Have you ever taken apart something, only to find that recording the disassembly would have helped tremendously in reassembling the part?
Oh, my goodness! Let me tell you about the most common situation which has repeatedly bit me in the rear end. When will I ever learn? Read the instructions. If no guidelines exist, film the disassembly of a mechanical part to assist when assembling the piece back together. Sounds simple right?
My adventure of taking apart a vacuum pump starts without instructions. Only to find out that recording videos on disassembly would have helped out very much.
I had anxiety. I was at work. For the last year, the Mass Spectrometer sat with a broken internal pump.
Each time that I walked down the hallway, the scientists who mainly use the instrument would ask, “Any word on the repair of the Mass Spectrometer Mike?”
My response, “We are still waiting on the funding…”
That was true for the first 11 months. That is until the funding became available and the service engineer came out from the company only to find that an external vacuum pump had seized up.
My thought, “Why did I not check the pump before he came to fix the instrument?” I was kicking myself mentally for the next two weeks.
How to Rebuild a Vaccum Pump?
I ordered a rebuilding kit. A kit with about 20 different o-rings, gaskets, and small springs. None of which I knew where they would go inside the vacuum pump. I had never taken a vacuum pump apart.
The service engineer from the company suggested that I watched a ‘YouTube’ video on the disassembly. That would have helped if there had existed one online. My search for a video revealed that every other model produced had a ‘YouTube’ — just not mine.
Solution: I figured I would follow a similar disassembly of a similar design. From the outside, the two pumps looked very similar in appearances.
On a parallel route of inquiry, I found the actual blueprint of the design from a manual. Problem: no instructions on how to disassemble. The diagram had the part expanded into about 100 pieces with lines and print in a ten font.
What to do next?
I figured, go for it. Be methodical in your disassembly of the pump. Line up all of the screws as viewed in the expanded version.
Sounds good right?
I mentioned above that I did find a video of the disassembly of a different model of the vacuum pump. The two looked similar from the outside. After watching the video, the disassembly seemed rather straight forward.
Upon loosening the first four main bolts, I realized that while the two pumps appeared to look similar, the disassembly was not the same at all. The four main bolts are located on the other side of the pump. Not to mention, they were difficult to access with a traditional tool.
Time for a break, I guess!
When I finally convinced myself that the vacuum pump would not disassemble itself — no matter how hard I tried to send mental signals from my office, I returned to the vacuum pump and re-engaged with the disassembly. I started taking bolts apart. Two halves of the vacuum pump fell apart and almost ripped a connecting wire apart.
How did I miss that connecting wire? And what does that connecting wire do?
Moving on, focusing on one half of the vacuum pump, I chose to disassemble the pump further. I was dead set on accessing the spin vane portion of the pump. I will not go into details.
But yes, the spin vane is responsible for creating a vacuum while a shat spins.
As I disassemble further, more springs and o-rings are appearing out of nowhere. Not nowhere, but I am not keeping track of them.
Right about now, I wish that there is a manual with instructions or some other online content.
Take a Break and Regain Composure
As I sit in my office taking a break, I have a vacuum pump disassembled to the point of near completion. A section of the pump — which is the most critical section is seized up.
I am thinking of that video which made the disassembly of the different model look so easy.
Why can’t my project be that easy?
Now, I think that the personnel on that video had rebuilt around a 1000 vacuum pumps before this rebuild. The video is spot on with instructions and patience, no of which I have at the moment.
I am thinking to myself, how could I have made this process easier on myself?
Maybe I should have used my ‘smartphone’ and filmed the disassembly?
Why did I not use my ‘smartphone’ to film the disassembly?
The most probable cause is that I was having anxiety associated with venturing into the unknown of disassembling a vacuum pump. Further, I was having a fear of hearing the scientists asking me the following question, “Mike, when is the company coming out to fix the Mass Spectrometer?”
Now, I have more anxiety. Why? Because I have disassembled the entire vacuum pump and was unable to fix the pump. The only solution from here is to call a friend or the company and plead for help.
Note to self: In the future, use your ‘smartphone’ to track your disassembly of such a part.
Index of past blog sites:
1) Dimensional Analysis Of Statistics And Large Numbers - Index Of Blog Posts
2) Science Topics, Thoughts, and Parameters Regarding Science, Politics, And The Environment!
No comments:
Post a Comment