Author Topic: Minnie on the cheap!  (Read 24629 times)

eskoilola

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Re: Minnie on the cheap!
« Reply #50 on: October 14, 2017, 07:47:10 AM »
Nice setup for machining that curved surface.

I have now visited the flea market and the dude who sells all sorts of metal tooling stuff was indeed there.



I now could send You these HSS blanks as long as the weight is under 1 kilogram because then the posting fee is much lower. Weighting by hand ... maybe 4 pieces.

The HSS blanks are 200 x 15 x 15 millimeters in size.

If You want these just PM me  :borg:

Offline NormanV

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Re: Minnie on the cheap!
« Reply #51 on: October 18, 2017, 11:41:20 AM »
Here is progress so far, it is not fully assembled just propped up in the right places.

Offline NormanV

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Re: Minnie on the cheap!
« Reply #52 on: October 18, 2017, 11:46:57 AM »
Today I made a start on the brake and winding drums. The plans call for cast iron, I decided to cast aluminium blanks to make them.
I cast them in open top moulds. My sand is rather damp and when I poured the metal one of them boiled like a witches cauldron. Obviously that was a very damp bit of sand. You can see the difference in the appearance in the two photos. When I roughed them out I was expecting huge voids, but no, it's fine for the job.

Offline tom osselton

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Re: Minnie on the cheap!
« Reply #53 on: October 18, 2017, 07:22:50 PM »
It's coming along nicely!

Offline NormanV

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Re: Minnie on the cheap!
« Reply #54 on: October 22, 2017, 09:57:59 AM »
Thanks Tom.
I've machined the cable drum and the brake drum. I made the ratchet and pawl by careful marking out and filing, it wasn't worth setting up the milling machine and I get pleasure from making stuff by hand.
(the red spots are blood, I caught my finger on a burr, it was only a scratch but it wouldn't stop bleeding)

Offline NormanV

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Re: Minnie on the cheap!
« Reply #55 on: October 22, 2017, 10:08:02 AM »
I've also done the final drive gear with its centre. I was lucky to find a lathe change wheel of the correct DP and it was a simple job to machine it down to the correct thickness and bore it to size.
The keyways were a bit of a faff. I did them by putting a parting tool sideways in the lathe toolpost and racking it backwards and forwards taking a light cut each time. I tried it first on a piece of scrap, it was a hell of a struggle taking a lot of effort to pass the tool through the hole plus it kept digging in. I gave up and tried to make a broach, I tried to do it rough and ready and it was unsuccessful so I went back to the parting tool. After I had adjusted the gib strips it was better so I attacked the first keyway. It was still hard work but I got there. The second keyway was a doddle, I reduced the feed to one thou. for each cut and it sailed through, no dig ins. Well next time I have to cut a keyway I'll know how to do it!
 
« Last Edit: October 24, 2017, 12:25:02 PM by NormanV »

Offline awemawson

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Re: Minnie on the cheap!
« Reply #56 on: October 22, 2017, 10:47:00 AM »
When broaching keyways in the lathe I first turn up a peg that fits in the centre hole flush both sides. I then drill a hole that is slightly smaller diameter than the intended keyway at the intersection of the peg and the gear leaving a D shape in both.

Then removing the peg I broach away. This way there is much less material to remove and the hole tends to guide slender tools.
Andrew Mawson
East Sussex

Offline NormanV

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Re: Minnie on the cheap!
« Reply #57 on: October 22, 2017, 10:50:41 AM »
That's a good idea, I will file it away in my memory for the next time, thanks.

Offline tom osselton

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Re: Minnie on the cheap!
« Reply #58 on: October 22, 2017, 07:18:39 PM »
When I get a cut like that I put a piece of cigarette paper on it the blood holds the paper and drys like a second skin.
We learned to make keyways like that years ago in shop making a jackstand for a car it was external though down the side of the threaded rod. Its best to have a through hole though unless you have grooved the inside to clear the tail chip.

Offline NormanV

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Re: Minnie on the cheap!
« Reply #59 on: October 24, 2017, 12:08:18 PM »
Tom, I don't smoke but that is no reason to not keep a stock of cigarette papers. I need to get some.
When I used to smoke(50 years ago) they cost 2d. I think that they may be more expensive now!
I managed to buy some involute gear cutters at a good price, They needed sharpening. This was my first opportunity to use my Harold Hall grinding jig. It was a fiddle to set it up but it did the job.

Offline NormanV

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Re: Minnie on the cheap!
« Reply #60 on: October 24, 2017, 12:12:12 PM »
Then it was onto my homemade milling machine with my homemade rotary table to try to cut my first gear! It bloody worked!!!!
I did not get the cutter exactly at centre height but it was certainly good enough for me.
The next ones will be better.

