MadModder
Gallery, Projects and General => Project Logs => Topic started by: Bogstandard on December 17, 2010, 07:58:39 PM
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Despite offers from Kwackers and John Stevenson to assist me in making a RT electronic indexer, and having discussions with both, I decided that the best unit for myself would be a commercially available unit called a Division Master. This wasn't because of the others offered to me being an inferior product, but my personal limitations and workshop requirements.
I decided to go with the full kit of parts.
http://medw.co.uk/wiki/index.php?page=DivisionMaster
It was despatched and delivered in what seemed like record time.
The kit came very well packaged, with most of the loose bits stored inside the very strong and rigid steel outer case that has all the holes pre shaped, drilled or tapped, plus inside, there are all the required studs pre mounted into the case.
One thing I did like was the 'membrane' keyboard sheet. If you use the unit a lot, and wear it away or damage it, on the site you can download the overlay, print it out on a sheet of photo paper, and then laminate it, you have a brand new membrane. I actually used a few extra double sided strips on the back of it, but I am sure what it comes like is completely acceptable.
(http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/bogstandard_photos/From%20June2010/DM01.jpg)
This is what was stored inside the case, after a load of bubble wrap was removed to expose it all.
(http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/bogstandard_photos/From%20June2010/DM02.jpg)
Electronic bits came stuck down to an A4 printed sheet, with circuit board location and description against each component. So it was just a matter of taking a bit off the sheet, bending it up and sticking it into the right location holes on the board.
(http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/bogstandard_photos/From%20June2010/DM03.jpg)
The same sort of sheet but with misc components and fixings.
(http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/bogstandard_photos/From%20June2010/DM04.jpg)
You can buy ready printed and bound instructions, but I just downloaded the PDF files and did them myself.
There was a slight problem, which I will explain later.
(http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/bogstandard_photos/From%20June2010/DM05.jpg)
So I got together some of my old tools that I used to use in my heyday with electronics.
(http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/bogstandard_photos/From%20June2010/DM06.jpg)
But before doing anything, I had to prepare the stepper motor and power supply because as you build up the boards, you are required to check for voltages and correct operation. I bought my stepper from Arc Euro, about the cheapest place I have found. In fact I bought almost every extra that I needed from the same place.
http://www.arceurotrade.co.uk/Catalogue/Stepper-Motors
The little plastic box had a D shaped cutout put into it, to fit around the rubber grommet on the stepper. The back of the box was covered with strips of VERY hi-grip double sided tape (used to fit outside trim onto cars), and the box was 'stuck' onto the side of the motor.
(http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/bogstandard_photos/From%20June2010/DM07.jpg)
After trimming all cables to length and getting everything tidied up and into the box, and a small wipe over with petroleum jelly onto the box joints (in an attempt to make it splash proof) the lid was fitted and the kit supplied plug was fitted to the other end of the cable. The stepper was now ready for use.
(http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/bogstandard_photos/From%20June2010/DM08.jpg)
The power supply was off an auction site for 8 squid, brand new. It needed a new extended output cable and relevent plug fitted.
(http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/bogstandard_photos/From%20June2010/DM09.jpg)
Now to start the build.
I followed the instruction book to the letter, first by fitting all the switches and LED onto the board, then by using spacers (washers & nuts) under the board, the correct height for the keys was found (the instructions had it spot on), and everything was tightened up. There is a little dodgy bit of soldering to be done, fitting the socket onto the BACK side of the board. The way I did it, to give me a bit more room to work underneath the socket was to push the pins thru the plastic socket until the were level with the bottom on the inside. After soldering up, you can just push the outer plastic down to the correct height above the board.
(http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/bogstandard_photos/From%20June2010/DM10.jpg)
This is what it looked like from the other side.
(http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/bogstandard_photos/From%20June2010/DM11.jpg)
A couple of hours steady work and the board was built. During the build, you check the power supply is working correctly, and when it is to this stage, you attach the stepper and take it thru a set of checks. All worked fine, for a while.
(http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/bogstandard_photos/From%20June2010/DM12.jpg)
This is the other end of the board.
(http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/bogstandard_photos/From%20June2010/DM13.jpg)
Everything was going great. The box sockets were fitted and the main board fitted into the box.
It was at this stage my physical limitations came into play. As most will know, I have very little gripping power on my right hand (hence the need for this box). I had just put the ribbon cable from the keyboard to the main board, and then my hand decided to let go of the keyboard side of the box. It ripped the socket from the keyboard card and also took off most of the solder pads. Unfixable to someone of my limited physical capabilites. What was I to do?
