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For what it's worth, some years ago I settled on FreeCad. It's free, parametric, open source, focussed on engineering, intuitive and has a large active cohort of users and ongoing developers. Runs on Windows, Mac, Linux operating systems. https://www.freecadweb.org/ David L

I found the best thing was to have a a pair of slip on steel cap boots in the workshop. Easy to change into household slippers for a dash to the bathroom. Like you my shop is a well appointed, insulated and air conditioned garage - the car sits outside.

Hi Brian, I recently added a four jaw 4 inch dia chuck to my little Seig lathe. (It was originally equipped with a 3inch chuck) . I also had imbalance issues over 6oorpm. Problem solved when I noted the various bolt holes for mounting etc were not evenly situated. Easily fixed by carefully...

Hi Brian, I've been looking a t your work off and on ever since I started machine on my retirement. I stand in awe of your artistry. Keep sharing. Cheers

I agree. I found this thread today and read the lot. Picked up quite few work holding tips. Great job.

It has been some time since I posted to this forum - lots of things going on in life. It turns out that the engine in the photo is not a Riches & Watts but a Tidman organ engine. The Riches & Watts engine was actually in the background of the photograph. Anyhow, I developed working drawings...

I finally got around to making a fixed steady for my Seig minin lathe. All materials were to hand. The frame is 6061 Al plate and the three supports are made from threaded rod capped with brass bearings. These were rounded using a ball turning tool I made some time ago.

I saw this picture of a little known nineteenth century engine and decided it would make a great next project. After a bit of searching I found a sketch showing the general assembly and some of the components. The next step is to produce working drawings using the proportions obtained from the...

Thanks Wes. Don't wait too long - I didn't start metal working until I retired at 74years old. Been at it four years now and I must say that with low cost Seig lathes & micro mills (which are surprisingly accurate), one can achieive pleasing results. I've also found one can modify these...

Hi Jack Lovely work. Here is a photo of my attempt at the grasshopper which is what looks like your current project. It was a fun build and runs well.

Here is a photo showing the status of my current project. I'm building a slightly modified version of the Kerzel Hit & Miss IC engine. This is a trial assembly of the body, piston, timing gear and drive components. The cylinder head can be seen lying beside the assembly. It has been...

A very nice job - much smaller than I can attempt these days. I came to machining very late in life, when hands and eyes are not quite they used to be. I decided 3mm nut and bolt was the smallest practical fastner for me and that determines the engine dimensions. I usually scale designs to...

Here is an assembly drawing I made Cheers

Griffin, I did not use a program. The motor was powered by a stepper motor drive board . I added a pulse generator to provide the clock pulse and switches provided voltage to the "enable" terminal and earthing to the "direction" terminal. The driver and pulse generator were bought on eBay. I...

Hi Griffin, Here is a picture of my Z drive. It is a fixed drive , but I find that there is no call for a manual mode. I use the fine manual adjust on the quill.

Here is a photo of the current project under construction. The surface finish was achieved using a fly cutter and my powered x drive.

For what it is worth, I put a simple X axis power feed on my little Seig X1 Mill. the motor is an old Ford windscreen wiper and is coupled to the shaft with a chain drive. I built a simple speed control using a pulse controller ex Hong Kong. I also have found my work has a much better finish...

This is my version of a Grass Hopper engine I built last year. I used one nitrile rubber O-Ring on the piston. I started machining in my early 70's before retiring on my 74th birthday. I now can indulge myself.