Offline NormanV

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Re: Minnie on the cheap!
« Reply #61 on: October 24, 2017, 01:30:51 PM »
I've just cut the second gear, irt is also good. I could get addicted to this!

Offline NormanV

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Re: Minnie on the cheap!
« Reply #62 on: October 24, 2017, 01:58:53 PM »
I am becoming an expert!

Offline tom osselton

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Re: Minnie on the cheap!
« Reply #63 on: October 24, 2017, 03:07:44 PM »
Way to go! I haven't tried a gear yet but we did pick up a cutter a while back on ebay so it's somewhere in the stars.

Offline NormanV

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Re: Minnie on the cheap!
« Reply #64 on: October 25, 2017, 09:47:50 AM »
Here we are! A complete set of Minnie gears. It needed a lot of attention so as not to make any mistakes. I managed to be one hole out on one of the teeth as the blades on the rotary table slipped, but when it goes through the worm wheel the error is somewhat reduced.

Offline SwarfnStuff

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Re: Minnie on the cheap!
« Reply #65 on: October 26, 2017, 02:05:51 AM »
Great job,
       You have been a busy little Vegemite, (Australian saying) and one hole out in that many gears is jolly good IMO. I have not needed to make any gears or threads for that matter as yet so it's good to see a good example.
         Current project for me is Elmer's simple beam (#24) I think. I am learning heaps doing work-a-rounds to correct, or at least cover my blunders.
         Some of them come from taking an imperial set of drawings, doubling the size and converting to metric. I didn't redraw the plans, just converting on the fly. The rest from getting carried away with the fun of making swarf.
John B
Converting good metal into swarf sometimes ending up with something useful. ;-)

Offline NormanV

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Re: Minnie on the cheap!
« Reply #66 on: October 26, 2017, 03:57:12 AM »
Thanks John, I too am converting the plans to metric, my machines are imperial but all my cutters are metric. It gives lots of opportunities for cock-ups.

Offline NormanV

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Re: Minnie on the cheap!
« Reply #67 on: October 26, 2017, 09:01:03 AM »
I've just made my first cock-up!
 :lol:

I was boring out one of the gears with it mounted with cyano onto a piece of aluminium. No, it didn't fall off, everything went perfectly. I removed it with heat, cleaned it up, and then found that I had bored the wrong gear!
I could make a sleeve to bring it back to the correct size but it was the first gear that I made and I wasn't very happy with it so I will just make another.
Ho hum.

Offline NormanV

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Re: Minnie on the cheap!
« Reply #68 on: October 26, 2017, 12:01:31 PM »
This afternoon as a break from spoiling metal I decided to cut the grass for relaxation. What a bloody fiasco! I have a problem with badgers, don't get me wrong I love to see them in the garden, but in places it looks as though someone has attacked my lawn with a rotovator! I am not too worried about the appearance but there is great danger of me twisting my ankle in the holes that they make.
I can't shoot them, they are protected, does anyone know of a good badger repellent? I am prepared to forgo the pleasure of seeing them.

Offline Joules

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Re: Minnie on the cheap!
« Reply #69 on: October 26, 2017, 06:09:33 PM »
Napalm ?
Honour your mentors, and pay it forward.

Offline kayzed1

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Re: Minnie on the cheap!
« Reply #70 on: October 26, 2017, 08:28:17 PM »
Lion Poo from the local Zoo...that'll shift um..   Chester Zoo sell it for £5 a small bag, mind you will also loose most other animal visitors to the garden.
Do not use it if you have a house/pet cat...

Offline NormanV

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Re: Minnie on the cheap!
« Reply #71 on: October 28, 2017, 09:08:54 AM »
I found a use for the gear that I messed up. I drilled a hole near to the edge and now I have an interesting key fob.

Offline NormanV

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Re: Minnie on the cheap!
« Reply #72 on: October 28, 2017, 11:59:00 AM »
I've now drilled the hornplates and am able to fit the shafts to check the mesh of the gears. Everything seems ok, they run a bit rough but I am sure that they will bed in with a bit of use.

Offline DMIOM

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Re: Minnie on the cheap!
« Reply #73 on: October 28, 2017, 03:06:23 PM »
I found a use for the gear that I messed up. I drilled a hole near to the edge and now I have an interesting key fob.

Next project : Kevlar reinforced pocket? - I find pockets on modern trousers seem to wear quicker now from even just keys.

Dave

Offline NormanV

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Re: Minnie on the cheap!
« Reply #74 on: October 28, 2017, 03:31:58 PM »
I did round off the corners!