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George H. Thomas's book "Building the Universal Pillar Tool". Yours for the cost of a Priority Mail envelope (currently $5.60). Dennis

There is a project in Metalworking Book 3 or Metalworking Book 4 that describes a holder for small hand tools (punches, drills, screwdrivers, etc.) called The Tower. At least that's what I think it's called. It's made from 9" long pieces of 2x4's partially overlapped and glued to form a tower...

I recently got an Emco Maximat 7 lathe/mill. It looks like it's had very little use but has been sitting for years so it needs a complete tear down and re-lube. Anyway, during tear-down I ran across what looks like a problem that needs fixing. The carriage lock is missing and it looks like...

Hi All, Before I get to involved in a potential project, can someone tell me if 303 stainless steel can be silver soldered/brazed to brass? If so, any recommendations on flux and solder. Thanks, Dennis

I've got a thread going on "Building Rudy's Steam Tractor", but thought I'd ask this here because the answers might be of more general interest. Some time back, I built the steam box door for my tractor and used soft solder to fasten the faux hinges and lock down bolts. I wasn't concerned about...

Doing some clean up and ran across this. I’ve had it for quite awhile and have no idea who made it. It clearly shows that you don’t need a lot of expensive gear to make an engine. The pistons are wood. They’re not turned, because you can see knife marks from where they were whittled. There’s a...

I don’t have room for a permanent soldering hearth, so after having to move and stack firebrick off and on the bench in order to have a place to solder I decided to make a portable hearth. I wanted one that could be easily moved and stored on a shelf and that could be used on any type of...

Hello, Last weekend at an auction, I picked up the following engine castings along with a set of original blueprint type blueprints. The engine is described as a "1 1/4"x 2 1/4" x 1 1/2" Compound Vertical". The drawings were made by an H. J. Coventry of Baltimore, Maryland with the earliest one...

Hi, I'm hoping someone will give me some advice on how to go about fabricating the cylinder block for the steam tractor I'm building. I have a thread going under works in progress, but this part is way ahead of where I am on the build as of today. However, I've been stewing and thinking about...

I've got a chance to buy a small Atlas horizontal mill for a reasonable price, but am hesitating because I don't know if I'll use it enough to warrant the floor space it will take. Do any of you have a horizontal mill and, if so, do you find it useful? This is the mill I'm talking about...

I’ve started a build of Rudy Kouhoupt’s Model Steam Tractor. The tractor is 3/4” scale and is loosely based on the J.I. Case steam engines. To quote Rudy, “…it is not an exact scale replica. Some of the parts have been arranged to improve the ease of construction of the model or to insure its...

Hi & help please. I'm attempting to drill copper and having less than satisfactory results. Note the mushroomed entry and the stretched out exit. I don't know what the alloy is, but it's from a 4" copper sweat coupling. The holes are 3/32" and were drilled with a standard HSS jobbers bit...

Technically this “engine” may be a motor and so is not entirely appropriate to this site. Here goes anyway. The engine can best be described as an electromagnetic rocker. It is loosely based on early (circa 1860) models of devices developed during the transition from steam power to electrical...

I’m black oxiding a couple of parts for engine No. 3 and thought I’d pass on my method. This is a cold process and is very benign, particularly as compared to the industrial hot line black metal oxide process. Of course it’s not as durable or attractive either, but perfectly acceptable for my...

Hi, Can anyone tell me where to go to download Marv's Flywheel Program? I've checked the "Downloads" area, but I may have missed it. Thank you. Dennis

Hello Everyone, This is my first post. I've been a lurker for quite some time. I was encouraged to post by mklotz, who I met at a local swap meet where the SCHSM had a display set up, and by 1kenny who sent me a private message encouraging me to post after seeing my video on YouTube. Up until...