Hammer/Drift

[Will NobleParticipant @willnoble66529]

Some several moons ago I had a cast brass hammer, about 1Kg, with a 'cast-in-a-lump' hollow shaft in which was mounted a spring loaded Morse taper drift.

Hammer for 'helping' things align in the lathe, or making sure they were down on the parallels in the mill vice, and the drift that could be impacted by the mass of the hammer head and shaft to persuade a stuck Morse taper to part. I don't have a photo, or a memory of where it came from.. I only remember it was extremely useful.

Anyone know where I can find similar?

Will

[Will NobleParticipant @willnoble66529]

[David Davies 8Participant @daviddavies8]

Will

Is this what you mean? Was referred to in a thread started here by Capnahab on 5th July 2015. I used one once, I'd like to find one for myself, it was a great device.

HTH

Dave

[Mike PooleParticipant @mikepoole82104]

**LINK**

The Barson was on most drills at work but in more recent times I have taken to the type in the link, my feeling is that I don’t like the side impact load from the hammer on the bearings, industrial machines are very heavily built but on hobby machines I feel they need a bit of TLC especially as repairs come out of my pocket. The downside is that I keep a small copper mallet to seat the drill in the taper but this really is a gentle tap and some times I just use quill pressure on a block of wood.

Mike

Edited By Mike Poole on 01/10/2019 15:33:59

[Will NobleParticipant @willnoble66529]

Posted by David Davies 8 on 01/10/2019 15:21:30:

Will

Is this what you mean? Was referred to in a thread started here by Capnahab on 5th July 2015. I used one once, I'd like to find one for myself, it was a great device.

HTH

Dave

The very thing. Never thought I'd see one again. From what I can find Barson are gone.

Oddly enough, after I'd posted the question, I found a bit from an American site that also bemoaned the fact that they couldn't find them any more.

I wonder it there's someone who could cast a few lumps of brass for us to machine? ……..

getting a suitable bit of steel forging would be a bit more challenging…………..

Will

[Will NobleParticipant @willnoble66529]

Posted by Mike Poole on 01/10/2019 15:30:16:

**LINK**

The Barson was on most drills at work but in more recent times I have taken to the type in the link, my feeling is that I don’t like the side impact load from the hammer on the bearings, industrial machines are very heavily built but on hobby machines I feel they need a bit of TLC especially as repairs come out of my pocket. The downside is that I keep a small copper mallet to seat the drill in the taper but this really is a gentle tap and some times I just use quill pressure on a block of wood.

Mike

Edited By Mike Poole on 01/10/2019 15:33:59

I quite understand what you mean. I've taken to going for the ex-industrial where I can find something not worn to the scrap point. Even when they are a bit tatty, they can usually be resurrected.

Will

[BazParticipant @baz89810]

I found one in North Devon many years ago, it was in the window of an antique shop in Coombe Martin, a little seaside village, the shop owner didn’t have a clue what it was and wanted ten quid for it, in as new condition, needless to say money quickly changed hands.

[Mick B1Participant @mickb1]

I've used one in a steam railway workshop in the last few months.

Yes, it's useful, but it doesn't do anything that a taper drift and suitable hammer won't.

[Will NobleParticipant @willnoble66529]

Posted by Mick B1 on 01/10/2019 20:46:31………………..

Yes, it's useful, but it doesn't do anything that a taper drift and suitable hammer won't.

Agreed but the way I look at it is that it's an all-in-one tool, quite large and – especially with regard to the drift, unless hung on a chain by the machine – less likely to get lost/misplaced when it's being used between a drill, mill and lathe.

Will

[PlasmaParticipant @plasma]

There is one on ebay at present. Go for it if it is your dream tool.

Plasma

[not done it yetParticipant @notdoneityet]

I made a couple or three wedges when I used my old mill. One went to my brother, with a mag drill, and there is one (or maybe two) sitting in a box, un-used these days. I would hang one adjacent to each machine if I used them regularly. Much the same with a lead/copper faced mallet – one for each machine. I have three er32 collet spanners – one near each machine – but I still lose them occasionally. Must fix a neodymium magnet to hold each one in view … sometime….

[Will NobleParticipant @willnoble66529]

Posted by Plasma on 02/10/2019 08:46:42:

There is one on ebay at present. Go for it if it is your dream tool.

Plasma

Ta for the heads-up. It'll be interesting to see what it gets to…………….

Probably quite a lot.

Will

[BaldricParticipant @baldric]

Posted by Mick B1 on 01/10/2019 20:46:31:

I've used one in a steam railway workshop in the last few months.

Yes, it's useful, but it doesn't do anything that a taper drift and suitable hammer won't.

I find them useful, you can hold the drift in one hand and "catch" the drill with the other.

Baldric.

[Mick B1Participant @mickb1]

Posted by Baldric on 02/10/2019 13:11:24:

Posted by Mick B1 on 01/10/2019 20:46:31:

I've used one in a steam railway workshop in the last few months.

Yes, it's useful, but it doesn't do anything that a taper drift and suitable hammer won't.

I find them useful, you can hold the drift in one hand and "catch" the drill with the other.

Baldric.

But you can do that with a plain taper drift, bashing the head of the drift against the benchtop.

I've noticed one o' them hammer drifts sitting on a big lathe in the railway machine shop many times, but only once did I actually think it worth taking the ten or so steps over to fetch it, and that was because somebody else had gone off with the ordinary taper drift.

