Author Topic: What have you fettled today?  (Read 2134020 times)

Torslanda

  • Professional Gobshite
  • Just a tart for retro kit . . .
    • John's Bikes
Re: What have you fettled today?
« Reply #12750 on: 18 February, 2018, 01:52:18 pm »
Don't forget the centre spigot of the wheel. It's ok getting the wheel nuts off but if the wheel is stuck fast with corrosion . . .
VELOMANCER

Well that's the more blunt way of putting it but as usual he's dead right.

Re: What have you fettled today?
« Reply #12751 on: 18 February, 2018, 04:28:13 pm »
Rebuilt one of our raised beds, this time with proper pressure treated board, not donated scaffold boards. Have to do another, but am short a length of wood - time to break out the roof bars as delivery costs make that option untenable - £35 for one £16 plank! (to be fair it'd be the same for 20 off).
We are making a New World (Paul Nash, 1918)

andytheflyer

  • Andytheex-flyer.....
Re: What have you fettled today?
« Reply #12752 on: 18 February, 2018, 09:01:40 pm »
Don't forget the centre spigot of the wheel. It's ok getting the wheel nuts off but if the wheel is stuck fast with corrosion . . .

Yup, that gets a wire brush and Coppaslip too!  Found out the hard way some years ago, took a lump hammer and a block of wood to effect a parting of the components.

Torslanda

  • Professional Gobshite
  • Just a tart for retro kit . . .
    • John's Bikes
Re: What have you fettled today?
« Reply #12753 on: 18 February, 2018, 10:55:13 pm »
A neighbour wanted the OZ alloys off his Laguna when it was collected by the scrapman but they were stuck fast, despite the guy bouncing the car on the flatbed using the crane.

Solved that one with a paver's maul. Not much will stand up to a 28lb rubber hammer . . .
VELOMANCER

Well that's the more blunt way of putting it but as usual he's dead right.

Pingu

  • Put away those fiery biscuits!
  • Mrs Pingu's domestique
    • the Igloo
Re: What have you fettled today?
« Reply #12754 on: 18 February, 2018, 11:11:30 pm »
Anti-rattle modification to the mudguard on the runabout - two holes and cable tied it to the rack

BTDTGTTS  :)

Mrs Pingu

  • Who ate all the pies? Me
    • Twitter
Re: What have you fettled today?
« Reply #12755 on: 21 February, 2018, 07:16:59 pm »
I've  been thinking about getting some new bits for our Dyson but that's put me right off...

Ah.  Sorry about that.  In reality it's all very straightforward, and the plastic bits (of which I have an inbuilt wariness, 'cos they always break and are irreparable) are actually very tough, and the clips and catches don't break. 

But be careful over what you order as there are multiple sub-menus of bits available for apparently the machine you have, but in reality there are half a dozen sub-models, with different belts, filters and brushes.  Even the supplier got the belts wrong, which is partly why I then went for the new clutch.

Having said all that, I did later see that the DC14 is available 2nd hand and "refurbished" for not much more than I paid in new parts.  Go figure.  But at least I kept a pile of plastic out of landfill and satisfied my Child of the Fifties inbuilt need to repair things rather than  throwing them away.  My dad would have been proud.
Sounds good, I'm all for repair, re-use then recycle. Where did you order your bits from?

Well, that was only a partial success. Could I get the clutch actuator knob to come off? No, I could not.
Nor could Pingu. Not even though Swears were actioned.
Decided that I'd rather not have a load of broken plastic so I admitted defeat and just put on a new brush bar  :-[
Do not clench. It only makes it worse.

clarion

  • Tyke
Re: What have you fettled today?
« Reply #12756 on: 21 February, 2018, 07:30:05 pm »
Got the prop off my big plane at last!  Found out what the problems are with the servos (but, alas, not the answers :( ).
Getting there...

Kim

  • Timelord
    • Fediverse
Re: What have you fettled today?
« Reply #12757 on: 21 February, 2018, 07:42:09 pm »
I learned how not to drill holes in ABS.  Sadly, this ruined a couple of hours' worth of work.

Jayjay

  • Layin' back a bit these days.
Re: What have you fettled today?
« Reply #12758 on: 21 February, 2018, 10:19:51 pm »
Put a proper bearing in the front of the Basta dynamo, how the original plastic thing survived as long as it did was surprising.

andytheflyer

  • Andytheex-flyer.....
Re: What have you fettled today?
« Reply #12759 on: 22 February, 2018, 09:23:37 am »
Well, that was only a partial success. Could I get the clutch actuator knob to come off? No, I could not.
Nor could Pingu. Not even though Swears were actioned.
Decided that I'd rather not have a load of broken plastic so I admitted defeat and just put on a new brush bar  :-[

Well, I'll be no help at all by simply saying that it does come off.....

