This is Why They Don't Make These Anymore...

Here is a detailed breakdown of the content in Alec Steele’s video, "This is Why They Don't Make These Anymore...":

🛠️ The Challenge: Recreating a 119-Year-Old Steam Engine Spring

The project begins with a massive, worn-out 119-year-old coil spring taken from a 1907 Wallace & Stevens steam tractor ("Little Lauren"), owned by fellow YouTuber Norm from Vintage Iron UK [00:20].

The original spring had suffered a failed weld repair in the past [01:07]. Because modern coil springs are typically manufactured from round stock, Norm was unable to find any commercial shop in the UK willing to forge a heavy s

pring out of square steel bar stock [00:44]. Alec accepts the challenge to custom-forge a replacement capable of supporting the multi-ton steam engine [01:30].

📏 Material Preparation & Calculating Dimensions

Steel Alloy: Alec uses a 40 mm round bar of EN47 spring steel [01:39].

Cross-Section Target: The stock needs to be forged down into a 28.6 mm square cross-section [02:06].

Testing: Using a custom kiss block under his power hammer, Alec tests the bar transformation and lands within 150 microns of his target on the first try (28.74 mm) [03:08].

Stock Calculation: Based on volume calculations, 125

cm (49 in) of 40 mm round stock is needed to yield the required 170 cm (67 in) of square stock once drawn out [03:43].

🔨 Forging the Bar & Building Custom Tooling

Drawing Out the Bar: Alec uses his 1915 Massey steam hammer to draw out the round EN47 bar evenly into a square bar [04:02].

Lathe Mandrel: To wind the spring to an inside diameter of 58 mm [06:47], Alec turns a piece of heavy tool steel stock on the lathe with a slight taper to serve as a winding mandrel [08:39].

Bending Dog & Support Tools: Alec fabricates a specialized driving clamp ("dog") to attach the steel stock to the lathe spindle

[09:54], along with roller guides and levering arms to keep the hot steel tight against the mandrel during winding [10:28].

🌀 Coiling the Square Spring

Initial Winding Attempt: With the stock heated, Alec tries winding the bar around the mandrel on the lathe [11:59]. The extreme resistance from the thick steel causes the driving clamp to slip and twist off-center [12:15].

Adjustments & Torch Heating: Alec switches strategy, using a solid steel bar mounted in the lathe tool post to hold the stock down while using an oxy-acetylene torch to heat localized sections step-by-step as they turn the lathe m

anually [12:26].

Trapezoidal Distortion Issue: After sliding the rough coil off the mandrel [19:20], Alec discovers that bending the square stock naturally forced the inner edge to swell, creating a heavy trapezoidal cross-section [20:11]. This caused the inner edges of adjacent coils to bind together before the spring could function [19:57].

📐 Correcting Geometry & Pitching Coils

To correct the cross-section and geometry:

Compressing & Re-machining: Alec re-heats the full coil in his modified forge [18:17] and hammers it end-to-end against the mandrel to crush the trapezoids flat against one anothe

r and bring the outer diameter to the required 114 mm [21:44].

Opening Coil Gaps: Using chisels and custom wedge tools driven between the wraps [26:02], Alec opens up the pitch of the coils until reaching the required free length of ~167 mm [27:23].

🔥 Heat Treatment & Load Testing

Normalizing: The finished shape undergoes a normalizing thermal cycle in the forge (heating to ~830°C–850°C and air-cooling) to relieve internal forging stresses [27:37].

Oil Quenching: Due to the large thermal mass of the spring, Alec sets up ~100 liters of specialized quenching oil outside [28:16]. He reheats the spring

to its austenitizing temperature and plunges it into the oil bath [29:02].

Tempering: Immediately following the quench, the spring is transferred into a digital kiln to temper it back to a resilient, non-brittle spring hardness [29:29].

Hydraulic Press Load Test: To ensure safety before installing it on a 10-ton steam tractor, Alec subjects the spring to heavy compression cycles in his high-tonnage hydraulic press [30:30]. The spring handles full compression without cracking or permanent deformation, completing the restoration [31:09].

This is Why They Don't Make These Anymore...

Alec Steele · 1.3M