Member postings for Oompa Lumpa

The foam drawer liner works well to stop stuff flying around and I have found the trick is to use a bit of spray contact adhesive on the liner so that doesn't move either.

There has got to be something simple, some plastic moulding from something. Even if I ripped some 18mm plastic pipe down the middle and making some sort of washboard affair.

graham.

As some of you have (rather unkindly () remarked, I am a pretty tidy person. Continuing in this persuit I have aquired myself one of those very nice Office quality filing cabinets - you know, the ones with loads of small drawers, like this:

Mine is the middle sized one. The drawers are (approx) 91/2" x 14" x 2" and there are ten of them. I would really like to divide some of the drawers up for the storage of milling cutters and lathe tools because I just wont have things rattling around. I have looked at the plastic drawer inserts you can buy but frankly they are expensive. Just buying one I would wear it but at 14-18 pounds each (plus VAT) I could become poor pretty quickly!

Anyone have any creative ideas? I already have a couple of rolls of Drawer Liner in a very fetching Cream Colour

graham.

Edited By Oompa Lumpa on 21/03/2014 17:39:32

Edited By Oompa Lumpa on 21/03/2014 17:53:20

This is what I used to use for the Marine Tank and the guy is really easy to deal with, RO-Man

Easy to set up and you can get a bigger system if you want but the smallest of units will make mare than enough demineralised water for any loco.

graham.

I am sorry John but I would disagree on this point. In my opinion the Bedford CF was the biggest pile of. I know, I know this from first hand experience.  We had one.

graham

Edited By Oompa Lumpa on 19/03/2014 08:16:06

Holy Smokes!

That would have triggered a diplomatic crisis in my house too.

I give spanners, screwdrivers and other small tools away, saves clutter. And broken screws, bolts and other fittings. Incidentally, if you really must use Gorilla type tools, I find the Facom brand Vise Grips to be terrific.

graham.

Thank you Jason, I am really pleased with it.

Now, John. The "Hammer Debate" I am not too fussed what other people's experience with hammers is/was but I can recount mine.
For many, many years I "swung a hammer" and during some of those years I worked Piece Work. Other years I worked Post and Beam so a different type of hammer was used most of the day (small sledge usually) and other years/days I did fine work so a lighter hammer was needed but mostly I did timber frame so my hammer of choice was an Estwing. Not any old Estwing, it had to be MY Estwing, 22 ounce, long shaft, framing claw. I have had the same framing hammer for more than thirty years, before the Estwing was a Picard.

I have favourites in the workshop. Presently my "go to" hammer is a small three ounce Ball Pein with a shaft of my own making, it has terrific balance, for Forge work I have a vintage 21/2 Lb rounding hammer, again on a hickory shaft I formed. If the hammer I want isn't to hand, I go find it. Why? Because the likelihood is, with the right hammer I will hit whatever it is I need to hit correctly the first time and every time.

Anyone who tells you different either hasn't had to swing a hammer for fifteen hours a day for weeks on end or has such finely balanced muscle control any tool they hold, they hold it perfectly(?) EVERY time. Any tool. Not very likely.

I am not trying to be superior in any way here. What I am saying though is that not all hammers are created equal and when buying a hammer it is, in my opinion, a very personal thing. Under my bench there is a box containing half a dozen hammers of various type, none of which I use. They just don't feel "right".

My opinion only and it may not work for you.

graham.

Finished my take on the Universal Pillar Tool. Actually, only made for hand tapping but, and this is the important bit, all made from scrap,discarded items and leftover materials.

Quite pleased with the way it turned out. The most frustrating part of the build was that I had a number of smallish holes to tap! Ironic really but made me smile.

graham.

Ah! Makes a bit of sense now.

There was a biggish Centec Horizontal Mill. All of the cutter are 1" bore and I can assure you the family who are having to dispose of the stuff really do go the extra yard to photograph and describe what they are selling.

As some of you know, I am trying to help a family dispose of a lifetimes collection of kit.

I have learned first hand a very important lesson. Don't leave your family to tidy up after you. And be thankful you have good friends who will do the "right thing" for the family you leave behind.

graham.

So, the Quiz continues. So far Ian has the highest score with the Viceroy bits (Rule 37 SubPara A - The Judges decision shall be final!)