I levered up the end next to the clutch to, in effect, increase the diameter of that end, and once I'd found the location of the clip it popped off easily.  All of which is no help, but it  did take me a couple of minutes to fnd the way in.  You can have a go now, even though it's back together as you don't need the machine to be in bits to do this.

Even if you break it, replacements are available for a few ££, e.g https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/DYSON-DC07-DC14-DC04-CLUTCH-COVER-KNOB-All-Colours-3-99-Inc-Postage-Bargain/181937376720?hash=item2a5c500dd0:g:73MAAOSw6dNWTvpF

 

Re: What have you fettled today?
« Reply #12760 on: 23 February, 2018, 04:36:52 pm »
Swapped out both central heating pump isolation valves after discovering last night that the ones I had fitted in October last year were leaking around the valve spindle.

I'll clean them up and have a closer look later, but at first glance - and judging by the play in the spindles I found last night - it looks like the way the ball valve and spindle are connected provides a leakage path.  >:( :facepalm:

The Pegler valves I fitted look like they are constructed in a superior fashion.

Buy cheap, buy twice, eh?  ::-)
"He who fights monsters should see to it that he himself does not become a monster. And if you gaze for long into an abyss, the abyss gazes also into you." ~ Freidrich Neitzsche

ElyDave

  • Royal and Ancient Polar Bear Society member 263583
Re: What have you fettled today?
« Reply #12761 on: 23 February, 2018, 04:59:41 pm »
Cruzbike frameset assembled.

Giant cleaned, ready to start disassembling and transfer of components to Cruzbike.  Brake springs and bolts are looking a bit tatty after about 11 years, so I might see if I can get some replacement parts.
“Procrastination is the thief of time, collar him.” –Charles Dickens

ElyDave

  • Royal and Ancient Polar Bear Society member 263583
Re: What have you fettled today?
« Reply #12762 on: 24 February, 2018, 05:19:41 pm »
half an hour removing parts from the Giant to move to the cruzbike.  Found a bit of corrosion on the giant in areas hidden by bottle cages and the like, will treat those in due course as this frame will either be sold or end up getting rebuilt. 

Decide to re-furb the brakes, so bought a few new nuts and bolts for the worst offenders (11 years old) and a tin of brasso for the rest. 

Only stymied by the LHS ultegra crank arm - I didn't have the £3tool neeeded to remove the dust cap.

Chain, rear mech and front mech are soaking in a tub of degreaser at the moment. The value of greasing things on assembly really showed itself, with even the pedals coming off easy enough.
“Procrastination is the thief of time, collar him.” –Charles Dickens

Feanor

  • It's mostly downhill from here.
Re: What have you fettled today?
« Reply #12763 on: 24 February, 2018, 07:08:55 pm »
A bit of re-jigging of the layout at Feanor Towers involved the purchase and assembly of some of the ubiquitous IKEA Billy book-cases.

These have cut-outs on their heels for the skirting boards.
I can only assume that there is some standard for Scandinavian Skirting Boards which involves them being about 2" high.
Ours are rather larger, and the Billys won't go against the wall properly in their as-bought state.

So I've had a jolly day with the router ( woodworking kind ) re-machining the various bits before assembling it.
( I have been here before, and had already made the jigs that I needed! )

There are surprisingly more bits that needed re-work than it might first seem...

Kim

  • Timelord
    • Fediverse
Re: What have you fettled today?
« Reply #12764 on: 24 February, 2018, 07:51:40 pm »
Barakta has one of those Portapow USB monitors that mostly lives on a USB hub at her computer, where it provides isolation of the data pins for phone-charging duty when not needed for diagnostic purposes.  We needed it for diagnostic purposes yesterday, and discovered the current reading was stuck at 40mA.

I got an email this evening confirming that it was out of warranty, managed to spudger it open non-destructively[1], and had got as far as determining that the voltage regulator powering the dual op-amp wasn't outputting anything, when the voltage jumped to a solid 5.02V and it started working properly.  Presumably poking about with probes reconnected some shitty lead-free soldering or something.  I gave the pins of the regulator a touch with the soldering iron for good measure, and put it back together.  It appears to be working.


[1] There's a slot at the end that looks like you poke a screwdriver into it to release a clip.  That's not a clip, it's the noisy end of the beep transducer, don't poke it, just rotate a screwdriver blade in the slot to prise the two parts of the case open.

Tim Hall

  • Victoria is my queen
Re: What have you fettled today?
« Reply #12765 on: 24 February, 2018, 08:52:27 pm »
Got the central heating at Dad's house working, which given his age, the temperature and the weather forecast, is a Good Thing.

