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« Last post by Uncle Buck on May 24, 2024, 09:48:38 PM »
That is seriously the most bad ass break bar I have ever seen! Looks to be 4-5" long. I only have the 2' Snap-on break bar myself. If the job gets more serious than that, I break out my " Bertha bar". It's either 4 or 5' long, I don't recall right now and 3/4" drive torque wrench I dug out of the salvage yard for jobs like you are doing. I have never encountered anything that it couldn't handle. LOL
Sounds like that one is almost as bad as the first jack I ever did, a 50's era Walker Greyhound long frame. I dug it out of the dirt from the neighbors back yard. The only thing not buried in the dirt was the handle sticking up from the dirt like a flag pole! Nothing moved once it was dug from the dirt, the handle would not even move. Everyplace there would normally have been a gap was totally packed with dirt.
It looked like a handle with a massive block of dirt attached to the end. I drug it home like that and fortunately the next day it accompanied a load of parts my pop had sandblasted which amazingly got most of the dirt n even the smallest crevasses removed. Untold amounts of oil, gas and solvent were used to break it down, and ultimately I did succeed in rebuilding it. I recall paying a machinist a modest fee to turn a sleeve for the bore of the ram prior to rebuilding it.
I didn't own a lathe then and was about 18 years old so I old not afford the $100-$150 a new replacement cylinder would have cost at that time so I just kitted it. I guess I must have gotten something other than the standard size since it was sleeved.
I am watching this thread with great interest because I have at least six floor jacks to rebuild, I think 3-4 long frame jacks, one of which is a Weaver. Only rarely have I ever encountered a Weaver. The other long frames are Walker, the short jacks are several Hien Warners, and one or two old Blackhawks.
Certainly, rebuilding them is a labor of love as they are incredibly labor intensive to restore, but so very rewarding once completed.
I greatly enjoy Elroy sharing his fix for the bent handle and the attention and treatment given the flat spotted castors.
I envy Elroys dedication to salvaging the original castors. I know if I had to grind off too muck of the diameter of the castors, I would likely replace them with round stock fitted with bearings that would fit the axle.
There is the difference between a Craftsman (Elroy) and à duct tape and baling wire hillbilly (me) LOL 😆
Bravo Elroy! carry on with the lesson!