Introducing the Stig Special

[bowtiebutler956 649]

 Loved watching this video Ian! I'll never get tired of watching that one of a kind  Beast in action!

 

Matt

[Stigian 1,234]

Great tour Vid on the Beast Ian   . So are we going to see a Spill Proof Coffee Cup Holder/Heater installed?   .

 Thanks Richard, I think a spill proof coffee cup thingy would have to be a sealed container with a long straw coming out of it.. The ol girl does shake about a bit with no suspension.

 

 

 

Bravo!! Ian,

Gald to get a good read in.

 

Thanks Brad

 

Thanks Brad.

 

 

 

Ian, I think that your tractor's  looks really sharp with a new paint job!!!!!    

 

Nice Work !!

 

Thanks Terry, the paint work is not as good as it looks on video or photo's, but I'm reasonably happy with it.

 

 

 

fab - you are giving me more ideas...

 

That sounds dangerous Mark  

 

 

 

Brilliant video once again, and how's the camera man trailer chair going, I'm pretty sure I just see it at the end of this video..... Well the chair anyway,

 

Thanks Charlie. I've not had any real chance to try the camera man trailer thingy out yet.. It's not that easy to get enough people here at the same time.. But working on it

[Stigian 1,234]

 Loved watching this video Ian! I'll never get tired of watching that one of a kind  Beast in action!

 

Matt

 

Thanks Matt. I hope to have another 6X6 driving video up during the week, this one will include some "hard hat cam" footage... 

 

 

 

It's "pick your brains" time guy's..

 

The ol girl is still having turning/drive problems when she get hot!!

 

Now if I take her for a nice gentle relaxed drive around the fields it takes about 40 min's for the machine to start loosing interest in reverse..

 

If I give her a good thrashing (great fun by the way), she get's hot enough in 15 min's to not only loose interest in reverse, but as I found out the other day forwards can be a problem as well !!

 

Quite what's going on I don't know.. The transmissions don't feel to be getting too hot!!

 

Are the transmissions on their way out?

Am I asking too much of them?

Is the drive belt starting to slip when it gets hot?

Is the whole machine just too heavy??

 

Er...  :dunno:

 

 

Other than that I just love driving her, the way the engine roars when the governor kicks in always makes me grin   

 

Oh... And I might of worked out a way of loosing the outriggers and some of the steel holding them up..

I won't know for sure until I do some serious measuring, but if it can be made to work then not only would the old girl look a lot better, but she would be 20-30% lighter!!

[fireman 1,021]

 Stig,

I have been following this thread since you started it on 08 August 2009! Here it is 03 November 2013 and just checked out the latest pictures and video. As some one who has also made my own mechanical creations out of Wheel Horse Tractors (not to your extent!), I'm blown away and the job you did on the 6X6. It looks just awesome. Your persistence for the last 4 years is a testament to the back yard engineer! I salute you my friend!

 

   

[Don1977 604]

My guess is the belt. Hope the transmissions are not giving you trouble.

[meadowfield 2,545]

Oh... And I might of worked out a way of loosing the outriggers and some of the steel holding them up..

I won't know for sure until I do some serious measuring, but if it can be made to work then not only would the old girl look a lot better, but she would be 20-30% lighter!!

ooh... what about the drive chains though?

[Stigian 1,234]

 Stig,

I have been following this thread since you started it on 08 August 2009! Here it is 03 November 2013 and just checked out the latest pictures and video. As some one who has also made my own mechanical creations out of Wheel Horse Tractors (not to your extent!), I'm blown away and the job you did on the 6X6. It looks just awesome. Your persistence for the last 4 years is a testament to the back yard engineer! I salute you my friend!

 

   

 

Thank you Sir, very kind words indeed

I have a feeling that this build saga will be going for some considerable time yet, planning the next stage of the beast evolution at the mo, plenty of time to work out all the details though as I want to keep her drivable through winter.

 

 

 

My guess is the belt. Hope the transmissions are not giving you trouble.

 

I like your thinking Don. I'm wondering if it's the length of the drive belt that's causing the problems.. Maybe a separate belt for each transmission is the answer..

 

 

 

 

Oh... And I might of worked out a way of loosing the outriggers and some of the steel holding them up..

