What Did You Do Today 2019

[BazyleParticipant @bazyle]

It's not much of a problem if it is dry – I assume MG keeps his models inside.

[Ian Johnson 1Participant @ianjohnson1]

Posted by Mick B1 on 24/10/2019 22:13:33:

Posted by Ian Johnson 1 on 24/10/2019 21:57:44:

Thanks guys I didn't realise that a piece of wood could be so dangerous!

….

Ian

Hmmm… maybe no need for too much hurry – here's an oak model gun carriage and a silver steel trunnion it's been in close contact with for 16+ years.

I was going to stain and protect the wood sooner or later, but the replies gave me the urge to do it sooner!

Ian

[Michael GilliganParticipant @michaelgilligan61133]

sorry to divert from Ian’s discussion, but iOS users should probably read this: **LINK**

https://www.popularmechanics.com/technology/apps/a29575329/iphone-apps-malware/

MichaelG.

[Nigel Graham 2Participant @nigelgraham2]

Ian Johnson-

Printer ink stains.

This seems a daft question, but did you try just water (and soap) to remove the ink from your hands?

Some ink-jet inks are soluble in water rather than mineral-oils – I have used this to destroy sensitive documents before I bought a shredder!

[SillyOldDufferModerator @sillyoldduffer]

Posted by Ian Johnson 1 on 23/10/2019 22:55:06:

… it's a Coventry Matrix good quality 50 piece set …

The set has a RR sticker on it so it must be good! Calibration valid until 1996 so it's just out of date! …

…most pieces will wring together apart from the larger sizes, so it has seen a lot of use, but checking the pieces with my digital micrometer down to five decimal places, it is still extremely accurate, certainly good enough for my use.

Ian

I guess Ian wants a set of gauge blocks for the same reason as me – a way of checking my distinctly ordinary digital calipers and micrometer. As my calipers are ±0.02mm at best, it's occasionally useful to pin them down more tightly. At ±0.01mm my micrometer is usually good enough for my purposes but it would be useful to confirm accuracy is really achieved across the full 0 to 25mm range. A set of second-hand gauge blocks would suit me fine.

But be warned – maintaining accuracy when it truly matters is a tricky business. Perhaps the main reason for needing to frequently recalibrate measuring instruments is wear and tear. For ordinary purposes, it's sensible to check workshop tools against Gauge Blocks because even a cheap set outperforms most measuring tools. It doesn't matter who made a favourite micrometer, what matters is cold test results, which gauge blocks will deliver.

Unfortunately, being high-precision means Gauge blocks are themselves particularly prone to damage and they need much TLC. This includes the need to be regularly recalibrated against a higher standard set, at least once every 5 years on a light use set, maybe 2 or 3 times or more a year for anything busy. Recalibration is serious business: it's meant to be regular, traceable and certificated. A set of Gauge blocks can't meaningfully be measured with a good micrometer because a good condition block should be at least 4 to 10 times more accurate than the micrometer. (British Standard Workshop Grade 'B' Gauge Blocks are +0.25μm to -0.15μm. The AAA blocks made for Laboratories and Standard checking are ±0.05μm, well into calibration by interferometric methods.)

That a set of gauges was carefully made from the best materials by Coventry Matrix and bought by Rolls Royce matters not one jot compared with their current condition. Last calibration being in 1996 probably means it failed the next test. At that point RR would retire it from precision work, but it would still be an asset in a home workshop. Just don't imagine it's still a quality set! Like me, it's seen better days…

Dave

Edited By SillyOldDuffer on 25/10/2019 14:22:01

[Mick B1Participant @mickb1]

Unless it's being used for some extremely exotic work where way sub-micron tolerances are critically necessary, I'd think this set's accuracy will be very comfortably more than adequate.

[BazParticipant @baz89810]

All our sets of slips that failed calibration were given to the machine shop where they were mostly used on the lathes as length stops.

[mechman48Participant @mechman48]

Yesterday actually; was continuing on with the cylinder block for my beam engine, tapping out M2 for valve chest studs & snapped tap fortunately it was the last hole, & it snapped off a couple of mil above the top face so managed to remove broken end, 'Oh dear, how sad, never mind', luckily have another set of taps. Must remember to go easy on the small sizes

George.

[EmgeeParticipant @emgee]

Started off searching this forum for the thread about Johansson being the source name of Jo blocks, no luck finding it but did come across a reply from Jason within this thread that seemed to ring a bell.

So took a picture of my Digital Caliper made by CE Johansson in Sweden, bought it back in the 1980's from MESAS at an ME exhibition, it was very expensive at that time, I think £70 so it can be seen what good value tools are today.
I also have a Mitutoyo which I have been using for the past 25 years so the Johansson can now go to work again with a new battery fitted, I had removed the old battery when laying it up.

