Will The Ranalah Jig Work? | Reviving History

It's time to pour the babbitt and find out if my jig actually works! We're getting closer to having a brand new wheeling machine.
Thanks for watching! If you're enjoying my journey, please subscribe for free! You'll receive notifications when I upload a new video - every Sunday at 5pm (GMT)!
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LINKS:
www.dominicchinea.com
Dom's Instagram: / dominicchinea
Ranalah Ltd's Instagram: / ranalahltd​​
Edited by Dan Cross: / djcross87

[@williamlindsay987]

What an inspirational education you have given all of us who have discovered your channel. I have seen and played with an "English Wheel" during my 25 years as an aircraft mechanic but never understood the importance or the significance that the Ranalah wheel has played in the world of metal fabrication all over the world. As I watched a documentary about the WW II manufacture of the B-24 at the Willow Run factory, in the U.S.A., I caught a glimpse of a number of Ranalah wheel machines in several of the sequences of that production line. You, I'm, sure understand the importance of the worlds "rediscovery" and "reintroduction" of the Ranalah Wheel, YOU have brought about. You have, through your passion for the nearly lost talents and arts of previous generations, have given us a new understanding and appreciation of that which we take for granted. Thank you for all your efforts, your thoughtfulness and your dedication to the preservation of what was so close to being lost. All your work is greatly appreciated even on the U.S. side of the pond. Stay well and be safe.

[@barryjohnson127]

Dom on the repair shop , nice lady who does the leather repairs was restoring a grandads leather apron, and the grandson showed a picture of his grandfather wearing said apron.sitting at a ranalah rolling machine curving a sheet of material,it was a a very quick cut but thought you might not have known.and you could see the top wheel being used.

[@johnmurrell3175]

I am surprised the Teflon in the saucepan survived - I am not sure what temperature the Babbit is at but the fumes from overheated Teflow (PTFE) contain fluorine gas that is lethal even in small quantities. I suggest you get a proper crucible or a plain steel saucepan.

[@richardadams7724]

Well done Dan look forward to seeing the next installment. The milling machine took me back to 50 years to my dad's workshop. Can still smell the soluble oil and hot metal now.

[@davidberlanny3308]

Well done!! It looks really solid. Looking forward to seeing you pour the horizontal bearing. The photography was excellent from start to finish, it didn't spoil anything for me and I think for most of us watching. Good luck from Spain!!

[@threeriversforge1997]

Your babbit pour was fine. I really liked how you worked that pot to give it a "long reach" spout! Have to admit I was a bit worried there might be some kind of chemical reaction between the babbit and teflon coating, and I was glad to see it worked out so well. I have no doubt that the joints will last a thousand years - you did quality work there, and should be proud of what you've accomplished. Now I just need to talk you into taking on the T.Norton fly press project. We can't let it leave the British Isles, so lets get at least one of them cast!

[@donalddenning2383]

Love seeing the re-learning of old skills. Don't sell yourself short on camera work dedicate time to master the basics like you do for the other things you like. Can wait to see these share some Porsche parts!

[@nathanweese3812]

Have you seen the damning compound that kieth Rucker uses at Vintage Machinery (you tube)? Its like grey playdoe with fiberglass or something. you can shape it by hand and its re-usable. It lets you build dams around your babet to control the flow. Its what you need.

[@mickymondo7463]

Try and get yourself an ER32 or ER40 collet chuck and collets for the Bridgeport to replace the Clarkson Autolock system, the best thing I did on my mill was swapping to ER collets, much easier and much more versatile, I have ER chucks for my mill and my Colchester, and you can still use the old screwed shank milling cutters with the ER collets. The cheap ER collet sets on ebay are accurate enough for most of the work you will need, and an R8 ER chuck is not overly expensive.

[@DominicChineas]

Thank you, I will look for one

[@tonyray91]

Well done Dom, good you had Dan there to keep you straight. Looking forward to seeing your Ramallah in action.

[@markpearson3490]

I'm loving this project, another great video. Can I just also add that I really appreciate that you leave in mistakes and problems that you encounter, I think it is a really important lesson of engineering and making that things go wrong, and you can always learn from them. I feel like too many maker shows make it look so simple, which is just not the way real life works, and sets unrealistic expectations for people wanting to learn.

[@datsunruss]

That was a great watch Dom - Dan is a clever lad. Well done boys.👍

[@TR4zest]

Brilliant! How great to see the jig absolutely do its job perfectly. Good job learning by doing on the babbitt.

[@argee55]

Oh my Dom. You seemed to have forgotten your PPE when grinding the babbit. You naughty boy!

[@roydavies260]

Fascinating. Thanks Dom. Best wishes

[@eaglebeagle1408]

Hi Dom Really enjoy your videos and your methodical approach. One comment from a former fitter machinist is the gap on the v mill collect chuck lock collar. Should there be one? Reason is we were taught to make sure the centre hole in the top of the end or slot mill on smaller tool bits didn’t shatter when the collar is done up with the spanner, particularly on smaller tool bits. It was on a half turn to tighten once the tool bit is in contact with the centre location pin. May be your collet chuck has a step on the lock ring? A high flow - tipped cutter would eat that flat without any coolant. Might have been a bit of vibration on a Bridgeport though😆

[@Manski_123]

This continues to be a great series of videos, I've enjoyed the journey so far and look forward to the next step. Well done! I've some experience of casting tin based alloys using high temperature silicone moulds. A slightly oversized disk of HT silicone that fits on top of the steel washer should create a good seal when tightened. It would also have the advantage of being re-useable. I have to say, the "Play-Doh" method described by Vic below also sounds interesting. Either method would leave you with less clean-up.

[@richardstevens2306]

Wonderful ! What better to watch on a lazy Sunday than proper old school engineering, love it ! Well done chaps

[@MartsGarage]

Excellent work, Dom. Don't sweat the videography. It's not television, it's youtube. The content is king. I do my best to make videos and after trying many formats of camera I have settled on using a decent smartphone. Simple can be better sometimes. All the best, Mart in Solihull.

[@richardwhatton1249]

A great video Dom, well done and it was fantastic to see you two brothers working so well together. Kind regards, Richard.

[@richardtaylor2449]

Great job getting the Ranalah finished Thanks Dom and Thanks Dan HAPPY EASTER

[@tonyhillyard1613]

Yet another great video Dom. The camera shots did not suffer, I bet no one had noticed! Good luck and best wishes to Camera Dan. Acn't wait for the next video!!!!

[@landroversforever]

Not all the way into the video, but get yourself a dead-blow mallet for the mill. Using a copper hide one will often bounce - edited to add, it will bounce the job in the vice. And add to that, get yourself some of the thin parallels (the blocks for sitting stuff on in the vice if you’re not aware). Using a think one laid flat under the job means that when you tap it down, you can always feel that the job has pinched it down flat.

[@NaturallyCuriousUK]

👍👍👍 Fascinating watch as always Dom. I think you might have voided your warranty on that saucepan though 🤔 😆

[@JonDingle]

Very interesting. I wonder if fire cement would make a good damming compound? Set it up and warm it gently with a flame to get the cement to go off. Then break it off after doing the babbing!

[@TheKnacklersWorkshop]

Hello Dom, Congratulation on getting the babbitt poured... another milestone in the rebirth of the Ranalah... Take care. Paul,,

[@leslieaustin151]

Dom, that was really exciting! Sure, things will improve and smooth-out as you get practice, but the first effort was great. And isn’t it true we learn more from our mistakes than our first-time successes? Loved it. Les PS, another tantalising view of THAT Bantam. C’mon, a rebuild into ISDT replica Bantam. One came to light a couple of years ago, so there are photos available to make it happen! Les

[@janjaapvdijk]

Maybe, as a form of experiment, you could try (ply)wood and leather to seal the bottoms for casting. This would also allow you to create a seal with a casting channel for the horizontal one.

