MadModder
Gallery, Projects and General => Project Logs => Topic started by: Gadget on November 23, 2009, 10:47:54 PM
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I have just started building of a horizontal milling machine using the Gingery plans. I have already built the lathe but sold it quite a while ago. I will be adding photos when I have something to show. So far I have nearly completed the bed pattern. I hope to pour it in two weeks (visiting kids over Thanksgiving weekend so no project work then)
I might shoot a video of the melt and pour when I get to that point.
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I might shoot a video of the melt and pour when I get to that point.
That would be great to see. I've got the searies of books put out by Unka Dave, as Lindsay would say.
I was going to go that route. The farthest I got was making the aluminum foundry. :dremel:
Bernd
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making a horizontal milling machine.............now that sounds like a BIG project :bugeye:
i will be watching this project unfold.
do you have any pictures of the lathe you built???
chuck :wave:
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do you have any pictures of the lathe you built???
chuck :wave:
I looked for the photos a few days ago. I have one I have to blow up but it will be grainy. I am not home at this time but when I get back I will post it.
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This is the first attempt at casting the Gingery mill bed. My sand hasn't been used for a couple of years and was bone dry. I put too much water in the mix and had a steam blowout. The sand should be just about right by next week when I try agan. I used the gas burner today because I don't have enough oil. I also don't have a vent hood yet and the melt had to be done inside, too cold outside.
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that's too bad about the steam blowout :(
can we possibly get some info on your furnace, my dad and i have talked about doing some casting but that's all we have done is talk.
hope the next pour turn's out better.
chuck
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Nice neat shop you got there Gaget. To bad the pour didn't turn out for you.
Chuck, Gingery's series of books on the aluminum foundry might be a place to start, plus a couple internet searches will give you some answers. But why do that when we have an expert right here that knows how.
Bernd
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I knew I got the sand too wet but decided to pour anyway. I'm sure the sand will have dried out enough by next week to get a good pour. I have been casting for 20 years off and on so I'm sure I will get it right.
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that's too bad about the steam blowout :(
can we possibly get some info on your furnace, my dad and i have talked about doing some casting but that's all we have done is talk.
hope the next pour turn's out better.
chuck
My furnace started out as the Gingery electric furnace. I used it that way for about 12 years but the element burned out and I decided to convert it to propane. I can post some burner photos later. I have both propane and waste motor oil burners both of my own design for the most part.
The blower is from an old Royal vacuum cleaner which is why it is so noisy. The hinged lid and cart was just pieced together as I saw the need.
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This is the second attempt at the Gingery mill bed casting. My sand has dried out enough for a pretty good pour. Top and bottom surfaces are nice and flat. No rocking on a flat surface. I also modified the air inlet of the burner. I have much better control of the air flow now.
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Great show!!! Thanks for posting:o)
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looks good..............i'm glad the second pour worked :thumbup:
chuck :wave:
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Great to see it worked for you this time ... I'd like to be able to cast ... :clap:
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It`s a great feeling when things go right..... :ddb:
Well done! :thumbup:
David D
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Very Very cool. :nrocks:
Eric
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Gadget
Glad to see that the 2nd pour went better than the first. At least in casting you can reuse any bad parts unlike in machining operations. It will be interesting to follow along with the rest of the build as you progress. Thanks for showing us this. :ddb: :ddb:
Cheers :beer:
Don
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GREAT JOB Gadget
This looks like a very interesting project to follow,,,,,, :clap: :clap: :clap: :clap: :clap: :clap:
Regards Rob
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Go Go Gadget Furnace!! :zap:
Sorry...I couldn't help myself.
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Thanks guys. This weekend I will be pouring another bed casting for a friend, then on to the mounting bases.
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I had a busy day today. I cast mounting bases for the Gingery mill for me and a friend. I had to shake out the first pair to get enough sand to cast the second. I didn't quite have enough for two large flasks.
Anyway, all four castings turned out quite well. The bed surface has been hand scraped true flat so the next step is to surface the mounting bases and mount them to the bed.
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Really looking good! I built the lathe and mill in the mid eighties when the Dave Gingery books first came out. I learned a lot from the series and really enjoyed metal casting, it get's addictive.
