Member postings for Mike

Hi Meyrick:

I do like the big dials on your Super 7 - they would save me a lot of squinting through my reading specs at tiny figures and graduations! Some years ago I had to take some photographs for a book, using the ML7R I had at the time. The figures and graduations on the top slide and cross slide  were raised rather than engraved, and almost invisible on black and white prints. Answer was to spray the dials matt black, then spin them in the chuck against a bit of fine wet-and-dry. The result was bright silver figures against a black background - perfect for the photos, and much easier on the eye for subsequent work.

As I remember, I gave the same treatment to the leadscrew handwheel but, with the figures and graduations indented rather than raised, the result was black markings against a bright background.

Hi Geoff:

Hi everybody:

I have now finished the construction of my light milling machine based on an old Amolco attachment left over from the days when I owned a Myford. I still don't have a motor, but at least I now know what I want.

Thought you guys might like to see it. The base was built up out of a slab of very hard 3/4" plywood bolted to the bench top. On top of this is an 8mm layer of a very hard industrial plastic and, finally, two 3/8" x 3" x 12" strips of bright mild steel stiffened with a couple of lengths of 1" steel angle. The X-Y table was bought from a ME advertiser.

Will this Heath Robinson arrangement be stiff enough? Well, a 30lb lateral force applied to the tool tip produces a movement of 0.0003" measured with an accurate dial gauge, so I have high hopes.