What a frustrating day!
While waiting for gaskets to arrive to finish putting Bob’s engine back together Ivan and Graham started to rebuild Laddie’s engine. (Laddie has been waiting patiently while Bob’s engine was put on and taken off because of the leaking head gaskets and the other things).
The crankshaft was fitted after another final clean then the block was turned over and the spectacle gasket seats inspected one final time before fitting the gaskets, liners and pistons.
Graham (this is Graham of the stationary engines, by the way) inspecting the liner seats, spotted an irregularity in the surface which, on closer inspections, he identified as a stitching up of this important part of the block. For a block to need welding there is not a good sign and the raised surface is certainly contra-indicative of the block being ready for having the liners refitted. Before rebuilding can continue the projecting area will have to be honed. No problem but, despite our systems for keeping tools tidy and ready for use, the honing tool has not come to light in an exhaustive search so tomorrow Steve is kindly going to lend the workshop his own set.
CORRECTION !! See next blog.We'd all had a hell of a day yesterday by the time we'd finished (upsets from an ex-employer visiting the workshop - nothing to do with tractors) and it was last thing when the irregularity in Laddie's block was discovered. This morning Ivan came in late (very unusual for him but he'd had to go to chexk something after the high winds
In the meantime Daisy May was having her brakes attended to. An adjustment in the linkage system carried out by Graham has resulted in a brake which now functions. Unfortunately even when the brakes are disconnected Daisy May’s wheel is locking up so tomorrow we start looking at the differential. Everytime something on this tractor is fixed it does something else.
Also because of all the immediate demands on my time I have hardly made a dent in the paperwork I needed to do today so apologies for those of you waiting for parts.