Making and attaching a towbar for the 1/20th scale Burrell traction engine. This is definitely not something for the caravan holiday. Although, the multiple attachment points might help a few people with maneuvering a trailer. Seriously, the multiple points are quite common on tractors as they allow you to pull a trailer with an offset tow arm. The are also good for pushing a trailer into a confined space in the yard.
The towbar was machined from a piece of 1/4 inch square brass rod. The slot down the centre is 4mm wide and the six rivet holes positioned around the towing holes.
Aligning the towbar and marking the rivets. Best done with a granite surface table and a simple height gauge. Plus of course my simple alternative to engineers blue, a permanent marker.
The height gauge is something I made when I was 11 or 12 years old and one of the first things I made with the Emco Unimat 3. I think the design was in the Unimat book of things to make.
The riveting process and use of the anvil I made for the vice are best described by this short video.
Towbar fitting was quite easy. The most difficult part was the alignment left and right. Also brass rivets are a bit of a pain as they work harden so quickly. Resulting in the domed heads being a bit uneven.
The homemade hardened silver steel rivet punch works really well. Made from 4mm diameter silver steel it was a good fit in the slot in the towbar. However, I do need to polish out some of the bruising to the brass.
The towbar for the 1/20th scale Burrell is in place. Just needs a towing pin to finish it off.