Danckaerts Mortiser Clean Up

[awemawson]

Having got the Sprayable Beeswax manufacture sorted of course the 'spring cleaning' in the wood work shop that started with the Dominon combination woodworking is spreading 

My Danckaerts Chisel and Chain Mortiser is another machine that sits idle for a long time and then sees intense activity for a few days. So looking at the poor thing yesterday covered in spiders webs and dust and wood chips this morning I thought I'd spend an hour giving it a clean up.

At the moment it's fitted with a 1" hollow mortise chisel and a 1" x 2" Mortise Chain  - a very sturdy and surprisingly accurate machine, but more suited to post and rail fencing and structural timbers than fine cabinet work. (I use my Sedgewick mortiser for that.)

So, just a good vacuuming off helped by a blast from the airline to get at the awkward bits - scrape off the Silber Gleit and spray on the Beeswax. But first I had to cobble together a long sucky thing to reach it from my chip extractor - there is no provision for extraction on this machine - I suppose a dedicated fitting pointing at the action would work - maybe something to put on the 'round tuit' list !

All went well, the movements freed up nicely with the wax, then of course there was the obligatory 'try it out' session followed by more vacuuming 

[awemawson]

One irritation when using this machine, which I was reminded of today, is the lack of handle / hand grip / whatever you call it sticking out from the wheels for elevation and forward and back motion. The traverse capstan wheel is far enough from them to accommodate, and the wheels have bosses cast into them and just need drilling and tapping - so another job to go on the 'round tuit' list

what ARE those sticky out handle things called - need a name to google them !!!!! 

[timby]

Handwheel handles seems to work with google.


https://www.sinclair-rush.co.uk/category/228/handles---handwheels

[awemawson]

Thanks Timby - I've ordered some - the 'round tuit' might actually get done 

[ZebraDriver]

Sticky out handles are known as "spinner handles" where I work.  If the ones you have bought are the type with an aluminium centre be careful when you tighten them - its very easy to snap them at the undercut at the end of the thread.

[awemawson]

They claim to be chrome plated steel, but they are coming from Hong Kong on a slow boat, so they could be made from almost anything 

[ZebraDriver]

The aluminium ones that I mentioned could be stronger than Chinese "chrome plated steel". 

[awemawson]

The Handwheel Handles arrived in today's post so I set too fitting them. Handwheels fixed using taper pins, so a simple job of knocking out the pins and pulling the handwheels off.

Then the usual centre drill, tapping drill, start the tap in the mill to make sure it's perpendicular, finish tapping at the vice. A nice bit of cast iron to work on.

Having screwed the handwheel handles onto the handwheels, then just a case of pushing them back on, re-seating the taper pins, and 'job done'

I strongly suspect that there may have once been a counter balance weight to counter act the weight of the carriage vertically, as it's a mighty lump to raise and lower 

[awemawson]

Opening the back of the machine up reveals that although there are counterweights built in for each of the mortise chisels there in no provision for counterbalancing the  work carriage, nor would it be an easy job to fit a weight.