[@rachelsharkey5802]

Well done Dom 👏! Good luck Dan in your new role X

[@MatthewTinker-au-pont-blanc]

When you have a tiny leak, just block it with your "lolly stick" and horse on! You didn't need the mask when you poured, but grinding babbit! That's lead alloy dust you can't see in the air! Glad to see it well poured!!

[@marciabaldwin2506]

Great job well done Dom 👍I'm looking forward to seeing the next video ♥️ keep up the good work 😊

[@graham8854]

Great episode and well done with the Ranalah progress. 👍 More outakes at the end please 🤣

[@stephenblaze4571]

what a cracking video it just makes you appreciate what old time machinists blacksmiths could do with a lump of metal really good looking forward to the next good luck to Dan make sure he sets up the camera before leaves

[@busterboy7505]

So glad it all worked out well for you Dom, the way things went for you in this video just proved one thing, you need a right hand man 24/7, lol,can’t wait for the next stage,👍👍.

[@staceychuneq1820]

Glad you got it sorted, funny how the video is 28mins long, but took you all day to sort this 🙊 also ice creams 😳he never told me about that!! Cheeky!! Lol xx

[@marieeaton-smith5168]

Very exciting episode, looking forward to watching your and Dan's progress.

[@Cradley684]

Great Dom, and all the best to both Dan's !!!>

[@michaellane9873]

Coming together nicely now Dom.

[@SuperJohnhughes]

Excellent, glad you warmed up the casting before you poured, 🦘 👍👍

[@thegentlemanmaker]

Best wishes to Camera Dan! What a cracking episode Dom - thank goodness for your brother too, he knows his stuff. Very much looking forward to the next one. Will you be coming to Makers Central?

[@three-phase562]

Fantastic job on the build 👍

[@paulmuff9883]

Good video what’s the name of the material you used for making the dam for the Babbitt as I couldn’t find the correct stuff and used clay ? I was surprised that you had a masked for poring the Babbitt BUT not in the most dangerous part where you ground if as there’s a lot of lead in it & Tin is not good for you!

[@dougaldhendrick3497]

Not 100% sure, but I think coolant needs a decent flow to do it's job, cutting oil more suited to oilcan dispensing..

[@MikeSmith-sg9pt]

Think I'll just wait here, don't want to miss it! 😃👍🏻

[@DominicChineas]

Thank you! I hope you enjoy it, it’s a big day!

[@MikeSmith-sg9pt]

Congratulations, what a success! I've got no experience in engineering, but I find this really fascinating.

[@johnvaluk1401]

Nicely done Dom. Check out Keith Rucker on YT for babbit work.

[@jamesboardman7048]

Someone get him a belt sander . That right angle grinder was hard to watch😂😂

[@madeleineplayz2056]

Good luck Dan. Great video Dom, I’m fascinated.

[@FU2Max]

That is a little sad. Ive always liked Dan's style of cinematography. Best of luck Dan. Great work on the Ranalah Dom.

[@paulwhiteman3625]

Boom!! Great to see so much progress.

[@quiescentnexus]

Babbit pouring temperature is well within the capabilities of modern high-temperature silicone, whether in the form of pre-made orings or make-your-own-seal RTV silicone you're probably familliar with. Either could work as a sealing element between the washer and the cast iron. Of course, in the latter case, this means putting a bead on the washer and letting it cure to form a permanently attached oring-like seal, not putting it on fresh before a pour - the advantage here being that you can put it on however thick it needs to be to seal when compressed. If that actually works, it would be a huge time-saver, with a lot less prep and cleanup needed.

[@oldtomsphotos]

I don't understand any of the technical stuff but just love the concept and process.

[@davidbenn7199]

Well Dan the man, and you Dom have done a great job with that baboons 😊👍

[@davidbenn7199]

should have been babot

[@brianmicky7596]

Hi Dom, looks fantastic , just stop and think, your doing fine, All the best Brian 😃

[@tretty]

sack the camera critic, any change wasn't noticeable, the excitement was great. Well Done Dom!!!!😁

[@simonthompson8629]

How lucky are we to have brothers on standby to help with our endeavours? Great progress Dom!

