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Success Stories If you have successfully repaired or restored a piece of equipment, why not write up what you did and post details here. Particularly if it was interesting, unusual or challenging. PLEASE DO NOT POST REQUESTS FOR HELP HERE!

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Old 10th Jun 2009, 1:03 pm   #1
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Default AVO Douglas wave winder.

Hi, I bought this wave winder about a month ago and it was absolutely seized up solid with rust. I downloaded a free service manual. The winder came without a single change gear so I spent many hours surfing the web trying to find gear details for this machine. Not sure of the forum rules I sent a PM but didn't receive a reply. I also contacted the BVWS of which I'm a member but still the data evaded me; I then posted a plea for help and was delighted to receive a rapid and very welcome reply from moderator Station X; many thanks for the links Graham; I now had a lot of general gear data to absorb. I still needed the physical gear sizes and as I started to assemble the winder I could then measure directly the shaft centres that held the pair of gears this was 2.5" giving me the pitch circle diameter; with this I still didn't know the number of teeth for a given diameter? As a last resort I sent another PM but this time it was to "Heatercathodeshort", What an absolutely brilliant guy John is; within a couple of days I had received from John a whole lot of gear data taken directly from his own machine; John not only went the extra mile for me but did a marathon!! I had full details together with images of where the gears were located of six gears; this could not have been better. John went on to offer any assistance possible and we are now in regular touch. My sincere thanks to Graham and John for their kind help.
I completely stripped the winder and it put up a tremendous fight for over a week before I finally removed all the shafts. I ended up making a special lever out of the scrap bin to free the main shaft but even then it would not give in without applying heat from a blowlamp. I had soaked all the bearings in a mix of WD40/oil for a week but resorted to using heat. All the time I was worried about causing damage or breaking the castings so had to exercise a great deal of restraint and patience. Anyone interested I have more images please PM me. The winder can now be turned freely by hand and I'm hoping to make a full set of change gears out of Tufnol for it in the near future; I've already turned six blanks to John's dimensions. The cellulose was applied using a brand new HVLP gun connected directly to my compressor and it worked a treat. I enjoyed doing this restoration and hope it is of interest as it is so rare. Anyone interested in installing 3 phase 415V giving full power for under £120? This is another project I've just completed. What a great bunch of people on this forum. Col.
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Old 10th Jun 2009, 2:32 pm   #2
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Default Re: AVO Douglas wave winder.

What a super job you've made of that! Congratulations, absolutely first class.
Good luck with the Tufnol gears ... will Tufnol be strong enough?
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Old 10th Jun 2009, 6:49 pm   #3
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Default Re: AVO Douglas wave winder.

Oohers! Me like! Me want!!
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Old 10th Jun 2009, 7:10 pm   #4
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Default Re: AVO Douglas wave winder.

Hi, Many thanks guys for the kind words. Your concern about Tufnol being strong enough Colin is a very valid one. I bought a sheet of 8mm thick x 1foot x 2foot Tufnol from Direct Plastics in Sheffield collecting it in person last Friday. Rather than spend a fortune on cast iron or brass Tufnol is cheap and is in fact used for gears; I've never attempted gear cutting and am now having a go at making an attachment for my lathe which by the way is even more rarer than the winder it is a Myford MF 36" and one of only two known survivers. Longer term I would love to cut a full set of gears out of brass once I have gained some experience. I missed adding a thumbnail of the winder as bought so hopefully here it is. Keep well, Col.
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Old 10th Jun 2009, 7:18 pm   #5
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Default Re: AVO Douglas wave winder.

That's a good effort Col, wave winding goes back to the dawn years of radio, and although it's a niche industry, it's still relevant today, with little machines like yours churning out low-capacity, self-supporting coils.

Good luck with the gear machining, too! Hopefully, you've got a suitable grade of Tufnol - a material with such fascinating names (Asp, Whale, Vole, Adder etc). I guess you've got Carp brand - fine-weave phenolic fabric, rather than a paper-based grade?
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Old 10th Jun 2009, 7:25 pm   #6
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Default Re: AVO Douglas wave winder.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Retired View Post
Your concern about Tufnol being strong enough Colin is a very valid one. I bought a sheet of 8mm thick x 1foot x 2foot
I would have thought 8mm thick Tufnol would be strong enough for this application, the leadscrew gear train on my Myford 7 series lathe uses a 3/8" wide Tufnol gear for all the screwcutting and power feed to the carriage.

John
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Old 10th Jun 2009, 7:29 pm   #7
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Default Re: AVO Douglas wave winder.

