Armour Dreams

[Jonathan Moore]

The machining of the sprocket flanges went well but I forgot to take pictures when they were on the machine and by the time I thought about it, I had tack welded the sprockets on.
The sprockets should be and will be, bolted on to the flanges but first I have to machine a recess in both sides, so that the sprockets sit over the outside diameter of the flange. My cunning plan, is to drill the 60 lightening holes and 20 retaining holes in each sprocket but rather than drilling the retaining holes as clearance holes drill and tap them. Then by bolting from the rear of the flange I can utilize the retaining holes to hold the sprocket to the flange, then machine the recess in one side of the sprocket flip it over and machine the recess in the opposite side. Well that's the plan.

[Jonathan Moore]

I have been drilling flipping holes, I am even dreaming about the things. Next it's the fun job of machining the recesses.

[Jonathan Moore]

All the holes have now been drilled so it was on to the machining of the recess in either side of the sprockets. To start with I counter bored the flange and then tapped a number of the holes so that I could bolt the sprocket in place rather than just relying on my tack welds.
Again I used the modified Land Rover hub but by using a spring loaded stop I turned the whole assembly into a sort of ratchet. If you remember I am rotating the assembly by hand using a long bar, so if the cutter were to snatch, especially at the start of each cut, it would try to rotate the sprocket at the speed of the cutter (500 rpm) in the opposite direction to the one that I am trying to turn it, taking my arm with it and ending in a big bang. As you can see from the pictures, the stop rests against each tooth of the sprocket in turn, stopping it rotating in the wrong direction and as the sprocket is rotated the stop moves accordingly.

[Jonathan Moore]

First side finished.

[Jonathan Moore]

The tack welds now had to be ground out and the sprocket flipped over so that the recess now locates over the outside diameter of the flange and it is then bolted in place ready for the recess to be cut in the opposite side of the sprocket.

[Jonathan Moore]

I now have two completed sprockets so my next task was to make the sprocket flange look something like the real thing. The original has a nice curve on it where as mine is, well, rustic

[Jonathan Moore]

I was going to make a sort of hub cap that bolted on but in the end I decided to roll a cone and weld it on to the flange.