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sean f

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  1. That's basically what I have done, refunded minus the postage and he is sending it back at his cost, so it has cost him a few quid in postage for the whole episode. I stopped allowing returns via eBay automatically as I had a few people buy tools then want to return them, when they came back they were clearly used so they were using me as a cheap tool hire, since they got there postage back it left me out of pocket, mostly I could clean the tools up a bit and sell them again but it was the principle as much as anything else. This guy had clearly made a genuine mistake and clearly not used the tool so its just one of those things, only cost me a bit of time so just one of those things.
  2. Ok got some more info from the buyer but no picture, apparently it is the engine in a Rover 800 so Landroversforever identification as a Range Rover VM engine may not be far from the mark, I was clearly not getting all the info to start with, "standard Rover engine" was technically correct but since it was stated as a LR tool the implication would be the Rover meant Land Rover which is not the case. Apparently some one told him that a 300tdi locking tool would work on it, it clearly doesn't, in the advert I do state the bolt PCD since I know it will work on some other Rover and Jag engines and leave it to the buy to check if it fits there engine if they want to try and use it on anything other than a LR engine. Might offer him a small refund or let him return it at his cost since it clearly won't have been used, but that the lot.
  3. OK, one for the engine people. I sold a 200/300tdi engine crank locking tool to someone who is now complaining it doesn't fit there Land Rover engine, its the type that picks up the 4 bolt holes in the front pulley and locks the crank to undo or do up the front pulley bolt, the bolt holes in the tool are 4 x 75mm PDC for M8 bolts which I know is correct for all 200/300 tdi engines I have seen and will also work for 2.5 NA / TD engines (plus I believe some jag engines). They have sent me the picture below of the front crank pulley on there "Rover" engine which looks nothing like any land rover engine I have ever seen, way more holes, looks like some one has been busy with a drill!, also a weird inner circle of bolts. I have asked them for a picture of the entire engine and what model of LR its fitted to but still waiting for a reply. I suspect they might have a non LR engine fitted by a previous owner, which would be slightly worrying that they are working on and engine assuming its standard when its a different make, might have few issues with parts fitting......... So anyone any idea what it might be or any guesses just from this picture?. With this being eBay if they lodge a complaint I am likely to end up giving them all there money and postage back since eBay seems to use work on the idea the buyer is always right, even when there not, sod the seller.
  4. Cheep steel is often EN1 or EN3 both soft easily welded and easily formed, easily forms pretty much says easily bent. Next common step is up to EN8 which is general engineering grade after that it becomes more specific, I use EN24 for higher strength stuff. As a general rule the higher the EN number the stronger it is (and more expensive!). Also the higher numbers will mostly heat treat well to make them very hard, weld EN24 with no special treatment and you will struggle to scratch it with a file, down side is it is then more brittle, there are ways of welding it so it doesn't become brittle but that's more specialist stuff. I believe standard halfshafts are EN18 and heat treated but don't have any proof of that. Since I can often acquire marine bar ends and scrap I often use 316 stainless for machining odds and sods but also get Duplex which is engineering stainless and difficult to beat when strength is required but the prices are high if buying new from a dealer (I get corroded or worn shafts as scrap).
  5. Always feels good to get it off your chest. You should have see some of the rants I had at FedEx when they duplicated an import invoice, and tried to charge me twice, there customer service was so bad it drove me bonkers, took hours to get through on the phone, about half the time when you said it was a invoice issue they used to say send an email and hang up, never once got a sensible reply to an email, most were clearly automated others were so idiotic they either hadn't read the email, where answering some one else and sending it to me, or were being creatively incompetent. Best was from a "manager" who admitted it was a duplicate invoice and the genuine bill had been paid but still insisted I should pay again and suggested I copied the genuine VAT invoice and submitted it several more times to get claim the VAT back and cover paying them for there mistake, pretty sure trying to claim the same VAT several times is not legal! and as a private importer for personal use I can't claim anything back anyway. I gave them grief on every place I could find and eventually they decided to drop the charge, took 9 months though. If you want a laugh look at FedEx UK on TrustPilot, its pretty bad.
  6. I generally use a 3 tonne long reach trolly jack and 5 tonne axle stands. The long reach trolley jack mostly as the handle is still clear when I am jacking it up, just me being lazy, it will also lift a long way which is handy at times. Like others I would steer well clear of the cheap pressed steel 2 tonne type trolley jacks, the rated load should be enough but with a LR or just about any 4x4 you will be using it higher up in its travel than on a standard car and as it its gets closer to its limits it can get a bit wobbly. Similarly with the axle stands I have, I mostly use mine with the pin on the first hole under the axle but a few more hole under the chassis, its mostly the extra footprint I want as it keeps things steadier especially if you are yanking things about trying to get suspension arms to bolt up. I have had a LR roll off a jack in the past (on a slope, lifted one rear wheel, didn't put it in 4x4 (S2a) or chock the front wheels, learned that lesson the hard way!), so I tend to over do jacking and axle stands as that's far better than under doing it.
  7. I also looked at getting 3 phase in direct, bearing in mind the sub station is less than 10m from my workshop, I got western power down to have a look, the engineer was very nice and made an immediate estimate of about £7500 to 10000 and that just to run the cable to my property, work on my side would be down to me. He offered a full formal quote but didn't think it would change much so it would have been a waste of time. He did mention that some one else he had spoken with ended up getting a second hand 3 phase generator and running that but since I live on an estate with close neighbours that wasn't a solution that would have made me popular, guess it depends where peoples workshops are.
