1949 Delta/Milwaukee 14" Band Saw

Gallery, Projects and General > Project Logs

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Rog02:

--- Quote from: Bernd on September 22, 2008, 09:19:44 AM ---Lookin' nice Rog02. :thumbup:

Don't get me wrong here but isn't that a bit over board when you say you don't want to scratch the paint. You are going to use the machine right? So it might get a bit dirty and a scratch here and there then.
--- End quote ---

Following that reasoning, why do laundry and mend the tears in your drawers? Your clothes are just going to get dirty and smelly again! ???

Wear and tear on equipment is inevitable. That is why I am only doing a "50 foot paint job" with Rust-O-Leum instead of sending out to the paint shop and having him trick it out with some sort of outlandish flame job. Tricked out paint on things like shop equipment can come up to bite you should you ever decide to sell or trade. I know of one shop that painted all of it's equipment in a rather distinctive "artistic" scheme (the owner's kid was an art major). Seems that when they needed to upgrade one of the press brakes, the dealers all deducted various amounts from the value as it was going to require a complete re-spray in order to make the machine marketable again.

With this restoration I expect the saw to deliver another 50 years of service or more.

Call it "pride of ownership", "pride of ability", or whatever, but shops that do top end work are always clean, well lit, and well equipped. My clients rather expect the shop to be neat and orderly. I guess they think if they are going to trust someone to fiddle with their $100,000+ pride and joy, they expect the shop to appear that their pride and joy will enjoy its stay.

--- Quote ---The saw looks nice and sturdy too. Nothing looks cheaply built. It'll be nice to see what it'll look like when done though.

Bernd

--- End quote ---

Probably why they still use the basic design for the industrial saws sold today. These saws were introduced in the 1930 and with minor changes to things like knobs and paint color they are pretty much the same today as then. Even the imports use the same basic design, substituting mystery metal for the aged cast iron Delta used. My ideal saw is still a 16" Walker/Turner like the one I restored for a friend last year.

I recently attended an auction for a friends cabinet shop that was closing after 60 years. A slightly newer BS was on the bill of sale. I watched it with some interest as the bid went to $450. My friend told me his father had bought that saw when my friend joined the business shortly after the Korean War (1954). My buddy told me the first thing he did was build the plywood stand it sat on from scraps left over around the shop. He stated they did not want the factory stand that Delta offered because it would put the saw at an uncomfortable working height for their short stature. The saw had been in daily use since that time with the only downtime being to replace the tires and belts a few times over the years. The new owner stated that his intent was to build a box to raise the saw up to a suitable height for his 6'2" height and put it to work come the following Monday.

Brass_Machine:

--- Quote from: Rog02 on September 21, 2008, 11:12:46 PM ---After sand blast and first coat of Rust-O-Leum Medium Gray. I am not totally satisfied with the finish after this coat so I will probably color sand the parts again and re-coat. The rust pits are showing a bit more than I like.

--- End quote ---

Hey Rog! it is looking nice so far. On that quote above... Have you thought about re-striping it and using a self etching primer first?

Eric

Bernd:

--- Quote from: Rog02 on September 23, 2008, 01:34:25 AM ---Call it "pride of ownership", "pride of ability", or whatever, but shops that do top end work are always clean, well lit, and well equipped. My clients rather expect the shop to be neat and orderly. I guess they think if they are going to trust someone to fiddle with their $100,000+ pride and joy, they expect the shop to appear that their pride and joy will enjoy its stay.

--- End quote ---

Didn't realize you were running a shop. Got any pics of your shop to share?

Your right, if the tooling looks nice and shop is clean I would feel comfortable in having my car worked on.

As Eric asked in the next thread. Are you going to give it the orginal stripping?

Bernd

Brass_Machine:

--- Quote from: Rog02 on September 23, 2008, 01:34:25 AM ---
Call it "pride of ownership", "pride of ability", or whatever, but shops that do top end work are always clean, well lit, and well equipped. My clients rather expect the shop to be neat and orderly. I guess they think if they are going to trust someone to fiddle with their $100,000+ pride and joy, they expect the shop to appear that their pride and joy will enjoy its stay.

--- End quote ---

What kind of shop do you run? $100k pride and joys... I am gonna guess hotrods?

Eric

Rog02:
To answer the multiple questions in order:

--- Quote ---Hey Rog! it is looking nice so far. On that quote above... Have you thought about re-striping it and using a self etching primer first?
Eric
--- End quote ---

I did etch it first with phosphoric acid to kill the rust bloom, followed by a coat of Rust-O-Leum clean metal primer. I think you are referring to a high build primer which is common in automotive refinish. As for restripping? The short answer is, NO! The first step was to blast the metal clean with an abrasive media. I used "Black Beauty" (pulverized coal slag) because it cuts so fast and I had a 40 pound sack given to me. The sharp particles not only cut paint and rust quickly but lacking the proper protective gear (remember I do fab work, not media blasting) it hurts like hell, makes a mess and is generally an unpleasant way to spend a Saturday morning.
I will re-sand it and give it another coat and call that good. The paint job is a "50 Footer" meaning that it looks good from a distance but close inspection will show defects. In this case since the saw is 59 years old and this is a rebuild more than a restoration I will consider the remaining rust divets in the paint as provenance of it's age and authenticity.

--- Quote ---Didn't realize you were running a shop. Got any pics of your shop to share?
Your right, if the tooling looks nice and shop is clean I would feel comfortable in having my car worked on.
As Eric asked in the next thread. Are you going to give it the orginal stripping?
Bernd
--- End quote ---

Yes I do work for clients. I returned to school and got my degree in engineering after spending the first 30 plus years of my life as a mechanic/certified welder/fabricator/licensed aircraft mechanic and now a licensed Mechanical Engineer doing contract work in the fields of aviation and custom manufacturing.

--- Quote ---What kind of shop do you run? $100k pride and joys... I am gonna guess hotrods?
Eric
--- End quote ---

My shop is kind of a self supporting hobby nowadays, as I do not make my sole income from work done there. Bad habits and stubbornness keep me doing sheet metal work and some chassis repair for race cars and the occasional odd fabrication job for an engineering client.

I do work on hot rods, antique and classic automotive restorations, the odd sprint car and drag car chassis modification or repair, and experimental/classic aircraft. I have also been known to build fiberglass molds for prototype parts and one of a kind creations.

One of the nice things about having multiple income streams is the ability to refuse work that does not interest me or that I do not have confidence in. Basically I adopted a philosophy of "It ain't fun, I ain't doing it!" or to quote an acquaintance "Life is too short to struggle needlessly."

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