I won't know for sure until I do some serious measuring, but if it can be made to work then not only would the old girl look a lot better, but she would be 20-30% lighter!!

ooh... what about the drive chains though?

 

 

The drive chains will still be there Mark, just hidden behind the wheels.

[Stigian 1,234]

Errr.. Oops is the polite way of putting it I guess!

 

Had a bit of a shuffle round in the shack today, the GT and 6X6 changed positions so I could park the 6X6 somewhere nice and light to work out how to do the twin drive belt conversion..

 

 

 

It was while parking the 6X6 in place that I noticed the front left wheel turned almost a 3rd of a rotation before the other two wheels that side started to turn!

My first though was the drive chains that run between the wheels had stretched...

 

Er... No!!!

 

 

 

So that's a chewed up key-way in the end of the axle and a very broken taper-lock bush!!

As this is not the first time I have had problems with these taper-lock bushes, I guess I should be lookin at ways of solving this problem, but the problem is....

Winter...

 

The best way to fix this would be to start on the "no outriggers" conversion (I've still not 100% confirmed it can be done, but I'm sure it can) and re-do the axles as they would have to be a lot shorter..

Trouble is this would mean the 'ol girl would be in bits through winter and I wouldn't be able to use her in the snow....

 

The other way of keeping her mobile would be a bit of a bodge... Find some much stronger taper-lock bushes and for the time being weld the key into the key-way to stop it moving!!

 

As to which way to go, I don't know!   I don't like the idea of a bodge but it would be nice to get some hours in driving in the snow this winter!

[Lars 526]

Auch thats not good to see Ian..

Im sure you will fix that in a good way..

[bowtiebutler956 649]

 Seeing as most those parts look they will need to be replaced anyway, I think I would go with the temporary fix, so I could get some winter seat time in.  Just my opinion.  I have selfish reasons as well. I would like to see some winter videos of my favorite Beast in action!

 

Matt

[Stigian 1,234]

Auch thats not good to see Ian..

Im sure you will fix that in a good way..

 

Hi Lars, yep it's not good to see but I look at it as an opportunity to develop the ol girl a bit more.. There's always going to be these sort of problems with a "one of" machine.

 

 

 

 Seeing as most those parts look they will need to be replaced anyway, I think I would go with the temporary fix, so I could get some winter seat time in.  Just my opinion.  I have selfish reasons as well. I would like to see some winter videos of my favorite Beast in action!

 

Matt

 

I'm with you Matt, a temporary fix may be the way to go in the short term.. I just want to drive the ol girl

As I need to sort this problem fully at some point it makes sense to wait a few months until winter is out the way and then do the "no outrigger" conversion which will sort the problem once and for all.. Might take a while to do though..

I think I can use the current axles with the conversion, after they have been modified quite a bit, making them shorter and a lot stronger....

[Stormin 9,975]

Is that bush cracked, Ian? Looks like it. How about making a stepped key along with a new bush?

[Stigian 1,234]

Is that bush cracked, Ian? Looks like it. How about making a stepped key along with a new bush?

 

Yep, the bush is well and truly cracked.. I don't remember buying them in 3 bit's

 

 

Nowt to report that you don't know about, but here's the latest video of my 6X6..

 

Enjoy

 

[meadowfield 2,545]

Good effort as always, shame about the keyway and taper lock. I've welded the front taper lock on project C4, but still plan on using more and I've still got the key ways to cut....

I might be welding sprockets on too :D

[Stigian 1,234]

Thanks Mark. Is your front taper lock bush thingy cast or a "machined from a solid lump of steel" sort of bush?    If it's cast, how did it handle being welded?

[neil 2,398]

dont get too disheartened Ian  , just  a few teething problems that will eventually get sorted out& im sure will come to fruition some time soon,

[Stigian 1,234]

dont get too disheartened Ian  , just  a few teething problems that will eventually get sorted out& im sure will come to fruition some time soon,

 

Don't worry Neil, I won't

I do have plans to sort the problem out one and for all... But that will have to wait until winter is out the way.. For now a "quick fix" is the way to go to get her rolling again..

[Lars 526]

my daughter saw this video now .. and said but this looks like a locomotive it has 6 wheels WOW thats cool ...

 

[meadowfield 2,545]

Thanks Mark. Is your front taper lock bush thingy cast or a "machined from a solid lump of steel" sort of bush?    If it's cast, how did it handle being welded?

