I’m now going to contradict my earlier comment about sticking to originality. Apart from buying new fixings I’ve decided that most will be stainless steel or brass rather than plain steel. There are literally hundreds of nuts, bolts, washers and assorted fasteners on this machine and the prospect of de-rusting, polishing and lacquering all this bare steel is too daunting to contemplate. If this were a classic car concours competition I would be marked down for departing from originality. But it isn’t and just for good measure I may even use some other polished brass fixings if I think they look better. C’est la vie !
As I mentioned at the outset I’m not completing every task in one go but flitting between different jobs. Intermittently over these past few days I have been trying to remove the galvanised plating on the ride-on seat which is patchy and rusty in places. Advice online tells me that soaking in vinegar will dissolve the plating. No it doesn’t, at least not after a week in soak but it does make your workshop smell like a fish ’n chip shop ! And no, lemon juice doesn’t clean alloy. I will have to resort to a Dremel type rotary wire brush or elbow grease for cleaning the alloy engine casing.
Once again I’ve been spending far too long trying to decide on a suitable red for the cylinder, chain wheels and clutch discs. By chance I was in Wilkos and noticed a tin of Hammerite smooth red and it was a perfect match for the existing shade. Update. However carefully I applied the red Hammerite the brush marks show, it dries too quickly and in consequence does not leave a good enough finish especially on parts on full view. I’ve had RAL 3020 traffic red oil paint mixed as this gave a far superior smooth lustre. (Just visable top left of photo.)
Costs are escalating out of hand ! Whenever I contemplate any project I guesstimate the fiscal commitment if only to know how much to budget. I have been a mile out on this mower restoration and I’ve hardly started. God forbid it may even come to diverting funds away from my beer and women allowance !
Although I’m having new rollers and handles machined I decided to make a matching oak handle to fit over the end of the clutch lever. Not original but I think it should look good. I purchased an oak stair spindle, cut out a section, drilled a centre hole and then shaped it to fit. The end of the clutch lever is flat oval shape bare metal which I ground circular so as to be a jam fit inside the new handle centre hole. I’m happy with the result.
The clutch lever leather pad had virtually disintegrated so the remains were removed and the old rivets were snapped off. I found an old leather bound blank diary in my loft, cut out a section of the cover and this made an ‘as new’ replacement. I didn’t have any small brass rivets nor was I going to buy a pack of a hundred when I only needed two so I used a couple of brass M3.5 electrical screws, ground down the head just sufficient to remove the slot, slid on a tiny brass washer and after fitting burred over the other end.
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