| A contact in South Yorkshire bought
a sensibly-priced 2½" Paragon pump via eBay which turned out to be fine
externally but on examination was found to have no inlet valve, no plunger, a
rusted-through operating rod, and a badly pitted internal surface to the
barrel. Despite the challenge, he set about restoring the pump to full working
order. |
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Spares turned out to be
impossible to find, so the new owner went about making the parts himself. He
went to great lengths to ensure that the plunger remained vertical in the
barrel, and the resulting home-made assembly is shown below, ready for the
leather clack to be fitted. |
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| The solution to the problem of the
badly pitted barrel was first to remove all the loose rust from the internal
surface, using a round file. Next a layer of J-B "cold weld" epoxy was applied
with a stick and, once set hard, smoothed off with the round file. This process
was repeated in order to get the necessary smooth surface. The downpipe, flange
and inlet valve were all constructed, and there remained just one more small
problem - no water source. So - what else to do but dig a well? This was duly
done and the very smart result can be seen below. The total cost of the project
was £75 - I never cease to be amazed at the ingenuity of
folk. |
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