Olympia Maximatic rebuild thread - Page 5

Equipment doesn't work? Troubleshooting? If you're handy, members can help.
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bluesman
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#41: Post by bluesman »

roadman wrote:Get a set of metric wrenches! They don't cost much. At the very least get a 15mm and 17mm. You'll also need some smaller sizes like 8, 9 and/or 10mm. Adjustable wrenches can slip and cause problems.!
...and buy good ones. Inexpensive wrenches are made to looser tolerances out of inferior materials, so they don't fit as closely and have less surface contact with the fastener than good ones. Worse yet, the weaker metals let them deform under pressure, so the contact patches become angled relative to the flats on the bolt or nut as you exert more force (which is being transmitted through a fraction of the intended contact patch). The rustier, more corroded, tighter, and more beaten up a fastener is the more you need a good wrench to get it loose without stripping or otherwise damaging it. And once you round the corners on a hex, you escalate the removal game to a whole new level you'd much prefer to avoid.

Similarly, good adjustable wrenches are less likely to slip back once set. I don't advocate adjustables in general - but every once in a while you need a second wrench, and many fasteners are readily removed and replaced with a good adjustable. I have an excellent set of 3 that have served me well for many years. But as Roadman says, you should use properly sized box or flare nut wrenches unless the fastener is pristine, not too tightly torqued, and readily accessible.

I've been surprised at how few people know what a flare nut wrench is. They're very useful on espresso machines because of the missing flat in the hex - you can slip them over tubing and still get good contact with the fastener.


OldNuc
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#42: Post by OldNuc »

Is that the part that bolts to the part with the cracked bolt hole? If so check the alignment of the 2 raised areas and if they line up then the original seal was a flat sheet gasket made of a fairly rigid material. You have lots of choices but stay far away from any elastomeric material or plastic that creeps under pressure. The cork- rubber blend gasket material would work but is marginal. This would work. http://www.mcmaster.com/#standard-gaskets/=yrjmer This is an example.

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erics
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#43: Post by erics »

I would go here and simply buy a new part:https://www.cerinicoffee.com/olympia-ma ... 551-00-00/ .

Skål,

Eric S.
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E-mail: erics at rcn dot com

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drgary
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#44: Post by drgary »

I don't think that's the part that is broken. The cracked bolt holes are the flange that it mounts to on the boiler itself. All of those holes look torqued. It's amazing the damage that can be done when someone doesn't know what they're doing. Look, Ma, no gaskets!
Gary
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What I WOULD do for a good cup of coffee!

HBfencing (original poster)
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#45: Post by HBfencing (original poster) »

drgary wrote:All of those holes look torqued. It's amazing the damage that can be done when someone doesn't know what they're doing. Look, Ma, no gaskets!
How true! To make matters worse the eBay seller told me that by taking the machine apart I made the machine inoperable and will never again achieve the proper seal. Problem is there were no seals to begin with.

I called Cerini's and well they don't have any used boilers. Unless I can get a local welder to hook me up and someone else to retap the threads I'm out of luck. Other option is I get another parts machine on fleabay with an intact boiler.

HBfencing (original poster)
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#46: Post by HBfencing (original poster) »

OldNuc wrote:Is that the part that bolts to the part with the cracked bolt hole? If so check the alignment of the 2 raised areas and if they line up then the original seal was a flat sheet gasket made of a fairly rigid material. You have lots of choices but stay far away from any elastomeric material or plastic that creeps under pressure. The cork- rubber blend gasket material would work but is marginal. This would work. http://www.mcmaster.com/#standard-gaskets/=yrjmer This is an example.
Thanks OldNuc. I think I can get the proper gaskets from Cerini's. They can also do a boiler repair although they sub it out and couldn't give me an exact number on what it would cost to have the flanges brazed and the one hole retapped.

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erics
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#47: Post by erics »

I don't think that's the part that is broken.
You're correct . . . my error. In any event, it does look like a nice assembly for the $ .
Skål,

Eric S.
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E-mail: erics at rcn dot com

HBfencing (original poster)
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#48: Post by HBfencing (original poster) replying to erics »

I wish it were that easy. I agree it's a nice assembly for the $'s. Hopefully I can get the lower right and left flanges brazed and the one on the right re-tapped. I'll be able to find someone but it's just going to be frustrating calling around, dropping it off/picking it up and getting someone to actually do the work.

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drgary
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#49: Post by drgary »

HBfencing wrote:How true! To make matters worse the eBay seller told me that by taking the machine apart I made the machine inoperable and will never again achieve the proper seal. Problem is there were no seals to begin with.
I believe your photos and a reference to this thread will reveal that you were sold a defective machine so that it is not "as described." This looks like it's worth filing with eBay's purchase protection program. No way did you render the machine inoperable by carefully disassembling it, discovering that there were no gaskets and someone who had the machine before you had overtightened and done serious damage.
Gary
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What I WOULD do for a good cup of coffee!

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bluesman
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#50: Post by bluesman »

HBfencing wrote:I wish it were that easy. I agree it's a nice assembly for the $'s. Hopefully I can get the lower right and left flanges brazed and the one on the right re-tapped. I'll be able to find someone but it's just going to be frustrating calling around, dropping it off/picking it up and getting someone to actually do the work.
Having been an active restorer of vintage race cars for many years, I can confidently suggest that you ask a few local shops who work on old cars, especially British and/or steam powered. That kind of repair is common both on frames (e.g. early Lotus 7 series 1 frames were braze-welded together) and water-containing assemblies from radiators to expansion tanks to catch tanks to header tanks to boilers. A real hot rod shop will also be able to do that easily and well, if they're willing to take it on.

If you can find a fabricator who's equally sympathetic and skilled, it looks to me like a straightforward repair. There's no better source of gasketing alternatives than a shop that builds rods or restores old cars, so you can probably find good gasket material there too, along with fasteners in any thread, size and material imaginable.

I don't know where you are in NJ, but there are some wonderful shops there like Hibernia (in Hibernia...). Even an old-fashioned radiator shop can probably do that repair easily and well - they use low temperature joining and repair processes of all kinds on very delicate assemblies.