Author Topic: Making a Rotary Table  (Read 58887 times)

Offline awemawson

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Re: Making a Rotary Table
« Reply #50 on: September 13, 2014, 03:09:23 PM »
Very happy to help and equally glad that it worked out ok for you  :thumbup:

...advice based on decades of having to make do and mend   :ddb:
Andrew Mawson
East Sussex

Offline dsquire

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Re: Making a Rotary Table
« Reply #51 on: September 13, 2014, 04:55:48 PM »
Norman

Glad to see that it is all coming together 1 piece at a time. I sometimes think that making tools to make tools is more fun and relaxing than making widgets. Keep up the good work. I may bot be saying much but I am watching from the background.   :D :D

Cheers  :beer:

Don

Good, better, best.
Never let it rest,
'til your good is better,
and your better best

Offline NormanV

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Re: Making a Rotary Table
« Reply #52 on: September 14, 2014, 05:23:05 AM »
Whilst I had the 5mm cutter in the milling machine I thought that I would machine the slots for clamping the table in position when in use in a horizontal position. I've also drilled holes for clamping it vertically.

Offline Manxmodder

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Re: Making a Rotary Table
« Reply #53 on: September 14, 2014, 08:23:18 AM »
Norman

Glad to see that it is all coming together 1 piece at a time. I sometimes think that making tools to make tools is more fun and relaxing than making widgets. Keep up the good work. I may bot be saying much but I am watching from the background.   :D :D

Cheers  :beer:

Don

Agree with you Don,and the added bonus being the more tools one endeavors to make the more experienced and competent one gets as a tool maker :thumbup:.......OZ.
Helixes aren't always downward spirals,sometimes they're screwed up

Offline NormanV

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Re: Making a Rotary Table
« Reply #54 on: September 17, 2014, 09:40:51 AM »
The next part needed some thinking, I have never handled a dividing head or rotary table and was not quite sure how you use the division plates and sector arms. I had a read of Dave Gingery's book on the dividing head and managed to work it out.
Yesterday I made the pattern for the support for the handle and mount for the plates and arms. Most of my patterns are made from MDF, which is horrible stuff when you have a lot of shaping and sanding, but this one I made from mahogany. It was lovely stuff to work with. Also up to now I have used two part car body filler for the fillets. This does a good job but is a lot of work sanding to remove the lumps and bumps. This time I used a water based wood filler, it was much easier to apply as it has a longer setting time. After about twenty minutes I wetted my finger and smoothed it down leaving hardly any sanding to do. The only disadvantage to using it is the two hour setting time but it is worth it due to the convenience of use.

Offline NormanV

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Re: Making a Rotary Table
« Reply #55 on: September 17, 2014, 09:48:33 AM »
I made the casting today, I was melting a lot less aluminium due to the small size of the casting and I had it liquid in 30 minutes.
I machined it this afternoon and was disappointed to find a sand inclusion but it does not affect the function and will not show when it is all assembled.
The end of the shaft of the worm has a dog (I think that is what you would call it) so I had to mill a piece of steel to fit. Certainly a lot pleasanter task than trying to file it!
The top face of the casting is going to be marked with twelve divisions which will give me one degree markings that I can use until I get the division plates made.

Offline NormanV

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Re: Making a Rotary Table
« Reply #56 on: September 18, 2014, 05:06:10 AM »
It is now assembled, albeit with a temporary handle. It is quite stiff to turn even with the PTFE under the table, at least there is no loose play!

Offline DavidA

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Re: Making a Rotary Table
« Reply #57 on: September 18, 2014, 05:44:37 AM »
Not bad,  Norman.  Not bad at all.

Dave.

Offline awemawson

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Re: Making a Rotary Table
« Reply #58 on: September 18, 2014, 06:29:01 AM »
 :thumbup: in fact pretty d@@n good  :thumbup:
Andrew Mawson
East Sussex

Offline NormanV

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Re: Making a Rotary Table
« Reply #59 on: September 20, 2014, 07:44:18 AM »
Thanks, Andrew and David.
Today I made and fitted the table clamps, I did not proceed with the split collet that I mentioned earlier as it is a bit tight for space. Also I liked the fact that the table is pressed firmly down onto the top plate when using clamps.
I drilled a matrix of tapped holes in the table top as suggested by Andrew, I may machine tee slots at a later date, I'll see how I get on with the tapped holes.
I'm surprised at the weight, even though it is mostly aluminium it feels quite substantial.

Offline krv3000

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Re: Making a Rotary Table
« Reply #60 on: September 20, 2014, 04:38:24 PM »
hi bin keepin an i on this brill work  :)

Offline Manxmodder

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Re: Making a Rotary Table
« Reply #61 on: September 20, 2014, 09:16:53 PM »
Great result, Norman. Looks like it will be really sturdy in use......OZ.
Helixes aren't always downward spirals,sometimes they're screwed up

Offline NormanV

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Re: Making a Rotary Table
« Reply #62 on: September 21, 2014, 09:55:06 AM »
Thanks for the comments, it keeps me keen.
Today I made the sector arms, fiddly bits to do as I wanted to keep the size down. I attached the fixed arm quite crudely by peening over the metal with a centre punch. Ideally I would have used something like 10BA countersunk screws but as I have neither screws nor tap I did it this way.
I'm going to make the division plates from cast aluminium, I am not expecting to be using it that often so they should last. If not I can always make steel ones later.

