Quick Toolpost Drill/grinder

[vtsteam]

I know I wrote a long time ago about truing up my 3 jaw chuck jaws with a Dremel mounted on the toolpost, but don't think I wrote about this simple other project here.

I needed to drill some evenly spaced mounting holes in a small engine head without removing it fro the chuck on the lathe, and i don't have a rotary table to fit it for the mill. Lots of ways to do this anyway, of course, but i wanted to try something right on the lathe with a flexible shaft tool I bought a long time ago. So here's a really quick little project I tried that worked out well.

First I cut a chunk of scrap aluminum into a piece small enough to make one of my round tool post type quick change tool holders:

[vtsteam]

I trued it up on the mill, and then drilled a hole to accept a mounting bolt, to attach it to the Craftsman 12" lathe's cross slide. I also drilled a hole that would be a close fit on the handpiece of the flexible shaft tool. Actually, two different size holes from each side that met and formed a step -- the handpiece is tapered, and this provided a good grip at several points.

[vtsteam]

Here I'm checking the fit of the handpiece in the tool holder block:

[vtsteam]

A slit in the block clamps the handpiece further when the mounting bolt is tightened. Here I'm trying it out, drilling the model engine head. The raw stock is still in the chuck, and the head hasn't yet been parted off. The carriage was retracted to the needed diameter for the hole circle.

The bull gear in the lathe headstock serves as a dividing fixture on the craftsman. there is a pin plunger and holes drilled in the back of the gear:

[vtsteam]

And the finished head, parted off. This is a bash valve head for a model steam engine. All machining was done at one go -- without removing the raw stock from the chuck.

[SwarfnStuff]

Specially good as you didn't have to mess with truing it up again. Almost impossible in the 3 jaw IMHO. Neat solution.
John B

[steampunkpete]

I've been mulling over a toolpost grinder / drill using this little beauty from ebay:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/380728862616?_trksid=p2060778.m1438.l2648&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT

Has anybody else tried it?

[krv3000]

yep i have the makings just need the time to do it

[Fergus OMore]

I made one up years ago. I bought a Bosch POF 45 or 50 router to do some woodworking. In what passed for instructionsm it had been a tool post grinder. All that was done was to remove the router table bit and make a 43mm collar to fit on the saddle at centre height. Mine is still lying about-somewhere.

If I want summat really suitable the spindle from Quorn or the Kennet or the Stent tool and cutter grinders fit on the saddle of my Myford. My only real gripe really is grit.



Happy New Year

Norman

[Meldonmech]

       I have one of these flexible drives, offers a cheap and easy method of drilling in the lathe. Must give it a try.

                                                                  Cheers David

[Fergus OMore]

       I have one of these flexible drives, offers a cheap and easy method of drilling in the lathe. Must give it a try.

                                                                  Cheers David

This 43mm collar thing is standard on many drills as well as routers

Norman

[drmico60]

I made a toolpost drill using a flexible drive shaft. Full details here: http://mikesworkshop.weebly.com/toolpost-drill.html

[vtsteam]

I made a toolpost drill using a flexible drive shaft. Full details here: http://mikesworkshop.weebly.com/toolpost-drill.html

Very nice!