I'm working on this Doll engine but I'm stymied. I am unable to remove the drain valve from the boiler. It is loose but won't come out. It does not seem to be threaded like the other fittings. The valve itself is frozen. This is my first crack at fixing up a vintage engine. What do I use for replacement gaskets? Any other tips are appreciated.
[ Guests cannot view attachments ] [ Guests cannot view attachments ] [ Guests cannot view attachments ]
Well, if it is loose, you have to remove it - sometimes you have to use force.
Later, you can make a new threaded bushing and solder it to the boiler. Another
option is to desolder the lid of the boiler and repair it from the inside. Anyway, you should be a good craftsman.... this is not easy peasy. You may also try to use heat on that drain cock.
I could do it for you but unfortunately I do not live around the corner.
Good luck, Arnold
There is one method that will work:
Use a large wire cutter pliers and try to get under the loose collar of the valve.
Then try to cut but dont cut it off...
Repeat this at different angles to get the neck thinner until it comes out of the boiler.
Always hold the backside of the pliers tight against the boiler to prevent bending out the hole.
The valve will finally come out... the worst that can happen is that the inner soldering ring of the valve may get loose and will fall into the boiler. Usually you can cold the boiler overhead, pick the ring with a needle nose pliers and bend it that it will come out through the same hole...
I don't have any better advice as those given before.
After a longer discussion in another forum, I decided against de-soldering the boiler end-cap. I was given a lot of reliable advice on how to do it and even managed to de- and re-solder the end-cap of a disused boiler, but I was not sure how much damage I would inflict on the boiler of my Carette 105 overtype... Lucky enough, the drain tap (a comparable case: no handle, tap stuck, the whole fitting turning but not coming off...) miraculously could be screwed tight (great sigh of relief...).
So if you would like to de-solder the end-cap, I could even share an "educational video" with you provided by Walter in W. Australia...
You see, not much help to offer, but I can really feel with you...
Jim, are you simply trying to turn it and it just spins? I've seen where there is area
between the threads and the valve body base that has no threads. I would pull outward
as you are unscrewing it, might get the threads to catch, and I've even slid the tip of
a blade screw driver or two under that lip and applied a little pressure down on the
handles so tips (I hate word pry) want to come up.
After a few days of study and repeated attempts to unscrew the valve with pressure, or remove it by heating it, I decided on a solution. I was able to free up the valve handle itself so that it works using heat and penetrating oil, so that problem was solved. I worked some emery paper between the valve base and the boiler and polished up the valve. Then I soldered the valve to the boiler. Perhaps not the most elegant solution, but the boiler is so nice, with a beautiful patina, I couldn't see disturbing it. So the valve works and should not leak. I think I've turned the corner with this sweet engine.
[ Guests cannot view attachments ]
[ Guests cannot view attachments ]
[ Guests cannot view attachments ]
good job - that's a working solution
and it does not look too bad
the soldering is well done
Arnold
Right, a solution that brings it back to working condition but which is easily removable...
Looking forward to seeing more of this restoration!