I sent Lester (the chap who sells the kits) an email stating my plight. The reply was basically, send the boards and ribbon cable to me, and I will see what I can do. Posted to him on Wednesday, got them back today, Friday, all repaired and functioning perfectly, He also told me that I had damaged a pad on the main board and hadn't soldered a pin on the main pic socket, which he duly put right.
So it looks like I am losing a few more faculties as well, my eyesight.
I just cannot believe the help he gave me, and I am sure, if I need anything else from his range of items, I will have no qualms about doing so.
(http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/bogstandard_photos/From%20June2010/DM14.jpg)
This is the now fully functioning unit.
(http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/bogstandard_photos/From%20June2010/DM15.jpg)
So now a bit about the build instructions.
I had noticed that some parts that were supplied were not mentioned, namely different coloured wires and circuit board spades and Lucar clips, rather than soldering direct to the board. On contacting Lester about this, he informed me that some data had been lost from his website a while ago, and he had reloaded the OLD set of build instructions by mistake. But he has assured me that the corrections are being done as quickly as possible. But with regards to the build sequence, if you use your noggin, you can easily get a working module.
What do I think of this kit?
Not just because I bought it, I think it is a very simple build, which someone with soldering and working with electronics experience will have no troubles building. My problems with it were caused purely because of my physical limitations.
The second part of this post will be about doing the mods to my RT so that this box can control it.
A bit of machine work at last.
Bogs
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Nice! Powered RT's they're very :borg: I barely know how to get the most out of my RT manually ::)
I can see where this is really going to make life easier for you John :thumbup:
"Old tools" maybe, but nothing wrong with that lot.... Really like the funky leg bender doofor you showed me a while back :borg:
Still learning...
Ralph.
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Great stuff John
Can't wait to see it in action some of its features you were telling me about have lots of possibilities for interesting fly wheels and such.
Stew
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Great work John! Now I will need to read up a bit as I am not even sure what this device is for.... :loco:
But the kit is really good and I reckon even Bandit could have built much of that they way the bits and instructions are presented. Full marks Lester.
John
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OK, a few minutes went by and I took a look at the Division Master site.
Hmmm, so this device drives your rotary table according to the number of division you require?
Does it have other uses too?
Bedtime now...
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John,
There is a bit more to it than just working as a dividing head, plus unlike a normal DH, you can get ALL the holes you require, on most DH's, there are usually some holes that you can't get (unless you opt for the even more expensive Universal DH). It can be easily programmed to turn thru arcs, so it allows you to machine curved slots, say making a ten spoked flywheel etc etc.
So really, it is up to your imagination and programming prowess (a thing I now have to learn).
If you are into the technical programming side of things, I would suggest you download the operating instructions from the website. That should give you more insight into what it can do.
There are other posts on here where the lads are building their own versions of this bit of kit.
http://madmodder.net/index.php?topic=3696.0
John
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Looking great John :thumbup:
Very comprehensive kit of parts ,,,,,,,, i am tempted to have ago myself :dremel:
Rob
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Looking great John :thumbup:
Very comprehensive kit of parts ,,,,,,,, i am tempted to have ago myself :dremel:
Rob
Will your MiG welder go low enough to weld the chips on ?
John S.
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I thought John would have to bring a bit of humour into it. :lol:
But, have a look here and see what John has managed to do with his box of tricks.
http://divisionmaster.co.uk/divisionmaster.html
Click on 'Examples of use' under the main heading.
You don't need to use expensive RT's or dividing heads if you don't want to.
Bogs
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Looking great John :thumbup:
Very comprehensive kit of parts ,,,,,,,, i am tempted to have ago myself :dremel:
Rob
Will your MiG welder go low enough to weld the chips on ?
John S.
:doh: just looked ,,,nope :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:
Rob :coffee:
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Hi Bogs ,
looks like a very good kit :thumbup:
just what you need if you don't have the equipment to program the ic or make the pcb for a diy indexer
(another plus not having to buy the bits from several suppliers - usually I have to use 2 or 3 for most of my projects )
the green solder resist on the professional looking pcb's will help you to avoid short circuits , if some tracks pass between the ic pins !
something you miss on diy boards
I like the way you have extended the motor leads with the 4 core mains cable
I'll have to copy that when I eventually make one (it may be some time before I have a milling machine )
is the dc power connector a locking type ? ( like rapidonline's 20-0892 )
the time it will save will let you spend more time on your projects :D
John
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John,
Like I said at the start, there are other ways to achieve the same results, but it is up to the individual as to what course to take.
Both Kwackers and John S answered all my queries, and with that info, I decided to go the kit route, mainly because it would be easier for me, and because I didn't have room for the extras required in my shop, namely a laptop.