Charlie
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I also built the lathe in the 80's but never got around to the mill and shaper.
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I poured the first of two mill head stands today. This was the most complicated patterns in the build and it turned out as close to perfect as I think I will ever get. It's a split pattern with deep thin pieces that have to be pulled from the sand. I had my doubts that I would be able to pull the patterns without damage but they pulled very nicely.
I also cut the bed ways and got the first two bolts inserted. The rest will be easy now since the ways will not move when doing them.
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Some very nice looking casting. It'll be interesting to see this machine from begining to end.
Keep up the great work and posts. :thumbup:
Bernd
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Very cool. I love to see people casting their own stuff. Building your own mill! Now that's classic! My hat's off to you sir!
Eric
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Great bit of work Gadget,
:clap: :clap: :clap: :clap: :clap: :clap: :clap: :clap:
Enjoying the thread looking forward to the next great installment.
Have fun
Stew
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Gadget.
Wonderful project here. I am transfixed by it. A few questions, I can guess on the volume and weight of the contents in the Kiln ladle but how long does it take to get to correct temperature? And do you remove the slag before you pour? If not does that effect the pour and the result?.
Many thanks. Anthony.
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Gadget.
Wonderful project here. I am transfixed by it. A few questions, I can guess on the volume and weight of the contents in the Kiln ladle but how long does it take to get to correct temperature? And do you remove the slag before you pour? If not does that effect the pour and the result?.
Many thanks. Anthony.
Hi Anthony,
This was about 5.5 lbs of aluminum in the crucible with some left over poured into ingots. It takes about 35 minutes from startup to pour temp for that much metal using propane as a fuel source. The raw material was from ingots previously poured with very little slag but I always skim the pot before pouring. Pouring temp for aluminum is 1300 degrees. Without a pyrometer, the rule of thumb is to pour three minutes after the last ingot has melted.
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Great job Gadget :thumbup:
i will have to keep an eye on this thread
Rob
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I had to make an angle plate to true the mounting surface of the spindle stand this weekend. The plate did what it needed to do and the bottom mounting surface of the spindle stand is nice and flat. The spindle stand is true vertical both side to side and front to back. Here are some photos of the angle plate and welding. Be kind, I'm not that experienced with TIG welding yet.
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Hey your tig looks much better than my mig. But it looks like your gaining ground on the welding, ya got a few "dimes" laid down there nice. :thumbup:
Bernd
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That one piece was pretty thick for a guy still learning about TIG, Gadget. You did alright!
Your castings look very good, to me, (that's coming from someone who may know about welding,
but has never got past reading about casting).
This is probably the only way I'll ever get my own scraper, (by casting), so I'm enjoying and learning
from your project.
Dean
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Thanks guys. Dean, did you mean shaper or scraper. I have a shaper on the project list. I will be doing that after the mill is finished (kind of backward order)
Dan
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Gadget
Nice work. I am very interested in the out come of this.
I am a welder for a living and see the little things you are doing wrong by the photographs shown. You don’t have bad welding skills you need just a little theory and a pointer in the right direction. Its an easy fix.
I am going to in the next month do a thread on stick and Tig welding from start to finish. Getting involved of the theory and metallurgy of it. Walking the cup and stick angle will be covered, that’s half the battle. It really is easy and the techniques are simple. Its all about practice.
Your job is fine. Nice work. Anthony.
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Dan, I meant "shaper". Too fast typing, to slow proof reading!
The Gingery type would probably be the only kind I would consider. I could buy a used one, but the DG one looks about the right size for my small, fairly full shop, and it's one I could move around without a lifting apparatus.
I was also a welder at my main job for some 20 years, until I changed directions due to degradations of my personal structure.
I expect you were probably using the TIG on the fixture you welded as a way of getting in some practice. That's about what it takes, too. Welding is very much a "doing" thing, and it's less easy to tell about it than to show about it. If you have questions, though, at least you know there are a couple of guys here who've spent some time under a welding hood.
Now, time for me to sit back and watch this casting stuff!
Dean
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Dean,
I plan on the Gingery shaper too. I may have patterns available after I finish mine that you could borrow. Depends on who gets there first.