[@austinshackles549]

Does the same jig also align the horizontal axle? If so, I'd have thought you would leave it on there and set the horizontal axle before removing the jig. Of course, you might have a different plan for that stage, obviously, the machine will have to be laid on its back to do that pour. Looking forward to seeing the finished article! Was chatting to a friend of mine the other day who worked at Filton (on Concorde!) and he related a tale about a couple of old guys in one of the shops making parts for the English Electric Lightning, from stainless steel on English wheels. No idea if they were Ranalahs, though.

[@nickmassey9104]

Great update great progress .I wonder if you used a brass or annealed copper washer under a steel washer it would seal better when you pour the babbet

[@likeakite]

Well done chaps !!!

[@jezkendall1893]

As always - great work. Very exciting times 🙂

[@campingstoveman]

Nicely done, another step completed

[@lynnhaswell1690]

Sad that Dan is leaving TRS - hopefully to pastures new and better - But I don't think there's anything better than TRS - unless it TRS Australia 🤔 - weather might be better there 🤔 Enjoyed watching your latest You Tube video Dom- practice makes perfect or so the saying goes 👌😊

[@magomat6756]

Keith rucker vintage old machinery org he does a lot of babbets

[@steveNCB7754]

Great video, but I’m slightly puzzled as to why (having gone to all that trouble to set up the jig) you only cast the two lower ‘pots’ and not the upper (horizontal ) one, all in one set up? The other thing that crossed my mind - do you know that they did the upper one with the Ranalagh frame sat upright? Given that such factories would have had access to various sizes of overhead cranes, it wouldn’t have taken a skilled team too long to lay the frame on its back, so that the ‘horizontal’ shaft could have been set in Babbit whilst vertical. Obviously, you’d need a separate jig to hold the shaft in position, referenced off the one (or both) ‘lower’ sockets already set in place.

[@northfieldguitars7743]

Brilliant Dom! Would you be able to melt the Babbitt in something with a measure on it so that you could work out exactly how much you need for each pour? Then you would get it spot on every time

[@RonvanRutten]

You should make a scale cast version of the Ranalah and sell it online. I haven't a clue what to do with a regular sized one but a small model one would be fun to have in my office :P

[@DominicChineas]

I am working on that!! Won’t be long!

[@RonvanRutten]

@@DominicChineas great minds think alike ;)

[@edfingleton9889]

@@DominicChineas genuinely pleased to hear that

[@grandaded]

Blimey; that was a tense watch Dom. I was so concerned that even with all the planning and expertise, something might go awry. Needn't have worried! I'm so enjoying the journey. As a photographer though, I know that setting maximum ISO is rarely a good strategy!

[@johnmurrell3175]

It gives you better depth of field normally so is an advantage if you are not able to adjust the focus.

[@grandaded]

@@johnmurrell3175 I don't know anything about videography sadly. In stills photography, it's adjusting the aperture setting that affects DoF ...

[@VwRosstorations]

Well done chaps...👍🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿

[@beautifulsmall]

Lead amd liquid metals used for fixing thinks. There are many victorian garden walls with missing iron railings and stubs leaded into the capstones. electronic components soldering. 01005

[@artstudio9673]

love the vajayo! I am 15:48 into it and just wanted to say as someone who casts lead bullets, you want to add about 2% tin to the lead, at 2%+ it gives you better mold filling properties when casting bullets. I am told silver will do the same? keep up the great work!!!!!

[@stanleyclark7758]

Hello Dom. I don’t know whether I missed an explanation on a previous video, but I am wondering what the purpose of pouring the Babbit is. Is this to take up any differences in the exactness of lateral and axial dimensions in relation to the cast surfaces of the main body of the Ranalah? Apologies if you have been through this previously. Kind regards. Stan

[@martinbyrne1104]

I think if you find out what a Tinker's Dam is made of you may be on to what they would have used at the time to hold in the babbet. I believe it is a simple bread dough.

