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Post by ronruble on Jul 30, 2013 20:54:48 GMT -5
2,137 miles - round trip to Texas... (I must be crazy) In the truck ready to leave Texas for Tennessee Home - on the work bench - ready to start
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Post by Chuckie on Jul 30, 2013 20:59:24 GMT -5
Hip-Hip, HOORAY!!! You GO Ron Ruble, and you MUST keep us up to date with pics!
Congrats, SOOOOOOOOO happy for you after all you went through!!! ;D
CHEERS! Chuckie
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Post by cinnabar on Jul 30, 2013 21:03:53 GMT -5
woot, woot, woot, Looking good.
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Post by karitx on Jul 31, 2013 12:09:03 GMT -5
Yay Ron! I can't wait to see it up and cooking!
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Post by pooka on Jul 31, 2013 14:04:36 GMT -5
Congratulations on the epic beginning of your effort to finally get your dream stove. I was getting worried you'd never find one like this. You've had so many false starts with your first two stoves being stolen, then your next two you picked up causing you so much exasperation, & finally the wrangling you did trying to figure out how to get that monster stove out of the basement of the Eagles Lodge.
I think you've driven more miles & gone through more aggravation than most all of us can imagine or put up with to get what you've been dreaming of. I think you've finally got the one that will make all your efforts seem worth it. I hope it's smooth sailing on a calm sea from here on out for you. I envy you, & I rarely say that. I look forward to hearing & seeing you go down the home stretch with this one. I'm sure the first thing you cook on it will be the sweetest treat of all. ;D
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Post by Chuckie on Jul 31, 2013 14:34:15 GMT -5
I think you've driven more miles & gone through more aggravation than most all of us can imagine or put up with to get what you've been dreaming of. LOL, Ron ' only' beat us by a mere 1127 miles for when we went to get the Imperial!! CHEERS! Chuckie
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Post by ronruble on Jul 31, 2013 15:34:47 GMT -5
Autostat parts photo lost- In the first week of June when I was talking to the lady about buying this stove, I found a detail picture showing all the internal parts to the Autostat. I used the picture to determine if all the internal Autostat parts were with the stove and it looked like all were there except for springs (in bag?). The plan was to use this parts blow-up photo for identifying the parts and use it to reassemble the Autostat.
Here is the PROBLEM – I cannot find the picture now! I am almost sure it was on the vintagechambers.org site under ‘Literature & How-Tos’. I found the general picture of the Autostat parts for the 5000 series ranges ‘Circa 1930 catalog (#306) of the Automatic Gas Ranges’ but this is not the one I am looking for.
Anyone sees the Autostat detail parts parts/photo please let me know. – Was any items removed from the vintagechambers.org site in June or July??
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Post by cinnabar on Jul 31, 2013 16:55:36 GMT -5
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Post by Chuckie on Jul 31, 2013 18:19:30 GMT -5
IF it isn't in what Cinn found, I'd bet a farm in Texas (or Kansas I guess since I'm there! ) that himself Mr. Pooka will know EXACTLY where it be! Man, I can't WAIT until you start tearing into this, I wanna follow along! CHEERS! Chuckie
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Post by ronruble on Aug 2, 2013 10:38:23 GMT -5
No... The picture was an exploded parts list view showing how it went together with part names/numbers. I looked at it only 7 weeks ago. I must have a bad case of senior moment, blond moment, gray moment or just plain CRS. Still looking.....
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Post by cinnabar on Aug 2, 2013 13:04:36 GMT -5
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Post by ronruble on Aug 11, 2013 17:04:55 GMT -5
Sorry, but that's not the one. The picture I'm looking for shows the internal parts of the Autostat Stove restoration up-date 11 Aug 2013 Ref info: Model 4541 G, serial number 09286 Started working on the hardest repair / restore first – The Autostat. (I’m still looking for the exploded view drawing of the internal parts of the Autostat.) This stove was hit hard sometime in the distant past and bent the control bar used to open/close the oven vent at the back of the stove. Removed the right side bottom cover and was surprised how complicated the springs/bars are for the Autostat are. Removed the back oven vent flue for repair (minor dent damage) and repaint. Original plan was to remove the steel bar, straighten, paint and reassemble. After much work (and broken drills) I finally got the one little pin out holding the end bracket on the bar. There are 2 pins in the bar holding the back oven vent door. I am afraid that if I hit the pins too hard I could break the thin cast iron flanges. So – plan B: straighten the bar on the stove. – I will try squeeze clamp the bar to bend it. Right side of stove with cover removed Bent bar at the back of the stove
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Post by ronruble on Aug 23, 2013 19:22:27 GMT -5
Stove restoration up-date 23 Aug 2013 Looks like I will not need to re-nickel brackets. Used 400 & 600 wet/dry with rubbing compound and that is working great. Good, cost savings – Bad is the 2 to 3 hours of hand polishing for each bracket. I have not disassembled the upper section of stove yet to remove the large long nickeled pieces – keep your fingers crossed
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Post by Chuckie on Aug 23, 2013 22:43:41 GMT -5
Lookin' SHARP, Ron!!! Keep up the good work!!! ;D
CHEERS! Chuckie
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Post by pooka on Aug 24, 2013 16:25:19 GMT -5
Sounds like a lot of work, but the result are great. ;D
I looked though my files a bit & can find no diagram of the Autostat parts. I can only find some pics of it. I need to do a more thorough search. I'll try to assemble what I've got & post them.