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Gadget
Nice work. I am very interested in the out come of this.
I am a welder for a living and see the little things you are doing wrong by the photographs shown. You don’t have bad welding skills you need just a little theory and a pointer in the right direction. Its an easy fix.
I am going to in the next month do a thread on stick and Tig welding from start to finish. Getting involved of the theory and metallurgy of it. Walking the cup and stick angle will be covered, that’s half the battle. It really is easy and the techniques are simple. Its all about practice.
Your job is fine. Nice work. Anthony.
Thanks Anthony.
I my current "theory" is make it stick together, beyond that I only know what I have read. There is so much out there it's hard to find out what is the cause of this problem or that problem. If I were going to do a lot of this I would take a class but as a nearly retired hobbiest, I can't justify the cost.
Dan
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Dan, this is very inspiring. I'm in the final stages of building a very very primitive wood fuelled foundry. I expect it to be inefficient and barely able to melt aluminum - we'll see. I hope to cast myself little items which you guys normally make on a mill, a fixed steady is also the list.
If I have little success then I plan to build a proper waste oil foundry. It's good to know there's guys on the board that's experts in these fields.
If I survive and not burn myself to a crisp, I may tackle the Gingery shaper.
Anthony, I'm looking forward to your thread. I'm always keen on picking up new tips and tricks. The older I get, the worse my welding becomes.
Regards.
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I spent the weekend hand scraping the pads for mounting the vertical ways this weekend. Once that was done I mounted the headstand and vertical ways. I have the ways mounted with two screws right now. The remaining holes are drilled and countersunk but still need to be tapped, I just ran out of time.
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Starting to take shape there Gadget. Looking very nice.
Bernd
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Gadget.
Great job!. Looks neat and tidy. Scraping is something I have never done but know the theory. Its hard work. Maybe a little write-up on the scraping and your advice would be welcome.
All the best. Anthony.
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I needed a pattern that was 3/8ths thick for the spindle slide. Since I don't have a planer and have no idea where I can get wood in 3/8th in dimension I used my CNC plasma/router table to cut the pattern to the proper thickness. Here is a 3 minute video on the process.
"&hl=en_US&fs=1&"
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That's a neat way to make patterns!
Dean
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Gaget,
Couple of questions, who's table if it's commercial and could you have used styrofoam?
I'm thinking of getting a cnc plasma table next year from Torchmate (http://torchmate.com/torchmate2x2cncsystem/torchmate_2x2_cnc_prototyping_sy.html). It's small, 2' X 2'.
Anyway nice job. Don't want to get to far offf topic.
Bernd
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Gaget,
Couple of questions, who's table if it's commercial and could you have used styrofoam?
I'm thinking of getting a cnc plasma table next year from Torchmate (http://torchmate.com/torchmate2x2cncsystem/torchmate_2x2_cnc_prototyping_sy.html). It's small, 2' X 2'.
Anyway nice job. Don't want to get to far offf topic.
Bernd
Bernd,
I could have used styrofoam but will be casting indoors and the fumes from lost foam are nasty. As for the table, I built this myself. It is convertible from router to plasma cutter and is based on plans from solsylva.com. I use a Longevity ForceCut LP80 plasma cutter when doing that function.
I have seen the torchmate 2x2 CNC machines, they are very nice. I didn't spend as much on my table as what the Torchmate tables cost though. Also, the Torchmate 2x2 units come without the plasma cutter I believe.
Dan
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Also, the Torchmate 2x2 units come without the plasma cutter I believe.
Dan
Yes, you are correct. I'm getting a Miller Spectrum 375 this summer.
Didn't know you poured inside. That sure would stink up the place.
Bernd
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I spent the weekend hand scraping the pads for mounting the vertical ways this weekend. Once that was done I mounted the headstand and vertical ways. I have the ways mounted with two screws right now. The remaining holes are drilled and countersunk but still need to be tapped, I just ran out of time.