Arc Euro were out of the normal cable when I was getting the other bits together, so a trip to B&Q came up with some 0.75mm 4 core central heating cable, and I just made a note of where the new colours went to, but is in fact, a little more expensive than Arc's offering (which was back in stock the last time I looked). I actually have a 2 metre long cable on the stepper, as the DM box will be mounted onto the side of my mill's head, not trailed about as normal. The power cable plug isn't a locking one, I just rooted in my shop for one that fitted the socket supplied. It shouldn't be a problem for me as the box should remain almost stationary, and won't be able to be pulled out easily, especially as the power supply will be permanently fixed to the wall behind the mill.
the time it will save will let you spend more time on your projects
In fact John, it isn't a time saving exercise for me at all, it will most probably be slower than I would normally have done it manually.
Without this bit of kit, I will very soon be unable to operate my RT at all with any accuracy. So really it is allowing me more time to continue machining, before eventually I am forced to stop. It could be a year, or ten years, at this time, I have no way of knowing. But anything is better than nothing.
But that anything was certain to cost, no matter which way I went.
Bogs
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I did my cables this way,I wanted long cables so a clever frend worked out the min cable size and I got some with a bit to spare in case i drew a bit to much current and used cable mesh avalable from http://www.heatshrink-online.co.uk/heatshrink/cat_147046--019-Black-Expandable-Braided-Sleeving.html good service also handy for things like heat shrink with Glue and ribbed heatshrink.
Peter
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Nice bit of kit John. I hope it serves you well.
Good deal to hear that Lester took care of you. Good karma on him.
I have been debating doing Kwackers version one day. Not sure my rotab is decent enough though/\.
Eric
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Both Kwackers and John S answered all my queries, and with that info, I decided to go the kit route, mainly because it would be easier for me, and because I didn't have room for the extras required in my shop, namely a laptop.
Just to clear something up in case it causes others confusion. My RT controller doesn't require a laptop, like the divisionmaster it's a stand alone unit.
With that said I can heartily recommend the division master to those who feel building from scratch is too much hassle - it's a route I myself may well have gone down if I'd seen it before I started building mine. (I never intended mine to be a kit, it was simply something I built for my own use and then released the design for anyone who may feel like building one)
IMO (and I'm sure Bogs and anyone else who has one will agree), a motorised rotab is a thing of great joy! Every workshop should have one.
If anyone is considering buying a division master then I can highly recommend Lester's kit. I've built a number of items that I've bought from him and his stuff is second to none, he also offers great support should you have any issues.
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Sorry about that Steve, I should have worded it slightly differently.
John S's one required a laptop to give the programming and running screen.
Also, what Steve has said about every shop needing one.
When mine is eventually finished (I am just waiting on some oilite to be delivered to get it done), I will then have power feeds on all axis of the mill and the two mains on the lathe. I don't really need it on my surface grinder as the main table feed is a left handed operation. Just by having these, it has extended my machining life, even now, more than I could have dreamed of.
Maybe not what these units were originally designed for, but ideal for myself or anyone else in my situation.
John
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The one I offered John did need a laptop or shop computer, it is not meant as a replacement for the Division master or the one Kwackers has put up but I had one spare USB unit for an application that was specially made for us that uses a PC that is part of a dedicated camera operation. The 8" rotary table is part of the camera positioning arrangement so not a small unit all told.
In some way it was better, simple little box about the size of a large box of matches but it did need an external driver and PC to run it.
Taking these three as being easy to use I'd choose them as Divisionmaster as it's a hand held and all complete, first, Kwackers second as again being hand held but no in built driver and the one I offered last.
I do have a Divisionmaster, in fact it's the first one made, serial no 00001, that drives a variety of tables and heads and I must admit I do use it a lot, probably every week at least once and I'd be dead in the water without it.
John S.
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Bog's,
Are you going to have anymore pictures of the unit complete, meaning hooked up to your table and on the machine?
I'm interested in converting a rotary table I have for my Bridgeport. Also is there an something similar sold here in the US?
Bernd
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Bernd,
On the last bit of my first post I stated that the RT mods and the rest wil be following.
I am just waiting for some oilite bearing material to be delivered, as I would like to put some sort of thrust bearing onto the worm shaft. Unfortunately, normal thrust bearings just won't fit without major modification to my RT castings as they are too large on the OD.
Unless of course someone can source me a pair of needle roller thrust bearings with 14mm ID and 20mm OD, preferably around 2mm to 3mm thick.