Hi Col, I believe some of the winders we had at Reyrolle used Tufnol gears. The Carp brand stuff should work well. It runs a lot quieter than cast iron or brass.
Some of the modern high strength Nylon bar stock should also work, but it does not cut as cleanly as Tufnol.

I'd be interested in your 3 phase convertor as I've worked in the power electronics sector for many years, including designing very expensive Mosfet and IGBT inverters for MIL use. PM me if you would.
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Old 10th Jun 2009, 7:29 pm   #8
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Default Re: AVO Douglas wave winder.

Hi Col
You have a Douglas Wave and progressive wave winding Machine.If you send me your address I will post you off the full manual which will tell you all you need to know about the gearing etc.

Harold
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Old 10th Jun 2009, 8:23 pm   #9
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Default Re: AVO Douglas wave winder.

Col,

If you know the Diametral Pitch (DP) and number of teeth required, then this company may be able to help with off-the shelf Tufnol, Delrin, brass, or steel gears.

Edward
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Old 10th Jun 2009, 8:24 pm   #10
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Default Re: AVO Douglas wave winder.

Hi,
Yes I have the correct grade of Tufnol it is "Whale" and is the grade used for it's mechanical strength. Thanks Edd & Scotty I've just sent replies to you both.
I believe the old mag/dynos on motorcycles had a coupling gear made from Tufnol and these used to last forever.

Take care, Col.
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Old 10th Jun 2009, 8:28 pm   #11
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Default Re: AVO Douglas wave winder.

Thanks Edward for the link I'll check it out but being retired I feel a full set of around 29 gears could be a bit expensive for me. A good lottery win would no doubt help.
Thanks again, Col.
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Old 10th Jun 2009, 9:29 pm   #12
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Default Re: AVO Douglas wave winder.

Gadzooks! A transformation.
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Old 10th Jun 2009, 9:36 pm   #13
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Default Re: AVO Douglas wave winder.

Col,
You will need a deep pocket for HPC!
A set of cutters won't be cheap either, but it will be much more fun.
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Old 10th Jun 2009, 10:01 pm   #14
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Default Re: AVO Douglas wave winder.

Thanks Alan, I think you are right; if I only needed a couple of gears this would be the easy option but the info is very welcome and gives me a good idea what is available. I've already got a fly cutter (single point) set up in the middle of a 1" diameter bar that I can mount between the lathe centers. With the gear measurements I now have I compared against the Myford gears and hope to experiment once I've rigged up an home made vertical slide; I don't fancy paying around £100 for a slide and I have bought 6 large 360 degree protractors as I don't have a dividing head either. This gear cutting is going to be interesting but as you say what a lot of fun. Thanks, Col.
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Old 11th Jun 2009, 12:00 am   #15
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Default Re: AVO Douglas wave winder.

Col,
There's a lot of info about single point tools available. Somewhere I have a book. As this is getting OT I'll PM you.
Alan
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Old 11th Jun 2009, 12:22 am   #16
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Default Re: AVO Douglas wave winder.

MY 1935 Lagonda Rapier car (engine designed by W O Bentley) had a Tufnol timing gear on the camshaft (not original but never failed). That engine would go up to 6000 RPM so I think you will be safe.
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Old 11th Jun 2009, 8:10 am   #17
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Default Re: AVO Douglas wave winder.

Tufnol is not a problem for gears. Col - I have a dividing head and an ML7 and am not too far from you, if you want to see my setup, PM me.
Do you know about the way you can make the holes in a division plate by using perforated strip?
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Old 11th Jun 2009, 8:11 am   #18
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Default Re: AVO Douglas wave winder.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Oldtimer74 View Post
MY 1935 Lagonda Rapier car (engine designed by W O Bentley) had a Tufnol timing gear on the camshaft (not original but never failed). That engine would go up to 6000 RPM so I think you will be safe.
Pat G3IKR
It seems conclusive! I like the idea of a venerable Avo Wave Winder all 'tricked' out with sexy Tufnol gearing. A wonderful blend of old and new

And if the Tufnol is white then it'll be a perfect match for the paintjob.
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Old 11th Jun 2009, 10:29 am   #19
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Default Re: AVO Douglas wave winder.

What a great bunch of guys you all are; the offers of help and advice are very much appreciated; the paint is cream white which i had left over from my recent restoration of a huge Startrite Volant 10 speed bandsaw. I'll be online later as I have a cathouse to make for a stray that has adopted us. Thanks everyone. Col.
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Old 11th Jun 2009, 12:23 pm   #20
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Default Re: AVO Douglas wave winder.

I haven't a clue what 'Tufnol' is but the machine looks fantastic Col. Well done.
can I send you a TV22 LOPT to rewind?

Dave
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