Wireless Set No. 52 Canadian - Project

[David Dunlop]

I thought I would show how the soldering iron is stored in the Tool Box in relation to the small metal bracket for it and the wooden partition that serves as the handle rest, and also creates the storage pocket for the cord.


David

[David Dunlop]

Lacking any Instruction or Operating Manual information whatsoever for this tool at the moment, leaves me wondering if, and how well, it would have worked, if connected to a wireless battery? Would the current load of heating up the tip coil be detrimental to a wireless battery, or could that risk be negated if a chorehorse was charging the wireless battery system at the same time the soldering iron was being used?

Would the soldering iron have to have been connected to the battery directly, or could it simply be clipped to available +/- terminals somewhere on the wireless vehicle charging/power distribution system? Or could it even be clipped directly to terminals on a chorehorse, or larger, generator?

David

[Chris Suslowicz]

Originally Posted by David Dunlop

Lacking any Instruction or Operating Manual information whatsoever for this tool at the moment, leaves me wondering if, and how well, it would have worked, if connected to a wireless battery? Would the current load of heating up the tip coil be detrimental to a wireless battery, or could that risk be negated if a chorehorse was charging the wireless battery system at the same time the soldering iron was being used?

Would the soldering iron have to have been connected to the battery directly, or could it simply be clipped to available +/- terminals somewhere on the wireless vehicle charging/power distribution system? Or could it even be clipped directly to terminals on a chorehorse, or larger, generator?

David

If it's a 100 or 125 watt iron, that's only 8 - 10 amps draw, which is not really going to bother a signals battery: for a 100/125 Amp hour pair that's only the 10-hour rate which is quite reasonable.

In terms of connections, it would be clipped to the nearest 12V supply terminals, if in a vehicle the set supply terminals would probably be the most convenient, otherwise a couple of batteries could be dragged into a suitable position to provide power for whatever repair was needed.

100 watts is a very serious iron by modern standards, so probably wouldn't be needed for long, and big enough to do fairly serious soldering jobs such as battery jumper cables, earth braids, etc. (Anything more than that would be a job for the Wireless Mechanics or R(C)EME.)

Chris.

[David Dunlop]

I started production of a 3.8 litre jar of Zinc Electroplating Solution this morning. It should be ready for the weekend in about 4 hours.

Surprisingly straightforward setup and the Cathode is bubbling merrily away as expected.

The final cleaning solution recommended for the parts to be plated after all dirt, oil and rust has been removed, is a mild solution of Hydrochloric Acid. Much easier these days to head down to the local building supply store and purchase a jug of Muriatic Acid. Same product, but a ‘commercial’ grade, as opposed to the much more expensive ‘laboratory’ grade stuff.

David

[David Dunlop]

I made up this plating fixture last evening to use with the brass tubular rivets I need to zinc plate. It is made from a 16-inch piece of 12 gauge, solid copper wire, as this size fits into the hollow core of the rivets just nicely.

This morning, I cleaned the two rivets with a commercial solvent, dropped them for a couple of minutes in a 3:1 dilution of Hydrochloric Acid for a final clean, and then rinsed them in a small container of plain water before setting them up in the jar of Zinc Electroplating Solution.

They are bubbling merrily away and I shall leave them to it for 45 minutes. It will be time to check them in about 15 minutes.

I shall keep you posted.

David

[David Dunlop]

Well the final results are in and I am extremely pleased with them!

You can see the results in the attached photo of a set of pre-plated and post-plated rivets.

They are damp when removed from the electroplating solution and rinsed off in fresh water, so the plating is initially darker than you might expect. They air dry in about 20 minutes however, and lighten up noticably. You can see the process has already started in the centre area of the rivet on the top left. When dry, I cannot tell the difference between these rivets I just plated and any of the surviving zinc plated hardware still on either of my 19-Sets, or any other related signals equipment plated 75 plus years ago.

David

[David Dunlop]

First time ever clinching tubular rivets this morning.

Something of a job for an octopus, there are so many things to control. I started by sliding the bottom edge of the Sender panel down between two sofa cushions to keep it vertical and stable. I then mounted the Access/Blower Door with the upper and lower hardware. This was necessary to ensure I had the proper clearance between the door hinge plate that mounts behind the Sender panel, and the left side of the TERMINALS, Aerial Mounting Plate. Next was to line up the plate itself with the panel holes and use a strip of masking tape to hold it in place. Then I had to slide the first tubular rivet in place and get the clinching tool properly lined up with it. This was where the exercise got interesting.

When the two ends of the clinching tool are in contact with the rivet and holding, the rivet is still free to slide back and forth in the pieces you are trying to fasten together. You have to ensure the truss head of the rivet is in contact with the material you are joining on that side, while at the same time ensuring the tool is square to the rivet on both the X and Y-axis. This concentration has to be maintained until the clinch you are forming with the tool rolls back far enough to engage the material being joined on its side. At that point the rivet head will pull in as you proceed and you just have to focus on keeping everything square.

The end result is in the attached photos. I do not know when the original mounting plate was broken, but it is really nice to see the first major damage on the Sender having been repaired. Two more bits to go.

The original condition of this TERMINALS, Aerial can be seen back in Posts 302 and 314. The TERMINALS, Aerial was merely test fitted now to see how it looked restored. I have removed it from its Mounting Plate once again until the Sender Panel is reinstalled.

David