You may notice 1 of the jaws has been machined and the other jaw has a dimple drilled in, that was when the caliper was used as a height gauge,

Emgee

.

[Nicholas FarrParticipant @nicholasfarr14254]

Hi, yesterday evening, I cobbled together this TV aerial bracket onto a worn out 4" conveyor belt return roller bearing and hub, in order to trim it down, while keeping it reasonable true so as to make a smaller roller of a similar type.

First of all the bulk of it was cut away with a parting tool and it was then turned to size to fit onto a smaller piece of tube. One for the other end is yet to be done in the same way.

Regards Nick.

[WatfordParticipant @watford]

What was someone saying about chuck guards?!?!?

M

[GoCreateParticipant @gocreate]

Continued my 5"g LION build series bending up the throat plate, proved to be a challenge to get good tight corners.

The previously flanged material pulled in at the sides so I learnt the lesson that I should have made an allowance when I made the blank ready for flanging and should have left some additional material at the sides. However, because the the sides are right up to the flange and the flange blends into the corner radius the width of contact for silver soldering remains pretty much constant, so it looks like I got away with that one.

For anyone interested in following my build here's this particular video: Bending the Throat Plate

[Mick B1Participant @mickb1]

More scrollsaw birds – a paddling copper flamingo and a brontornis burmeisteri.

The actual latter bird was 2.8M tall and weighed maybe 400 kg. You wouldn't want to meet him on the Miocene Patagonian plains without at least your .375" H&H.

Sooner or later I'll get over this temporary obsession and do some proper engineering again…

Edited By Mick B1 on 01/11/2019 11:33:50

[HillclimberParticipant @hillclimber]

Finally finished this little GH Thomas tool height gauge today.

Quite over-engineered, really. But a happy experience with this kit from Hemingway. And in fact the first time I have worked with a raw casting, or turned a thread. So worthwhile, as well as necessary.

Cheers, Colin

[Ian Johnson 1Participant @ianjohnson1]

Posted by Emgee on 29/10/2019 08:51:20:

Started off searching this forum for the thread about Johansson being the source name of Jo blocks, no luck finding it but did come across a reply from Jason within this thread that seemed to ring a bell.

So took a picture of my Digital Caliper made by CE Johansson in Sweden, bought it back in the 1980's from MESAS at an ME exhibition, it was very expensive at that time, I think £70 so it can be seen what good value tools are today.
I also have a Mitutoyo which I have been using for the past 25 years so the Johansson can now go to work again with a new battery fitted, I had removed the old battery when laying it up.

You may notice 1 of the jaws has been machined and the other jaw has a dimple drilled in, that was when the caliper was used as a height gauge,

Emgee

.

My thread 'the wonderful world of gauge blocks' had a few comments about Johansson or Jo blocks if that's any help?

MESAS that's where I got my Hobbymat lathe and mill from in the eighties, still got it in the shed somewhere.

Ian

[Neil WyattModerator @neilwyatt]

Posted by Hillclimber on 01/11/2019 18:06:21:

Finally finished this little GH Thomas tool height gauge today.

Quite over-engineered, really. But a happy experience with this kit from Hemingway. And in fact the first time I have worked with a raw casting, or turned a thread. So worthwhile, as well as necessary.

Cheers, Colin

Colin, did you take any in-progress photos?

If so a short write up for MEW would be on interest.

Neil

[HillclimberParticipant @hillclimber]

Posted by Neil Wyatt on 02/11/2019 11:44:20:

Posted by Hillclimber on 01/11/2019 18:06:21:

Finally finished this little GH Thomas tool height gauge today.

Colin, did you take any in-progress photos?

If so a short write up for MEW would be on interest.

Neil

Neil, sadly I did not take pics on the way. Which is strange, because I usually do.

So I asked myself why not and concluded because it had been something I 'needed' rather than something I was 'making'. It didn't become the latter until now, when it is made! Sounds strange perhaps, but I guess I didn't impart any emotional value until it was complete…

Other reason, I think is that I was following the excellent Hemingway instructions, along with the original GHT article. The only issues I had with these were the cursory description of silver-soldering in the two blades. I made a little jig to hold them perpendicular from the offcuts to do that, by reaming a 5/16" hole in the casting stub and sticking the offcut from main shaft into it. And I think they say something like 'the thumbscrews need no comment'. Well they did for me, with a little thought on how to thread as much of their length as possible.

Cheers, Colin

[Anonymous]

Among other things I finally got the overarm on the horizontal mill shifted from this:

To this:

It maInly involved BF and BI, ie, hitting it with a copper hammer. Once I'd got the arm moved 8" or so, plus copious amounts of oil on the dovetails, I could move the overarm all the way in and out simply by pushing on it. Which is where I was 10 years ago. Must remember to exercise it now and again and add oil. The reason for moving the overarm back is so I can use the face mill shown to start roughing out the cylinder castings on my traction engine without said overarm getting in the way. The face mill may look small, but it is 80mm diameter.

