Member postings for John Stevenson

Closest we have come across is the Fanuc 21

The post is pretty generic for lathe except threading on G76 which uses the later Fanuc 2 line build up as opposed to the earlier one line G76

AFAIK Steve hasn't posted about this on forums but will give out any information if needed but he only has the lathe version.

I have loaded code written for Mach 3 that works straight off but there are no threading routines in it. However that same code won't run in Mach 4 which is also supposed to be Fanuc compatible but I know out of the three which two I'd trust.

Murray, you are correct because Steve Blackmore has had his threading straight out the box, even done some triple start threads.

Richard, did you miss the bit where it's costs around £400 ?

Wouldn't want you to be financially embarrassed.

METoolsonline was set up by my late wife, the much lamented Gert. Unfortunately when she died I shut the site down and also her Ebay account of Marypoppinsbag.

Hopefully later this year i hope to open the METoolsonline site again and I'm in the slow process of stocking up before it goes live again.

I do still have CD of the manuals she used to sell at £9.50 post paid to any UK address so if anyone wants one can they please drop me a PM.

In stock are the Dividing head CD, the Tool and cutter grinder CD, Bridgeport CD and the Shaper CD.

Irrespective of the Harrogate v Doncaster argument, long , short is if they hadn't moved to Doncaster there would have been no show.

End of story.

Harrogate doubled the hall rent for a smaller hall. The ME show wasn't the only ones to bail out last year, approximately 10 or 12 other shows either pulled out or moved venue.

Edited By John Stevenson on 10/03/2017 20:05:44

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That is because when the gap is out you also loose part of the rack bolted to the gap so a left hand handwheel runs out of travel.

It did used to be a US / UK thing as the 'mericans don't use gap bed lathes, they just rope off the other top corner of the North 40 and buy a bigger lathe.

However now with a lot of machines being made in China you can often specify right hand or left.

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Geoff, same criteria still applies.

Ketan at ARC sells the turnkey KX1 and KX3 milling machines which are meant for hobby use as opposed to small production work although some do get used for that.

As I was heavily involved with these machines with both Sieg and ARC I often get called on to deliver and install a machine.

Usually this is because the buyer is elderly or suffers from a medical problem that stops then handling a heavy machine.

Often it's because the shed or workshop is at the end of a garden up 19 steps and 5 flower beds.

The vast majority of these users only have this one mill so they have no previous knowledge of manual milling.

Many are newly retired from a non industrial job, like office work where they are very familiar with computers but not machining.

As part of the install they also get a few hours tuition and the manual for the machine which was written in house gives them a couple of examples to do. One is the Sieg Logo were anyone with a piece of MDF and an engraving cutter or centre drill for that matter can produce their first part, and they all do just that.

I accept it's a different learning curve but it the owner knows no different then it just replaces the learning curve they would have had on a manual machine but with some of the pitfalls removed like a constant feed so they don't jerk and break cutters.

I am not saying that CNC is the be all and end all as I know it isn't, I work full time at jobbing engineering and probable use a CNC less than 10% of the time but when it is used it really saves time.

All I want to do is debunk the oft quoted saying that you need to manual mill before you can CNC mill. The truth is there is no truth at all behind that statement. For a start the machines are so different. A KX1 can run the spindle with a small cutter at 7,000 rpm whereas something like an X3 tops out at 1900 revs so how can you even compare speeds and feeds between these to machines ?

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That's an old wives tale just regurgitated with no though given to what we have in industry at the present time.

Take the current range of CNC machine operators and programmers. They have never seen a manual lathe but they can run rings round any manual lathe worker for production, accuracy and repeatability.

Top of the road from me is a CNC shop just had a big extension and 7 more machines fitted, two of these are 1/2 million pound 5 axis machines. NONE of these guys except one can work manual machines.

Their CNC turner came round one day as I was screwcutting a thread, stood there watching me and said "I'd love to learn how to screwcut " I was amazed and asked him why he couldn't and he admitted he'd never worked a manual lathe.

Jokingly I said "I'd love to screwcut at 1,000 revs " he looked at me and said , "No 2600 revs "

When I asked why 2600 revs it said that was as fast as the lathe went. They run thier machines absolutely flat out and alter the depth of cut to suit the job in hand.

Next time I went up there and was watching the code scrolling down the screens I saw that there were no G01 moves at all it was all G00 and any G02 /G03 moves were done at maximun feed rate of about 10 metres per minute.

So it's just s different ball game and skill set.

I sell everything now as collection only, probably cuts the exposure down but also cuts the tyre kickers down as well.

Sometimes you have to ask yourself is it all worth it.

It's impossible to sell anything for less than £9.99 and make any money given the time spent, listing, answering questions, packing and taking to the post office and then the fees.

What I find hard to believe is the number of people who complain about prices and when they get the chance to really save they can't be bothered.

An example, last year I had to get rid of a metal rack that stood outside with probably just under 2 tonnes of steel on it, all known quality if a bit rusty from being outside under a sheet so I offered it for free if collected. A saw was available on site to cut to whatever lengths was needed.

Four people took the offer up, and I reckon well over a tonne went down the scrap yard.

In the next year I have about 4 tonnes of bright new steel, stored inside to get rid of. I looked at the link someone posted the other day for an online steel supplier and I can sell at 1/4 to 1/3 of thier prices and still clear a profit which isn't what it is all about.

But I know deep down that it will all go for scrap

Small items I pick up in my clearance I tend to put in one big bin and let anyone who buys anything hunt through it when they come to collect. That way all the money is mine, anything that sticks just gets thrown in the skip as dead weight.

Edited By John Stevenson on 08/03/2017 11:30:46

Are we the last generation of manual machinist's ??

No Definitely not.

Are we the last generation of untrained hobbyists messing about in sheds then probably not as well but younger people, the Maker brigade which is far bigger than Model engineering may transpose over in later life.

Professional manual machinist, although getting rarer are a different breed to hobbyist's.

When was the last time Brits Rail / British Nuclear Fuels / Rolls Royce / Toyota / Boots [ delete as required ] came knocking on your shed door with a blown out shaft ?

They are always knocking on the doors of professional manual machinists so really the question asked is the wrong one.

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Good solution but on the Align there is no panel or support bush, the bit behind the knob is the two way lever which causes all the problems.

If you use an O ring in that application the pot just revolves either way with the lever. You have to leave an air gap but this alone won't cure the problem because of interference between the hollow lever shaft and the pot shaft.

Neither the lever or the pot can be removed without a complete strip down as the motor is to the rear of the pot / lever centreline.

Ed,

Sorry, friction brake is something mechanical bearing on the shaft to stop it moving under vibration or being carried along by another moving part.

Could be as simple as an elastic band round the shaft and fixed onto a screw.

I just wanted to make you aware that the dual concentric shaft idea of a lever feed and pot does have disadvantages if you don't factor in a brake.

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But he needs a two position switch if using a switch for forward and reverse