Smalley Restoration
A small site about my digger restoration.
Progress to date
It lives!
The first task was to assess the machine and move it from where it had been moth balled to somewhere that it could be worked on. On intial inspection it became clear that the boom ram was quite rusty, as was the cab with the interior also being perished and one of the side window missing, the machine hydraulic tank only had oil upto the suction filter, but otherwise it appeared in salvagable condition.
In order to move the machine it was going to be a lot easier if it could be got running, so a drum of hydraulic oil was bought and after cleaning the suction strainer (rude not to given the tank was empty) I added the bare minimum to gett it going, dressing the worst of the rust of the ram rods and with the fuel the tank we set about trying to start it. Half an hour later and with some diesal into the air intake, we had life. It took a moment to get it out of the hole it was in but with a bit of help it got there and after pumping up the one slightly soft tyre, it was on the back of the landrover in the farm yard! Then we pressure washed it a lot, twice, and took out the wet foam interior.
Thank you Mac for your digger driving and for taking in turns to swing on the handle until it came to life. Thank you Premier Fuels in Stoke for having some oil in stock and staying open long enough I could get there after work!
Referbished Parts
As was known, the boom ram had to be referbished, this was done locally by GKN Driveline using a contact from a colleague. They where able to collect the ram, do the work and return it, the price was around the same as number of companies I found online but the postage was saved and I knew they would do a fair job given the recomendation.
For £160+vat they replaced the chrome rod with a new one, welding it to the existing eye-end and machining it to suit the piston, which was polished, the cylinder bore honed, the bronze bush in the gland nut replaced, put back together with all new seals, and painted, done.
It has also been found that the slew motor leaked heavily, left was fine but right causes it to poor out of the seals. It to went to the company who did the ram but I was told if its getting to the shaft seal there are more serious issues, seals are £60 including the labour, and while an origanal Danfoss makes the eyes water, a new 'pattern part' is £160+vat like the ram. One of them then please!
The lift/lower service of the valve block that went with the rusty ram is also slicking somewhat, which is had been doing since before I first started the machine. However as I had hoped a good clean appeared to remove whatever contamination (chrome flakes....) was causing the issue and solve it, bonus as otherwise that could have got costly as well!
Putting it back together
After repainting the boom has now been put back on the machine, with the newly referbished ram and is ready for use once the valve block is returned and the slew motor fitted. The colour is lighter than the rest of the machine and the old oxidised paint, as well as some of the photos I have of the WRG machines at work, however it matches one of the ealier photos I have, and looks the part, so I am happy with that.
Seat renovation
The seat was badly aged as with the rest of the interior and new wooden panels had to be made including laminating a new rear as this was curved. These where then recovered in a simular way to previous and installed back into the repainted frame and the newly painted cab chassis.
Whats next..
With the machine largely proven as working the next task is to repaint the remainder of the machine to match the newly repainted boom and get some decals made up to re-appply to the boom and chassis.
I would like to reskin the cab at come point as the current paneling has quite a lot of holes, after which new foam interior can be added, which would improve the sound levels cab! However the main frame is sound and the machine works, so for now the cab remains unrestored.
The engine also suffers from poor starting still, and is likely more than due an overhaul, so that may well go to Marine Engine Services (Midlands).
Hope in the new year it will be lent and or contracted out for other light work and also hopefully taken to some shows such as Great Dorset and to the Ashby Canal festival, maybe Lymm Transport show.
## Update ##
We are booked into GDSF 2016, see you there.
Removing the boom
Given the boom ram had to come off and the whole machine wants a good paint all over, the decision was made to take the whole boom off. With no lifting equipment to hand this was simply removed from the bucket backwards, by knocking each pins out, capping off the hoses and taking the rams off as I went, and peice by peice lifing it off or dropping it onto tyres.
All in all, taking it to bits only too around an hour or two, and even the extra long boom can be manhandled alone and lfited with two people which if nothing else means it should be fairly managable to put back together.
Painting
After some deliberation over the colour, and how best to match 'Woolworths Poppy Red' 2.5l of Dulux MetalShield was bought and mixed to the BS4800 'Poppy Red' which will be put on over Dulux MetalShield high-build zinc phosphate primer.
The paint was very poorly adheared and or perished and there was quite a few areas of rust and pitting, so the bulk of the paint was removed with a needle scaller before sadning to bear metal with a flapwheel on an angle grider. All degreased with panel wipe, rust-coverted with Vactan, primed with a thick coat of the phosphate primer, a very mild amount of filling and fairing of the main external surfaces and two coats of top coat, all applied by brush to give the 'WRG' period look.
Cleaning the Hydraulics
Given the state of the suction filter, and the fact the oil clearly has some water in it, the next step was drain all of the oil from the tank, sucking out the last bit and then washing by part filling with diesel agitating the dirt by rocking the machine and towing it over some rough ground a few times.
The lift ram spool which was sticking slightly as been removed from the valve block for inspection, flushed clean and returned. All hoses and rams where drained when removed and then flushed before fitting.
Time for a test run
Once everything was back together it was time to fill up the machine and go digging. Intial trials where good, a slightly weep from the loadhold check valves within the valve block, and a weep from the suction strainer (that will be why the tank was empty then) but otherwise good.
The machine was then put to work digging out some foundations for a neighbour and earnt a small fraction of its keep back again. After its first days work the only casualty was the rubber joint on the diesel leak-off pipe which was replaced with ease.
I have also secured loan of a trenching bucket from which at pattern can be made, and also have purchased a 9 inch bucket of another machine for £15 which would work well if the pickup points where re-spaced to suit the Smalley fitting but the genuine Smalley item looks much more the part! Thankyou Ashton Packet Boat co for the loan.
