Member postings for Matt Stevens 1

....Is that because the sets tend to be 'cheap rubbish' and you are better spending the money on decent indivudual ones?

Hi Dave.... Whilst i don't technically class myself as a beginner anymore (been home machining for 5 years or so), there is always something to learn from others and going back to basics is often the right way. Therefore your comments are valid - perhaps if anything, i am guilty of the first item more than any others!

So yes....blunt end mills is a concern....hence i might look at the sharpening options.

That said, they were cheap end mills to begin with and i tell myself everytime to not buy cheap tools and then guess what....the "amazing deal" comes up. So i might replace them with something better and hence the questions and then use the old ones to practice sharpening.

Thanks for the replies so far....

I will check out the Harold Hall sharpener for interest, however i still think i will get myself a decent set of end mills anyway.

Is TiAIN coating cheaper than AlTIN coating or was there another reason for suggesting it? From a quick google, it seems TiAIN is a good coating for high carbon steels whereas i thought AlTIN was better for mild steels/general?

I suppose it does raise the question about if to bother with coatings at all??? I figured uncoating mills were essentially fine for plastics, aluminium etc but not such a good choice for steels. Perhaps this is a good point to consider the pros and cons of each? For example, are uncoated mills actually sharper anyway?

Hi All,

I am not happy with the low quality end mills i currently own and will not eat for a week so i can buy some new ones....

There are lots of options out there and a homeshop machinist generally cannot afford to have multiple sets of end mills in different coatings, different number of flutes, different sizes and so on - there are many combinations.....but then again, we are not doing production machining and so speeds and feeds can be sacrificed tremendously. So, question is - how can we minimise to the most useful only...

A set of center cutting 4-flute end mills is the start....but what coating? HSS or Carbide? My thought is that given we are typically machining cast iron, brass, mild steel - perhaps HSS with Aluminum Titanium Nitride (AlTiN) coating is the way forward. What are your thoughts?

I am thinking that uncoated HSS end mills are really best for soft materials and even TiN coated the same... Again, thoughts?

....of course next step would be the same in 2-flutes , ball end etc...

Hello All,

Thanks for the responses.....firstly I am based in Ontario, Canada. It is below zero out which likely doesn't help!

The flux i am using is a LucasMilhaupt Handy Flux which is disolved in a little filtered water to make a thick paste. I also have a LucasMilhaupt Tec flux which is for high temperature soldering and is a liquid and quite runny....i was thinking this might help to 'pull' into the joints?

I have used the paste type several times before without issue.

The V-blocks didn't take to much heat, they got warm but not hot. None the less, i could use something else and for sure i can try more firebricks that are closer as well.

I am assuming there is nothing to lose by trying again after a good clean up anyway....

Hi All,

So i have just pinned and silver soldered my Stuart Triple Crankshaft. I am happy with about 50-60% of the joints but some of the others did not capillary into the joints....i think because i did must have 'burnt off the flux'

I have pickled the crankshaft and cleaned up up the best i can with 400 grit, but i am concerned that because i can't disassemble the joints now that i cannot clean them up properly.....do you think it will solder up again if i reflux the outside and try again?

Edited By Matt Stevens 1 on 26/02/2021 03:06:19

Slightly different topic....but i have always wondered why standard dies have lead in on both sides. It would be much more ideal to have lead in on one side only then you can flip the die around to tap right up to shoulders rather than create a relief area..... particularly relevant on small parts/threads

Is there a difference between British Standard Fine (BSF) and British Standard Brass (BSB)? They are both 55 degree threads.

More specifically i am wondering if a 1/4" x26 BSF is the same as a 1/4"x26 BSB.

Not sure if there is any difference in the thread form...

Hi All,

I will check the threads against one another per your suggestion...thanks.

I suspect ordering a 1.5" 8TPI UNS die will be pretty expensive for a one time use, assuming i can find one. ANyway, i will get to the group with my findings.

P.S. It does have an MT2 taper.

So i have a Southbend 9" lathe which has a spindle thread of 1.5" x 8 TPI. I have 3 and 4 jaw chucks for it.

Recently i got a dividing head which also has theoretically the same thread. The problem is that the chucks do not screw onto the dividing head?! They go tight within a quarter turn or so....

Any ideas? It would be a pain to have to machine new backing plates and keep switching them between chucks etc.

Thanks Jason,

I am finding that precision ground steel in a grade like 12L14 is not so readily available.....it tends to be more Tool steel grades and so i suspect not so easy to machine. Because of this, i am leaning towards using Drill Rod as i know i can get a piece of 3/8" @3ft for quite cheap.

Is the trend leaning towards using loctite and pins compared to silver soldering? I guess its less clean up afterwards... I also guess less chance of any relief happening changing dimensions.

I am thinking to make the webs/weights from solid. Its probably just as much machining anyway.... But i guess i could machine up the cast weights just for fun anyway

So....getting colder outside - time to start the triple!

Crankshaft in the kit has the 6x counter weights cast, everything else has to be made from stock. I wanted to get some comments before starting the job...

The crankshaft and journals are made from 3/8" dia mild steel according to the drawing. I have some 1144 material but it is slightly undersize by about 3 thou and so i am wondering if i should use this or get some silver steel/drill rod which will be precision ground? My concern is that if it is undersize, it won't be a great fit in the bearings which will be reamed (once made) to 3/8". Thoughts?

Whats the best way to set the 3x sets of webs at 120deg from each other for drilling and pinning?

Any tips on registering the counterweights against the crank webs to keep them straight and located properly? Or would you advice throwing them away and machining brand new webs with counterweights from 1.75" stock (i have 1144 in stock)

Hi All,

The South Bend Heavy 10 looks a superb machine, but it is also close to $10,000 CAD! I think that is way outside what i was looking to pay.....especially since the Precision Matthews (favourite so far) is closer to $3000-3500CAD

Thankyou everyone....as always, i learnt something and this is the power of this forum/community!

Nice idea with the washer pulley like that one......

I can reverse the leadscrew by shifting the tumbler as suggested by Jeff, i guess i have to be careful about not moving any gear positions whilst doing so however.

I also like the idea to disengage the halfnuts in the screw relief to prevent chuck crash and then wind back the spindle without moving the carriage until the thread gauge aligns again. i will give that a try!

Thanks for all the suggestions, i will practice some more over the weekend!

That would explain it then!

Only trouble is, i don't have a reverse so have to manually wind back the spindle which is a pain in the arse!

Hi All,

So - this might emphasize why I need a new lathe....but lets see....

I rarely have a need for thread cutting as dies typically work for the sizes I need, however I recently made myself a 80/63 compound gear to convert the lathe from imperial to metric threads so thought I would have a go. The pitch seemed to work very well when I tried a 1.5mm setup.

The process I did is as follows - offset compound slide to 30deg (I was doing a standard ISO thread), turned down stock held in a collet to required size and created relief groove, took a scratch cut with half nuts engaged at no.1 on thread dial, disengaged half nuts and wound back cross a little, moved carriage back, would in the cross slide to the same spot and would in the compound a little and then re-engaged the half nuts at the same thread dial number..... result = new thread cut!!!

The only way I can get the thread to cut the same point each time is by never dis-engaging the half-nuts. This makes the thread dial pointless! Any ideas why i have this problem? I can only assume its a work half-nut/leadscrew combination? Or am I missing something?

Thanks

Thankyou everyone for your thoughts.....it may be a little while till i upgrade due to funds and ....ahem.....convincing the wife etc.

I will keep you all informed and perhaps post what i am looking at for comments.

P.S. The Blondihacks youtube video was very useful!

I think the Warco WM250V is essentially the same machine as the Precision Matthews one...

https://www.precisionmatthews.com/shop/pm-1022v-pm-1030v/

So common brands over here in Canada are King Canada, Busy Bee Tools (Cheap), Grizzly is just over the border in the US..... really not sure.

I have seen alot of positive feedback for Precision Matthews machines. I don't know if they are locally available to me or not.....

Hi All,

I currently own and use a 1939 Southbend Model C lathe (9" between centers). It certainly has its limitations in that it works only with change gears (messy and a pain), no powered cross feed, no variable speed, not overly versatile to mount anything else other than the compound slide etc. On top of this....it is old and likely worn and not as rigid as it could be.... maybe i can use a slightly bigger machine too?!

So before i approach the wife for scolding/funding, i need to have an idea on what to look at. There has always been debate about Chinese imports and quality.....but then there is some very good quality items from China and improvements made in recent years. Its also true to say you get what you pay for yadda yadda.

There is a lot of what looks like the same machines with different brands stamped on. I suspect the castings might come from the same original supplier, but the spindle bearing and other parts may differ and there may lie the big quality differences..... SO......what should i be looking at? I am based in Canada, a sucker for a bargin but also don't want to buy something i will regret. Anyone want to give me some experiences of what to look at and what not?

Thanks