Hi Dan, I bought and read all the Gingery books as they came out, took the time to make a crude charcoal foundry, as I lived in "base housing" as a Marine, and couldn't have a permanent or long term setup, but I learned to cast aluminum, and to work the sand so as to keep blow holes away, and hope to have a waste oil foundry built when I get done with the other fifty projects I'm back on, but I'm enjoying watching you build the mill, and seeing much cleaner and shapelier castings than those I did so many years ago. I learned a lot from the Gingery Books and his way of thinking and doing, and I've got a couple of engine projects he did which I want to do myself, namely his differential Atkinson Engine and perhaps one of his Stirling engine models. Great job on the castings, and on the pictures showing the work. mad jack :beer:
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I recast the spindle slide today. Made two of them, one for me and one for Torqueman. They both turned out quite well this time. I will cast the bearing caps next and then the hand scraping and fitting begins again.
Dan
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I finally have an update. The spindle slide casting was made with incorrect measurements (error in Gingery book) I recast the parts with the correct dimensions.
Rather than hand scrape the box slide and bearing cap fit I used my CNC mill to do the work. I'm very pleased with the results.
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Thanks for the update on your scraper, Gadget. Things are coming along nicely.
Dean
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Nice work Gadget.
I sort of had to laugh to myself reading that second to last sentence. Using a CNC mill to work on a Gingery Verticle Mill. :D
Bernd
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Hi Gadget, I just wanted to add encouragement, I read and re-read all the Gingery books, learned a lot from them, without ever having the chance to complete any of the projects, but taking in all the bringing the old methodology to life today, and enabling us to have anything we want, just a matter of building it. I learned to make moulding sand, and mold a few things, and in learning about the methods he used, shored up my own methods making my work more accurate, in building up from stacked stock material, and the art of hand scraping for accurate fit and finish. I'm really looking forward to seeing this project completed, Dave Gingery was an amazingly wise man who has given us all, as metal hobbyists, new heights to reach for, and served as a good conduit of the old technology, across time, to being useful today, when we missed the opportunity to learn to do it as apprentices. With what he showed in his books, I learned to use a lathe as a mill, a shaper, and get far more out of it, at a time when I didn't have anything but a lathe, than I ever learned in machine shop class in school, all those years ago. I hope to have a working foundry come out of this summer, so I can look at serious casting next winter, and do some things long on the list, but always pushed back. That is a bit amusing, using your cnc mill on the Gingery mill castings. Keep the project going and the progress reports coming!!! Mad Jack :) :nrocks:
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Nice work Gadget.
I sort of had to laugh to myself reading that second to last sentence. Using a CNC mill to work on a Gingery Verticle Mill. :D
Bernd
Actually it is a CNC router Bernd. No where near the muscle as a mill should have. But I agree, it does kind of sound funny.
Mad Jack, when you get ready to build your furnace let me know. I have gotten my waste motor/vegetable oil burner pretty much perfected. No propane preheat needed, just light it and go.
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I made good progress today. I got the spindle slide mounted and fitted today. Nice and tight with no play in any direction with smooth travel up and down.
Time to make some more castings now.
Dan
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That is looking good!
Eric
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I finished the feed for the spindle slide today. Kind of a major milestone since I will now start working on the table. Everything fits nice and tight and the feed screw moves the spindle slide without any binding.
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Wow, that's really looking good, Gadget. I like your work.
Such a good thread!
Dean
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Nice work Gadget.
I sort of had to laugh to myself reading that second to last sentence. Using a CNC mill to work on a Gingery Verticle Mill. :D
Bernd
Actually it is a CNC router Bernd. No where near the muscle as a mill should have. But I agree, it does kind of sound funny.
Mad Jack, when you get ready to build your furnace let me know. I have gotten my waste motor/vegetable oil burner pretty much perfected. No propane preheat needed, just light it and go.
