Author Topic: Metal shaper ecological niece and value?  (Read 6047 times)

Offline PekkaNF

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Metal shaper ecological niece and value?
« on: October 19, 2017, 06:18:59 AM »
I have been offered a table top size metal shaper. It is very clean and pretty, looks old but pretty much unused.

I only have seen pictures so far. Not sure about the brand/model, it has a text "Acorn" I think. Looks bit like Atlas Shaper.
http://www.lathes.co.uk/atlasshaper/

I am ofcource wondering what it is worth paying and is worth owning.

I don't have much extra space, but I could chuck some crap and crappy tools out of my garage. I am pitting it against small milling machine, probably chinese mill/drill. I allready have large slow mill.

So what is the small (800*400*400 mm) metal shaper good for. Specially if pitted agains mill/drill? Is shaper + good pilar drill better idea than small mill/drill?

I do a whole lot more tools and measurement tools and that sort of stuff rather than traditional model engineering.

Someone said that shaper is only good for keeping up the floor space - that I don't have extra.

Pekka

Offline mexican jon

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Re: Metal shaper ecological niece and value?
« Reply #1 on: October 19, 2017, 07:47:27 AM »
I wouldn't be without mine  :scratch: It never gets used  :scratch: well apart from when people ask what it is and i show them it working  :loco: It's very therapeutic to watch  :thumbup: but in reality with modern millers the shapers days have past  :( saying that though I do know of a couple of people that swear by them and reckon they are by the far the best tool for some jobs   :thumbup:
People say you only live once ! I say thank F@*K can't afford to do it twice.

Offline mcostello

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Re: Metal shaper ecological niece and value?
« Reply #2 on: October 19, 2017, 12:56:59 PM »
Got one and once or twice a year it earns it's keep. Sits in an otherwise unoccupied corner so no problem.
High Speed steel in a Carbide world.

Offline mattinker

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Re: Metal shaper ecological niece and value?
« Reply #3 on: October 19, 2017, 03:08:00 PM »
I have an Elliot 10m shaper that doesn't get used very often but is a life save for internal keyways. It was my first machine tool; It is quiet, doesn't take up much space, uses simple single point tooling ang can produce a very good smooth finish. I realy like my shaper!!

Regards, Matthew

eskoilola

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Re: Metal shaper ecological niece and value?
« Reply #4 on: October 20, 2017, 12:52:08 AM »
Extract from the attached document:
"Finishing a male dovetail on the replacement top slide for the Chinese lathe you wish you'd never bought …."

Hmmm... biased ?

I think there are certain tasks that only can be done with the shaper. Those are rare though.

The videos I have seen these been used are quite hypnotic.

Offline PekkaNF

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Re: Metal shaper ecological niece and value?
« Reply #5 on: October 20, 2017, 02:24:17 AM »
Jesh. Sometimes you find shapers in 200-400€ range, but most of the time they are way too large. This is smaller.

So small relieve like at the bottom of the dovetail and V-grooves are their forte and pretty much suck on everything else?

I do not expect shaper to do pocketing  :lol:

How accurate they tend to be? I mean how close to straight/V/dovetail surface I get if I make a block to color/check V:s or such features?

Pekka

Offline Fergus OMore

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Re: Metal shaper ecological niece and value?
« Reply #6 on: October 20, 2017, 04:10:21 AM »
I've given this information before but the NEME_s. org site has a copy of the Ian Bradley book The Shaping Machine.

This gives the words and music on the particular model for which you want information

N

Offline PekkaNF

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Re: Metal shaper ecological niece and value?
« Reply #7 on: October 20, 2017, 06:29:24 AM »
Thank you all.

I thought that I'm not hot for it, but got two more pictures and it looks almost unused. He told me that it is Atlas 7B and table has no dents, vice and tool holders might be somewhere there to wait for picking up.

Found this one, some basic stuff
http://neme-s.org/Shaper%20Books/Michael_Moore/PMKnowYourShaper.pdf

I'm going to visit to see it with some money in my pocket.

Pekka

Offline mexican jon

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Re: Metal shaper ecological niece and value?
« Reply #8 on: October 20, 2017, 06:35:56 AM »
That's very similar to my AMMCO 7"  Mine is even on the original cabinet as is the attached picture is from the net  :drool:
People say you only live once ! I say thank F@*K can't afford to do it twice.

Offline gerritv

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Re: Metal shaper ecological niece and value?
« Reply #9 on: October 20, 2017, 08:08:38 AM »
The manual might improve your outlook on what all this machine can do for you, the list is decent: http://www.vintagemachinery.org/pubs/51/3563.pdf


Offline tom osselton

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Re: Metal shaper ecological niece and value?
« Reply #10 on: October 20, 2017, 02:47:23 PM »
I have the Atlas 7b shaper that I inherited from my father he didn't have a mill and was using it for his steam engine he was building it seems to work nice but we would love to get a extention for the table so we can use the dividing head.


Offline PekkaNF

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Re: Metal shaper ecological niece and value?
« Reply #11 on: October 20, 2017, 03:14:13 PM »
How do you use dividing head and what sort of thingy that is?

Is that for splines and that sort of stuff?

Pekka

Offline gerritv

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Re: Metal shaper ecological niece and value?
« Reply #12 on: October 20, 2017, 05:35:06 PM »
would an angle plate bolted to the side provide enough extension for the dividing head?

Offline tom osselton

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Re: Metal shaper ecological niece and value?
« Reply #13 on: October 20, 2017, 08:58:15 PM »
would an angle plate bolted to the side provide enough extension for the dividing head?

It's possible or a stiff enough plate on top deck the extension I saw before was a right angle that fit on the front.

Offline PekkaNF

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Re: Metal shaper ecological niece and value?
« Reply #14 on: October 21, 2017, 06:06:09 AM »
Maybe something like this
http://www.maritima-et-mechanika.org/tools/shaper/Wotan-3.JPG


This looks interesting and doable.
http://www.harpritsan.com/Indexer.html

Now the interesting thing to me is that which way the power stoke should be.

To me it looks like dividing plate forward for ease of handling and solid "Tail stock" to work against? That would b reverse working order of shaper: Power stroke on return.

Or the indexing head has to handle power stoke thrust and shaper is workinh in normal mode?

Pekka

Offline mattinker

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Re: Metal shaper ecological niece and value?
« Reply #15 on: October 21, 2017, 07:09:13 AM »
Power stroke on the return requires a reversed clapper box, it can be useful to reduce chatter.

Offline Jonfb64

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Re: Metal shaper ecological niece and value?
« Reply #16 on: October 24, 2017, 05:10:02 PM »
I remember reading somewhere that you can make anything with a shaper, except money. :lol: