The Machine Work Thread

[kazlx]

Whoops lol.

 

[kazlx]

 

[Thumper68]

I am looking forward to being able to post in this thread finally.

 

[KMScott]

I kept looking on e-bay for a swivel base for my Wilton 3" vise made in the 40's. After two years I decided to make one. I clamped a 1-1/4 rusty steel plate to my T-plate and machined this old Wilton base. Took 6 hours, to expensive to make as a product but was fun making it. The original base was cracked and after welding I was not happy with it. Replaced the handle, front washer and built the straight serrated jaws for it.

 

[ez-duzit]

KM--turned out well.

 

[KMScott]

KM--turned out well.

Thanks ez, I am making some for the baby Wilton's. Just isn't any out there and it's a fun project to machine.

I finally found a CNC that would fit under my house in the basement. It is a Haas TM1 but I had to shorten it by 9 inches so it would not crash through my living room floor. It fit and I just love it. I have to run it sitting on a chair. I live in the Mountains of Colorado and just as happy as can be working on anything I want and never leaving this awesome place.

 

[ez-duzit]

That is a monster!

 

[Hephaestus29]

Thanks ez, I am making some for the baby Wilton's. Just isn't any out there and it's a fun project to machine.

I finally found a CNC that would fit under my house in the basement. It is a Haas TM1 but I had to shorten it by 9 inches so it would not crash through my living room floor. It fit and I just love it. I have to run it sitting on a chair. I live in the Mountains of Colorado and just as happy as can be working on anything I want and never leaving this awesome place.

How did you manage to shorten it ?

 

[KMScott]

How did you manage to shorten it ?

I did not get help from any salesman that's for sure. I looked at machines on the web then went into shops and looked at machines till I found one that would work, and ordered this one brand new. This Haas had risers on it with leveling pads, I needed 86" max height and the Haas Toolroom machine allowed me to remove the risers to get my height. Basiclly the machine is sitting on the floor with rubber pads under the casting. I lost my coolant drain so I made a coolant channel around the machine table to drain back into the coolant tank. Closed up the coolant drain where the chip auger goes and a couple times a day I vacuum out the coolant.

I have another CNC, a Miltronics knee mill in my small 900 sq ft shop that I have used it for years and it is slowly wearing out. I am repairing something on it every 6 months and at a retirement age wanted something that just runs. I work on old bench vises and vise parts and sell them on a couple websites I own.

 

[Hephaestus29]

Thursdays Machine Shop Auction Scores

I picked up a few items at auction Thursday.

I bought a small tapping head with a miniature Jacobs drill chuck on it in
near new condition. The paperwork is still with it and the only dates I saw on the literature are from 1968-69, It says Armite Labs Tap-Tool
right on it. It seems they've been in business since 1928 I think it said. I believe they mainly make lubricants now, I sent them a message to see what they say about the tapping head.

And a Tree Taper Boring head that I've been looking for for a while. Every one I've seen on ebay that looks decent is listed and sells
for 600.00 plus, thankfully I got this one for a lot less.

I also bought 3 precision machinist jacks, I thought they were unique since I had never seen any like this before.

The worst one is top center and has EH Ritchie on it. The spring hold downs were terribly made, the holes weren't drilled on center in the cap or piston, and the screws were too long and all mangled from things not being aligned.
I might be able to rework it and get it working. It and the one on the lower left need springs too.
2nd best is The one on the lower left and has Jerry Hamblens name on it, I have my doubts as to whether or not this man made it since the area where his name is has been all scratched out and his name put over it.

The best is on the lower right, and is a no name piece. The fit and finish is excellent , and it works good so I haven't taken it apart but I will to see the differences between the three.

 

[stioc]

Great stuff guys, always nice to see new projects posted.

I hadn't used my mill in a while but I had to today for a quick project. I didn't get a chance to take any pictures . I bought a 8" long hitch receiver extender tube for my 4x4 so I can use the bicycle rack. Even the 8" extension wasn't quite enough to clear the spare tire of the truck though. So I relocated/drilled 4 new clevis-pin holes further apart on the extender tube which did the trick. It could've been done on the small drill press but the mill has way more torque and made a quick work of it.

 

[Griff93]

I have a 1985 toyota 4runner. The p.o. put on a body lift. The transfer case shifter was hitting the body causing it to get knocked into neutral. My solution was to make a short throw shifter. I also modified the length of the shifter.

 

[senlow]

Thanks ez, I am making some for the baby Wilton's. Just isn't any out there and it's a fun project to machine.

I finally found a CNC that would fit under my house in the basement. It is a Haas TM1 but I had to shorten it by 9 inches so it would not crash through my living room floor. It fit and I just love it. I have to run it sitting on a chair. I live in the Mountains of Colorado and just as happy as can be working on anything I want and never leaving this awesome place.

That's a cool little mill. I believe that it's the best bang for the buck in a small CNC mill. I assume that you bought it from Moncktons. Out of curiosity, who was your salesman?