Hi Gadget, I'd like to get my furnace built this summer, I've got the sand, clay and borax mixed, has been for years, I've got a thirty gallon barrel cut to make a Gingery type furnace with the swinging lid, and the body lifting to pull the crucible, I just haven't taken a hammer and broken up the brick to make the matrix so it won't shrink and crack. I've got both propane, for heating the house, and I've got a waste oil barrel with a couple hundred gallons of waste oil, I'd like to see your burners, I haven't played with any for years, and I expect your working model is better than anything I'd be able to start with. I've got a few hundred pounds of bronze collected over the years, and I want to get to casting it, and making something interesting out of it. I think I'll get the brick broken up, and all the dry material mixed and this fall, rap it all into the barrel and forms, and get to the firing part this fall, with the hopes of doing some serious casting over the winter, and getting going on that side of the shop. I'm really interested in seeing how you make your burners, as that's the one part I'm not much experienced at much at all. I also wanted to say I got a kick out of using CNC on your pattern, to cast as it was done a hundred years ago, but you know those guys would have expected us to be like that. mad jack
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Mad Jack,
I'll get some photos of the burner tomorrow for you. The basic component is a touch up paint spray head. I cut the vanes off the nozzle and soldered the holes they left shut. That gives me a nice even cone mist. My Teuere is a bit smaller than I would like but I have 1" pipe through the furnace body. I have a piece of 3/4" conduit inside that butted up against the spray nozzle to guide the oil mist and keep it from leaking on the outside of the furnace. I have a blower blowing air around the 3/4 conduit to make the burn cleaner. It will be easier to figure this out with photos so I will make a good post tomorrow explaining the burner with photos to help out.
Dan
PS, poured 4 more hand wheels today. I have 4 more of them to make for a friend and I will be moving on to the next assembly.
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Hi Gadget, thanks a lot, I look forward to pictures. I've got a couple of spray guns which have seen better days, so I should have the raw material to use for the oil burner, I've been sitting on them for fifteen or twenty years, even though I never paint except with a brush and roller, or with spray cans. Looking forward to the pictures, thanks. :) mad jack
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Mad Jack,
Here is a link to a thread that got me started. I did the basic mods to the touch up gun from this concept.
http://www.backyardmetalcasting.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=3341&highlight=waste+oil
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Here are the photos of the oil burner Mad Jack.
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Mad Jack,
Here is a link to a thread that got me started. I did the basic mods to the touch up gun from this concept.
http://www.backyardmetalcasting.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=3341&highlight=waste+oil
Hi Gadget, thanks for the link, I've got a full sized old paint sprayer that is just begging to be turned into something useful. I think it will make a fine burner, and get some metal melted. Thanks much for that link and I'll let you see what I get as a result of playing around with sprayers and fire. I knew keeping that waste oil tank was a good idea, it's been ten years or more and there's got to be a couple hundred gallons of waste oil in it, free. If I ever empty it, I can use my smaller tank, and use the larger one to build a good solid gun safe, I need one, and they're expensive, almost more than guns themselves. Top shelf, Gadget, top shelf!! :thumbup: :thumbup: :thumbup:mad jack
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Mad Jack,
I suggest building a pressure tank for the oil, no preheat needed that way. Also, once the furnace has reached a good temp you can shut the air pressure off the air line and just let the tank pressure feed oil out the burner. I run mine at 40 to 50PSI and it works well. I always leave a pound or two of air pressure on the air feed line to keep the oil from backing up in the gun.
When lighting, I put an oily paper rag or towel in the furnace, light it with a butane torch, turn the air pressure to about 30 on the air inlet and use the fine spray adjustment on the gun to start feeding the oil mist. Close the furnace and allow it to get hot. Once the unit is hot enough to keep the flame going well you can turn the air blower on and put the crucible in and start feeding metal.
One caution, anytime you open the furnace wear a face shield. The oil fire tends to flare up when the furnace gets opened. Lost an eyebrow or two finding that out myself.
Dan
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Here is a brief video of the furnace in operation. This was taken before I got a permanent blower but the unit still works the same now.
"&hl
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Hi Gadget, that video looks good, judging from the flame coming out the top, you've got lots of flame in with the crucible. After reading your posts, I got motivated and found the old paint gun I have, then I remembered an old oil burner I bought at the scrap yard for a couple dollars, probably twelve or fifteen years ago, and never did anything with. I dug it out, checked the wiring for safety reasons, put a tube in the inlet side of the pump, and plugged it in. I pumped about a cup of diesel on the floor of the shop before I pulled the plug, and noted it all came out of the return to tank fitting, with no sign of wetness around the jet. I took out the orifice, took it apart and used a coleman lantern wire to open the plugged orifice, put another piece of plastic line from the tank return to the tank sitting above the unit, and tried it again.
