Thanks for all the replies....
Let me give some background to those who don't know me. I'm the machinist for the maintenance directorate at Fort Detrick, MD. I have to work closely with all of the departments and plants here on post. When the supervisor at the incinerator says he wants to icrease the life of his equiptment; then that's what we do. His dampers were made of mild steel and they were rotting away in 6 months. The dampers are now made if inconel and they still look as they did the day they were installed 12 years ago. Just dirtier....I want to make life easier on my coworkers who actually have to do the work in the field (which I have to assist with on occasion). Every job at the incinerator is dirty, nasty and hot. And, the millwrights hate to work there. Especially, in the summer.
The damper on the #4 incinerator is down at the moment, due to an explosion. Some fool put a 20 pound propane bottle in the trash and it slipped through and into the fire. The force from the blast broke the shaft that the damper rides on. I'm replacing the shaft with Nitronic 50 shafting. It was originally made of what looks like mild steel and it had been in there for about 3 years and about 1/3 of it's rotted away. Luckily, nobody was hurt. And it's been reasonably cool this week. Hopefully, when I get the new shaft made it will be raining when it's to reinstall the damper.
Repeat business is not the issue with most of what I do at work. I like to fix it right the first time. If, I can make things so they will double or triple (or more) the life of something; I'll do it. It means less of the nasty work for everybody else and gives us time to get the other work done.
I know, you're all thinking "lazy government employees". Sure, we have our share of those. But, we have a core group of dedicated people, too.
I appreciate all of your inputs.
Thank you,
Andy Pullen