Here we go, no preamble - right in there:

One question that I do have is what could the gear cutters be used on? They look awfully big some of them just for a home machine (unless you have some industrial strength kit in your shed, which I would love to have )

You know Neil, I always wanted one. I would be very grateful to everyone if you would NOT send me the plans for one or I am likely to lose a significant part of my life

I am not surprised at the cost of some of the kits.

It would stop a thick wad of plans blowing away, I wouldn't like to drop it on my toes!

graham.

Edited By Oompa Lumpa on 15/03/2014 19:25:20

Today I went off and collected my new Dividing head, cleaned her all up and fitted a four jaw self centering chuck.

She is Bootiful!

Any suggestions as to what I could actually use it for would be gratefully received

Meanwhile it makes a statement in my workshop - "looka me, I really know what I am doing!"

Made me smile anyway.

graham.

I am looking for exactly this sort of thing. Ideally something a little smaller though. I will keep on looking, unless someone has a "kit" lying around they want to sell?

graham.

Geoff offers sage advice.

If you are starting out and have just acquired your machinery my advice is the same. Make some tools or accessories. There are loads that are easily made and if you make a hash of it it is not the end of the world.

You could buy a blank arbor and make a slitting saw arbor from it. Or a Die holder for the tailstock of the lathe. Simple accessories like this are useful, the blanks are cheap and you will gain invaluable experience. You will also learn your and your machines limitations and shortcomings.

At the end of the day, this is a "hands on" hobby so any amount of reading will never quite fully prepare you for that first experience of the chuck key flying across the workshop or the material suddenly turned to scrap because you advanced the cross slide just that little bit too much.

Books are great, Forums are great, it is nice to have a good set of drawings. None of these things will actually make anything though without your own effort.

graham.

I have to confess I am a very tidy person. I have to be as my workshop isn't really that big so I have to pack it all in there. When my missus first started to get to know me she was looking around behind doors and in cupboards for the piles of unwashed clothing and junk that she couldn't find.
She will readily admit she finds it odd that a male of the species is so tidy but I have never, ever, pretended to be "normal".

graham.

Well, not strictly today but yesterday. I built from scrap and discarded material a new stand for the parts washer and all the Ally and Brass offcuts. All of this material was rescued from the skip which did provide for some interesting measurements and fitting as there is square and round tube of varying dimensions

Ten minutes with a brush and a small pot of hammerite from the "stores" complete with shelving again from discarded material and it really looks the part. Made in two pieces so I could actually get it into the "workshop".

Now a gap in my insulation is revealed as I managed to rid myself of another cupboard. It has made the corner much brighter and gives the impression of far more space than there is.

graham.

For lots of reasons I decided to take the cover off one of the motors today. One of the brushes had started to stick in the housing and I wanted to clean the commutator.

But this motor always was a bit "rattly" and now I pulled the cover it came easily and I see the Bearing Housing is very bright. Although I have no evidence on the bearing of the outer race rotating the housing does seem extraordinarily clean and bright in comparison.

Shall I change the bearing anyway? All advice welcome.

In a nutshell.

"Ripped off by a Seller on eBay!" Shock! Horror! Welcome to the 21st Century.
It doesn't matter whether the seller is based in the Far East or the UK, there are a great many sellers who sell "cheap" goods. I decline to use the word "shoddy" for the simple fact you KNOW a one pound milling cutter is not Tungsten Carbide produced in Solingen or Sheffield.

Just look around the town centres - Amusement Arcades, Banks, Fast Food Outlets and Pound Shops. Some people buy cheap and wonder why it breaks during use? We all like a bargain but really, you just know that if it is too good to be true it probably is.

Now, having said all of that it is possible to buy Far Eastern goods at terrific prices and if you are buying just small quantities at little money you won't incur import tax or VAT so it really can be a bargain. But trying to find a good seller of bargain priced goods on ebay is like sticking the tail on the Donkey! Research - and there are plenty of forums and review centres on the Internet so if you do your homework you can buy good at a reasonable price. You can't do this by just picking a seller and hoping for the best.

graham.

This is definitely something I would be interested in building. Thing is, it could be made to fit any lathe, within reason.

graham.

Just makes it that much more interesting for me.

My "engineering" is usually fixing someone else's Co**ups so nothing new here.

graham.

Snag is, you are too far away from me or you could nip round and borrow something to get you away.

NOT the missus though