(http://i894.photobucket.com/albums/ac150/madjackghengis/IMGP0854.jpg)
(http://i894.photobucket.com/albums/ac150/madjackghengis/IMGP0855.jpg)
As you can see, the unit just needed un-plugging the orifice and it worked. I don't know how much heat it puts out, but it's substantial, and I'm going to have to play with tubes and tuyeres to see how they affect it, and of course, I will have to try it out with waste oil and various mixes, however you've got me on a roll, and I'm going to get this going this summer, and be casting by winter, or I'm changing my profession :bugeye: You said you didn't get much effect at all out of changing the adjustment of the needle on your sprayer, I'm looking at this oil pump, and I see it as a matter of controlling the pressure as the primary means of controlling fuel flow. I suspect if I put a needle in the fuel return line, I will materially affect how much pressure is at the orifice, and be able to control the fuel supply. I reckon I'll see. Thanks much for putting me on this track, I've been waiting too long, and need to get it going. :bow: mad jack
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From what I've read, you will need a siphon nozzle to use the fuel oil burner to work properly. You will also need to preheat the oil. At least that's what I have read.
Glad to see you have a burner working. With the proper setup, it will be better than what I have.
Dan
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Hi Gadget, thanks for the information, I noticed a bit of spray residue of diesel around the nozzle area after burning, and figured it needed a thicker fuel, and I've read other places about warming the fuel. I'll fool around with it while I get the furnace rammed up and together, and I can probably come up with a proper density for the size orifice. I tried holding a piece of inch and three quarter exhaust pipe about eight inches long in front of the flame, and got excess fuel sprayed inside the tube. Then I tried a piece of two inch pipe with less fuel left inside, so I think it needs a bit more air, but that may work its self out with waste oil instead of diesel. I guess it's time to mix up all that sand, clay, crushed brick, and get it wet, so it can set a while before ramming.
It looks in your video, like you've got the burner going straight into the furnace, are you getting good circulation of flame around the crucible that way? Are you making your own crucibles, or buying them? I plan on buying the Gingery book on crucibles, as I've got some bronze I want to cast and don't want to spend the money of crucibles melting different metals. That flame coming out the top looks good, motivating to see it ready and hot :jaw:mad jack
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MadJack,
I do have the burner going straight in and it can be a problem. This furnace was originally an electric furnace I built from Gingery plans about twenty years ago. The burner element burned out and I decided to convert it to propane. The only way to cut a burner opening was to use the hole left by the burner element which went straight in. After I get the next two needed castings poured I think I will try to change the angle of the burner. Hope I don't ruin the furnace in the process.
Dan
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Hi Dan, I finally found my copy of the Gingery gas fired furnace, and I have the forms cut out of a thirty or forty gallon drum, I just need to make the inside forms, and break up some brick. I have the clay, the sand, and brick, I just haven't broken it up. Once I do, it's a matter of ramming it up, letting it dry, and firing it, I will set it up with the tangential inlet, but I want to get the size of the pipe going in, right the first time, so I'm playing with pipe, burner, and will be mixing fuel as well, see what we get with old oil instead of diesel fuel. I think I'm going to have to put a "T" in the inlet and put some air in on top of what is coming out of the burner setup, as there is excess fuel as it goes right now, but that might be the diesel being thin. Once I mix all my refractory, it should sit a few days before I ram it, and since there's no hurry, it might as well get the best treatment, no rush. I'll try to get some movie footage of the burner as I change things, I've got the movie part of my camera figured out, at least the start of it. :headbang: mad jack
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Gadget...very impressive...I can't wait to see the next post of your progress....
I have been thing about trying out a foundry of my own here...I just might have to give it a go soon..;)
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I cut two cross slide patterns out of foam today for lost foam casting. One for me and one for a friend. Used my CNC router to cut the foam. I'll probably pour them tomorrow weather permitting.
