Hi There

6 inch parallels will be fine.

regards David

You get what you pay for with parallels. Holding any two of my cheapo set together and up to the light is … err.. enlightening, unless I pick a pair where the curves match.

Andy

Hi Ronan

Try here

Probably not super precision – but not super price either! There again are you making parts for the aircraft industry? As with all things in life you get what you pay for. I have a set and find them OK for lots of things – they also have the advantage, useful at times, of being thin. As David says though 6", with a bit hanging out each end, will be fine.

Regards

Norman

When I purchased my first mill I made my own set of parallels following the method outlined by Harold Hall in his book "Milling a complete course" and I've been using them ever since. Easy to make in whatever size you need and much cheaper than bought sets.

Russell.

Before I got my curvaceous ones, I often used some steel box strapping that came round something or other. It proved surprisingly consistent in width, and got many jobs to the right height in the milling vice, where it would stand upright if a gentle bend was put on it. Had to be careful when tapping the work down on it, though.

Andy

I have some 1/4" quare stock that came out of an old dot-matrix printer; it appears to be ground to size, very accurate and I copped it up to make four parallels. Only one size, but very handy.

Neil

For single spacers the outer ring of old ball races are fiished to a high degree of parallelism, although they aren't very narrow..

Neil

Oh Russell!

| " Never throw anything away ! " –

That way lies chaos !

Believe me I know – I have a collection of years and years worth of everything and, when I want it, I search and search and can find nothing!

The trouble is how can I cure myself? Whenever I steel myself and take a load to the tip I find, just a day or so later, an urgent need for something I have just dumped. In consequence I am rapidly getting to the stage where it is next to impossible to get into my garage (which is the home for all those things that I have removed from the workshop in order to have, at least, SOME room to operate!)

Anyone got any good tips or is it an incurable "Model Engineers Disease" ?

Norman

Edited By NJH on 01/09/2012 11:53:07

Edited By NJH on 01/09/2012 11:57:45

.

Recently had a good sort out and was faced with the same dilemma. Boxes upon boxes of 'useful stuff'' on the back of benches that in truth hadn't been touched for years.

Problem is, sort it out and scrap some and you will need it the following week.

Solution:-

Place large scrap bin at front of bench. Close eyes and sweep everything into said scrap bin. This way you have no idea what has been scrapped so you can't miss it.

I recently got rid of an old lathe, big monster not worth much except as scrap. Dragged about 10 tote tins use useful bar ends out from under the lathe, again never seen the light of day for 10 years.

Started to sort this lot and thought "What the hell" all that will happen is they will go back into some dark corner for another 10 years. Threw then into the Donald and straight down the scrap yard.

These 8 tins, kept 2 back, made £83 but more importantly the space is now taken up by a new bench with 3 working CNC's on it that get used and earn money. 10 tins of scarp don't.

Even in a home shop floor space costs money whether you realise it or not.

John S.

Norman,

I have discovered a way – stop looking at things as 'treasures' and start actually using them. I used to hoard but had a problem taht I was alweays waiting for the 'right moment' to use things. Then I realsied I would be dead and all my bits would go in the skip one day, so now I say use it or lose it!

But don't throw anything out. I threw out a washing machine hose.

Then my steplad bought a washing machine that needed two hoses and only had opne. I gave him the spare from behind our machine, that only has one hose a month ago.

last week the hose on our dishwasher started leaking at teh jojt and I had to buty a brand new one

Neil

Remember reading in Goodwoodworking mag years ago a tale – " Success, today I needed some fine aluminium bar to compelet a plant holder for my wife. The bars salvaged from the old pushchair worked perfectly. I proudly showed it to my wife and reminded the family how she had scoffed when I spent ages knocked the rivets out. But I have been proved right ! Triumph at last !"

It then added underneath" PS my wife says I should tell you my son is now 47 !"

But as you say- horders syndrome. Then only advice I can recall being given by my sainted uncle was " whenever you do a job using a special tool you bought or made to do it- Make damn sure your wife sees the tool and you stress how it would have been impossible without it!

I have adopted this guidance wholeheartedly and can vouch for its effectiveness!

But I'm with Neil- use it and then if it breaks at least you've had enjoyement from it, If it goes rusty whilst ebing admired and "saved", what's the point !

Ian