One way to defeat Mr.Sod

I found a 1 - 13mm Albrecht chuck in the scrap bin at work yesterday, and when I got it home I found that it was seized solid. Hence the reason for it being in the bin. Years ago, having need of the knowledge, I looked up on the Interweb Thingy as to how to dismantle Albrecht Chucks, and so knowing already How To Do It, it was with me the work of a moment to dig out my aluminium split holder and strap wrench and unscrew the top. More applied battering removed further bits, until with a rush the last two components released their intimate hold..... and sprayed 4mm balls all over the workshop. Oh tut, tut, I didn't say.

Scrabbling about on the floor and the bench revealed all but three of the balls. 4mm... a relatively odd size... got plenty of 5/32" in the garage, perhaps they'd do... Just a minute! What's this tin labelled "4mm balls"??? There were at least a dozen!

Taking this booty back into the workshop, I spotted another Albrecht ball hiding behind the door. Then I saw another one.. and finally the last one was coerced from its hiding place under a box.

So that's what you have to do to defeat Mr Sod. You already have to have the missing parts you need in stock, and show them to him. Then he'll relent and allow you to find the missing parts. And if I hadn't had a box of 4mm balls, I'm pretty sure he'd still be hiding those missing balls, and wouldn't let me have them back until I'd been out to the nearest bearing shop and bought some.

Nah, remember - it's Sod's Law, not Sod's Hypothesis or Sod's Conjecture.

He's just let you off this time to lull you into a false sense of security and shaft you worse next time...

One of those 4mm balls is actually a 5/32" one you lost seven years ago which will cause the chuck to jam solid

Neil

There,s a lot to be said for doing this type of work in a plastic bag ! How do I know ? Dont even ask !!

Especially when the part contains small springs that have been cunningly concealed and don't show on the initial tentative opening only to escape at high velocity in different directions when your hands are full. I reckon engineers should be issued with something like a very miniature black hole so that escapees will drawn to it and drop into orbit around it. Then knowing my luck I would lose the damn thing under a bench and it would sit there pulling in everything to an even more obscure place.

I'll stick to sod's law at least you have a chance, it might be less than the odds of winning the lottery but at least it's a chance. Then of course there are the workshop elves , I won't even start venting my frustration with them.

Martin

The amount of stuff and tools nicked by my workshop resident gremlin which are returned to me three weeks later when I have less need of them is frightening at times. One day undoubtedly I will find out what the gremlin is building.

Having moved house, the workshop is not even up yet and I have discovered he has hitched a ride on the furniture van and he has stolen the one inch high statue of himself whose hair I was painting luminous green.

regards

Now, I'm really not after the job as forum pedant, and I've very little knowledge of Albrecht chucks;

But:-

5/32 being a thou-an'-a-bit smaller than 4mm, doesn't it seem unlikely that such a ball would jam it?

How often a small part your making goes missing and takes longer trying to find it than making a replacement.

I think heard it drop there but if you find it it's not near that place.

.

If it's a small part, and you hear it land, it has [almost certainly] bounced.

MichaelG.

As soon as you have made the replacement the missing one will appear as if by magic.

Mike

A boss I worked for many years ago said that if you drop a part and can't see where it went, take a similar part and drop it from the same position but watch where it goes. There are even odds that it will go somewhere near the original part....or so he reckoned!

Gordon.

Gordon, Not a chance, you just loose two pieces.

Sometimes you win, sometimes you loose. I win just often enough to convince me that the process is worth persevering with. Maybe one in three tries. Fortunately loss rate of the second part is low, less than one in ten. Mostly 'cos of watching the second part like the proverbial hawk.

Little skirts right down to floor level on very low shelves, cabinets on legs et al would help. As would sealing bench tops and cupboard tops back against the wall. Or at least having decent up stands, 6" or so.

Tape measures are my thing when it comes to temporary loss. Got 6 about the place and half the time I still can't find one when I need it. Bright yellow so ought to be hard to loose. Nope. Put one down and five minutes later spend ten minutes looking for it. Oft-times finding the one I lost last month instead!

Clive.