pour new babbit bearings in trip hammer

[boatbuilder]

I finally had time today to pour my bearings in triphammer Here are some pics. This was my first attempt at this.

[Burke]

lOOKS GOOD. wHAT DID YOU USE TO PREHEAT THE FRAME?

[boatbuilder]

I used oxy-acty torch with rosebud attachment. Pre-heated mandrel and bearing cup to about 325-375f

[Ed Caffrey]

Looks like a very successful pour! Remember to go in a "X" channel both the top and bottom babbit. Another recommendation.....once your all finished, wad up some gauze or cotton and put it in the oil pan on each cap....this material keeps all the dirt/grit out of the bearings, and since it soaks up oil, once saturated, it acts like kind of a "drip oiler", meaning that you don't have to oil as often.

[boatbuilder]

I was going to leave the pour holes filled with babbit and run a grease nipple off the top caps. Oil will seem to messy.

[Burke]

the advantage to oil is that it keeps the stuff washed out of the frame bushings. even if you grease frequently you won't be able to push all of the foriegn material out of the bushing area. another thing is that you can run tighter clearance in the bushing if you are using oil. tighter tolerance = less movement= more hammer control.
also you need to cut the channels either way, the lubricant needs to be able to get to where it is needed.

[Ed Caffrey]

Ditto on what Bill said. I think oil is the only way to go on the main journals of a Little Giant. When I was buying/selling a lot of Little Giants, I learned to look for the hammers that had the most oil all over them....which tells you that they had been maintained. If you put grease in new babbitt bearings, it will likely just lock up the hammer, and then you'll have to tear it down and clean out the grease. In a couple of builds I got a bit over zealous on having tight tolerances.....I had to use very light oil for about the first year....and as it wore in, I was able to switch to chainsaw bar oil.

I finally realized something about these hammers....these machines where not designed or built to have super tight tolerances, and the tighter you try to make the tolerances during a rebuild (past a certain point) the more issues you'll have in both using and maintaining the hammer. I confirmed this during a phone conversation with Sid Sudemier several years ago.

[boatbuilder]

Thanks guys. I will drill out the oil holes and use oil for lube. I appreciate the info. Also I put on my clutch pads and was wondering how tight the clearance show be.I slid the other piece over the pads and went on very easy. Should it only go on about 3/4 way easy then start to tighten up?

[Burke]

it depends on the clutch material, wooden blocks or a friction material kinda like brake lining. there is only about a half inch of movement to the cluth pulley so as long as it locks up all the way and releases all the way it will work. If you want to know an exactish number you can call Syd or his daughter. They also have a two disk set of dvds availible on rebuilding these hammers. I think that they cost about 90.00 but that is cheaper than the only other good reference which is a book by Fred Caylor that is out of print now. I had a freind buy one a few years ago for about twice that.

[NickWheeler]

I've got the videos from Sid and they are WELL WORTH the money!!!! Very clear camera work and Sid's experience shines. I highly recommend buying them!

[boatbuilder]

would you like to sell them? if so how much?

[NickWheeler]

Sorry, the rebuild video set from Sid is one of the instructional videos I put in the "keep forever" cabinet. I think the two vid's were $95 from Sid. Wish I would have had them BEFORE I bought my hammers.