[@clivelee4279]

Well done, I've done fair bit of re-metaling over the years, and you are doing fine. Just one question , why not use lead ? I think using White metal is a bit over specified.

[@smokinrider]

Grinding lead Babbitt with no mask. Good one !

[@DominicChineas]

I wasn’t grinding babbitt thanks!

[@andymccabe6712]

@@DominicChineas the nanny staters must be making you lose the will to live on this one, Dom......

[@lotus7even]

Great to see the process 👍

[@promiscuous5761]

Thank you.

[@davidsinclair6802]

Good job Dom!

[@bigfish74f]

Love this build

[@josephlovell6951]

That was the easy part. Now you need to do the top. Your top jig will need a pore spoute at the front then you can do all 3 in one pore

[@ejharrop1416]

Brilliant!! This video and the whole restoration is a treasure trove of knowledge. Thank you and I hope you had a pleasant Easter holiday. Cheers.

[@twotone3070]

I'm really enjoying the content but sadly had to skip a lot of this as the camera movement was giving me motion sickness.

[@CornishMiner]

Amazing project.

[@paulp96275]

Will the Ranalah jig work who wrote that of course it will ,Dom made it 👍👨🏻‍🏭

[@trogpot]

Contact Keith rucker,vintage machinary about habit pouring

[@bobt3374]

Well done Chaps excellent.

[@trishnewberry1125]

Dom, I can see a snag with the saucepan, the lid won't fit anymore! Sorry, just me being silly.

[@MianCowell]

Bloody brilliant!

[@beornwhetstone2797]

Glad I set the reminder

[@johnwebberley6710]

Nice one Dom

[@nitt3rz]

Bye bye Dan the camera! What are brothers for other than to criticise everything & winding you up? Another great update.

[@pintokitkat]

Have you got any orders yet, Dom?

[@richardhathaway2901]

Ah yes. My old dad took every picture on "f8 125". They pretty much all came out OK too. He used to that all those other numbers were for different countries!

[@garychilds1130]

I think silver solder is stronger than lead

[@jayreiter268]

Watch Keith Rucker

[@richb3307]

I was waiting for Keith Rucker to offer his advice.

[@WarGrade]

To seal them up rather than paste, why not get some silicon rubber sheet say 10mm thick, cut your self out round washers & you can then reuse to your heart's content

[@Georgeolddrones]

Come on Dom waiting in Stoke for this video to start 🥱👍😂

[@wl22]

Yay!!

[@MidtownSkyport]

Tax deductable ice creams just taste better :)

[@blacksquirrel4008]

Me: See the Ranalah, click and think, “Wait it’s not Sunday.” Then disappointment sets in as the “Premieres in 22 hours” pops up.

[@DominicChineas]

It’s worth the wait I promise!!

[@blacksquirrel4008]

@@DominicChineas and it was. Great job and working with family is a treat.

[@philhermetic]

putting the lid on the pan would have speeded the melt!

[@paulg3336]

No , it's not food that is steam heated by putting a lid on. 99.9% of the heat transfer into the alloy is though the contact of the ingot with the pan base

[@philhermetic]

@@paulg3336 an open pan allows heat to escape from the top, a closed one does not, an closed top furnace melts-metal faster than an open one!

[@paulg3336]

@@philhermetic It's minimal. 55 years of melting alloys talking here. It's better to lose 1% of the heat transfer to a little ventilation of the pan ,than to trap lead vapour under the lid and get a concentrated lungful when you lift the lid.

[@paulg3336]

Tinning will only be a benefit if the tinned parts ,especially the casting, is raised to close to the melting temperature of the babbitt. If the tinned parts are too cold the molten babbitt will chill as soon as it touches the tinned part and the tinning will not fuse with the poured material. This is evident if you pour molten babbitt on to a cold babbitt ingot - the poured metal will not fuse to the ingot