It's a temporary fix, but we were running out of logs and theres' only one fireplace. Plumber scheduled for Monday to fix it properly.
There are two ways you can get exercise out of a bicycle: you can
"overhaul" it, or you can ride it.  (Jerome K Jerome)

Re: What have you fettled today?
« Reply #12766 on: 24 February, 2018, 08:57:18 pm »
The bedroom walls. A bigger task than anticipated, because the lining paper that I'd been hoping I could just stick back down because it was peeling in the corner turned out to have alarming layer of fungus underneath, so the whole exterior wall had to be stripped of paper and rid of mould (that was yesterday's fun job). Today was filling, sanding and basecoating - fortunately, the wall was in decent enough shape not to need re-lining. Tomorrow, hopefully, proper painting. Of course, being stuck inside decorating has meant the sun has been shining for the past two days. :facepalm: :'(

Jayjay

  • Layin' back a bit these days.
Re: What have you fettled today?
« Reply #12767 on: 24 February, 2018, 09:26:27 pm »
Put the Marathon Winter back on ye trike again after seeing the weather forecasts.
Fixed the lower end of the garage door latch cable with some solid steel wire, the other end that I "improved" about 25 years ago looks ok still.
The door cable and the bathroom heater switch cord both broke the same day, I was expecting them to be followed by a brake or gearchange fail but those must still be hanging by a thread.

Re: What have you fettled today?
« Reply #12768 on: 25 February, 2018, 05:14:03 pm »
Ive not ridden my blue bike since the brake lever slipped, locking the front brake on & sending me head first over the bars! 
Fixed the brakes earlier & also replaced the saggy Brooks with a “new to me” Gilles Berthoud. A short test ride caused no great discomfort.
Not fast & rarely furious

tweeting occasional in(s)anities as andrewxclark

zigzag

  • unfuckwithable
Re: What have you fettled today?
« Reply #12769 on: 25 February, 2018, 06:43:19 pm »
my front derailleur cable went ping during a turbo workout (which was annoying, but less annoying than the same thing happening in the wild). as i haven't serviced any cables on this bike before with it's internal cables i thought it might be a bit of a faff - but, it turned out to be as easy as with the external cables. fed the inner into the frame near the steerer and it popped out next to the front mech, how cool is that! i used the opportunity to shorten the outer cable as it was too long after lowering the handlebars.

Tim Hall

  • Victoria is my queen
Re: What have you fettled today?
« Reply #12770 on: 25 February, 2018, 11:20:00 pm »
Fixed a puncture on Dad's mobility scooter. First challenge was getting the wheel.off. Second was getting the tyre off - I was about to give up when I realised it was a two part bolted together hub. Got it done and reassembled AND cooked a roast dinner at the same time. Go me.
There are two ways you can get exercise out of a bicycle: you can
"overhaul" it, or you can ride it.  (Jerome K Jerome)

Torslanda

  • Professional Gobshite
  • Just a tart for retro kit . . .
    • John's Bikes
Re: What have you fettled today?
« Reply #12771 on: 26 February, 2018, 01:07:15 am »
Tim (& anyone else interested) those two piece wheels can get stuck together with corrosion.

Remove the nuts holding the wheel together, screw them back about 3 full turns, then inflate* the tyre to around 40-50psi. Pop! We have separation . . .





*make sure you have plenty of distance between you and the wheel. Don't be a dick!
VELOMANCER

Well that's the more blunt way of putting it but as usual he's dead right.

clarion

  • Tyke
Re: What have you fettled today?
« Reply #12772 on: 26 February, 2018, 10:51:53 am »
In a rush to get outstanding half-bodges fettling projects cleared out of the dining room before my parents return home, I assembled a bracket for an FPV monitor, but still have no idea how to attach it to my transmitter.  I need to root through the bike brackets box for something appropriate.

I also built my second ever balsa model (my first was in the Cubs): a £7.99 Chinese glider off eBay.  It flew remarkably well, considering my ham-fistedness and Frank Spencer-like ability to glue my fingers together.  Of course, I had disregarded the ludicrous angle of attack following the printed plan would have produced, and, after a quick test, decided that the proposed CG was preposterous, and lightened the balancing weight to just one M5 bolt.  Ugly but effective. :)
Getting there...

hulver

  • I am a mole and I live in a hole.
Re: What have you fettled today?
« Reply #12773 on: 26 February, 2018, 11:54:08 am »
Put a trainer tyre on the bike, which is currently on the trainer. Was a bit of a faff, as that rim seems to make fitting any tyre a bit of a nightmare. Got it done eventually, got the trainer set up and calibrated again. Set off to only have the quicklink on the chain explode.

I didn't have any spare quicklinks, so I had to join the chain using spare bits of chain I'd kept after fitting the new one, and fiddling with the chain tool until the links were mobile again. Worked fine, but I'm glad I've stuck with 8 speed stuff and not gone with more gears. I'd have had no chance with a 10 speed chain without quicklinks.

T42

  • Apprentice geezer
Re: What have you fettled today?
« Reply #12774 on: 26 February, 2018, 02:25:01 pm »
Twiddled a few nuts & bolts, adjusted a couple of bearings, and my router sled is now ready to go.  Then I belted indoors without trying it, 'coz it's 2°C in the workshop.
I've dusted off all those old bottles and set them up straight