Kustom Kraftmanship Tee Dee

Hello Mike, the brass used for these needle is quite hard. I drill in a v-block. Here is my suggestion, I drill these with 1/16" cobalt bit. This type isn't required to drill brass and high speed steel works fine. The reason I do this is due to the initial bite I achieve when trying to drill on the radius. It just seems for me to prevent the bit from walking off. I use a new bit each time I make one of these. I drill stainless steel on a regular basis and have many of these on hand. Cutting these, I chuck them up in the drill press, obviously threads not in the chuck area and I use a fine razor saw held perpendicular to the needle and cut it while it's turning in the chuck. Don't cut all the way through and allow a tiny stem which will break off later. Drill the through hole for the needle. Place the needle back into the chuck and using a strip of fine paper about 3/8" wide (fine emery works well) clean the area just around the hole.

I stab the needle into a piece of balsa and screw it into the balsa slightly. I then clamp the balsa to my table upside down so that the solder joint is facing the floor. This prevents flux and solder from migrating to the fine threads. This is extremely important and can prevent a big headache.

Another neat thing I've seen is the slot car pinion gears used as a knurled knob. Just cool ideas that look and function terrifically as it keeps the needle out of harms way.

As for the aluminum bodies, I love them. I haven't had them leak as some have claimed. I also use a product during installation that also prevents any leaks. It's known as anaerobic gasket maker which dries only in the absence of air. It won't harden outside in the atmosphere and is service removable. It wipes right off and is designed for alcohol submersion and aluminum. This particular body has a Teflon o-ring against the case and a rubber o-ring on the drive washer side. I use these on foamy combat planes which allow me to stuff the plane into the ground without breaking the factory body. I've removed many from the ground only to reveal that the venturi and needle has been lost in the dirt. Ken

Ken,

thank you for posting your process. takes all the guess work for me.

Looks sharp Ken! Loving that NV mod. Thanks for posting the process!

Ron

Looking good Ken.
Shame you didn't get it into 'engine of the Month'.

Beautiful. I love the needle. I'm planning to shorten one. I wanted to do it before I go fly this afternoon but I'm out of time now. I have some TN bits and the 1/16" has never been used. I may try with that.

Anaerobic gasket maker?

Please discuss product name you use Ken. Is it the Permatex stuff?