  8. On bigger lathes such as my Colchester Triumph 2000 the electrical motor is started and then runs continuously whilst the lathe is used, the control lever then uses a clutch mechanism to engage the drive and spin the chuck either forwards or backwards, the motor continues to spin in the same direction all the time. On a M300 there is no clutch and the motor is started and stopped to spin the chuck. In use with a normal full 3 phase power supply there would be little effective difference in use for most users. The issues can arise when using a static or rotary 3 phase convertor to power the lathe that they often don't like being started and stopped or it has to be done at the convertor rather than using the lathe controls (again the full reason for this would need to come from some one with more electronic skills than me), a lot of VFD's have a pendant type controller which with some clever wiring (cleverer than me anyway!) can be wired in to operate from the lathe controls which keeps things neat or mounted on the lathe. It can all be sorted but sometimes takes a bit more thought. Many VFD's will also start a motor gently to reduce the start up power draw and allow a smaller cheaper VFD to be used, mostly this isn't going to be to much of an issue but it can be for some things like thread cutting.
  9. One point to consider with this lathe, is an M300 (or M250) is not a clutch driven lathe like the bigger Harrisons or Colchester's where the motor runs constantly, to stop or reverse direction to motor is stopped or reversed, from memory a clutch drive comes in with the Colchester Master size 5hp motors. Typically most 3 phase converter are set up to start the motor and then keep it running in one direction at a constant speed, not sure this will work so well with this lathe. Not going to even pretend I understand the wiring required to make it work but I am fairly sure there are others on here who can explain it.
  10. Snatich ???? Possible not from an English speaking country
  11. My preference would be to go for a Harrison or Colchester, Harrison M250 or M300 would be my choice but nothing wrong with a Colchester Bantam or Student (later square head version). I have a Colchester Triumph 2000 in the garage but that is probable bigger than you want. Most Harrison or Colchesters will be 3 phase as standard so will need some sort of work to work on single phase, I use a digital converter from DrivesDirect which works well but is not a cheep option, plenty of the smaller lathes have just had the 3 phase motor changed out for a similarly sized single phase motor, I have seen reports 3 phase is preferred on a lathes as it is smoother but it would need some one better than me to explain why and I expect for most normal users it would be unnoticeable. With Warco I have never had one of there lathes but did have one of there mills, it worked OK and did what I wanted at the time but when I changed it out for a KRV mill the difference is very noticeable. With any used machine it is going to be a few years old so will need a check, just as when buying a used car some will be perfect, others basically scrap, so same advice as when buying a car if you aren't sure what to check take someone with you who does. I bought my lathe and milling machine from Bowland Trading in Darwen, I have no connection with them other than buying the two machines, but happy to recommend, both have been been excellent, were exactly as described and service was good, including the owner going in on a Sunday so we could collect them. Again as with a used car buying from a dealer is going to cost a bit more but will give you a bit of buyer protection.
  12. Not a subject I know much about but have been looking for some sort of system to keep the truck battery topped up when I am away (it could easily not get used for a couple of months depending on my schedule), tried a cheap panel in the windscreen plugged into the lighter socket and not convinced it did anything and certainly not enough. Plugging in a mains powered system is not an option where the truck is kept. So now thinking a bigger panel on the rear and controller such as being discussed here, with the controller hard wired in with a disconnect switch or simple unplug when using the vehicle and the panel removable. The controller in the link above and a medium sized (100w?) panel should do the job to act as a trickle charge as far as I can see, possible over kill but I tend to over engineer rather than under!. Just to educate me on this, looking at the battery options for the above controller would a standard car battery class as "flooded"?.
  13. I have used MTA for both MIG and TIG welders. I currently have a TecArc 216i and it has been fine, performs well with no issues. When you look at the specs one thing to check is the power draw, the newer Invertor ones draw a LOT less than the older coils types, something to bear in mind if you look at second hand ones, any sort of power and you start looking at 50-60amp inputs or 3 phase, if you have no power supply issues then fine but for use on a domestic supple something to consider.
  14. Do you think it would fit in a LR......... Possible a bit over powered for the job.
  15. If its still not starting with a jump start it doesn't sound like the battery but there are a couple of things to check. I am assuming its not turning over at all. First where are you putting the jump leads?, positive to the battery terminal but negative is better going to the block, if that fixes it then the negative from the battery is the issue. You could also try just running a jump lead from the negative battery terminal to the engine block, again if this work it is an earth strap issue. Some cars will send a positive direct from the ignition switch to the starter solenoid but a lot send a signal to a relay in the fuse box which then in turn send a signal to the relay on the starter. In your case it sounds like this relay in the fuse box is playing up and for some reason not closing properly which is giving a buzzing noise. If you can trace which one it is and check the terminal are good etc that is worth a go, most LR relays on older vehicles are pretty standard so you maybe able to change it out with another and see what happens. Finally to rule out the starter itself you can try shorting out between the 2 big terminals on the solenoid attached to the starter, do it carefully and briefly with a screwdriver or spanner being careful not to contact anything else, it WILL get hot very quickly and WILL try and weld itself in place and possible spark quite impressively so careful and brief is the way to go.
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