What did you do Today 2024

[bernard towers]

On bernard towers Said:

Been carrying on with the rope knurls and have had a light bulb moment, why not make a pair so that  they can be used in a pinch knurler so no real strain on the H/stock bearings. I have managed to cut a pair they just need hardening and testing but thats for another day.

Those look really nicely made. Hard to judge from the picture but what OD are they and what diameter are the rope knurled knobs/wheels that you will be making?

If you oppose the pair in the picture I think you will get a criss cross pattern, is that still a rope I wonder?

Ian P

 

[bernard towersParticipant @bernardtowers37738]

Hi, Ian they are 16mm in dia and the wheels will be max 30 mm but mostly around 25mm. yes i think you are right about the cross pattern but I have made a few of them  at left and right and different pitches, they seem like topsy they keep growing but that gives me more to play with. The hardening comes out  really nicely when covered in boric acid and come out spotless. I will continue to let you know how I get on.

[Robert Bowen-CattryParticipant @robertbowen-cattry70600]

This weekend I attempted silver soldering for the first time. Not the prettiest, but the joints are strong.

 

[bernard towersParticipant @bernardtowers37738]

Continuing the saga

Using opposing pairs in a clamp type knurling tool seems to be the way to go especially thinking about the strain on the lathe headstock. I think it looks quite period.

[jimmy bParticipant @jimmyb]

Received my just purchased 12-16″ and 16-20″ micrometers today.

 

I’m really not to sure why, other than the good price, I bought these. My lathe can swing 18″ in the gap, so it’s some sort of justification I suppose……..

 

JimB

[DiogenesParticipant @diogenes]

It’s a strong impression, Bernard, is that straight in without gashing?

[PlasmaParticipant @plasma]

The rope knurling looks fantastic, the pitch and crispness is amazing.

Looks simple but oh boy is there some skill involved in creating the knurls.

Green with envy.

 

[bernard towersParticipant @bernardtowers37738]

Diogenes, its parting tool either side then 45deg chamfer then take the corners off with a graver, in with the knurls and some lube and bobs your.

[jimmy b]

On jimmy b Said:

Received my just purchased 12-16″ and 16-20″ micrometers today.

 

I’m really not to sure why, other than the good price, I bought these. My lathe can swing 18″ in the gap, so it’s some sort of justification I suppose……..

 

JimB

I know why you bought them.. it’s the law, “he who dies with most toys – Wins” is a quote from the rule book I believe. So you just have to you see Jim 😁

—-

Those knurls look good, I do like the result!

[mark costello 1Participant @markcostello1]

He who gets to take the tools with Him really wins.

[Nicholas FarrParticipant @nicholasfarr14254]

Hi, I’ve been browsing through some ME mags from 1953, and came across this Seasonal Complaints in the Christmas number, Vol. 109 December 10th. It might amuse your SWMBO, but on the other hand, it might give her ideas. But I like the Centerfold cartoon, not what you might have in mind! but it is to do with Model Engineering.

 

 

Regards Nick.

[Nigel Graham 2Participant @nigelgraham2]

Ooh, I can’t imagine any magazine daring create such material these days!  🙂

I’ve been turning good metal into swarf for nigh on half a century but I don’t recall ever having some floosie seductively draped round my shoulders like ‘im in the middle of that UN of the Workshop… Clearly I’ve led a sheltered life. Perhaps it was because I was not sharply dressed, bow-tie and all.

[duncan webster 1Participant @duncanwebster1]

My mate had all the qualifications to fit 25 kV switchgesr, but not allowed to wire his own kitchen. Not stupid, the requirements are different. I wouldn’t trust my PhD brother in law to wire a plug.

[Nicholas FarrParticipant @nicholasfarr14254]

Hi Nigel Graham 2, that’s a novel stairlift that the guy with a feather in his hat, has got though, wonder if he can keep the fire in all night so he can take the train back down in the mornings.

Regards Nick.

[duncan webster 1Participant @duncanwebster1]

If he’s coming down he can do it on counterpressure, no fire required. As long as he doesn’t forget to bring something with him.

[Nigel Graham 2Participant @nigelgraham2]

Rack railways by Stannah… The mind boggles.

Me, today?

Nowt much – mostly Christmas preparations (Bah, humbug!).

 

More usefully, attempting a TurboCAD exercise someone had set me in an effort to get to grips with its “work-plane” system that is one of my weakest points with it. At its basic level it is roughly equivalent to setting a face of an Alibre Atom model as the base of the model’s next entity, but in a different way.

It all went to rats, with such peculiar things happening that I am worried if the software has become damaged.

…

I also had a go at the Christmas puzzle set by GCHQ, on its web-site. Yes – the 21st Century equivalent of Bletchley Park does have a public site, on which it loves to set puzzles, though I learnt this only couple of days ago. The Christmas one, we are told, is aimed primarily at schoolchildren of secondary age, and the compilers do suggest team-work (as much of GCHQ’s work would be).

Each question’s answer is a British land-mark.

It’s ‘ard. One question fell fairly easily. Another foxed me by a football reference, as I know next to nowt about sports. Question One’s little pictograms went over my head completely; as did a numbers-ring question that reminded me of that arcane “calculator” that had us all baffled a few years ago! Yet another was easy to follow in process but to something so odd and unexpected I must be missing something.

