Battle Shaper - *clank* - I can't figure it out. HELP ???

[Optics Curmudgeon]

One place to look is the stroke adjustment mechanism. This machine has a through the bull gear shaft adjustment setup with the stroke adjustment screw turned via a bevel gear pair at the center of the bull gear. If the nut that shifts the pivot pin wears this exact clunk will happen. I had the same clunk (at the same point in the stroke) on an Atlas shaper I was refurbing, turned out to be the adjustment nut. Then again, it could be in any part that slides against another surface. There should be no significant clearance between any of the moving parts. All of this being said, it's more of an annoyance than anything. As for lubrication, the best plan is way oil on all sliding parts and heavy open gear lube on the gears.

[Danl]

I think I'd try fitting a feeler gage at the 'clank' position at the pivot bearing and a couple other likely wear points, starting with 0.005" and trying thicker ones until I found the maximum wear. If you could then somehow slide a similar thickness shim in that position while hand cranking it, you might have a better idea of where to focus your attention.

Dan L

[J Tiers]

I had a loose block on one of mine (a much smaller machine).

I ended up soft soldering a shim onto the block to fill the space, when I got tired of hearing the clank. Very much like that one, IIRC it was loose all along the yoke, but it only clanked on one position (not at BOTH reversals) because of the way the motion and ram speed worked.

Soldering went OK after I burned off all the oil and excess carbon from the block surface that I wanted to solder to. That took some cooking of the cast iron.

[3 Phase Lightbulb]

I would apply pressure to it with my hands while it's running. See if that changes the loudness of the clank. You may also feel something that might help narrow it down. It sounds like play as the lobe changes from a push-pull. Get in there and inspect everything.

But before you do anything, get rid of that pink horz saw - that should not be in anyone's shop

[Mark Rand]

The other place to look is the one where my 10" Royal shaper gets its clank from. That's the pivot at the bottom of the arm. Over time, these can wear eliptical.

[boslab]

No idea where but you might want to learn the dark art of listening to the end of a long screwdriver, it works rather well, don't like stethoscopes, when you listen you can home in on an area by intensity, we used it on bearings in the steelplant (a water board((the company not the interrogating method)) leak rod was handy to keep back from big shafts, a steel rod with earcup)
It helps get the area of the problem.
Mark

[Abner]

No idea where but you might want to learn the dark art of listening to the end of a long screwdriver, it works rather well, don't like stethoscopes, when you listen you can home in on an area by intensity, we used it on bearings in the steelplant (a water board((the company not the interrogating method)) leak rod was handy to keep back from big shafts, a steel rod with earcup)
It helps get the area of the problem.
Mark

Dark art? I'm all in. I agree. I once used a mechanic's electronic stethoscope to isolate a transmission noise noise that sounded like it was coming out the opposite end of the car. Never heard of the screw driver thing but that makes complete sense.
Do they make a magnetic stethoscope or could you rig one up to keep your digits a safe distance away?

Chin up Dan - It takes a very secure man to have a pink bandsaw. I use pink paint on my axes etc. Best color to find something laying on the ground imho.

Edit; Nice shaper btw.

[thaiguzzi]

Click Clack - greatest Captain Beefheart song ever.
Sorry, couldn't help myself, carry on....

[metalmagpie]

Is that big lever on top of the ram loose? That makes a hell of a clank if so. Otherwise, like everyone says, measure the gap next to your sliding block with feeler gauges. Shouldn't be more than .005" or so.

metalmagpie

[3 Phase Lightbulb]

Actually, the pink paint is probably the best theft deterrent you could possibly have. Nicely done

[BCRider]

When I'd previously used the thick stuff on my own Alba's ram it was always fairly warm. But this last time I used it a few weeks back it was pretty cool in the shop what with winter and all. I think it was the temperature that really brought out the clack at the reversal point. It also only really occurred at the front switch over where the geometry of the yoke motion slipped from the lower "over the top" drive at the slower speed to the faster retraction.

If you're going to check for play (and there will be SOME) then the point to check is right at the transition point where the bull wheel's connection point is at right angles to the yoke slot. With it there you'll easily feel any play and can even measure it. You could also reach down towards the lower pivot and see if it's moving too. Any excessive wear in the lower pivot would certainly support the clacking.

I'm not worried about the lighter oil for cool weather operations because there's so much surface area even when the ram is running quite a long reach. But I'd say to be sure it would require re-oiling just a little about once every half hour of actual run time to make up for easier oil migration out of the sliding surfaces. And once it warms up I'd go back to the thicker stuff.

Unlocking the ram lock bolt to the arm and simply sliding the arm back and forth in the slow oozing way and then with rapid motion really shows how much viscous resistance there is. It was like trying to move a pretty stiffly damped shock absorber.