new addition to the W/S

[minerva]

Hi all
additions to the workshop this week
About 18 months ago when I first got my lathe I started on a project that was published in the MEW. It was a simple small rotary table originally intended for rounding the ends of engine components using the mill. I had in the scrap box at the time most of the materials and whilst at the autumn show in Warwick (UK) I obtained a cast faceplate for use as the table.
What with one thing and another using the lathe as a milling machine proved to be a little ambitious for the lathe with end result of the project being put on the back burner.
Having acquired my new mill and some success under my belt with the tee slots I felt the time had come to resurrect the project, and so I completed the table as per the article. A chance comment by my college instructor made me re assess and some improvements were made. Additional "tee slots were added. A plunger de-tent was manufactured and fitted and at College on Thursday evening last I "borrowed " the College RT and drilled the location holes in the table. It worked like a charm. All that remained was to turn a mounting spigot for both my three and four jaw chucks with a register to fit the table and the jobs a good 'un .
All that remains to be done is to punch mark the graduations and fit some form of stops but hey ho, got to leave something for next week!
Regards to all

 

[deere_x475guy]

Great Job!...looks like you drop that right in the vise and your ready to go.

 

[Philjoe5]

Terry,
That's a great looking rotary table. I'm sure you will get years of satisfaction out of using it knowing that it was made by you. Thanks for posting,

Cheers,
Phil

 

[minerva]

Hi all
The past week or so has, following completion of #43 been a bit of a let down as I had no immediate plans for a next engine project.
So I decided to make inroads into my "roundtuit" plans to fit a DRO to my mill. It has an inbuilt Z axis readout but the other two axes are "on the dials" so to speak.
Some weeks ago I purchased a kit of parts for the Shumatec 350
http://medw.co.uk/wiki/index.php?page=Shumatech+DRO350+Prices

and this past week has seen it go together. the kit was well documented and presented no great challenges during construction, and I think you will agree the finished article certainly looks the part.
At this point I will point out that the picture shows the scale plugged into the Z axis slot and not the Y axis where it will finally reside. (I used the one scale to check all three axes electronics)

having put the kit together a 6" digital scale of Chinese origin was purchased from Arc-Euro as the readout for the Y axis ,the following is a blow by blow account of the fit-ment to my Amadeal25LV. The first fact that was immediately apparent was that space was going to be at a premium and so a decision was made ( I might just regret it later!!) to mount the scale back to front as it were, with the movable read-out display attached to the moving cross slide Via a fabricated bracket

, and fixing the scale rod (fixed element)to the body of the machine. The implication of this is not immediately obvious but it does mean that the lead from the scale actually moves with the cross slide and may be detrimental to its operation in the long term, but in general terms it hopefully should not present too much of a problem, only time will tell.
There seems to be some difference of opinion as to whether the scale portion of the scale should be "rigid" or "floating and after considerable thought I opted for the "floating" option with the scale fixed to the body at one end only via a simple turned button screwed into the body of the machine,

a slot was milled into the top of the button to take the slide and the slot's depth regulated the fit that facilitated the movement of the slide smoothly for the full extent of its travel (about 6"). (hope this makes sense) A cap on the top of the button was fixed using two 3mm x 0.5 c/s socket head screws the depth of the slot meant that the cap holds the scale securely at one end but after a trial period if there is any movement of the scale a further grub screw through the cap will allow a belt and braces approach, having so said it seems to be fixed securely to the body of the machine. I intend to give this set up a good trial whilst I save my pennies in order to purchase the 600mm scale that is reqd. for the X axis.

That exercise should be somewhat easier as I intend to use the dovetail slot which carries the table x limit stops to support the fixed scale element via a bracket at each end and fix the movable element to the central stop fitted to the table (for use with the table limit stops).
To summarize the fit involved drilling and tapping three holes (two into the cross slide carriage, (the Y axis) to take the bracket and one into the body of the machine to carry the button which supports one end of the slide ) and the fabrication of a bracket to carry the slide of the scale. I intend once I have carried out a trial to fit some form of protection to the fit and will post more when it happens
thanks for looking.
Terry

 

[Blogwitch]

Terry,

Just to backtrack you a little.

With reference to the vice you have bought. It might look large, but if about half of it is hanging off the front of the table, then you have chosen correctly.

One thing I would recommend is to get rid of the turntable underneath it. Not only will everything be more rigid, you will have greater throat depth as well.
It is easy enough to refit if ever you need it, but for most of your machining, it is better to have rigidity rather than the rotational ability.

My vice turntable has been gathering dust under the bench for the last couple of years, in fact it has never been used.


Bogs

 

[minerva]

Hi John
I did wonder about that.
I have read that it is possible to remove the rotary base and fit buttons on the underside to enable quick setting up of the vice on initial fitting. To be honest the rotary part of the set up leaves a lot to be desired, the witness mark is merely stuck on and needs to be engraved to be a little more permanent and accurate in use (I haven't actually used it yet ) I have fabricated a screw-less vice based upon Deanofid's design and I'm really pleased with the result!

I'm glad to hear that you are feeling better and getting some shop time in and hope that bodes well for the future
kindest regards
TerryT

 

[minerva]

Hi Guys
an update on the DRO fit, after a couple of days playing one thing became evident, the friction fit of the button top was not man enough to hold the scale without a certain amount of "creep", so I added a set screw through the button top into a dimple drilled into the scale. I used it today and the mod seems to have solved the problem.

A couple of weeks ago I picked up not one but two old portable power drill stands for £2 (one a Black and Decker and the other a Draper) so I have spent today modifying one of them (the Draper) into a tapping tool, I still have a couple of things to do before its finished but tomorrow should see it finished. the photo shows it in use with my newly finished vice tapping a second tapping head.

a pic of the tapping tool completed, it works a treat!

I intend to shorten the spindle and maybe change the tap head connections! As is usual for me, I ran out of grub screws on a Sunday!!

 

[mzetati]

On my mill I had some problems due to the rigid mountings I had made for my scales and had to allow for some flex by interposing a strip of metal (used a portion of a feeler gage) between the scale an the bracket.
http://www.homemodelenginemachinist.com/index.php?topic=9163.msg149422#msg149422
(last picture of the page)

Marcello