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Don t Scrap 1
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R. D. CATER
ITH the ever-increasing cost of maintaining a Vehicle in a good and safe condition, hauliers must continually seek ways and means of keeping repair costs at the lowest level commensurate with the requirements of the law and of their own fleet needs. To the engineer in charge of a fleet it often seems that the person to whom he must answer when costs soar after a particularly bad period does not appreciate that items outside the engineer's control have contributed in no small way to the rise in repair costs.
Every time a spare part is purchased new, there is added to the cost a few coppers in tax, a few coppers. in packing and the cost of transporting the part to the scene of need. Because of these overheads and the high price of spares it can often prove a worth-while proposition to have components reclaimed by any of a number of companies who Specialize in this sort of work. The basic cost of a new spare part, plus those costs mentioned above, can in almost every case be at least halved, and the results obtained with reclaimed parts are as good, and in some cases much better, than those obtained with the original equipment.
No Limit
One company which seems to be the eventual destination of many of the major unit components needing repair is Angell and Williams (Peckham) Ltd. When I visited this company recently I was told by the general manager, Mr. L. T. Duff, that there was practically no limit to what could be done in the way of reclaimingParts. There were of course, financial objections to some operations— such as when the 'cost of repair was more than a new item—but where it was necessary to . have an article reclaimed because replacements were unobtainable, almost anything could be done.
Some of the examples that I saw were clearly ones where, had the operator known that repairs‘could be effected, he would have sent them direct to Peckham,. instead of-back to the factory for service exchange, where in all probability he would have been told that the unit was only of scrap value and consequently charged at full price for the replacement. Several crankcases which had been severely damaged, either by a broken shaft or a big-end going through the ,side, or by accident, were in various stages of repair. Parts that had been completed were as good as new, or at least as serviceable as new, and might eventually find their way back into the fleet where they had been written off as scrap—no doubt at a much higher figure than the cost of repair.
It is well worth while for any fleet engineer to make a few inquiries of the reconditioning companies before he decides to purchase a new part of any size. Most of his local engineering shops will be capable and very willing. to take on reconditioning of the not-so-important parts, but a reconditioning specialist wilt in almost every case do a cheaper and More satisfactory job. The reason for thiS, of course, is that he is a specialist.
Before very long it is likely that commercial vehicles will be subjected -to a yearly inspection as a requirement of the Licensing Authori&es—and if and when this does arise, the haulier will be faced with the need to carry out much: more in the way of maintenance than he does now. Naturally this will increase. repair costs, and again it will
be the engineer who will be faced with the need to economize.
Chassis parts are among the most vulnerable to the vehicle examiner's scrutiny, and a company that has specialized in the reclaiming of this type of equipment is the Imperial Engineering Motor Works of Rornsey Road, London, N.7. All moving and static parts of a chassis are tackled by this concern, and a very useful leaflet is producedwhich gives the cost of most of the jobs that a haulage engineer would find necessary.
An example of the work done is the reconditioning of balance-beams which are well known for being fast wearing if at all neglected and are expensive to replace. These can be completely remade, even if the shackle pins have found their way right through the bushes and the beam. The cost will be from £4 to £10 each according to type. Spring hanger brackets and other types of bracket which carry moving parts can usually be brought back to standard
for much less than half the original cost. Brake camshafts are an item that will need replacing if vehicles are to retain anything like 10 per cent below the braking performance they had when new. These can be built up and reground again back to standard for a figure much lower than the cost of new ones.
One-fifth New Cost
A hub which has had a bearing. failure and in which the bearing outer race has turned, so causing the bearing register to become slack, or. a driving-axle •hub that has suffered through the half-shaft studs being loose, can be reclaimed for less than one fifth of the new cost. Many more parts can be given a new lease of life and in every case at a cost much lower than the new price would be.
Welding plays a big part in the operation of reclaiming most parts, the techniques used varying for each requirement, but it is essential that the qualities of the metal are not destroyed. To make certain that this does not happen, full use is made of the electrode manufacturers' information services when any new material starts to be used. It is also necessary to employ staff who know metals. and who can recognize a change in structure of materials when they are undergoing heat treatment.
An essential requirement in the reconditioning of parts is that they must be brought back to standard. The reasons for this are obvious, as unless this is done a future breakdown may result in parts which are not standard not being available, and quickly soaking up-any saving that may have been made in the first instance. The specialists work to the manufacturers' dimensions, and it is unlikely that these would be departed from. If, however, some part needs to be reconditioned out of standard because of unforeseen circumstances, then every effort should be made to record the difference immediately so as to avoid delays later on.
Demand for Reconditioned Units In the past few years it has become increasingly less profitable for the haulier to overhaul his own engines. Because of the increase in demand for reconditioned units from the manufacturers it is seldom that an engine can be had "off the shelf and some hauliers have decided that they must carry their own reconditioned engines. Having decided to do this it is not a terribly large step to recondition their own engines. When this is done it is surprising what can be achieved in the way of reclaiming parts.
