Member postings for Russell Eberhardt

My third edition is fine.

Russell

I was awarded a masters degree 48 years ago for research in artificial intelligence. Should never have started it - I hate things like Google Home and Alexa!

Grumpy Old Russell

For anyone having problems with translating .dwg files to .dfx there is a very useful utility called "ODA File Converter". It is a free download for Linux, Mac, or Windows.

**LINK**

https://www.opendesign.com/guestfiles/oda_file_converter

It will translate your .dwg or .dxf files to any .dwg form at from Autocad R12 to 2018 and to 21 different versions of .dfx.

Russell

Heating it a little helps. I have an idea to place a tray of etchant on the heated 3D printer bed and program the printer to an appropriate temperature and to give a gentle back and forward movement to agitate. Some experimentation to come.

Russell

I've done that for years. Try it! I think it's because the centre of push on the handle is higher than the blade teeth. So if the teeth catch the push makes them dig in more. If pulling to cut the pull tends to lift the teeth if they catch.

. . . or perhaps it's because I have Swiss ancestors

Russell

Edited By Russell Eberhardt on 06/04/2019 11:07:03

As someone who was actively involved as a UK representative on EU standards committees and UK expert on various working groups in the EU before retirement I can confirm that Andrew is correct.

As far as EU Directives are concerned, they are not aimed at individuals or even manufacturers. They direct national governments to enact certain legislation. Thus you have to refer to and conform to the UK legislation.

It is illegal to CE mark anything that does not require it.

Russell

IMHO that unit will be fine when connected via a fused 13 A plug. I would unplug it when not in use or when working on it. O.K. you might forget to unplug it but equally you might forget to switch any isolator switch off. Check that the NVR function is enabled by running the machine, unplugging and plugging in again.

Russell

Edited By Russell Eberhardt on 04/04/2019 09:21:06

Most, if not all dishwashers have a built in water softener and do a rinse cycle after the wash. The water softener needs salt to regenerate the ion exchange resin. Salt in the tablet will not do that. Rince aid ( a non foaming detergent ) is dispensed at the end of the cycle to aid drying. Again I doubt if putting it in the tablet will help.

I may just be a sceptic but I suggest that 4 in one or 5 in one tablets are just a marketing gimmick.

As an aside, a few drops of rince aid in water works wonders in the ultrasonic cleaner.

Russell

I'm with you there Brian. I've been using Autocad and then Draftsight since 1984, Autocad version 1.4 I think. It's difficult for this old dog to learn new tricks!

Russell

My copy is 2018 sp3 and works without an internet connection but comes up with a notice to say that news and community features will not be available. I bet it will stop working though!

It does seem very unfair as, although Qcad will read and work on simple drawings some of my drawings are virtually unuseable in Qcad as it confuses layers and uses different font styles and sizes for dimensions. Perhaps it will be worth exporting all my drawings in various dxf versions before Draftsight goes tits up.

On the other hand perhaps some kind hacker will come up with an unlocked version that will keep working.

Russell

In addition to stopping the free version they are stopping support for Linux and MAC.

Russell

Start capacitors are ac rated. That means they are rated for up to the stated RMS voltage. So, in principal one marked 230 V ac is OK however it is always a good idea to have some extra safety margin.

Russell

If you're going to hold a milling cutter in a three jaw chuck it's a good idea to interpose some brass shim between the chuck jaws and the end mill. The cutter will be much less likely to slip. I did this for many years, milling in the lathe before I bought a mill.

Russell

The problem with the diamond tile drills is that they don't have a point. The end is cylindrical so it is very difficult to hold in position by hand.

Dust isn't a problem for the suction cups but they can be difficult to locate with joints between tiles or previously drilled holes which, by sod's law are just where you want to put the suction cup!

Russell

Needing to accurately drill six holes in the wall of our tiled shower area to fit a handrail and, finding that my 6 mm masonry bit had gone missing, off I went to our local DIY store. I was attracted by Wolfcraft kit of diamond drills and a drill jig like this:

I bought one and took it home, drilled the first hole which seemed to go well, measured the position for the next hole, set up the jig and drilled the second fixing hole - it was off position by about half the diameter of the 6 mm hole

A quick investigation showed that the drill bit shank was 8.9 mm and the hole in the yellow guide part was 9.52 mm. Furthermore, when the drill is just in contact with the tile surface, only 8 mm of the shank is within the guide. Add to that the fact that the fit of the guide in the body is nearly as loose and the tip of the drill bit can move by about 6 mm away from the centre position. That's a bit much considering that the smallest drill in the set is 5 mm dia.

At least the diamond drills cut well sideways so I could finish the job by using the jig to start the holes by about 1 mm and then cutting sideways without the jig to correct the position.

Added to the To Do list - make a new guide from brass or bronze.

Russell

Hi John

The film I used was Mungolux

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Photopolymer-Film-Photo-Resist-Dry-Film-Photoresist-for-etching-pcb-gravure/262473322396?hash=item3d1ca10f9c:m:mLOaDla06VixMKAwTwhq5QQ&frcectupt=true

I cleaned the brass first with hot water and detergent to remove any grease then with fine wet and dry paper and water to remove any oxide (not sure if that is really necessary). I sprayed the brass with a fine mist of water before pressing the film in place, carefully removing all the water by rubbing the film with a soft cloth. I have had success on smaller parts using a domestic iron ironing it through brown parcel paper, but a laminator is more reliable. I guess small parts could be stuck to a sheet of paper with double sided tape to make them easier to feed.

Etched in a warm ferric chloride solution with the dial upside down on spacers so that any residue could fall out of the etched area. Occasional agitation and inspection was done to make sure all was going well.

Hope that helps.

Russell

I've used photoresist from Ebay to etch a brass clock dial on 1.5 mm brass sheet. I used an A3 laminator purchased cheaply from Lidl and ran the thing through the laminator twice to make sure of the adhesion. It was exposed using the sun for about 3 seconds to get even exposure as I don't have a light box.

There is a good guide to doing the job here.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ML37yRmAsOA

A couple of photos showing the developed resist and the finished product with the engraving filled with celulose paint:

Russell

Quite, all American lathes are specified by diameter as opposed to the British idea of specifying centre height.

The Atlas 618 actually has a 3.5 in centre height like the Myfords. It is a rather rare model in the UK as it was only sold in the US. You are much more likely to find the 5 inch centre height model10F in the UK as many were imported for war work and they were also built by a number of UK companies during and after the war.

Russell

Atlas lathes are somewhat under valued in the UK. They are very popular in the US. I bought my Atlas 10F in the early 1970s for £500 and would be lucky to get that for it now. It is like a big brother to the Myford 7 series, similar design but with 5" centre height, power cross-feed, and wider bed.

Russell

Old motors ran cool because the insulation available for the winding wire wouldn't stand high temperatures. Modern winding wire can stand higher temperatures so motors are designed taking advantage of that fact. Thus they are smaller and cheaper for a given power.

My old 1/4 hp grinder has a big, heavy motor and never gets more than slightly warm. The small cheapo grinder that I use with cup wheels and HH rest does get hot but has lasted for over 12 years so far.

Russell