TheoRockNazz Posted March 31, 2013 Share Posted March 31, 2013 Howdy, I'm new to this section, usually over in knife making, but you guys are the best bet for such issues. I'm over at Marsha Trattner's forge in Red Hook, Brooklyn New York City, and she recently bought a 50lb Little Giant powerhammer. It wasn't in the best shape, but it's getting there. Our current issue is that the clutch won't let go once engaged. The lever has always needed a solid kick to get started (I had known the previous owner and used it beforehand), but now the friction created in the clutch is too much and it doesn't disengage. It's oiled, and when I turn it off the clutch comes out, so when it starts again I have to step on the pedal. I have two pictures of the hammer off, clutch disengaged. The inside of the flywheel has some oil, the wood pads are pretty clean looking to me. I have little experience with powerhammers, I used to some well maintained (and very old) powerhammers in the UK last summer, and that's it. Any input or suggestions would be appreciated. Apologies for my wrong terminology. If all goes well, maybe we'll have a hammer-in :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MLMartin Posted April 1, 2013 Share Posted April 1, 2013 Well one thing I would recommend is mounting the spring on the clutch arm. Have the spring pulling the arm straight back. Having the spring mounted on the treadle and pushing up through all the linkage is a poor design. I do not know why little giants were originally set up this way. I mounted my spring on the clutch arm pulling down. I have a center clutch model. I welded a bar off the clutch arm and have a spring pulling straight down rotating the arm and pulling the clutch away. The clutch action on my hammer is much more smooth now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
macbruce Posted April 1, 2013 Share Posted April 1, 2013 Well one thing I would recommend is mounting the spring on the clutch arm. Have the spring pulling the arm straight back. Having the spring mounted on the treadle and pushing up through all the linkage is a poor design. I do not know why little giants were originally set up this way. I mounted my spring on the clutch arm pulling down. I have a center clutch model. I welded a bar off the clutch arm and have a spring pulling straight down rotating the arm and pulling the clutch away. The clutch action on my hammer is much more smooth now. I couldn't agree more. When I rebuilt this 25 last year I got to thinkin' how lame the original hook up is so I decided to re configure it as you described here.....I just makes more sense. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peacock Posted April 1, 2013 Share Posted April 1, 2013 There is a grease zirk missing on the end of the main shaft. with out it you cannot grease the clutch bearing. if it is dry you may have the condition you describe. Put a zirk in the end of the shaft grease it turn the power on let it turn a minute to spread the grease then try it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Suboc Posted April 1, 2013 Share Posted April 1, 2013 Same here on my 100# hammer. No springs on the treadle, there are two heavy springs, one on each side of the clutch fork. You can also play with shimming out the clutch blocks, however I think the addition of springs up top sould resolve your problem. Once you get it releasing properly, make sure to eliminate as much slop out of the linkage/treadle rod as possible. The less slop in the linkage, the better controll you will have with the hammer. And like peacock said...before you do any of the above, you need to get a zirk fitting on the shaft and grease that thing. Good luck, Dan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob S Posted April 1, 2013 Share Posted April 1, 2013 I got to thinkin' how lame the original hook up is so I decided to re configure it me too.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Don Hanson Posted April 1, 2013 Share Posted April 1, 2013 There is a grease zirk missing on the end of the main shaft. with out it you cannot grease the clutch bearing. if it is dry you may have the condition you describe. Put a zirk in the end of the shaft grease it turn the power on let it turn a minute to spread the grease then try it. This is the first thing to fix! Lucky if the clutch bearing isn't worn out... Then look at the treadle/clutch return springs. Wood clutch block adjustment is another area to look at.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheoRockNazz Posted April 2, 2013 Author Share Posted April 2, 2013 Thanks so much everyone! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peacock Posted April 6, 2013 Share Posted April 6, 2013 You can put your treadle return spring anywhere you want, but make sure when the motor is running but the hammer is not striking the clutch collar is not tight on either side of the pulley groove ( it should rattle) if the spring pulls it tight you will wear out the shifting collar groove. The spring on the treadle allowed all the slack in the jionts to let the collar center it's self in the groove. The spring was adjusted so it would coil bind before putting pressure on the shifting collar. Think 'bout it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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