I twigged the clue to solving Q7, a substitution cipher, yesterday; and this evening completed it before tea. I used an ‘Excel’ spreadsheet, not as a mathematical tool (I am not a descendant of Ada Lovelace!) but simply to arrange and manipulate all the letters and words in an easily-readable, ductile format.

[A substitution cipher is one that replaces each letter of the alphabet by another. This was the basis of the ‘Enigma’ code system, which was originally invented for commercial transactions security, not military use.]

…

Made an amusing change from freezing me building a shed, my hands on a chilly lathe or my brain with CAD.

[Roderick JenkinsParticipant @roderickjenkins93242]

While rooting around in the loft for the Christmas decs I came across an old box for 35mm slides which was just the right size to hold the centring microscope I recently made.  I fired up the 3D printer for some fitments:

 

While the iron was hot I made a pusher for the bandsaw (not my idea I’ve seen something similar used by the guy on “Inheritance Machining” on Youtube):

Merry Christmas!

Rod

 

 

[bernard towersParticipant @bernardtowers37738]

Like the bandsaw pusher Rod but mine will have to be made the old fashioned way.

[BazyleParticipant @bazyle]

Friday midday wind + branch took out phone line 200 yds down road. Openreach came and looked and went away. Saturday OR tidied up cable and took some more down. Only two of us  plus Utilities building affected so no rush. ETA now Friday. 4 days is longest I’ve been offline for 25 years.
Did 1 hr family zoom on phone – 500MB. Nervous about my data usage.
Today nipped into village hall art group to use network and got coffee and mincepie while checking email and setting heating for church 250 miles away (Hive).
Decided to try tethering to mobile and see how much I use pestering you lot.
Will be able to get online at the EDMES Boxing day steam-up if necessary as the Community Centre in the middle of the track has wifi.

[BazyleParticipant @bazyle]

Last night’s initial session used 40MB, went for half hour dinner and it managed to use another 40 when I wasn’t doing anything. I did a little more to hit 100MB total and shut it down. This evening I have only looked at a few of the new threads on here, plus emails, and it kept itself down to 20MB for about 1MB of actual serious text content. Stuff goes on in the background you don’t appreciate.

Today after Church and some log cutting I had to cook my own Xmas lunch for the first time in years. Takes ages but did include firing up a small BBQ to murder my chicken following challenge by my nephew in south Oz experiencing 40C. Quite unusual on Dartmoor in mid winter.

However at last after King’s speech it was all sorted and I could settle down to December ME and soon latest but one MEW.

[Speedy Builder5Participant @speedybuilder5]

Me, investigating why the wash machine had flooded the kitchen. Why wash on Christmas Day? A little too much red wine and whoops, the soup bowl was all over my lap. Never mind said the wife, in the wash!  Then while Charles was telling us all the good news, the flood ensued.

When all mopped up and washed down at the laundromat, and tumble dried (7euros), I took the lid off the machine to find that the tube from the soap dispenser to the drum has a split in it.  Anyway, the machine is under guarantee, so will call the service line in the week, press 1 for …, then 2…, then 1… etc etc.  Happy days.

Bob

[Nick HughesParticipant @nickhughes97026]

Finally, after over 2 years, I finished fitting the Closed Loop steppers and changing the control system over to Centroid Acorn (from a buggy Mach 4), on my Syil X5 CNC mill.

Just some tweaking to do on Friday and it’ll be ready for use again.

[Nigel Graham 2Participant @nigelgraham2]

Yesterday actually:

About an hour on here, then perhaps three hours in the workshop, Radio Three on, starting the steam-wagon’s cylinder covers before remembering it’s Christmas Day and I was invited to Sister No.1 and hubby for a late-afternoon meal and presents.

I don’t know when I’ll see Sister No. 2 and her other half. I normally visit them but have not yet received any reporting instructions, sorry, invitation.

….

The first of those covers is 3.25″ diameter, as the bores are both 1.5″ but the top covers are prominent so need reasonably resemble the original compound form.

Parting-off was rather nerve-wracking, entailing advancing the HSS blade in its the holder a few times, lowest pulley and back-gear, gentle but not “yellow sector” (becoming too low) 3ph motor speed, and lots of lubricant; but apart from a couple of dig-ins went more easily than I’d feared. No hacksaw blades were harmed in the making of this disc!

This on a Myford ML7 with rear tool-post.

The steel? Of unknown grade but certainly not EN1A (leaded). HSS tools give a somewhat better finish on it than carbide, so it’s evidently one that needs correctly-specified inserts.

 

[FatgadgiParticipant @fatgadgi]

Today, Boxing Day, recovering from a hernia operation, I sat scoffing chocolate and installed the Maker version of Solidworks on a new-to-me laptop.  All worked perfectly once I successfully thwarted Microsoft’s attempt to lock my computer …. grrrrr.

If any one is interested, Solidworks Maker is the full version, but for hobby use etc., and you can’t use the files on the proper industry versions.  Cost ~£50 per year.

Hope everyone had a great Christmas 😊

Cheers Will

[Ian PParticipant @ianp]

I am still struggling with 2D Cad, well I had got it mastered it until a few weeks ago but have been forced into a change of program (Was Acad now QCAD).

If I wanted to go 3D Solidworks Maker sounds a bargain for non commercial individuals but whilst it makes sense that its output files are in some proprietry format, can those files be used to make printed or CNC’s parts?

Also, can Solidworks Maker import files from full Solidworks?

Ian P

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