Member postings for Mike Crossfield

Michael

Interesting to read the original patent application, but it doesn’nt give any clues as to how to open my unit up.

Mike

I have an ancient Verdict lever dti which I use a lot. Unfortunately it has become sticky, with a dead band at the end of the scale. I am losing about 30% of the scale travel. I have taken the side cover off (one screw) and it’s clear that the scroll which disappears into the back of the scale is sticking at one end of its travel. I can’t see how to dismantle the gauge any further in order to get at the offending bits. Can anyone advise?

Thanks Neil. I have sent you a pm.

Has anyone out there built the oven described in MEW 267?

I have just completed my version, which uses the same basic components and materials described in the article, and I’m concerned about the temperature reached on the exterior of the case (made from a stainless steel pedal bin).

With the oven set to 300 C the top of the case where the heater mounting bracket is attached reaches nearly 150 C, and the oven door is too hot to touch comfortably. With the oven at 600 C, the highest temperature I’ve risked, the temperature measured on one of the heater bracket screws is 300C!

I’d be very interested in anyone else’s experience.

Mike

You may be interested in an account by R Bradley of secretly constructing a small screwcutting lathe together with many accessories in a Japanese prisoner of war camp during WW2. The article was originally published in Engineering magazine in Jan 1949, and was reprinted in Guy Lautard’s “Bedside Reader”. It’s amazing what was done with extremely limited materials and resources.

Martin (and BDH)

I'm envious. I don't know where you're located, but in my part of England (South Hampshire) the only stuff at local car boot sales seems to be clothes, old toys, DVDs/CDs, and household/garden junk. Never anything of use in the workshop.

I can relate to this. A few years back I bought a number of small drills from Axminster, a company I consider reputable. After difficultes getting one to cut I examined it under a glass and found exactly the same problems described by Stew. Negative rake and unequal lips. All the drills I’d bought had the same problems to greater or lesser extent. I contacted Axminister who seemed unable to understand the problem. I suggested they contact their supplier, but they weren’t interested and simply offered a refund (which I declined, having resharpened the drills already). To be fair, the drills were very low cost, but even so one would expect them to cut!

Since then I have been more selective about what makes I buy, and who I buy from.

Dave

The first Super 7s up to about 1957 had the oiler you refer to. The oil reservoir was cast into the headstock, with the oil flow controlled by a needle valve. A sight glass makes the drip rate visible. The arrangement worked well (so long as the operator remembered to close the valve after work - ask me how I know!). According to the chap from Myford I spoke to 20 years ago, the arrangement was changed for the wick feed oiler because the reject rate of headstock castings due to porosity was too high.

Mike

Jon

Do you have swarf trays fitted? They help a lot in keeping debris off the bedways and out of the slides. My own are shown below. I also have a wiper on the front of the tailstock.

Joe

I would also be very interested in details of your design.

Mike

Jeff

Just returning to Myford lathes for a moment. One of the attractions of the 7 series machines is that they have a very wide range of accessories, and most spare parts are available. Because they were in production for donkeys years there are also many used parts available at relatively reasonable prices. The same is not true of the ML10, and while some parts such as chucks and change gears are interchangeable with 7 series lathes, quite a few are unique to the ML10. I know this from personal experience having at one time owned a Speed 10. So if, for example, you wanted a fixed steady for a 7 series lathe you could easily buy a genuine used example or a brand new pattern part for £30-£40, a steady for an ML10 would be hard to find. My friend has been searching for a steady for his ML10 for many months, and the last used example he saw on eBay sold for over £120.

Mike

+1 for adding a wiper to the tailstock. I fitted one to my Super 7 several years ago, and as Brian says, with the felt well oiled and the bed clean, the tailstock simply glides along the bed.

Jason

At the end of the video there is a section showing the device being used with a wide range of different materials including steel, titanium and stainless steel.

CJ

I had the same problem of a worn bushing on the gearbox of my aged Super 7 some years ago. I extracted the bush, and to my surprise found that it appeared to be steel, I contacted Myford, who were still in business at the time, and spoke to the spares chap (Malcolm?). He told me that he couldn’t help because there was no bush fitted in this position - strange because I was holding it in my hand! Anyway, I turned up a replacement out of phosphor bronze. Fortunately most of the wear was in the bush, not on the leadscrew, so I was able to get a good fit. 15 years later it’s still going strong with negligible play.

Mick

After trying lots of different makes with varying results, I now only use Flying Dutchman blades. I get mine from the US, but because the blades are light the shipping cost is not too bad. Delivery is surprising quick too. Take a look at www.mikesworkshop.com. Lots of useful info even if you don’t buy from him.

HTH

Ron

There are many potential problems with using a drilling machine for milling. To list just a few, t bearings are not designed to take side thrust, the set up is not very rigid, there is no fine feed and probably no quill lock, there is no means of tramming, and a drill chuck will not hold milling cutters securely. Since you have a lathe, I would use that for the sort of jobs you mention. Get a vertical slide and a fly cutter to increase capability further, and save up for a mill.

It was Colin Chapman (of Lotus fame) who famously said that you could hang a double decker bus from a 1/4 inch bolt. But then he was well known for engineering on the limit....

Lynne

If you only want to check that the ball bearing is in place and that the operating rod is intact you don’t need to compress the spring. Just remove the clutch assembly and countershaft complete. This is quite straightforward and from memory only requires a clamp screw to be released and a circlip to be expanded to allow the countershaft to be withdrawn.

Mike

Thanks for the replies. Not easy to remove the non drive end cover complete with rotor because the terminal plate and all the associated wiring is attached (as Robert suggested). There is a pressed tinplate cover over the end of the shaft, so I’ll try to remove it and see if Robert is right about a retaining circlip.

I am trying to dismantle an old English Electric resilient mount 3 phase 1/2 hp motor which was fitted to a Myford 7 lathe. The motor was making some odd rumbling noises despite spinning freely. However there was 1/8 inch end play in the shaft. After removing the 4 through bolts the end cover which the output shaft comes through came off without difficulty. The plain white metal bearing was in good condition. However, I cannot remove the rotor because despite rotating freely the shaft seems to stuck in the blind end cover. I have applied moderate force, but apart from the 1/8 inch movement mentioned earlier the shaft will not withdraw from the end cover.

Before resorting to greater force I am asking if anyone has had a similar problem, or knows of any retaining device I’ve overlooked.

TIA

Mike