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Oh boy this is looking like a lot of fun... I have been doing a lot of research on lost foam this evening so hopefully I won't have too many dumb questions tomorrow. :thumbup:
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Bob,
The only dumb question is the one unasked. :D
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Bob, Here is a link to a foundry forum you might find interesting.
http://www.backyardmetalcasting.com/forums/index.php?sid=7a83f957f76651543190aba6d1fba6b2
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How ironic...I seen the link near the top of this thread a few mins ago and am there right now...thanks...:)
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Bob was over to learn the lost sand casing method and we had a great time. I only poured one of the castings due to the sand bucked getting a hole burned through it. I didn't bury the pattern deep enough in the sand and had one corner of the pattern blow out. The casting is still usable though.
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Oh boy this is looking like a lot of fun... I have been doing a lot of research on lost foam this evening so hopefully I won't have too many dumb questions tomorrow. :thumbup:
Bob,
Here is a link to the welder and forum we talked about today. www.longevity-inc.com is where the welders are listed. The welding forum is http://www.longevity-inc.com/forum
Sign up and be sure to enter the next contest. I had a great time today thanks for the company.
Dan
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Will do Dan. I was just trying to combine the videos I took to make one video. Picasa won't combine them and I think it's because the Droid saves them as 3gp. The videos I took at NAMES were taken with my Nikon DSLR and were in the AVI format. Picasa played well with that format. I will do some searching this evening to find a converter. In the mean time I will email you the 4-3gp video files so you can see them.
I had a great time today also, and learned a lot. I can read all I want, but it doesn't sink in as well as hands on after reading. Thanks again for your hospitality and the goodies....I have a start now. I would like to talk to you more about you version 2 furnance. I was in my shop for a bit this afternoon checking my scrap iron pile. I have everything I need to make the cart and lid lifting device. If work doesn't go crazy this week, I will see if I can get started on it in the evenings. I already have my family on the look out for scrap aluminum..:)
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Bob,
Look up Format Factory. It is a free converter program that works well. It looks like it handles 3gp files so it should work. It does audio file conversions too.
Dan
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Getting it now Dan...you should also be recieving a couple of emails....one from my Droid...and once my laptop Outlook email gets back up and running another one should be coming your way.
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Here's a short video of the lost foam casting done yesterday.
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Hey...nice job with the edit :)
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Gadget,
Real nice looking casting. I've read about using lost foam casting. Neat way to make patterns easily.
Nice video too. :thumbup:
Bernd
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Bernd,
I have to give credit where credit is due. Bob (deere_x475guy) took the video and sent me a link to the download. I just added the title and notes to the show and threw it up on YouTube.
We had a lot of fun making that casting, it was a great day.
Gadget,
Real nice looking casting. I've read about using lost foam casting. Neat way to make patterns easily.
Nice video too. :thumbup:
Bernd
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I machined the other side of the casting today. Everything fits nice and flat. Next step is to add the clamps. The dark spots are grease on the bearing surfaces.
Dan
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Dan they finished up nicely :thumbup:
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I finished the cross slide fitting today. It is perfectly square to the bed ways and is nice and tight with no play in either direction. Bed and table travel is smooth. It doesn't look like much change but it took a lot of work to get it fit properly.
Dan
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Dan this is a great project. Did you have to do any scrapping?
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Dan,
Nice looking machine. Nice castings to. Are you going to CNC it? :)
Having those books by Gingery I can follow what your doing. Like you say may not look like you got alot done but there is a lot of work put into making a casting and then machining it and fitting it to the rest of the machine.
Going to be a neat looking table top milling machine when your done.
Bernd
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Dan this is a great project. Did you have to do any scrapping?
I had to do a little bit to square it up Bob. The CNC cut was good enough for the bearing surfaces. I only had to scrape one of the edge bearing surfaces to get the table and bed square to each other.
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Bernd,
I have no plans for CNC on this mill right now, it will be a manual machine.
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Hi Gadget, I just wanted to say what a great job you're doing, I bought the books as they came out, but was in the military living on base at the time, so I just tried a bit of sand casting of an ash tray and a couple other odds and ends, just for the experience, and never did make any of the machines. I have those books memorized as they are chock full of wisdom and experience, and I've learned a lot from them, even without building the machines. I am greatly admiring your workmanship, and it is a pleasure to watch this mill go together so well and at a continual pace. I expect you will end up with a fine machine based on the quality of workmanship. Thanks much for the thread, and most of all, for the videos, I've known of lost foam casting for a while, but never saw it used until now. Great video. I hope to have a furnace together and be casting this winter, largely based on the motivation you and others have provided on this site. :thumbup: :jaw: :bow: mad jack
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I finally got a chance to work on the mill again. I cast the feed screw bearing support for the bed and mounted the feed screw. The feed is nice and smooth throughout the length of the bed.
