Wednesday 22 September 2021

Feeling empowered

Ok, so the Sun won't be asking me to write their front pages any time soon. The following will render  that last sentence understandable.

Some many months ago I was approached by my good boaty neighbour and friend Mandy as she had an issue with her generator. Turns out the choke lever had snapped off making a relatively new generator unusable. 

Problem was it had snapped off close to the top of the carb making repairs difficult ( any glue could easily glue the choke solid) and there was little to attach anything to mechanically. In the end sadly she had to buy a replacement. She said she was going to drop it by the bins at Norbury in case anyone wanted it for spares. As my grandad was a bin man and my great grandad something similar I naturally asked if I could have it to see if I could fix it as a 2kw genny at the cottage would be useful - we do get power cuts.

Anyhow it languished in the workshop up until yesterday when I was servicing the Honda genny we use on the boat ( I had removed it as petrol genny's and boat safety inspections should be kept well apart,) and it needed its annual oil change and filter clean. When that was done I turned my attention to the new but broken 2kw Screwfix generator.

I was able to remove the carb quite easily that enabled me to have a good look at the 'fix' challenge. Basically it appears the manufacturer fixes the choke in the carb on the shaft after inserting the shaft - meaning I cannot just replace the shaft. So I pondered the challenge and came up with something Mr Heath and Mr Robinson would have been quite proud of.... be aware there are a few mentions of the word 'shaft', yep I do indeed have that level of schoolboy humour.

Basically I took the multitool sander to the top of the broken shaft and leveled it ready for the drill.

Then I carefully drilled a 3mm hold down the centre of the choke operating shaft.

I then carefully selected a perfectly sized small bolt with a couple of nuts that would fit into the hole in the shaft.

Then I pondered for a lot longer - I needed some form of lever to connect to the bolt in the shaft.... 10 minutes later I raided the picture hanging box ( yes I do actually have such a thing) and fabricated a lever out of a brass picture hanging hook.

I then judiciously applied some Gorilla glue to the wet bolt ( you have to wet one surface to make the glue start foaming)  and inserted and waited for the  reaction and kept the glue from sealing the choke on or off.

I left it a few hours, put the carb and all the bits back together and on the third pull she fired into life  - how pleased was I not only gaining a decent cottage generator but more importantly stopping something from going to landfill.

I have agreed a liquid price for the old generator for Mandy we are both happy with (she wanted nothing for it ) 

But a picture is worth a thousand words or the 540 I have typed above.

Little and large




Works a treat ....


So onwards and upwards.... I have fixed the washing machine twice now and the fridge once  ( at home) so feeling so virtuous I'm off out to buy another motorbike !! ( Joke)  

3 comments:

Dave said...

Video is unavailable

Nev Wells said...

Thanks Dave - sorted now

Tom and Jan said...

Well done Nev