|
|
|
|
Click Photo For Enlargement (82 Kb) |
|
|
|
|
|
|
After cutting the drive and idler wheels on a band saw and boring them out
on the drill press I found that the wheels weren't perfectly true. So I
made up this jig to true the idler and drive wheels to their shafts. The
jig holds a shaft, and thus, the wheel parallel to the saw blade. The blade
is raised about an 1/8" at a time into the piece which is then rotated
around 360 degrees. Keep doing this until your done. Works great!
|
|
|
Click Photo For Enlargement (88 Kb) |
|
|
|
Click Photo For Enlargement (93 Kb) |
|
|
|
How I clamped the wheel jig to the tablesaw.
|
|
|
|
|
I made rubber friction belts out of rubber bungee cords. The ends were cut
at an angle (scarph joint) and glued with Goop brand cement. I used brads
and more Goop to attach the rubber to the drive wheels. We'll see how well
the glue holds up after a few Tiger hunts!
|
|
|
Click Photo For Enlargement (29 Kb) |
|
|
|
Click Photo For Enlargement (35 Kb) |
|
|
|
Here's a close-up of my drive and idler wheels. I used the nylon spacers
shown on the bottom as bushings for the wheels. The idler has two bushings
and I used four in the drive wheels. They seem to work well but we'll see
how they hold up after a season of battling.
|
|
|
|
|
This is a piece of prototype track that I built a while back with an idler
on top of it. My track system consists of belting (treadmill belt) with
inner and outer maple track pieces. Alternating inner pieces have those
teeth that keep the track on the wheels, just like on the original T34. The
wood is glued to the belt and then everything is through nailed (tell the
wife air nailers and a compressor make for a great Christmas gift!).
|
|
|
Click Photo For Enlargement (37 Kb) |
|
|
|
Click Photo For Enlargement (88 Kb) |
|
|
|
30 year old seasoned Rock Maple in the form of an old butcher block that I
saved from a kitchen remodel job. I'm making my tracks out of this.
|
|
|
|
|
Tablesaw! Another great gift idea! If your looking for a tablesaw in the
$500 range, I highly recommend the Jet brand of 10" contractor saw. Dollar
for dollar you get a much better tool when compared to the Craftsman brand
and it comes with a decent fence. It even comes with a sealed fan cooled
motor unlike the open frame motors on Craftsman.
|
|
|
Click Photo For Enlargement (101 Kb) |
|
|
|
Click Photo For Enlargement (95 Kb) |
|
|
|
T5 needs 52 toothed track pieces. You first mill out the angled splines and
track pieces. After you glue and nail them together you get these neat
looking items.
|
|
|
|
|
Step two in making the toothed pieces. A miter saw is used to separate the
pieces. The blade is set to 10 degrees.
|
|
|
Click Photo For Enlargement (78 Kb) |
|
|
|
|
|
|
