On 3 June 2026 at 11:52 Neil Wyatt Said:
How do you get the steam in?

Same way 360 excavators get hydraulic power to their tracks perhaps?

next step is to finish ap the cylinder and make it ready to take a piston and contra. At 32mm bore that’s going to be an interesting task.

Here’s a quick look at the cylinder test fitted into the rest of the crankcase…[Read more]

As per Bazyle’s useful note … you might find this worth watching

… It’s gently paced, informative, and softly narrated

.

.

MichaelG.

The World is a better place when people are happy

MichaelG.

Bazyle –

A pin rather than key (I’d imagined a rectangular block held with a screw). Trying to manipulate the collet and draw-bar suggests something loose needing wiggling with the collet, but a badly distorted pin might give the same results.

Alecs –

Gloves – and safety-glasses. In my teens I sometimes tried to “repair” old…[Read more]

Further to my last, I think making those two dimensions very long would simulate a solid valve rod and minimize or eliminate any vertical movement of the point “V”.

John

The next certification stage will take a while, as there is the Mower rebuilding work and some redesign of the power system and layout, partly to satisfy current compliance for public display. I’ll update when reasonable progress…[Read more]

I have never had a reason to use the #2 program in anger, all the simulations i have done over the years are for locos with the lifting link behind the exp. link or for Stevenson gear. Maybe someone else here who has used the program for a lifting link in front of the exp. link could comment?

At first glance, my gut feeling is to make…[Read more]

https://www.thebigorchard.com/parts-for-drawing-boards/

Dave

David

Regards Nick.

Proxxon MF70 accessories – USOVO

PROXXON – MF 70/CNC-ready

I like my MF70 in it’s base form, I think a lot of these accessories are stretching…[Read more]

On 3 June 2026 at 14:03 renardiere7 Said:
Jack, I have some TH cutters which are no use to me as I run a GH Alexander Pantograph. If they are any use to you give us a shout.

Thanks! But I have a lot of (mostly blunt) cutters:

On 3 June 2026 at 10:38 Michael Gilligan Said:
Jack

A man of your obvious ability could surely make a ‘D-bit’ rea…

[Read more]

There is an interesting ER 11 spindle conversion  shown on this page:

Proxxon MF70 Milling Machine

with a link to the supplier.

MichaelG.

I went to a post graduate teacher training college.  On the notice board was an advert for a “Teaching English for Engineers”  I added the almost same  graphio

“Yesterday I wasn’t an Engineer, Today I are one”   but extended it to say “Tomorrow I learn it to others.” and signed it cos I wanted them to know were arnt all fick

George

On 3 June 2026 at 11:43 Andrew Skinner Said:
 

Suspecting the collet chuck, I clocked in a length of silver steel on the lathe four-jaw, clamped on the collet chuck and measured the runout on its taper – 3 thou at the top, 1 thou at the base.

How do you know the internal taper of the (is it an ER?) chuck is concentric with the external 30 t…[Read more]

Always worth dismantling the Quill locking assembly, cleaning, lubricating and ensuring that both half’s can slide easily and smoothly through the housing bore, before delving deeper.

Martin

Spoiler on the flywheel progress

Suspecting the collet chuck, I clocked in a length of silver…[Read more]

To mark the occasion, we organized a Teen Skin & Hair Awareness Initiative focused on education and p…[Read more]

The high spots are very few, and tightening the drawbar will pull the external taper into the internal one.

As Apprentices, at Rolls Royce, we used INT 40 and 50 tapers, and no one ever suggesteted that we blued them; jut got on and used them.  And had no trouble, even when taking cuts 0.187″ deep x 5/16 or 3/8…[Read more]

A man of your obvious ability could surely make a reamer from the back-end of an existing cutter.

MichaelG.

Minor dia: 4.08mm

Major dia: 5.57mm

Length: 22.8mm

Taper Angle: 1.8715 degrees

Taper: 3.267 %

I don’t think I can get a reamer for that, or bore it… so maybe I have to shell out for an adaptor

The collet nut that came with my MF70 has 10 mm spanner flats in the lower knurled section. The nut does not seem to be hardened so it should be fairly easy to file the flats. I guess that there are actually…[Read more]

On 3 June 2026 at 08:13 jaCK Hobson Said:
Anyone know the taper angle on these cutters? My taper guage, which I thought would come in handy one day, is a little large.

On 3 June 2026 at 08:13 jaCK Hobson Said:
Anyone know the taper angle on these cutters? […]

Yes … the good people who make that nifty little adapter !…[Read more]