[Michael GilliganParticipant @michaelgilligan61133]

Posted by Mick B1 on 02/10/2019 20:17:40:

Posted by Baldric on 02/10/2019 13:11:24:

Posted by Mick B1 on 01/10/2019 20:46:31:

I've used one in a steam railway workshop in the last few months.

Yes, it's useful, but it doesn't do anything that a taper drift and suitable hammer won't.

I find them useful, you can hold the drift in one hand and "catch" the drill with the other.

Baldric.

But you can do that with a plain taper drift, bashing the head of the drift against the benchtop.

[ … ]

.

Please forgive a naive question …

How would you do that on a drilling machine ?

MichaelG.

[Mick B1Participant @mickb1]

Posted by Michael Gilligan on 02/10/2019 20:51:13:

Posted by Mick B1 on 02/10/2019 20:17:40:

Posted by Baldric on 02/10/2019 13:11:24:

Posted by Mick B1 on 01/10/2019 20:46:31:

I've used one in a steam railway workshop in the last few months.

Yes, it's useful, but it doesn't do anything that a taper drift and suitable hammer won't.

I find them useful, you can hold the drift in one hand and "catch" the drill with the other.

Baldric.

But you can do that with a plain taper drift, bashing the head of the drift against the benchtop.

[ … ]

.

Please forgive a naive question …

How would you do that on a drilling machine ?

MichaelG.

Ah, sorry, I was thinking of taper sleeves. If it's in a drilling machine, locate the taper drift in the slot and hit it with whatever comes to hand – I've sometimes used a handy lump of bronze that's usually left on a nearby Bridgeport clone for bashing the top drawbolt. Still usually easy enough to catch the taper-shank drill as it releases.

[BaldricParticipant @baldric]

Posted by Mick B1 on 02/10/2019 21:15:17:

Ah, sorry, I was thinking of taper sleeves. If it's in a drilling machine, locate the taper drift in the slot and hit it with whatever comes to hand – I've sometimes used a handy lump of bronze that's usually left on a nearby Bridgeport clone for bashing the top drawbolt. Still usually easy enough to catch the taper-shank drill as it releases.

When using them on larger drills (MT3-MT-5) I find the drifts are far narrower than the slots, thus do not stay in place to be hit, so catching the drill bit is not possible, also when using an air drill finding somewhere to place the drill where the drift can go though can be a pain, especially when on scaffolding. I do use one of these which I find handy

**LINK**

Baldric.

[Will NobleParticipant @willnoble66529]

Hope his doesn't sound ungrateful Baldric, but I think Mike Poole's link in the post above is the same thing offered by Chronos and a fair bit better price. That said, you can only tell if you explore the links.

Will

ps never heard of it as a 'sorry' before (Mike Poole's link), perhaps it's a function of failing to catch a newly sharpened drill you just overenthusiastically ejected with it and twanged, point first, off the concrete floor.

[BaldricParticipant @baldric]

Posted by Will Noble on 03/10/2019 09:58:00:

Hope his doesn't sound ungrateful Baldric, but I think Mike Poole's link in the post above is the same thing offered by Chronos and a fair bit better price. That said, you can only tell if you explore the links.

Will

No problem, my fault for not following the link, that is probably where I actually got mine from.

Baldric.

[HopperParticipant @hopper]

i remember those brass hammer drifts were common in machine shops 40+ years ago. Very handy. You often did not have to use the slide hammer function, just slide the drift ihto the slot and use the hammer to lever upwards. That was usually enough to break the taper shank loose. One handed operation meant faster drill changes and no dropped chucks etc.

[Chris GunnParticipant @chrisgunn36534]

Hopper I too remember the drifts on every machine, lathes and drills. Very handy when doing multiple drilling operations on components when one had to change drills a lot.

We also used ours to "bang in" anyone who was late for work, as the offender walked up the machine shop everyone would bang on the machine drip trays with their drifts, and the sound of a hundred folk doing this meant the latecomer did not go unnoticed.

These were the days when if one clocked in 3 minutes after start time, one lost a quarter of an hours pay, but was still expected to start work as soon as they got to their machine.

Happy days, I think.

Chris Gunn

[John MCParticipant @johnmc39344]

Seeing the picture of the hammer/drift brought back many pleasant apprenticeship memories. The one handed operation was useful, and, as Hopper says, it would "lever" out the smaller MT's.

I really wish I "acquired" one all those years ago, too honest I guess!

I'm intrigued by the Chronos offering, I'm going to buy one.

John

[Will NobleParticipant @willnoble66529]

Posted by Will Noble on 02/10/2019 11:41:22:

Posted by Plasma on 02/10/2019 08:46:42:

There is one on ebay at present. Go for it if it is your dream tool.

Plasma

Ta for the heads-up. It'll be interesting to see what it gets to…………….

Probably quite a lot.

Will

In short, it went for a fair bit more than I was prepared to pay, especially by the time the postage was added in. Just have to keep my eyes open……………………

Will

[not done it yetParticipant @notdoneityet]

£61.62 delivered (£53.52 if collected) for a hammer is likely a collector of old items, I would think? Personally, I buy tools to use – sometimes not often, but available for use if and when required.

My wife says “It’s you meannesses you regret, not your extravagancies”.

[Mick B1Participant @mickb1]

Posted by Chris Gunn on 03/10/2019 10:21:05:

…

We also used ours to "bang in" anyone who was late for work, as the offender walked up the machine shop everyone would bang on the machine drip trays with their drifts, and the sound of a hundred folk doing this meant the latecomer did not go unnoticed.

…

Happy days, I think.

Chris Gunn

Yes, I remember those days, and mercifully it only happened to others.

I thought then it was a slavish and savage practice, and still do.

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