What Did You Do Today (2017)

[Roger Baker 2Participant @rogerbaker2]

Hi All

A suggestion for you guys.

I have recently organized some tours through our National Metrology Lab. here in Melbourne.

My experience is that they are happy to show what they are up to as long as the participants have some idea of what they are being shown. I can assure you that they have some amazing gear.

You may be able to do something similar.

Roger

[ChrisHParticipant @chrish]

Many thanks for that info BobH – all is clear now. Very good idea, I will keep it in mind for my lawn tractor, it usually gets used as a tractor unit to tow a trailer of logs or hedge cuttings around when it's not being used to trail a load of gravel up, obtained for free, from down the road. That's when it's not cutting grass that is (I hesitate to upgrade it to saying lawns, our French 'lawn' and grass field can't be called a lawn!)

Chris

[GoCreateParticipant @gocreate]

Hi

Today I completed this tool which I believe is called a finger plate. No drawings just based upon what I can remember seeing from time to time.

I wanted a quick simple project with some nice milling and turning. This is a tool I have wanted for some time to help hold small parts for drilling and linishing etc. I think it should be useful.

A cross drilling feature is included with 2 aluminium bronze bushes to suit 2 sizes of spot drills I use, 3mm @ 5mm.

All materials from the scrap box and sizes determined by the size of the piece I used for the base block about 3" x 4". I think these tools are usually made much smaller.

Nige

[NJHParticipant @njh]

Hi Colin

"Installed one of Steamer's resettable S7 saddle handwheels"

 

I have one – it is useful and very well made – however I think it was Graham Meek's baby?

 

Norman

Edited By NJH on 28/11/2017 15:13:07

[KWILParticipant @kwil]

Yes it was designed my Graham Meek.

[Jim NicParticipant @jimnic]

Nige

Nice finger plate. I've had a notion to make one of those for some time but always managed to find a way to do what I needed without one so put it off. I'll bet it proves very useful and I really must "get a round tuitt" and make one of my own.

Jim

[MWParticipant @mw27036]

Posted by tractionengine42 on 28/11/2017 14:23:24:

Hi

Today I completed this tool which I believe is called a finger plate. No drawings just based upon what I can remember seeing from time to time.

I wanted a quick simple project with some nice milling and turning. This is a tool I have wanted for some time to help hold small parts for drilling and linishing etc. I think it should be useful.

Very nice, would you mind sharing how you cut the sharp cornered vee on the front? special milling tool or just a matter of good old fashioned bench work?

Michael W

[HillclimberParticipant @hillclimber]

Posted by KWIL on 28/11/2017 16:52:55:

Yes it was designed my Graham Meek.

Steve Tracey acquired the rights to Graham Meek's handwheel design, and industrialised it as a product for we mere mortals.

It's a brilliantly useful design, and execution is beautiful. Big advantage is that I can still have an eye on the workpiece while getting a total feed reading on the wheel.

[GoCreateParticipant @gocreate]

Hi Micheal W, cutting that vee shape was an opportunity to use my Elliott Omnimill using a vee shaped cutter in the horizontal spindle arbour. So that cutter that came with the mill has found at least one use.

Nige

Edited By tractionengine42 on 28/11/2017 22:49:03

[Brian HParticipant @brianh50089]

Today I took delivery of a Union Tool & Cutter Grinder which came with various collets including R8 and 4 Morse. The only think I don't have is an end mill fixture by I think the Stevenson one is better. My order goes in on Friday when my pension goes into the bank!

I'm now busy cleaning it all down then I just need to work out how to use it! ( but I have the handbook)

Brian

[duncan webster 1Participant @duncanwebster1]

Posted by tractionengine42 on 28/11/2017 14:23:24:

Hi

Today I completed this tool which I believe is called a finger plate. No drawings just based upon what I can remember seeing from time to time.

I wanted a quick simple project with some nice milling and turning. This is a tool I have wanted for some time to help hold small parts for drilling and linishing etc. I think it should be useful.

A cross drilling feature is included with 2 aluminium bronze bushes to suit 2 sizes of spot drills I use, 3mm @ 5mm.

All materials from the scrap box and sizes determined by the size of the piece I used for the base block about 3" x 4". I think these tools are usually made much smaller.

Nige

And how did you line up the cross drilling round bit with the vee groove? My best guess is a wiggler, but is there a better way?

[Roderick JenkinsParticipant @roderickjenkins93242]

3D printed some nuts:

The thread is M3 x .5. Very easy to do in Fusion 360 – you just point at the hole and it puts in the requested thread. A bolt will go through but better to clean up the thread with a tap. Screws were less successful in this size.

