The pressure gauge is mounted to the top of the level gauge in the original which means that it has to be 'outside' the case. This is an expedient method but personally I find it a little too "steam engine" in an otherwise minimalist design. The advantage of exterior mounting it is that it is much easier to take off as the part that it mates with is fixed. With my mounting method, attaching the copper line directly to the gauge is more of a hassle. OTOH it isn't like you have to take the case off once a day...
I installed the SSR and slapped a coat of rust paint on the frame. This was also a case of expediency as the frame will be powdercoated. I just lost my patience with the rust. Amazing stuff that paint, you could almost put it on with a spoon and it will still level itself out...
A quick update on the progress of the sheet metal.
Months ago, when I ordered the cold-rolled steel for the frame, I neglected to actually measure it when it was delivered. I therefore missed the fact that the supposed 1/8" x 2" was in fact 1/8" by 2 1/4". As a result, the base of the frame was a 1/4" too high meaning that the hole in the backsplash for the group didn't line up with the flange on the boiler. I cutout and remade the cross bars, cleaned up the (now rather beaten-up) frame uprights and put everything back in its place.
While doing so, I welded on a couple of tabs to keep the backsplash in place. The tabs, together with the last interior flanges of the cover create a track for the backsplash to slide into.
The tab clamped in place before welding.
The cross bars must be set back by at least same distance as the tabs. A scrap of 3/8" bar plus a brass shim create the necessary thickness.
Back to where we started!
Now for the fun part! I made a change to the design because I was unhappy with the placement of the pressure gauge. There is just enough room to fit the gauge and a u-bracket between the upright and the exterior of the cover.
This gauge is both easier to read in this position and is now flush to the exterior surface. Far more satisfying all around.
I knew there was a reason to put a coil in the line to the manometer! It was an easy job to reshape the existing part and to re-orient the coil so that the condensate runs back into the boiler.
AND... just because I like to feel like I've achieved something today, a test fit of the case parts with (yet another) valve.
Hmm. This thing is starting to look vaguely like a coffee machine.
Before I go on with the plumbing, I think we need to get LRF equipped. I haven't sourced the final LRFs yet, so I looked through the LRF drawer and found some temporary ones. First, drill and tap some holes in the corner plates.
I have a little set of blocks with holes sized exactly for the tap that serve as guides to keep the holder perpendicular to the workpiece.
Not the best photo, but we are now officially Little Rubber Feet equipped.
First up for plumbing is the sump. This plastic part is a huge improvement over the cast-metal one in both of my machines. Both of those are tiny and often silt up with grounds. Appart from being perhaps eights times the size, this one also has a large outflow.
A quick hole in the side and the expansion valve can be attached. I'm not going to bolt the sump in place until I have the rest of the lines sorted out.
A month has flown by but there has been some progress on a number of fronts.
First up, the frame. This $150 (Canadian!) bender from Princess Auto (Harbor Freight's distant cousin) is actually capable of working to a surprisingly high tolerance. It is one of those this-looks-simple-so-why-can't-I-figure-it-out tools. After reading, re-reading, re-re-reading and then finally throwing away the manual I looked on YouTube to find similarly baffled owners. Once you do figure it out though, it will produce parts with two bends in this 1/8th cold-rolled stock to within 1/16th of the desired dimensions.
Vertical posts tack-welded and clamped to the two parts of the base of the frame.
Setting the cross bars that carry the boiler in place and the corner braces to which the feet will also be attached.
Test fit of the boiler (which still has its square pressure-test plate on until I finish the actual boiler plate).
Getting metric rectangular tubing seems like a foolish endeavour, so this part of the project will use North American standard materials. I got a 20' length of nice 1/2 x 1 1/2 x 0.065" wall tubing
Also, 12' lengths of cold-rolled 1018 steel in 3/8" x 3/4" and 3/8' x 1". Working 1018 is such a pleasure after wrestling with that stainless!
Cut to length and cleaned up. A few more things to do here before they can be welded together...