 

[KMScott]

That's a cool little mill. I believe that it's the best bang for the buck in a small CNC mill. I assume that you bought it from Moncktons. Out of curiosity, who was your salesman?

Yea bought it from them, had to wait till one was built. Chad Wadsworth is the salesman and did little to help me with my height issues. Longmont has a new Community College filled with these TM-1's and I was allowed to crawl around it and get real good numbers. This machine has ridged tap and is running on 220V, did not need a Phase Converter. I just love this machine, all I cut is steel. My Avatar is my home and the shop is behind the lower windows.

 

[gcgold1]

if possibly I would love to have the plans to build the power drawbar. Thanks Gary

 

[Hephaestus29]

if possibly I would love to have the plans to build the power drawbar. Thanks Gary

It might help if you mentioned who
and or which power drawbar you're
talking about. I believe there are at
least two different ones in this thread.

 

[Hephaestus29]

I'm wondering what is the best way to
put a new finish or put a new tip on
the centers of my
Dividing Head Tailstock?
Mount it on a faceplate and turn it
or have it ground???
I don't have an Id/Od grinder so I'm
thinking true it up on the lathe.
Here's a picture.

 

[KMScott]

If you had a spin fixture with a magnetic plate like a Suburban then it would be a quick dress, or build a plate to bolt up to your spin fixture and clamp it on center. You would have to do the same on a lathe. Takes longer to fixture it then doing the actual dressing. Let us know how you do it. Good luck.

 

[GarrettWeidman]

KM,

You should do a thread on your machine buying process. I to have been looking at machines but have height limitations. What is the max height of your TM-1 after you took the risers off of it?

 

[Jawn]

This is a wheel for a 1/8 scale, 7.5" gauge model locomotive. Diameter of the tread is 4 1/8", wheel is a bit over 3/4" thick. Made of cast iron, raw casting for another wheel shown next to it. All done on a manual 10x22 lathe (Grizzly G0602).

Shape is a bit less than a 3 degree taper on the tread, 1/8" radius from the tread to the flange, 10 degree off vertical taper on both sides of the flange, end of the flange rounded. Center was bored to 19/32, then followed that with a 5/8 chucking reamer.

It was all going well 'til I got to trying to turn that fillet between tread and flange... using a radiused form tool it chattered like crazy at first touch of the tool. Ended up using a normal turning tool to peck away at it to approximate the shape, then clean it up with a round file. Rounding of the flange was done by cutting a 45 on both sides, then using a flat file to blend it together.

Working on a more rigid fixture to try using a form tool on the next one. Failing that, I'll have to get some kind of radius cutter (Holdridge style) or some such to cut the fillet... doing it with a file just seems kind of halfass.

 

[Bighead38]

Yea bought it from them, had to wait till one was built. Chad Wadsworth is the salesman and did little to help me with my height issues. Longmont has a new Community College filled with these TM-1's and I was allowed to crawl around it and get real good numbers. This machine has ridged tap and is running on 220V, did not need a Phase Converter. I just love this machine, all I cut is steel. My Avatar is my home and the shop is behind the lower windows.

Do you have your own thread? If not you should start one. I would love to hear about living in a house like that.

 

[KMScott]

KM,
You should do a thread on your machine buying process. I to have been looking at machines but have height limitations. What is the max height of your TM-1 after you took the risers off of it?

Garrett, my buying experience is not worth a thread since I had to do all the work. The machine salsman in my area (Denver) thought I was kidding when they heard I wanted a VMC under 89" at full height with room for the wires housing that fits between my floor joist. The machine riser and swivel pads removed saved me 9". I set the casting on 1" soft rubber pads and the coolant tank where the auger sits is also rested on rubber pads.

I had a issue removing the coolant, first I built a coolant channel around the table in the front and piped the coolant back into the coolant tank. Remember the coolant tank is suppose to sit underneath the machine auger channel and catch the coolant, since it is sitting on the floor I had to block the drainage holes so the auger channel is now a coolant tank. I tried to built a piping system and purchased a expensive pump that can handle water soluble oil and that failed the first day so now I use a wet and dry vacuum and pull the coolant out a couple times a day and the vacuum sits on the coolant tank and drains back, cheesy set up but it works. Lowering the machine 9" actually created a nice setup for me since I am getting old and 40+ years has taken it's toll on my knees. I have to sit and run this machine, the controls are to low but to be honest I am very happy how it works for me.

I found these pic's taken a year ago when the machine showed up. I had it built since no inventory is the new way now. Haas would not change anything I wanted when they built the machine like not installing the risers and altering the sheet metal. took them 3 months to build and costed 40k. I am very happy with the purchase, I mostly cut tool steel and the machine fine. One more thing, I live in the mountains and no 3-phase, I use a 5 hp rotory phases converter for the other machines, this Haas is single phase (220 volt) and was a big selling factor.

