many aspects of the builds are technically challenging.
• The text is often light on specifics. Something like the following doesn't cut it for me: "Lay out the fenders (G) on a piece of stock; then use a bandsaw or scroll saw to cut them out." The pictured fenders are flawless. They were not likely produced on a bandsaw -- a typical bandsaw blade is a rough-cutting beast. I'd like to know what machine, with what manner of blade, the author used to get such a perfect outcome.
• The drafting leaves a bit to be desired in some cases.

Anyway, there are my quibbles with the book. By all means acquire the book and proceed to produce some delightful toys but be warned, the toys are not `easy-to-build`.

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A Broken Caster Mount

 I built this little workshop truck years ago. The top is about 18" x 24".

It was never meant to be an outdoor item, but it's been outside for the past couple of years, and the exposure has taken its toll on the paint job. The exposure has also resulted in the failure of a particleboard caster mounting disc.

The fracture lined back up nicely. Gorilla Glue and a couple of c-clamps will have the truck back in business tomorrow.

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Mastercraft 9" Band Saw (055-6748-6) -- Rear Blade Support Bearing Failure

The rear blade support bearings lead a hard life, and both bearings on my machine have lost their outer seals. The lower bearing, showered as it is with sawdust, has all but seized up.

The saw has an upper rear blade support bearing (two views).

And a lower rear blade support bearing (two views).

                                                  

Replacement Bearings

The bearings are No. 606RS -- 6mm bore x 17mm O.D. x 6mm width, sealed both sides. Replacements are readily available from Amazon.

Lower Bearing Replacement

• Release blade tension and get the blade out of the way.
• With a 4mm hex key, loosen off the setscrew securing the bearing's mounting post. (A hole in the front of the saw's frame gives access to the setscrew's head.) Remove the post/bearing assembly.
• With a 4mm hex key, remove the M5 x 16mm screw fastening the bearing to the post. Mind the flat washers on either side of the bearing.
• Replace the bearing. Reinstall the post/bearing assembly loosely.
• Reinstall the blade and spin it manually to reestablish blade tracking. The back of the blade should be just touching the upper rear blade support bearing.
• Adjust the lower post/bearing assembly so that the blade is just touching the lower rear blade support bearing.
• Lock the post/bearing assembly in place with the setscrew.

Upper Bearing Replacement

The upper bearing's mounting post is different from that of the lower bearing -- it's not readily removable from the saw's frame with its bearing attached. Proceed as follows.

• Have the blade tensioned and running true. The back of the blade should be just touching the lower rear blade support bearing.
• Swing open the black shield concealing the upper blade guide.
• With a 4mm hex key, loosen off the screw fastening the bearing's mounting post to the saw's frame.
• Slide the post/bearing assembly back as far as it will go. The bearing is now fully accessible for removal.
• With a 4mm hex key, remove the M5 x 16mm screw fastening the bearing to the post. Mind the flat washers on either side of the bearing.
• Replace the bearing.
• Move the bearing's mounting post forward so the bearing just contacts the rear of the blade.
• Lock the post/bearing/assembly in place with the screw.

Note:

The saw's Instruction Manual calls for a 0.002" gap between the bearings and the rear of the blade. Such adjustment strikes me as difficult, pointless and needless. I simply adjust the bearings so that they are in contact with the rear of the blade.

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A Tecumseh TVS 90 Catastrophic Failure

 The mower started up fine, then it started to make a clattering noise, then WHACK! A piece of the connecting rod came flying out the right side of the crankcase, leaving a gaping hole.

Here's a view of the connecting rod big end piece that emerged from the engine.

For want of anything better to do, I may open up the engine for a look inside at the damage. We'll see.

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Well, I didn't open up the engine, but I did remove the cylinder head. I extracted the piston, and retrieved another piece of the connecting rod's big end. Here's what I got.

The failure is inexplicable. I'm careful about checking engine oil, and would never let an engine run out of oil. Anyway, that's the end of that engine.

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A Coffee Mill

Loosely based on a design from the book "Woodworking Projects For the Home Workshop" by Rosario Capotosto, here's a view of my completed coffee mill[1].

The grinder is Busy Bee's No. B3962, antique style side crank coffee grinder. Busy Bee also offers a top crank model for less money, but I thought that the side crank version is the superior design.

Dimensions

The base is 6 5/8" square with 3/4" corner radii. The box is 5 1/4" square with a 4 3/8" height. Overall height with the grinder attached is 12 3/16".

Material

I was determined to make the thing out of whatever I had on hand, so aesthetics took a back seat to the limitations of reality.

The base with its radiused corners is 3/4" firply. The firply edges are veneered with birch hot-melt edge veneer (the only item I had no choice but to buy). The firply base contrasts mightily with the pine box and the birch edge veneer, but as I said, aesthetics took a back seat.

The box is made of 1/2" thick pine, as is the drawer front. I had to thickness plane 3/4" material to get the 1/2" material. The drawer's body is made from 1/4" thick poplar plywood (subflooring plywood).

Fasteners

Supplied with the grinder are two 8-32 x 1 1/2" black pan head screws and two 5/16" A/F hex nuts. I added two No. 8 SAE flat washers, and two No. 8 split lockwashers for under the hex nuts. The screws' threads are slightly undersize from true No. 8 stud diameter for some reason. The hex nuts are undersize as well -- standard 8-32 hex nuts are 11/32" A/F.

The drawer front is fastened to the drawer sides with 3/4" finishing nails. 1/2" finishing nails are used throughout the remainder of the drawer's construction.

The base is fastened to the box from underneath with nine No. 6 x 1 1/4" flathead wood screws. Attaching the box to the base is a tricky operation.

The Drawer Pull

It's an antiquey, oddball item I had lying around. Most anything would suffice.

Finish

One application of tung oil.

Grinder Action

The mill works as advertised, producing quite a fine grind.

It took a lot of cranking to produce the little heap of ground coffee in the above photograph.

In Conclusion

It's a satisfying little woodworking project that delivers the expected result. Be warned that you'll have to enjoy turning a crank if you expect to grind a lot of coffee.

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Note:

[1] The terms 'coffee mill' and 'coffee grinder' seem to be used interchangeably. I consider a coffee mill to be a complete unit with grinder and catch vessel; a coffee grinder to be the grinder mechanism only.

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