Dan
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Wow! I haven't looked in awhile. Glad I did. Very very nice! :thumbup:
Eric
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Dan, your coming along well and it looks great. I was wondering how things were going. I haven't had a chance to touch the funance again since Will was here. Last weekend I had 20 yards of woodchips delivered and 20 yards of road gravel. I am finally getting around to putting in the circle driveway on the walkout.....
Hope to catch up with you later..
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It's looking really good, Gadget. Thanks for the update!
Dean
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I got the third axis lead screw installed today. All three axis's are now done. It's time to build the boring bar mount to bore the spindle bearing support. It's been a very long process but it is starting to look like something now.
Dan
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Dan, your making some great progress.....
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It's been a very long process but it is starting to look like something now.
Dan
Oh, it looks like something alright, Dan. Something gooood!
Thanks for the new pics.
Dean
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Dan,
That`s taking shape very nicely! :thumbup:
David D
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Hi Dan
i have seen one of those mills ,, just the other day as it happens ,,,,,,,,, some fairly big castings :bow: :bow: :bow: lookin good
Cheers Rob
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Dan have you made any progress on this?
I haven't made any progress on my furnance yet...to busy Anodizing parts at the moment.
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Dan have you made any progress on this?
I haven't made any progress on my furnance yet...to busy Anodizing parts at the moment.
Hi Bob,
I made the next casting but am in the middle of painting the house right now. I need to get the house done before resuming the mill work. Hopefully in a few weeks I will be back at it again.
Dan
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ugh...I have the west side of the cabin to do next year and possibly the north....
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I finally had some time to work on the Gingery mill recently. I cast the compound spindle and bearing cap and machined the swivel base. The book said to drill three holes on a radius then cut with a coping saw for the radius slots but I cheated. I mounted the trim router with a 3/8" carbide bit to the lathe and cut the slots while the base was still bolted to the face plate. Much better slots that way.
Dan
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Nice job Dan. I didn't think you could get such a nice finish with a router since they have such a high rpm. But those slots look very clean. :thumbup:
Bernd
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Dan, those look great! Glad to see you getting time to do some more on this project. How did the house painting go....man I hate painting....lol..and staining....and of couse I built a lot home...go figure.
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Dan, those look great! Glad to see you getting time to do some more on this project. How did the house painting go....man I hate painting....lol..and staining....and of couse I built a lot home...go figure.
I still have two sides of the two story section to paint Bob. I tore a muscle in my arm trying to extend the heavy wooden ladder and had to take a break to heal. That was a week ago and the bruising is getting worse daily. UGLY!!
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Sucks about the arm. Hope you heal fast...
Parts look fantastic. Any chance you can take a picture of the mill with something so I can get an idea of the size?
Eric
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Sucks about the arm. Hope you heal fast...
Parts look fantastic. Any chance you can take a picture of the mill with something so I can get an idea of the size?
Eric
I will try to post one later today.
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Here is the mill with a gallon paint can in the picture for reference.
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Any news on this build. I was hooked on this one.
God bless Anthony.
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Gadget,
First time I have looked at this project. Respect.
What are your flasks made of ?
I have been told that you can use steel pipe section for melting ally, is this true ?
Dave.
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Hi Gadget, it's good to see the progress you're making, you should be almost ready to make chips with it pretty soon. That's a great idea with the router mounting on the lathe for the slots, there are lots of places where wood working tools go well with aluminum working. I use an old drywall cutter as an electric die grinder, using a light dimmer switch to control the speed and it works great for small jobs you don't want to run the compressor for. I hope to see you mounting a spindle and drive belting and motor soon. :beer: mad jack
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Thanks Jack,
I have to get back at it again. I've been concentrating on getting cheap heat for my garage, been building a waste motor oil heater. It's almost done now and as soon as it is I will be finishing the mill.