T-Nuts

[Darren]

I need some T-Nuts, I could buy some but every machine I have has different sizes. That could start to add up.

Commercial types are heat treated. Firstly is this necessary and secondly if so can it be done easily at home.
I guess it can, is ordinary steel OK or does it need to be a certain spec for heat treating?

[Rog02]

Darren:

I make a lot of T-nuts as needed for different set ups.  Generally, I just use whatever is in the scrap bin.  Heat treating is not really required.  1018 steel is fine. 

[Bernd]

I'm with Rog on this. Make them out of any kind of steel. No reason for heat treating. I think they heat treat them so they don't wear out in industrial work.

Bernd

[bogstandard]

Darren,

Just as Rog says.

Don't be tempted to use standard bolt heads or nuts, they don't spread the load enough.

Also, make sure you deform the threads on the bottom of the nut so that the holding bolt or stud can't go all the way thru. I have seen table slots damaged because people tightened too much on the bolt, and it acts like a screw jack, and bursts the t-slots out in severe cases.

My offerings about this subject were rebuked on another site, so they are running around taking their life in their own hands. They have most probably never seen a chunk of table pulled out because of the hi loading pressure on just the corner of a hex head nut or bolt. Under certain hi loading conditions, they can fail with the speed of a bullet. Talk about the blind leading the blind.

I usually just buy the quantity of high tensile t-nuts and studs that I require. Doing it that way, I know that each piece of equipment is fastened down with good quality fixings, all machined and altered to the correct length for each bolt down part. Then the standard clamping set is only used for one off setups. Next time you call, remind me and I will let you have a few left over from my old shop machines that I never got around to using. You might be able to use them on one or two of your machines.

John

[John Stevenson]

Darren,
Just as others have said just make them up.

I usually make a stick up to suit the slots and then throw this into the clamping drawer ready to be cut up and tapped to suit whatever.
Even though you may have a 1,000 nuts you still meed those extra two specials at short notice.

.

[Darren]

Thanks Guys, really appreciate it,

On Rogs advice I ran into the workshop and got going with a bit of scrap steel.
Alas it didn't work out too well. It sorta worked, but not good enough. I did a strip on the shaper but that darn vice just isn't positive enough and the parallels are out too much.

Why the shaper, cos it's new and I'm playing with it. Besides, you'd all make them on a mill, so I thought I'd be different and make a thread on it with pic's.
I need to look for a vice, a good un, till then I might have to resort to the mill. See how I feel tomorrow.

John, bogs John, perhaps I'd better just call you bogs just to clarify.
You have a vertex on your mill I believe, do you like it, would you recommend it?

Second hand ones don't seem to be much cheaper and besides I suppose they get worn and abused as well?

[CrewCab]

My offerings about this subject were rebuked on another site,

That must be annoying to say the least, it's pretty simple engineering to see that if the bolt is too long and it's overtightened then sh1t will happen  ........... the forces involved are actually quite large.  Anyway back to the question ............. I've only needed 4 so far, but I milled up a piece of bar, drilled for 4 nuts, tapped the holes, cut off the nuts and put the other 2" of bar in a drawer somewhere for next time ............... then I shortened 4 bolts to the correct length 

CC

[Darren]

Yep, good advice Bogs, after all, you can lift a car with the power of a simple thread.

A very effective lever 

[bogstandard]

You have a vertex on your mill I believe, do you like it, would you recommend it?

Darren,

Over the years I have bought a few vices (and picked up a few bad ones).

On my last mill, I upgraded the size from a Vertex 3" to a 4" and bought a Vertex clone. What a load of garbage it was, I had to shim it to get it level. The true vertex I have now, absolutely spot on in all directions, although that came as a free upgrade with the mill.

You can buy milling vices costing many thousands of pounds, I have found that the Vertex range are about the best you can get for the price.

The shaper is a difficult thing to buy a vice for, as you should be cutting against the fixed jaw for rigidity, not along the vice jaws, but if needs must.

I don't usually recommend Chronos as they have a tendency not to have the items in stock even though shown on the website, so phone first for availability. But their Vertex range are about as cheap as anywhere.

http://www.chronos.ltd.uk/acatalog/Chronos_Catalogue_Vertex_Milling_Vices_103.html

http://www.chronos.ltd.uk/acatalog/Chronos_Catalogue_Other_Milling_Vices_109.html

Bogs