A bit wobbly but the other side is worse, the join where the printer head reverses direction is obvious

An interesting exercise.

Rod

[Neil WyattModerator @neilwyatt]

I made myself the Mini-Lathe version:

[Mick B1Participant @mickb1]

2 failed attempts to make replacement wedding rings for a daughter-in-law out of lignum vitae.

Both broke in the polishing stage.

Dunno why they say lignum is an 'ironwood' – any kind of iron would beat it hands down and dance the Jack o'Lantern polka on the bits…

Bah.

Luckily she might accept a titanium replacement, which I've already made successfully.

[HillclimberParticipant @hillclimber]

Posted by Neil Wyatt on 29/11/2017 18:57:27:

I made myself the Mini-Lathe version:

How was that knurling for you?

Today, I slot milled an aluminium bar to form a simple fence for the table of my pillar drill. And having the handwheel reference made the whole procedure soooh much easier….

[Neil WyattModerator @neilwyatt]

Posted by Hillclimber on 29/11/2017 20:52:55:

Posted by Neil Wyatt on 29/11/2017 18:57:27:

I made myself the Mini-Lathe version:

How was that knurling for you?

Surprisingly straightforward, even though I used a single 'push in' knurl.

My shiny new SC4-510 comes with one factory fitted

[Mark RandParticipant @markrand96270]

I find the calibrated handwheel in my Hardinge HLV (600 thou/rev) to be very handy.

Interesting snippet:s-

Hardinge's 22DP gears and racks (and the teeth on my Beaver mill quill feed) give almost exactly 7 teeth per inch.

Myford's 20DP gears and racks give almost exactly 4mm/tooth

Might be simpler with a metric lathe and Module gears, but those two rations can be very useful.

[Neil WyattModerator @neilwyatt]

Morrison's Southern Cape Cabernet Sauvignon.

Unfortunately it tastes as bitter as raw sloes. Three sips and I gave up. Wine has to be REALLY bad to defeat me but I think this is the worst I have ever tasted (homebrew included).

[Michael GilliganParticipant @michaelgilligan61133]

Posted by Neil Wyatt on 02/12/2017 20:46:49:

Morrison's Southern Cape Cabernet Sauvignon.

Unfortunately it tastes as bitter as raw sloes. Three sips and I gave up. Wine has to be REALLY bad to defeat me but I think this is the worst I have ever tasted (homebrew included).

.

I'm sticking with the freebies on the M&S '£10 Meal Deals'

… Haven't had a bad one yet.

MichaelG

[Ian S CParticipant @iansc]

Neil, that wine might be good for de-rusting in the workshop, or it might work as paint stripper.

Ian S C

[mechman48Participant @mechman48]

Finally got back to doing a bit on my Vertical cross after finishing all the decorating, ( last in man cave 10 Sept. ), finished up the cross arms ends, just need to polish up a bit more, fiddly bit was trying to get all the small radii consistent, even with gauges, doesn't look to bad… … they are all the same length all though they don't look it… parallax error… honest .

George.

[Adrian GilesParticipant @adriangiles39248]

In the middle of making a nammer, machinist type. Did as much as I felt prudent, then went back indoors for duties of a household nature. Spent two hours cleaning the oven, inside and out, hob, fridge, cooker hood etc. Swmbo decides that as I have been a good boy, she would roast me some chestnuts. Puts said nuts in the oven, forgets all about them until the first mighty explosion!

Dried nut flour takes some cleaning!

Adrian

[egaParticipant @ega]

Adrian Giles:

Try "roasting" them on a bed of salt in a heavy frying pan on the hob.

[pgk pgkParticipant @pgkpgk17461]

I cover the pan with foil (or use the frying pan spit cover mesh thingy) to catch any explosive bits but also have a cheap mechanical oven timer stuck to the fridge door.

If memory serves chestnuts are one of the seeds that can harbour disease but if collected from healthy british trees (as opposed to import ones) then plant a few in a pot for future generations… we're at risk of losing our trees to disease and parasites. There are no other chestnut trees in my area of mid-wales so i planted a bunch afew years ago into my fields – just got to live another 10-15 years to get any benefit…..

[Peter Wood 5Participant @peterwood5]

Finished fitting a DRO from EMS on my Myford as detailed in a recent issue of MEW.

Making the read head mounting brackets was time consuming and fiddly especially as I cannot easily access the rear of the bench mounted lathe.

However the biggest problem came when I tried to refit the dismantled cross slide which would only go on about 1" before hitting an obstruction. Eventually discovered that the groove in the feed screw had to engage with a pin on the power cross feed. I learnt a lot about the lathe construction in this project.

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