The bush is cast, I welded it straight to the steel splined bush that was the centre of the original pulley.

Time will tell if it survives, but I wasn't up for trying to cut a keyway in...

[Stigian 1,234]

 

my daughter saw this video now .. and said but this looks like a locomotive it has 6 wheels WOW thats cool ...

 

 

 

Your daughter has very good taste Lars

 

 

 

 

Thanks Mark. Is your front taper lock bush thingy cast or a "machined from a solid lump of steel" sort of bush?    If it's cast, how did it handle being welded?

The bush is cast, I welded it straight to the steel splined bush that was the centre of the original pulley.

Time will tell if it survives, but I wasn't up for trying to cut a keyway in...

 

 

I don't blame you for not wanting to cut a key way Mark, they are a lot of work..

 

I did a bit of experimenting with one of the broken bushes today to see how the cast welds and how strong the weld is..

 

Two bit's zapped together each side..

 

 

 

Lot's of this later!!

Please note I'm belting the bits right on the join

 

 

 

It became two once more!

 

 

 

I was expecting this to happen eventually... But I wasn't expecting it to be the welds that broke!!

My logic (weird as it is at times) said to me that the welds would pull off the cast bush!

 

 

 

What this says to me is that when the welds are used in a rotational manner, say welding a cast bush onto a steel axle... The welds and bush should stay welded to the end of an axle without breaking... 

 

 

Place your bets now as to if I can twist an axle or not

[meadowfield 2,545]

Wow! The weld always breaks on the join normally because there's a lot of tension when welding onto a casting.

Have a good and see what happens when you weld the bush to the end. My money is that it fractures and shears. But don't let me give any sort of negative vibe to this :)

[shorts 182]

The secret to welding cast iron is to use a high nickel content rod and to preheat the pieces and then cool slowly after welding to normalize the stresses in the metal, put the pieces in or on the woodstove and get them hot, weld them and then throw them back into the stove and leave them until the fire burns out before trying to use them. if you don't have a wood stove just build a nice hot charcoal fire and use that for the heat process.

[Stigian 1,234]

Wow! The weld always breaks on the join normally because there's a lot of tension when welding onto a casting.

Have a good and see what happens when you weld the bush to the end. My money is that it fractures and shears. But don't let me give any sort of negative vibe to this

 

No negative vibes taken Mark, you made me have a good think about is it a good idea to weld the cast bushes on or not

 

 

 

The secret to welding cast iron is to use a high nickel content rod and to preheat the pieces and then cool slowly after welding to normalize the stresses in the metal, put the pieces in or on the woodstove and get them hot, weld them and then throw them back into the stove and leave them until the fire burns out before trying to use them. if you don't have a wood stove just build a nice hot charcoal fire and use that for the heat process.

 

Thanks Shorts, that's very handy info.. Unfortunately I can't heat the parts before or after welding as the axle needs to stay bolted on for welding. If I weld the axle, bush and sprocket together off the machine then they would not be able to bolt them back on again!

 

 

All of the above means I'm making two of these..

 

 

 

Out of this.. The remains of a pillar drill leg..

 

 

 

The cutting angle was set using a cast bush..

 

 

 

A short while later the first taper was cut..

 

 

 

One of the old "wheel to wheel" drive pulleys (which also uses the same 1610 size bushes) was dug out of the spares pile to check if the taper was right.

 

Yep, I'm happy with that

 

 

 

 

The bush was then chopped of the bar..

 

 

 

Using a grinder with a thin cutting blade while the lathe turned at a slow speed..

A bit like the photo below but with things spinning, sparks flying and the bush not cut off yet

 

 

 

Bush No 2 taking shape..

 

 

 

I still need to bore the centers out to an inch so they will fit on the axles and a little bit of tidying up, but that shouldn't take long..

[meadowfield 2,545]

Ian,

I seem to have acquired a few steel 1610 taperlock bushes off the bay, 2 of them were 30mm centres and very cheap. What made you decide to make your own?

Good work btw :D

[Stigian 1,234]

Are you sure your bushes are steel and not cast Mark?   All the taper lock bushes I have bough have been very cheap £4-ish and all cast!

I couldn't find any bushes that were not cheap which makes me think they are all cast.. Which is why I am making a couple..