Hi Andrew,

Some of ideas to look at/think about:

1. ideally the shaft should be hard, but just as important the shaft must have an excellent finish, preferably ground. It will likely work unhardened (at least for a while) if it has a good smooth surface. Ground, hard stainless shafting is ideal.

2. is the shaft dry? if there is too much oil on the shaft the clutch's rollers may skid rather than drive.

3. is the pump outlet open? will it pump oil if you rotate the shaft by hand? (if the pump outlet is clogged, the pump will be hydraulically locked and type of drive clutch or ratchet drive will not matter – it will not pump).

4. roughly how many degrees is the pump lever swinging through? ideally it should be at least a 20 deg swing, 30-45 deg would be even better, for clutches or ratchets.

Hope these things help.

JD

Edited By Jeff Dayman on 13/04/2012 17:27:30

Hi Andrew,

Not sure what brand of clutch you are using, but Koyo are one brand and have some handy engineering literature at the link below.

http://www.koyousa.com/brochures/pdfs/cat113ex.pdf

They do mention some h8 to h10 shaft tolerances for their clutches, which are pretty small tols. If you let me know the nominal shaft size you have I can tell you exactly what the h8- h10 limits would be for it. However, this may not be exactly applicable to your clutches unless they are Koyo.

In industry I have specified many of these clutches and they do work well if the shaft surface condition and size are exactly as per manufacturer's recommendation. Unfortunately in the live steam world the clutches are often sold like wood screws ie " here's one for 1/4 shaft and here's one for 5/16 shaft" with no shaft spec tolerance and finish data along with them, so people sometimes get in trouble. To make them work well you need to know the clutch manufacturer's recommended shaft sizes and finish. If you buy them from a proper industrial bearing or drives shop at least you will know the model and make and can look up the engineering literature online.

Does you clutch have any markings? you may need a magnifying glass to find them, but usually the clutches have a maker's mark on the side rim, and a part number. If you Google these, you may be able to find shaft spec data for your specific clutch online, and work to that.

JD

Andrew,

I had problems with a commercial lubricator I bought a couple of years ago. It used a hardened steel shaft with roller clutches, and was unreliable. I fitted new clutches but it still failed. The shaft was only supported on one end were it passed into the tank. It was tilting when the pump plunger was forced down by the cam. I made a new shaft from silver steel which I hardened right out. I also drilled a hole in the other side of the tank, in line with the original bearing. The new shaft went right through both holes and was supported at both ends. The tank material was thick enough to use as a bearing so it was an easy job. It's worked fine ever since, and the feed is easy to vary if needed. I emailed the manufacturer to explain the problem but had no reply.

Hope this helps

Regards, John.

what is happening to your lubricator is normal after they have been working for a while , it is the rollers inside the clutch that are gummed up with thick steam oil so it is not working as it should . to solve this problem all you need to do is wash the clutch's out with parafin or similar cleaners

robert

Andrew,

The angle on mine is 16.5 degrees. it is the large Steam Fittings lubricator, and this is the minimum it will work at reliably. there is no problem with the clutch running in oil so far, maybe the type of oil affects this. I think any misalignment of the clutches is the main cause of problems.

Regards, John.