Repairing a 1-Ton Arbor Press

[WmRMeyers]

I sent this to Rick in personal email when I got his email about this repair:

Now get a hotter torch, and braze the crack, then fill the drilled holes with braze, redrill where you want them, and bolt it back up with the nuts you wanted in there. If you have a gas-fired BBQ grill, you can get a 60psi propane regulator, and make a Mikey Burner with black iron pipe from 3/8" up to 1-1/2", to get the additional heat you need. Mikey burners are described in Michael Porter's Gas Burners for Forges, Furnaces and Kilns. https://www.amazon.com/Gas-Burners-F.../dp/1879535203 it's out of print and paper copies are getting dear, but I own a paper copy, and will be happy to scan the basic instructions for you. You can also get pdf copies all over the internet. they are missing important notes, but you can figure it out if needed. Mike was writing a new better book last I talked to him, but that was before Yahoo crashed and burned their groups, and I've not heard from him since.


Been thinking about it since I sent that. If you need more heat, you can either make a larger burner, or more burners. I built a 3/8" Mikey burner for a planned two-burner miniature furnace some years ago. This was back when I didn't know how to use my lathe well enough to make the parts myself, and Mike was kind enough to send me the parts. Still have the one that I completed, and parts for the 2nd burner. A bunch of folks have built a 3/4" single-burner furnace and gotten enough heat to melt aluminum. A couple of 3/4" Mikey burners, and some fire brick for a brazing hearth should do the trick!

Bill