They are working me to death at work, & my sisters recent passing has made it difficult to find the energy, time & focus to concentrate enough to do much. They are having a ceremony next Friday to inter my sisters ashes. I will try to sit down & gather what I can find & post it.
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Post by ronruble on Dec 4, 2013 16:50:08 GMT -5
Polishing nickel plated parts These parts were re-nickel plated in satin finish about 30 years ago which means they were not polished after final plating (lucky me); so this allowed re-polishing to clean them up. They did not come out perfect but very acceptable for an 80+ year old stove. 1. Cleaned and washed the parts to remove 30+ years of gunk 2. Hand polished with 400 grit wet & dry paper (remove satin finish) 3. Used a brass wire wheel in drill to clean up rough areas and cast areas never polished by Chambers 4. Hand polished with 600 grit wet & dry paper 5. Re-polished with 600 grit wet & dry paper with chrome polish 6. Three coats of Turtle Wax Super Hard Shell Car Wax – (polished between each coat) 7. Probably will add another coat and puff with soft wheel before assembly on to stove Next section in eating my elephant is to disassemble the upper-section of the stove and try to clean - polish these parts. .. Cross your fingers this works
The old saying when trying to accomplish a large difficult project: "How do you eat an elephant by yourself? It is easy - do it one bit at a time"
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Post by vaporvac on Dec 4, 2013 17:51:41 GMT -5
I think they look better than new. Feel free to post "in progress" pics for thoe of us following along. A lot of work, but beautiful result. Congrats!
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Post by jhmack on Dec 5, 2013 20:05:30 GMT -5
Absolutely awesome, ronruble! Congrats on finding your Green Godess and Bravo on the nickel polishing. You must be, like, a zen master by now after all that meditative polishing...
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Post by chipperhiker on Dec 6, 2013 0:14:11 GMT -5
Looking REALLY sweet.
That is a beautiful stove you have there, Ron. I missed the original posting back in July. Love the warming boxes/ovens up top. And the color. Wow.
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Post by ronruble on Dec 8, 2013 14:12:05 GMT -5
Good news ;D I was not going to post anything about the stove until I got a lot more done but… I am tickled pink or should I say tickled Chambers’ green and shiny – All the nickel pieces in the upper section are going to clean up nice. NO Re-Nickeling required for the Stove! It will be a few weeks until I have them completely hand polished but they will be great. I don’t know if the gas pipes will clean up but I have no problem with having black painted gas pipes. The Scary news The nickel plated pieces below and above the broiler, across the front and both sides turns out to be only 2 large ‘U’ sections of metal. When I took all the screws out to remove these two parts – everything came apart. There was no frame under them – they were the frame. The upper section of the stove with broiler got a full CAT scan before I disassembled it. Scary – The pile of parts that was once the upper section of the stove. I hope I can remember how to put it back together (with the help of pictures I took)
The old saying when trying to accomplish a large difficult project: "How do you eat an elephant by yourself? It is easy - do it one bit at a time"
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Post by cinnabar on Dec 8, 2013 15:24:36 GMT -5
Nice cat scan, ;D Somehow I am not surprised the upper frame outer parts was the frame. Think how much heavier it would be it they doubled the framework. Sometimes less is more.
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Post by karitx on Dec 8, 2013 22:38:45 GMT -5
I'm impressed you have such sophisticated cat scan technology available!