These are the issues I had fitting this machine in my basement, I bought a new 1996 Bridgeport Torq Cut 22 back when I was building injection molds and it fit by the thickness of a scale. I liked that machine too. Good luck.

Link to the spec:s. http://haascnc.com/DOCLIB/dimensions/VMC/MLD-TM-1, TM-1P Rev F.pdf

Do you have your own thread? If not you should start one. I would love to hear about living in a house like that.

Yes I should, many stories since I bought this 50' Geodesic Dome in 1989, I love it and it is like a zoo out side with all the animals, I always told my Moldmakers that worked for me, you can build molds and watch Elk from the windows and they never believed me until they seen them with there own eyes.

 

[jeff g]

Hi
I got a Aloris tool post BXA for my lathe, it was $130 + shipping to the UK
You cannot get them in the UK for love or money
Is it a good price, it is like new but a bit rusty.

 

[93cummins]

Made this tonight at work for my shop press sick of using the provided handle to cheaply made


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[ez-duzit]

Shiny!!!

 

[larry4406]

Made this tonight at work for my shop press sick of using the provided handle to cheaply made

Very nice!. Details please on how you made it.

 

[Jawn]

Made this tonight at work for my shop press sick of using the provided handle to cheaply made

Nice, I did something similar a while back.

https://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=343960

 

[93cummins]

Nice, I did something similar a while back.



https://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=343960

I like your design I was at work and couldn’t remember if the jack release screw was the style like yours or the other one so I kinda guessed and just made it work had some time to burn up on the bridgeport between cycles now just to make a new jack handle [emoji106]


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[93cummins]

Very nice!. Details please on how you made it.

I should have taken some pictures of how I made it but I took a sheet metal punch head that we manufacture at my work and milled a slot in it turned the threads off the shank cause I didn’t like the way they looked and drilled and tapped a 6mm set screw in the side to securely hold it on the press and drilled a press fit hole for a 1/4 dowel pin and pressed it in, the whole project is made out of h300 tool steel


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[Muggzy]

OK All, I need some advice and the people on this thread (been a long time member and lurking here for about a year now) seem like they might be able to help.
I've been looking for a lathe (or mill) to get started playing with machining as a hobby which is why I'm flexible about which one to get. For the couple of things I want to do now, the lathe is probably my preference. Here's where the advice comes in;
I found this Smithy Midas 1220 XL combo lathe/mill/drill press on CL. It's a little crusty because it's been sitting in storage but IMHO, not something that can't be cleaned up. Is it more trouble than it's worth? The guy's asking $800. At what price if any would it be worth getting?

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[ez-duzit]

I'd keep looking.

 

[mgermca]

I'd keep looking.

Good advice. That machine looks like it's been outside.

I Paid 400$ for this lathe

...and 1000$ for this mill

CDN $, so .75 of US$ , both for approx 1,050USD$

Keep looking! They're still out there.

 

[ez-duzit]

m--for $400 you got a real lathe, not a toy.

 

[Hephaestus29]

80.00 would be an ok deal for a rusty
Smithy.

 

[Muggzy]

Ok, thanks for the replies fellas. Guess I'll keep lookin

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[Griff93]

Sometimes you just have to get creative. My 5C collet chuck broke on my lathe. My lathe is large enough that the chuck jaws won't grab something this small. I need to get the chamfer on these stainless bolts turned out quickly.

2018-01-13_09-31-35 by Griffin93, on Flickr

Did our first engraving on our CNC mill. I've been using our cnc plasma that has an air engraver on it for this purpose. It wasn't really happy with it on this part because the lettering was so small.

2018-01-04_06-33-24 by Griffin93, on Flickr

 

[kazlx]

 

[matt_i]

This was kind of an interesting project for me...its a 2-axis swivel for lifting the staircase in my shop. The staircase pivots at the top, originally I was going to do a 1-bearing design but it would be in a bind most of the time due to the torsion-deflection when I lift it up from only 1 of the stringers. So along came the 2 axis design with the trunnion. The staircase is lifted by a HF cable hoist.











Finally finished.


Its part of this assembly. 2 axis swivel. Bearings, snap rings to be installed; lift point, center shaft still to be made


UPDATE...finished and assembled.


and a couple other parts.





With hoist cable attached.

 

[Badasssapper67]

I tried to join PM post deployment. In fact I did join, but I was still in my "Army brain" and didnt last longer than a day or two. They run it like the Stone Masons or something, which is not a bad thing they are a depositry of immense knowledge and expertise.
But I just wasnt going to have it after fighting the taliban going to have a group of old men in aprons exerting control over every little thing. Plus I saw how intolerant they were over things I had no idea of why it was a controversy.
Im paying for it in the end becuase without any kind of help Im never going to know how to make things I'd love to make but what's done is done.
Definately going to check out hobby machinist though

 

[davewo]

It's not just you. Being in the biz, I was an avid poster on PM many years ago. It's devolved. I check in a few times a year and see the same group of posters holding it up.