I might even get around to fitting, and trying out, the vertical head for the mill I bought years ago on Ebay:

That's a 12" rule against the head. The main issue is working out how I'm going to lift the vertical head onto the mill table without involving a trip to A&E. When I bought the head I lifted it from the car boot to where it is now. But that was years ago, no way I can just pick it up and lift it now.

Andrew

[Mark RandParticipant @markrand96270]

If you ever get the ram off, take the opportunity to install a few oil nipples, so you can jack the surfaces apart and make everything slide easily.

I pottered out to the shed and did some tidying up. It had got back to the point where I couldn't continue any of the current jobs because I couldn't move anywhere .

As a result of this, I've collected up most of the magnets liberated from hard drives when I disassembled them to make foundry stock. If anyone has any suggestions for a use for them, or even wants them, the shed would appreciate the extra space!

[Nigel McBurney 1Participant @nigelmcburney1]

Andrew those 2 Es are nice machines,watch out when you go to get one of your files from the wall clips,dont come up quick and bang your head under the mill overarm sticking out the back,I found that the vertical head gets heavier as you get older,I used to get my mate to help me lift it,they can be lifted with an engine crane,Adcocks should have built in a lifting arm and a parking place for the head on the mill column like some manufacturers did. At least with a head like that and a 40 int spindle ,some really decent cuts can be taken with end mills ,and facing cutters,we were going to downsize so I passed on the mill to a friend,then the house sale fell through ,I will never get rid of anything in future unless the sale documentation is completed.

[Nicholas FarrParticipant @nicholasfarr14254]

Hi, I had a little time to do a bit more on my roller with the reclaimed hubs and bearings. I cut and trimmed a piece of tube to length and fitted and welded the hubs/bearings in place.

They were then dressed using a flap disc and spray painted with a Zinc paint rattle can.

Then I faced up the ends of a piece of 25mm EN8 round to length and cut in a circlip groove 30mm from each end, this being the new shaft for the roller.

Just need to mill a couple of flats on each end and it will be ready to assemble.

Regards Nick.

Edited By Nicholas Farr on 05/11/2019 21:22:10

[Neil WyattModerator @neilwyatt]

Posted by Hillclimber on 02/11/2019 14:00:05:

Posted by Neil Wyatt on 02/11/2019 11:44:20:

Posted by Hillclimber on 01/11/2019 18:06:21:

Finally finished this little GH Thomas tool height gauge today.

Colin, did you take any in-progress photos?

If so a short write up for MEW would be on interest.

Neil

Neil, sadly I did not take pics on the way. Which is strange, because I usually do.

So I asked myself why not and concluded because it had been something I 'needed' rather than something I was 'making'. It didn't become the latter until now, when it is made! Sounds strange perhaps, but I guess I didn't impart any emotional value until it was complete…

Other reason, I think is that I was following the excellent Hemingway instructions, along with the original GHT article. The only issues I had with these were the cursory description of silver-soldering in the two blades. I made a little jig to hold them perpendicular from the offcuts to do that, by reaming a 5/16" hole in the casting stub and sticking the offcut from main shaft into it. And I think they say something like 'the thumbscrews need no comment'. Well they did for me, with a little thought on how to thread as much of their length as possible.

Cheers, Colin

Oh well – but a short review and pics of the finished article might still be worth doing? Drop me an email if interested.

If anyone reading this makes any workshop tooling kits, do consider documenting it!

Neil

[Martin KyteParticipant @martinkyte99762]

For those interested in trams.

Rebuilt tram at Ipswich Museum

regards Martin

[Nicholas FarrParticipant @nicholasfarr14254]

Hi, I milled the flats on the ends of the shaft for my new roller. First side was set up on "V" blocks.

The second side was set up on my 1-2-3 blocks on the first side flats.

The shaft was then fitted into the roller and then put onto the machine that I've been making it for.

This is a tumbling machine that was scrapped by the company I used to work for several years ago now, but I had to remove the motor that was on it first, and fit it to another different type of machine. The original roller and any drums that were used on it, had been missing for quite some time. So for a trial run I've used an empty 5L emulsion paint plastic pot and filled it just above half way with some dry sand and put in a few rusty wheel castings.

I gave it a run for about 15 minuets and although it wasn't ideal, as there are no baffles to make the sand and wheels tumble properly, but it did drive OK and cleaned the wheels slightly. Just need to buy or make a proper barrel.

Regards Nick.

Edited By Nicholas Farr on 07/11/2019 22:41:22

[colin branniganParticipant @colinbrannigan54160]

That looks an interesting project Nick please keep us informed of further developments.

Cheers Colin

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