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Post by sporko on Dec 9, 2013 10:39:48 GMT -5
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Post by faustina on Dec 13, 2013 8:59:49 GMT -5
If you'd like a "Lab Report" my neighbors need to rehome two puppies...
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Post by ronruble on Jan 18, 2014 17:24:01 GMT -5
Restoration Question: Gas pipes – tried to disassemble the gas pipes with no luck. One back elbow fitting came off (later add on to stove piping) but the others a TIGHT and will not move. If I beat them apart with a pipe wrench and hammer – it will make the pipes look real bad. So…. If I pressure test the piping at 60 to 80 psi for 4 hours for leaks and find none, would this be OK? I read that you should always take apart all piping and reseal with new gas sealant. What do you think – OK” as is” (& tested) or beat’m apart? Restoration Up-date: I have been working 10 hours a week (or more) on the stove but the only thing I’ve done is hand polished nickel parts. Yes – I have sore fingers but no re-nickeling required for the stove. Only have a few little parts to finish, 4 burner shutters, bracket from the gas pipes (removed today) and many be the gas pipes if they will clean up – if not – black paint. This stove must have been manufactured during the depression when they did not waste anything and took short cuts because of cost. Few of the pieces that I polished had rough grind marks still on the surface from when they were made by Chambers. Probably these parts were satin nickel finish and did not show up but now they are polished and can be seen. I used a brass wire wheel to shine the areas and I think these parts look fine for my stove. I hate to say this but my 80 year old stove is going to look better than I do…. No Chuckie, don’t post what you are thinking after you read that statement It is better looking in person than it does in this photo
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Post by cinnabar on Jan 18, 2014 20:39:19 GMT -5
I could not get the end cap off my gas line(on the far right), try as I might. The rest I got apart and resealed them, I pressured them up and all held no problem. If it pressures ok, and you feel alright about it,...? You won't know til you try. Maybe you will look BETTER than the stove when you are 80 . ;D
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Post by Chuckie on Jan 19, 2014 0:55:38 GMT -5
I could not get the end cap off my gas line(on the far right), try as I might. The rest I got apart and resealed them, I pressured them up and all held no problem. If it pressures ok, and you feel alright about it,...? You won't know til you try. Maybe you will look BETTER than the stove when you are 80 . ;D My M.I.L.'s stove was 'plumbed in'--in that there was NO UNION even--until we got in the basement. Now mind you she is on PROPANE---which I am TERRIFIED OF!!--but ALL the joints in the connections were MAXED OUT--in that they were TIGHTENED DOWN until you couldn't even SEE any more pipe threads!! And remember Ron, on NATURAL gas anyways, you're talking O-U-N-C-E-S of pressure, not POUNDS. Propane IS higher, but if that joint is THAT tight, come on... And NO, Ron, I will NOT comment on 'how' you look--as your only as old as you FEEL!!! 'Course if your mushy old self FEELS like a 'MARSHMALLOW", well---no further comment! CHEERS! Chuckie a/k/a Michellin Tire Bodied-Boy
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Post by sporko on Jan 19, 2014 8:37:18 GMT -5
Yeah, on those ounces...
I wouldn't pressurize that to 80psi. Gas is measured in inches of water... I'm not sure about natural gas, but propane is delivered at around 11 in H2O. That is a fraction of a PSI.
What holds perfectly at half a psi leaks terribly at 60psi. You might be opening up things you didn't want to open since you'd be a few orders of magnitude beyond its design limits.
I pressure tested my 90C at the lowest thing my compressor would measure... probably 1-2 psi. And I don't think you'll be able to measure that it didn't leak... just see that there is still pressure when you are done.
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Post by ronruble on Jan 19, 2014 19:50:04 GMT -5
Pressure test it will be – as-is. The pipes are screwed so tight that there is no thread showing. The test pressure - Tennessee (or the county I live in) has a gas piping test requirement of 60 psi minimum, sealed off and no pressure loss in 4 hours. Why they do this – I have no idea but it is the back hills of Tennessee I live in. Painting gas pips black or not – jury is still out on this one. I’m using a power brass wire brush on them in an effort to clean them up to an acceptable condition. Time will tell…
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Post by wannaredun on Jan 30, 2014 12:25:10 GMT -5
I'm with Sporko (and my husband, the brewer). Test it too high and you can blow out perfectly good unions. On his advice we have never pressurized the stoves separately, just hooked up the gas (ready to turn it off fast) and tested with soapy water. You can also use a mini propane tank if you have the right fittings. Yes, you can get a lower pressure tester if this is important, but...
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