All wearing surfaces can be rebuilt and either reground or machined back to standard; where a shell-bearing has turned in its carrier this Can be bored out and sleeved or metal-sprayed and machined perfectly well_ Connecting rods which have suffered in this way are "cut and shut then rebored, when they too are perfectly serviceable. Wet cylinder-liners have a habit of becoming loose and chattering about in the block, thus causing the locating spigot to wear and allowing water to pass through into the
NLII1R-p. These spigots can be built up and re-machined-back to standard, thus saving the cost of a new block. A company which deals with engine machining in a big way is Johnson and Roberts Ltd., Pembroke Road, HOrnsey, London, N.8. This concern specializes in erankShaft grinding and metal-spraying the journals of all types of shafts and bearings. Where a big-end has run out and damaged its journal—probably the only one damaged on a crankshaft costing something like £112 the metal-spraying method will enable building up and regrinding to standard for about £13; which is quite a saving. I know from .experience that a repair of this type is very satisfactory and can give a new lease of life to an engine. The same treatment can be given to camshaft journals and any other shaft having bearing surfaces. A piece of equipment that was Shown at the American Exhibition of Servicing and Maintenance Equipment in • London during May, 1963, has revolutionized the building ,up of.crankshaft journals by Thompson Engineering Co. Ltd.; of Upper Norwood, London, S.E.I9. Consisting of a Storm-Vulcan Journalmaster lathe and an ABSCO Model SWM-2A arc-welding machine, it operates on a MIG or shield-arc process using 75 per cent inert argon and 25 per cent carbon dioxide. A single grade of wire, which has been developed after several years' research, is suitable for all types of crankshaft. The amount of build-up can be from 0.08 in. to 0.2 in.. and this can be applied in a single passage of the torch over the journal. Before welding, ceramic plugs are inserted into the oil holes of the journal, and if severe scores are to be treated these can be covered by preliminary local welding. This method causes little.distortion to the . shaft because the temperature of the weld is relatively low —1,000 F. (540' C.). It has been found that there is often very little difference in the hardness values of a treated iotirnal, and that the wearing properties are Often better. This company specializes in all types of engine machining. Rrake Drums In these days of high .road speeds and heavy traffic, -brake drums come in for more than their fair Share of wear and tear. It is not unusual to find that the replacement of drums is costing more than the relining of the brakes that are operating in them. But it is possible to recondition . drums in two ways and obtain extra life. The first of these methods is skimming out, the second by resleeving. Skimming out can result in tong periods • of bad brake performance if the precaution of having Special oversize linings is not taken. The reason for• this is that the shoes will not bed correctly to the drum surface because of the difference in radius of the two components. The time taken to bed linings can result in the drums cracking up quickly, caused by the extra high stirface presSbres created by only a small portion of the lining being in contact with the drum but nevertheless having to withstandthe-same effort being applied by the brake gear. Relining of brake drums is frowned upon in some circles because of the tendency for the liner to turn in the drum. Makin methods, however, have largely overcome this problem and it is possible to reclaim drums in this way quite satisfactorily. Every fleet has its older vehicles which are no longer expected to fulfil the role of high speed, long-distance machines, and it is On this type of machine that the engineer can utilize sleeved drums almost indefinitely, at thesame time making considerable savings in his repair costs. A company which carries out this type of repair wry well is Weldangrind, of Peterborough Road,
, , Fulham; London, S.W.6. i
Crash repars are--wrongly I think--nearly always A34 regarded as the responsibility of the haulier's insurance company. But it must not be forgotten that insurance companies are quick to increase their premiums if claims get too severe, and although this cost does not fall on the engineer, the company as a whole will have to find the revenue to pay the bill. When dealing with crash-damaged chassis, a company which will reclaim frames which might be considered to be beyond repair is The Blaker Motor and Welding Co: Ltd. And although carrying out most of the reconditioning operations mentioned earlier, thecompany specializes in this type of work, and is expert in carrying it out , A number of mobile units are operated which will call at the premises of operators and carry out repairs to frameS almost in situ. In fact, a large part of its work revolve around this service. It is only necessary to strip down the minimum amount of units to enable free access to the damaged section for repairing, rescuing and aligning of chassis frames to be carried °in. The saving in time alone is sufficient to justify the use of this service and the saving in material cost is usually substantial. Covering a radius of 130 miles from its works at Dukes Road, Western Avenue, London, W.3, the company is well known to the motor trade but not, perhaps, so well known to the haulage industry.
Collection and Delivery
Most of the companies that do unit reconditioning and , reclaiming operate a collection-and-delivery service, so the... haulier need not worry himself about getting parts back and forth to the repairer. With a regular weekly visit from such a company, he has only to keep a ,check on his stock of parts to be comOy plet free of the Wary of not
, .
being Able to get spare. There are many ways of saving money in a Workshop. Among these. and by no mean the least important, is the reclaiming of expensive workshop equipment. A company that specializes 'in the repair . of garage jacks and other hydraulic equipment' is Trianon, of Aerodrorne'ROad, Hendon, London, N.W.4., An expensive jack that has been run over, or from which a vehicle has slipped causing twisting or some other kind of damage, is not' only a damaged jack but also a real loss to the Workshop. • Trianon will loan a jack whilst one' is repaired, which when done will be as good as new. On the whole, sensibly used, component reclaiming can result in a useful reduction of repair'cOSts,"So don't "scrip it " until you know whether you can reclaim 'it.