Member postings for bugbear6502

(sorry I'm late, google led me here)

Is (B) a solid toolpost, a replacement for the compound?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pG3YSfgyJPI

Let's face it, this little lathe needs all the rigidity it can get hold of!

BugBear

Edited By bugbear6502 on 25/07/2021 12:20:44

I have now driven out the insert using my all-steel, plain screw, Swindens vice (I have read that using a vice as a press is a big load, so I was being cautious).

Anti-climax.

Pushed out really easily.

Interestingly, it was slightly marred during the process. It's SUPER soft. The only iron objects I know that are comparably soft are the mega-annealed cold rivets used for fixing garden tool handles on.

Just need to find some springs and ball bearings now.

BugBear

Edited By bugbear6502 on 01/10/2019 17:52:54

Spending time in the shop is not a cost. It's a benefit!

BugBear

Thanks to all for the constructive comments. As soon as I get the Adnam's mini keg emptied and off my bench (don't want to stir up the yeast), I will attempt to press out the insert, and proceed to repairing it.

BugBear

Sadly, I do not have a set - just the extension . I have always liked King Dick stuff - their spanners are beautifully fine and good to in the hand.

BugBear

Yes - with my woodworking hat on, I have heard many horror stories about putting expensive chisels in "premium" leather rolls..

BugBear

My Sis has a rather lovely, and robust, Bernina. It has sewn (in its time) 3 layers of leather!!

BugBear

I was wondering wether the pockets should be flat or pouched, wether the whole roll should taper, or should the pockets merely taper within a parallel roll, wether the seams needed reinforcing, how the roll should be secured shut, wether a top flap is needed.

Plenty of design decisions over and above the particular size of spanners held...

BugBear

I have a nice accumulated/carboot set of Bedford metric spanner (8mm-22mm).

I would like a nice roll to store them in.

(conveniently, my retired sister taught domestic science all her life and is an expert seamstress).

Does anyone have a plan for, (or at least a nice example of) a nice spanner roll?

BugBear

Conclusion to the tale; since my pins were 16mm long (not the standard 25mm), I ordered 5mm silver steel to make my own.

Checking it would NOT go in the holes (bar one!). An electric drill and some 100 grit SiC was used to reduce the stock, checking with a mic to try to keep it reasonable parallel. The stock got very hot.

Starting at 0.197 (imperial mic!) it kept checking. At 0.194 the stock started to slide into some of the hole, so I didn't take it down to 0.193. I then sliced my workpiece down into 16 mm slugs, with a nice chamfer filed on the ends.

I think the accuracy of this fit is coming from the formica (or similar) surface of the carcase. I'm pretty certain that chipboard can't be worked to these tolerances.

Thanks again to all for your practical advice and experience.

BugBear

As members will know, measuring a hole is a good deal harder (or requires less common equipment) than measuring a pin.

I can say that only one of the holes I tried (there's a whole rack of holes, to allow shelf repositioning) would accept the back end of a 5mm drill bit (which I checked to be very close to 5mm).

I will order 5mm stock (or pins), try to fit them (possibly with a "tap" and possibly emery them down a bit.

Thanks to all for your advice and thoughts.

BugBear

(note; I do not own a functioning lathe)

I want to fit an extra shelf in a kitchen cabinet. A shelf is just a bit of plywood, but I need more of the little pins (that fit in the holes in the carcase) to support the shelf. The carcase is fully drilled out with a rack of holes in all positions.

I think the kitchen is from the 1980's, and made by "Xey", a Spanish company.

I've carefully measured an existing pin, and the size is very odd.

It's 0.1935 inches, which is 4.915 mm.

Googling shows me this is (number size) #10 (which is VERY surprising for a Spanish company). A kitchen fitter has told me these pins are "always" 5mm.

I have checked 3 pins with 2 different micrometers. It's definitely #10, despite my kitchen fitter's advice.

Can I get #10 material in the UK? I can see American suppliers with it, but I've found no one in the UK.

Failing which, how feasible is it to reduce 5mm drill rod diameter by the requisite 0.085mm (3.3 thou), using the hallowed electric drill and wet 'n' dry method?

The carcases are chipboard, so enlarging the hole by the requisite tiny amount would be tricky and error prone.

BugBear

Indeed - 2.5mm and 1/8" drill bits are now on my "look for" list.

BugBear

I picked up a nice little Eclipse #220 pocket scribe yesterday, for no money (OK, I paid 20p).

The reversible point was (as usual) stuck, but the usual combination of lubricant, cleaning, and careful application of force got it out easily enough.

Sadly, it was snapped.

Checking my other 220's (it turns out I already had 2), I discovered that the newer models have a 1/8" (0.125" ) scribe, while the latest acquisition (which I judge to be the oldest of them, it's more nicely made), had a 1/10 (0.100" ).

Tricky. Where does one get 1/10" stock?

Re-checking (with a vernier'd micrometer, not a dial caliper) showed that the 1/8" point was very accurate indeed; 0.1248", only two-tenths off. Wow, Eclipse make accurate stuff!

The 1/10" was not so good, a coupla' thou short, 0.098".

Not very accurate. Hmm.

Acting on hunch...

0.098" in mm is 2.489.

Re-checking the micrometer, the actual reading is more like 0.0985", which is 2.502 mm.

It's METRIC (and bang on accurate, too). I should have trusted Eclipse all along...

BugBear

Edited By bugbear6502 on 03/09/2018 11:16:16

If I knew enough to ask the perfect question, I probably wouldn't need to ask any question at all!

BugBear

I'm just in the process of sawing and filing up some TINY pieces of the metal for gibs.

BugBear

Already found, downloaded, and collated in to a single PDF - Thank you!

BugBear

Having googled, I learnt that normal gib strips are quite big. The gib strips on the Simat are 2mm or less thick.

I've been rummaging in my scrap box for sheet steel I can cut some strips out of. I have some pressed steel parts from an ink jet printer that look promising.

I have read that the Simat top slide (held by a single hex bolt) is not very rigid, and best removed (if you can manage without it). I have evidence that "someone" took this seriously. In my "bits" pile I had a small slide, that I was going to use as a focusing/traverse for focus stacked macrophotography. On close reinspection it's the top slide from a Simat!

BugBear

Edited By bugbear6502 on 30/10/2017 13:02:29

I have looked into making a backplate, and it appears technically "plausible"

However, I can't find any trace of small (enough) chucks that actually use a backplate. All the small-enough 4 jaw independent chucks seem to have a one-piece body.

This is further supported by the fact that the smallest semi-machined backplate I can find is 4" ; even the "tiny" mini-lathes are 7x10 (and up) where the Simat is 4x12 (aka 2x12 in English).

Although... checking the advert the Simat is 5 1/4" in the gap, so a LOW profile chuck could have a large diameter. But "low profile chuck" and "having a back plate" are again contradictory.

BugBear (googling for information and products)