T48 Build Thread

[Bruce Weldy]

Nice job. Why are you making the V-plate a full inch thick? It must be pretty heavy.

Probably because I put a bug in his ear.....

Mine are 1 inch - they don't droop in direct sunlight like a single 3/4 would. They aren't that much heavier, but the extra weight does keep the rattling at bay along with good tight clamps and weatherstripping.

[miked]

Yup, they are heavy. But, Bruce's plates are rock solid, so again I figured "Why reinvent the wheel?" Also, since the T48 plates are "that much bigger" than T39 plates, a little extra meat is good insurance in case someone sits or stands on them.

[Tom Smit]

Also, today was yet another reminder that I cannot use a damn circular saw to save my life. I've built sled after sled and I always wind up cutting into them and my cuts come out all wavy. Today was no exception.

Mike, is the base of your circular saw square to the blade? I had a similar problem on a B&D unit, but managed to adjust the brackets such that it became square.

[miked]

Hi Tom. I checked it visually and it looks square to me. Besides, there aren't any adjustments possible. The whole thing is welded together. It only tilts to the left up to 45-degrees, with a single wingnut to lock it in place. Other than that, what you see is what you get.

The whole saw is a barbarian from the past. It's a Skil-brand saw and it is 20 years old. It is louder than a DR300 at full tilt (I'd imagine it is, anyway) and it bucks and jumps and humms and is just generally unpleasant to use. Much like my Ex. Oh, I went there!

Anyway, I really need a new circ saw. Like I've already said, if the damn thing didn't have the most basic of uses I'd have junked it already. It's a power tool and if it is working, you never throw those away, no matter what. Thankfully, I am done building cabs for the forseeable future. The tops/subs I've built need to make me some money now and possibly down the road, we'll see about expanding the family. For now though, the cutting/gluing/nailing/sanding/painting is done. Well, almost anyway...IMMEDIATELY FOLLOWING the completion of these vplates, it's all done.

[Tom Smit]

Looking square does not guarantee square. Use a combination square to verify from the front of the blade to the rail side, and then slide it to the rear of the blade and measure to the rail side. It has to be exactly equal.
https://www.google.ca/search?q=combinat ... 24&bih=601

[Chris_Allen]

Are compression/air sanders better to use than electric?

[Bill Fitzmaurice]

Are compression/air sanders better to use than electric?

Air sanders use a lot of air, so you need a very large compressor/tank to run them.

[miked]

Hi Chris,

Just to expand on what Bill said, I have a fairly large, 30-gallon compressor that can deliver 6.4 scfm (standard cubic feet per minute) @90 PSI. When using the air sander, the compressor runs constantly, and after about a minute of continuous sander usage, I have to stop and let the compressor recharge the air tank. A dual-action air sander uses a LOT of air. When I move to a bigger garage I will probably build an auxiliarly air tank setup. Basically akin to those Transfer Flow 2nd fuel tanks you see in pickup trucks. More air storage = longer tool usage time before compressor kicks on.

That said, I will never use an electric sander again unless I have to. The air sander is 10x faster and changing paper is much faster too, at least for me.

I'm fitting the vplates to the T48s this morning and will finish up the wood working part of the vplates today. Dunno about getting painting started as we have some family plans for the evening.

[miked]

V-plates trimmed to fit over chevron corners, all edges rounded over and sanded down.





Later today I will get the alignment blocks installed and holes for the clamps drilled. May not get around to priming tonight, but definitely tomorrow. Almost there!

[miked]

Except for drilling the holes for the star-knob clamps, the construction phase of the v-plates is done.

Got the alignment stop-blocks glued/nailed on. In case you're wondering (I would) the line the blocks line up against is 1.5" from the edge. I plan on 1" of rubber weatherstripping (anti-rattle) there.



The little blocks are 3"x1.5" 1/2" BB. I cut them up from a long cutoff piece from my scrap can.


I throw almost nothing away. I even have a couple of boxes for small cutoff pieces. 2x4's, 1x3's, hardwood, crap plywood, baltic birch...there's a little bit of everything in this can.


Glued-up blocks will dry overnight. Tomorrow, I'll test-fit the plates on the cabs and get my locations for the clamps sorted out. Then it's just a few holes to drill and the painting will commence.

[miked]

Test-fitting the vplates. Success!



And some shots from underneath.



The only slightly depressing news is that I forgot that basically I used all my Duratex on the T48s. There is about 1/2" left at the bottom of the gallon I have. Good job, Mike.
I ordered a pint from Leland; it will have to be enough. I have half a gallon of black primer left; I will give the vplates 2 or 3 heavy coats of that. A pint of Duratex should be enough for 1 good layer on 2 vplates.

[miked]

At this point I've got two coats of primer on the v-plates (tops and bottoms). They look pretty good for just primer. As you know, the edges of plywood suck up a lot of paint. Even more so when the ply is not BB, but the "Lowes premium 1/2" plywood"...whatever the heck that is supposed to mean.






The Duratex I have on-hand is basically just enough for "dinged cab touch-ups" and not much more. Being that I've got just under a half gallon of primer left, and my pint of Duratex won't be here for a week, I guess I just keep slathering on the primer. My v-plates will be a full 1-1/4" thick by the time I'm done. LOL!

[Bruce Weldy]

They look great!

[Tom Smit]

Good job!

[Grant Bunter]

Looking great Mike.

In betwen yours and Bruce's, and the fact that my 1/2" ones have warped sitting in a hot truck (but still work just fine), I'm considering beefing mine up...