HAMMERING AND FILING.
Page 27
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
Valuable Advice from Our Driver and Mechanic Readers.
T IS not at all unlikely that a few hints and tips about the. simpler operations of the workshop, coming from an old and experienced hand, will be of considerable help to the driver who wishes to be able to make better use of his tools, but who has had neither training, nor experience, and is not in a position to afford Lime or money to acquire the nerAsary knowledge, other than in the course of his daily task. On that account we give prominence, and the weekly prize of 15s. to "AK,' of Manchester, who senda the following• letter about files and filing. Files are, •broadly speaking, made in four different cuts—namely, bastard, second-cut, smooth, and dead smooth. In addition there are what are. milled rough files and middle-cut files, but these are not likely to be found in the hands of the garage man or commercial motor driver.
The very first and most essential thing to, do with a. file is to fit it with a handle, and this operation should be as well and carefully carried out as any which may subsequently he done with the tool itself. Drive • the handle well on to the tang, so that it reaches the shoulder of the file.
Do not immediately discard old files ; they should be kept for use-on rough and dirty work, as, for example, the removal of met or scale as a preliminary to real filing. • If a fair amount, of material has to be removed, get the bulk of it off with a bastard file, using a smooth fele only to finish with, never on rough work. The dead smooth file is required for polishing only.
To be able to produce, by filing, a truly flat surface on a piece. of metal the width of which (in the direction in which it is -being filed) does not exceed one-eighth of the length of the. file being used, is a sufficient indication of skill in this particular operation.
Now, it may be thought that a good perfectfy fiat file would be best for this job. Such is not the case. Were the file to be perfectly flat itself, then it would be necessary, in order to produce aeflat surface with its aid, always to move it in a perfectly straight line across the work, All " flat" files would be found, on examination, to be slightly curved from end to end, being also thicker at the butt than at the point. These "flat " files are the ones which must, be used foie the sort of work we are considering.
Having selected the file, the next thine to do is to make sure it is teeing held properly. Grasp the file handle in such a manner that its end will fit into the fleshy part of the. palm below the joint of the little finger. with the thumb, of the same hand resting along the top of the handle, and pointing in the direction of its length.. The ends of thee fingers should point upwards, or nearly in the direction of the worker's face: The point of the file should he grasped by the thumb and first two fingers, the hand being so held as to bring the thumb, as its hall presses on the top of the file, in line with the handle -when heavy strokes are required. When a light stroke is wanted, and the pressure required is therefore less, the thumb and fingers may change their direction until the thumb lies at a right-angle, or nearly so, with the length of the file.
"eieeeieeeel
Care should be taken, when lay:mg a file down, in putting it, away, that its teeth do not come ioreibly into contact with any hard substance, as by that means its teeth maybe broken., in whiah case, the time occupied on the next filing job will be longer and Rees efficiently per. formed in proportion to the number of damaged teeth. Always brush the teeth of a file carefully with a file-card before putting it away.
It.is most impoeiant to keep.files clean. If a file is clogged with grease, dirt, aluminium, lead, babbitt-metal, solder, or similar metal it must be cleaned. Boil it in a strong solution cif caustic soda, then rinse in water, and scrub With a file card. Wash again, in boiling water, and dry quickly. If the teeth are clogged with such metals as brass and copper, first treat as described_ above; then immerse in a pickle composed of nitric acid two parts, muriatic acid one part, and water seven parts. If the teeth of the file are, blunt, use of this pickle will rough up the worn edges and enable more service to be got from the file. A final washing in caustic: soda solution is necessary, so as to elimie nate the. chance of rust occurring. Worn files can be recut, and in factories, or places where large numbers of files are in use, this is the usual procedure: They are Sent in quantities to the manufacturers, who soften the file, grind away its old teeth, and treat it thereafter
as though it were a blank for a new file. The ordinary garage or workshop is not likely to have sufficient use for files be make this worth while.
" W.J.H." y hints ids a few on the use of the hammer. He remarks that a loose head is dangerous, and should be tightened at once, preferably by driving a wedge into the head end of tlie shaft. Alternatively, the hammer bead, with the end -of the shaft, should be soaked. in water, which causes the wood to swell.
When striking a rough object, the side, and not the face, of the. hammer head, should be used, as the latter, being polished, is scratched and even chipped 'by rough usage, damage which cannot occur if the side only is used.
When working with a hammer and chisel or a hammer and punch, keep your eye on the butt end of the chisel, or punch, not on the hammer head.
The accompanying sketch:' from "E.W.Y.," of Weston-super-Mare, showshow that useful tool, a lead hammer, may easily be made from inexpensive materials.
Three inches cif copper pipe, about I+ ins, diameter, ferms the casing for the head. It ahotildrehave a a-in. hole drilled in the middle of its length, as shown, for the reception of the handle.
The latter is made from about 8 ins, of gas-pipe. It must be slit by means of a hacksaw for about 1 in, from one end. That same end is inserted into the hole in the copper pipe,. and the slit opened out, as shown in the, sketch. Drive a wood plug in the handle, so that it acts as a closure just outside the copper pipe. Place this partly made tool with one end of the head on some fine clay, and pour in melted lead, not too quickly, or it, may fail to fill right up to the wooden plug, which is desirable. Vinish off by trimming the ends of the hammer head with a "dreadnought" file.
"J.L." sands rather a useful tip foi those who are practically without access to a lathe, but, who, nevertheless, wish to true up valve faces. The valve is supported in a couple of nuts, in which its spindle is a nice sliding fit. The nuts should he placed as far apart as possible, and held lightly in the vice—lightly, as otherwise they might grip the valve and spoil it.
An ordinary joiner's brace grips the end of the stein, and is manipulated by an assistant while the valve face is trimmed by means of a ehaip scraper.
The following useful miseellaneous tips about workshops tools and practice are from " H.H."
To harden the points of dividers end similar tools, heat to a cherry red and dip in soft soap:
When reaancring cast-iron use soda and water as a lubricant.
An old. box spanner, slotted to go over the wings of a butterfly nut, is very useful at.times, -as, for example, where the brakes are adjusted by that type of nut.