Offline Meldonmech

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Re: Making a Rotary Table
« Reply #63 on: September 21, 2014, 10:04:51 AM »

       Hi Norman I agree with you regarding the water based wood filler for pattern making. I have been converted for three years now, and find it much easier to use and much cheaper.  The RT looks great, well done.

                                                                Cheers  David

Offline NormanV

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Re: Making a Rotary Table
« Reply #64 on: September 26, 2014, 02:17:10 PM »
 It's been an interesting couple of days. Yesterday I made a pattern for the division plates and cast them. I also dug out an old pattern to make a casting to use as a jig to hold the plates for machining.

Offline NormanV

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Re: Making a Rotary Table
« Reply #65 on: September 26, 2014, 02:20:40 PM »
I made a drilling jig out of a piece of scrap steel to ensure that the jig, the plates and the mounting boss on the rotary table all agree.

Offline NormanV

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Re: Making a Rotary Table
« Reply #66 on: September 26, 2014, 02:23:18 PM »
I turned the two plates to thickness, bored them and then drilled for the mounting screw. I only drilled one hole as I thought that would be sufficient but have now decided to drill the second hole to ensure the plate mounts square.

Offline NormanV

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Re: Making a Rotary Table
« Reply #67 on: September 26, 2014, 02:31:20 PM »
I then machined the casting for the jig, it was a terrible casting with a large shrink cavity but it was good enough for the jig. All I had to do to it was turn both sides and bore it for a stepped locating pin to go through the centre.
The pin had three steps 16mm to fit the hole in the centre of the rotary table, 20mm to fit the hole through the jig and 24mm which is the hole size in the centre of the plates. I made the pin a press fit in the casting, I had a bit of trouble pressing it in due to the shrink cavity in the casting, it picked up an edge and pushed the pin off centre. I had to knock it out and file the offending part, it then pressed in fine. I used the template to drill the mounting holes for the plates and was pleased to find that the plate will fit on using either screw hole in the jig.

Offline NormanV

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Re: Making a Rotary Table
« Reply #68 on: September 26, 2014, 02:38:04 PM »
I then mounted the jig in the four jaw chuck, fitted the plates in turn and turned the outside diameter.
Tomorrow I will mount the jig on the rotary table and set it up for drilling the rings of holes.

As a bynote: I have read in some forums people stating that they only ever use their three jaw chuck. I seem to have to swap from 3 jaw to 4 jaw, and change the jaws from inside to outside on a daily basis. Is this unusual?

Offline mattinker

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Re: Making a Rotary Table
« Reply #69 on: September 26, 2014, 03:38:55 PM »
Usually, when I need the four jaw chuck the three jaw is mounted and the jaws in the four jaw are the wrong way round! People who only use the three jaw work exclusively on round things!

I'm still enjoying this thread!

Regards, Matthew

Offline awemawson

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Re: Making a Rotary Table
« Reply #70 on: September 26, 2014, 05:55:14 PM »
My three jaw is remarkably accurate over a very wide range, so very often I can get away with just using it as is, but when things need to be 'nuts on' then obviously the four jaw is needed.

Often of course if you plan your work to tun all diameters at one 'gripping' they will be concentric even if the three jaw is all over the place.
Andrew Mawson
East Sussex

Offline Meldonmech

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Re: Making a Rotary Table
« Reply #71 on: September 27, 2014, 04:55:42 AM »
 .
    Norman I like yourself was always changing chucks and jaws. When I was offered a larger 5 inch lathe at a price I could not refuse, I then had two lathes. I now normally keep a three jaw on the smaller 3.1/4 inch lathe and a four jaw on the 5 inch lathe.
        The arrangement  works very well, and saves a lot of laborious time.

                                                                      Cheers vDavid

Offline NormanV

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Re: Making a Rotary Table
« Reply #72 on: September 27, 2014, 05:39:46 AM »
I've got two lathes, both with the same chuck mount and six chucks/faceplates. One of the lathes is very noisy and I can't bear using it too often. I need to stop making things for a while and fix the lathe!

Offline NormanV

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Re: Making a Rotary Table
« Reply #73 on: September 27, 2014, 08:44:06 AM »
I've started on the division plates. Firstly I cut a strip of paper to the circumference of the disc and then divided it into the required number of spaces. I then taped the strip of paper around the edge of the disc mounted it on the rotary table with a temporary index marker and drilled the holes with a centre drill. It is a very tedious operation but at least I have completed the circle with the largest number of holes (48) and also the next smaller.

Offline awemawson

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Re: Making a Rotary Table
« Reply #74 on: September 27, 2014, 10:16:34 AM »
Cunning use of slanted lines there Norman  :bow:

Makes me appreciate my CNC milling machine - draw it out and watch it made  :ddb:
Andrew Mawson
East Sussex