Slotting Tool for the Shaper

[Darren]

After seeing Robs slotting tool for his shaper I decided to make one of my own following his example...  

http://madmodder.net/index.php?topic=2716.msg28898#msg28898

Starting with a couple of bits of steel they were machined to size and cleaned up on the milling machine





The next task was to produce a 12mm hole through the block. There are several ways this could have been done, I chose to use the lathe as shown below clamping the block directly to the top slide using a spacer to set the height.



Drilling never seems to produce neat holes, it was also under size which is unusual for drilling? So I reamed it true.



Lovely  



Two 4.2mm holes were drilled through, counter bored halfway at 5mm and the remaining 4.2mm section was tapped 5mm for the clamping bolts.

Next job was to use the slitting saw as shown.



The job so far this evening. Just need to clean the bits up and weld them together.




It's looking good so far, but I have a problem. The two 5mm screws will not clamp the block no matter how hard I tighten them. The block won't even close when clamped in the bench vice !!
Some alteration to do then methinks

[tel]

The tool is looking good Darren, but  closing that block is a bit of an ask for M5 screws - t'were me I'd go for M8's if you have room. Either that or cut a keyway down the rod and use direct bearing pinch screws. I think that's how I did mine, but I'd have to check - been a while since I used it.

[Darren]

Hi Tel,

I think I've just made the block too heavy, I could up the screw size but I think I'll skim the block size down first  

[tel]

That's worth a try, but I have the feeling that welding the two bits together is going to stiffen it up even more. Again, from memory, I think my horizontal bar was let directly into the vertical member that goes in the clapper box.

Vive La Shaper!

[Bernd]

Darren,

Another tick is to cut the slot deeper, by that I mean slot the other side of the hole if the saw can reach that far.

Bernd

[Rob.Wilson]

Looking great Darren 

Thanks for the mention

Thats a good setup for drilling and reaming .


Cheers Rob

[Raggle]

Another tick is to cut the slot deeper, by that I mean slot the other side of the hole if the saw can reach that far.

Bernd

That is the best plan and I've needed to do it to the milling column adaptor on my cast iron Unimat SL (and it still needs to go deeper)

An alternative if the saw won't reach would be to shave the block on the face opposite the slit or mill a slot down the middle of that side, just enough to weaken it. Old BMC Minis had a pair of ball and socket transfer levers for the gearshift. Mine stripped one Sunday (work next day)  -  took 2 hacksaw blades in the frame to get that to tighten, and they were splined shafts. Just too much metal opposite the slit.

Ray

[Darren]

Thanks for the suggestions, alas the slitting saw wouldn't go deep enough.

What I did do was to machine the sides down somewhat and this seems to have done the trick   I also upped the screw threads to 6mm.
I ground the wrong end of a blunt 6mm milling cutter to make a tip. Ground square it can be twisted in the bar to give some relief. I'm assuming as this was a milling cutter that once thrust its fine delicate teeth through steel then it will have no trouble acting as a shaping tip.

All that's needed now is to weld the two bits together and shorten the milling cutter and we should be good to go ... hopefully  

[RichardShute]

Good evening Gents,
Long-time lurker briefly de-lurking....

Whilst I can see some logic in cutting a slot on the return stroke as mentioned, there is no way to lock the clapper box on my Elliot10M and I have found no other reference or comment that cutting on the return stroke is _the_ correct way other than the comment in the related thread here.

Are there any other references or information on how to lock the clapper box? I'd have expected a machine of that calibre to have a pin or other intended way to do it if that was an expected MO.

Richard

</delurk>

[Bernd]

Hi Richard, welcome to the collective, as we like to call it. 

Ah Darren. Don't you think you should cut off the flutes on that milling cutter before you try to cut a slot?   

Sorry couldn't resist.

Bernd

[madjackghengis]

Thanks for the suggestions, alas the slitting saw wouldn't go deep enough.

What I did do was to machine the sides down somewhat and this seems to have done the trick   I also upped the screw threads to 6mm.
I ground the wrong end of a blunt 6mm milling cutter to make a tip. Ground square it can be twisted in the bar to give some relief. I'm assuming as this was a milling cutter that once thrust its fine delicate teeth through steel then it will have no trouble acting as a shaping tip.

All that's needed now is to weld the two bits together and shorten the milling cutter and we should be good to go ... hopefully  

Darren, I've had my own problems with such a tool, and you can drill a small hole above the main reamed hole, after you weld the shank on, leaving just a slight bit of metal on the reamed side, to be taken out with a hacksaw blade, which will limber up the block after the weld tightens it up a lot.  A set screw in the top end of the shank, bearing on the down slide will lock the clapper, some people use a wedge there with good results.  Definitely a necessity for good clean slots.  Mad Jack

[Darren]

Thanks for the tips guys, I shall keep them in mind 


Getting the bits ready to weld



I made another fixture to fit the holder to make a square hole cutter. The tip is a small HSS lathe tool held in the bar which was in turn held in the lathe. When spun at high speed I used a high speed grinder with a ball stone held against the end to form the cutting shape.





For a trial run I drilled a hole in a bit of alloy stock



Mounted it on the shaper and cut the round hole into a square one ...  It worked very well, and quite quickly too. But every now and again the workpiece left the room, well the vice at any rate. OK, I know it's not very secure, it was only a quick test, now I need to make a fixture to hold the workpiece properly instead of the vice.
I have a sort of angleplate with a hole in it in mind .... 



The keyway slotting tool, needs thinning but you get the idea