BTW, I have been learning to program the unit while it is still sitting on my kitchen table. I had it cracked in about 30 minutes, and I'm a thicko when it comes to something like this. So you calculator whizz kids should have no trouble.
John
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Yup, remember now about reading about that. To many threads read to keep straight on what was said sometimes. :scratch:
I did a bit of searching for a similar product here. Haven't found anything other than Sherline Products.
Looking forward to your next post John. Thanks.
Bernd
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John
Following the thread with interest. :bugeye: I have bought the Arc RT 130-030-00127, which is also sold as a motorised version. In that listing they state that needle roller thrust bearings are fitted. Is your table one of these or another type?
Looking forward to the rest of the RT mods.
Pete
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Also is there an something similar sold here in the US?
Bernd, I havent seen anything similar available here, I looked a while ago, trying to find something a little cheaper but without success.
However I did buy my Schumatech DRO kit from Lester in the UK and it was a very easy transaction, and shipping was as fast as getting anything within the US. The Schumatech kit was configured just like Bogs photo's, components taped to the list so even an idiot like myself would have trouble mixing stuff up. Pretty much idiot-proof!
I wouldnt hesitate to buy from Lester again, and probably will buy a Divisionmaster at some point. I have thought about fitting a stepper to my little table and running it off Mach 3 or even Turbocnc, but the self contained unit just seems like it would be much more painless.
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Spurry,
Mine is actually a Vertex 6" jobbie, which has been cloned to death by everyone and his dog, so basically anything that I do to it should be able to be done to most RT's of that design, both larger and smaller.
John S has already informed me that the 8" Vertex can be fitted with a thrust bearing of standard dimensions, but this 6" and I suppose smaller ones can't, due to the way the castings are made, a standard thrust washer fouls on the casting inside the unit. The dimension I showed in my last post is the ideal, but unfortunately, needle thrust bearings of that internal size come with an OD of 25mm, much too large to fit (don't worry, it isn't theory, I have actually tried it).
John recommended to me that using an oilite washer should be almost as good as a thrust bearing, and that can be cut to any size so that it will fit. So I am following his superior knowledge on such things, and I am going to try it. I just hope my order doesn't get delayed by the Christmas post, otherwise I can't see any progress on this topic until January.
With regards to the US lads wanting to make one of these types of units.
I would suggest you root thru both Craynerds and Kwackers build posts for a bit of info. I am sure I followed up on something from there that gave me a link to a US site that made the boards and chips available for purchase in the US, so you could follow their lead and build one. Maybe one of those members has a lead. I'm sorry I can't be any further assistance on that one, I found the US site, but didn't think to save it, but it is definitely there.
Bogs
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John
Thanks for the useful info. :thumbup:
Pete
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Just read your build post John, as always great pics, description and review of the product. Sorry to hear about your little mishap but glad you got sorted quickly. Thanks for showing us, looking forward to the mechanical bit!
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Hi John, I'm looking forward to seeing the finish of this project, and seeing it put to use. As you do, I intend to extend my useful working life by such measures, and not be stopped in my working pleasures by physical infirmaties. I've got a cam blank bolted to my rotary table, waiting for me to either machine the cam manually or put a drive on it and do it with accuracy and power. From the sound of it, you should be ready to show us how it's done most ricky tick, and turn on the light for us out in the dark. :poke: mad jack
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Nick,
It isn't just this that I dropped.
A while back I had just finished a lovely running and blinged up stirling engine, and as usual, without thinking, I picked it up with my right hand. It is now sitting in a box waiting to have a new built up micro crankshaft making.
Something like this happens weekly with me. This time, Lester came to the rescue, I can't thank him enough.
Jack,
Whoa!!! slow down a bit. I'm still waiting on a piece, when that gets here, I will do my best to get things moving again.
Your problem is the same as mine, and when I played about with the programming, turning either way by just pressing a button was one of the first things I learned to do. I can see that bit of the program being used a lot. It only took a couple of minutes to pick up how to do it, no mind numbing or long winded procedures to follow.
John
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Thanks for showing your modification John; I'm sure it will be very beneficial to your shop time.
Once you have it going, it would really be appreciated if you could do a post-up of how it works and performs in operation; Ive noticed that it has no direct feedback mechanism to provide positioning information back to the controller, so I assume that the software will have a feature to set up for backlash calibration and compensation and so on; hence my interest in your operational findings.
I've had a look at the features available for using a motorized RT and was quite surprised by what I saw. It could be really handy, and is worth a definite consideration in future - once I've mastered some more manual operations to improve my own feel and experience.
Kind regards, Arnold
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Sorekiwi,
Thanks for the reply. Going to follow Bog's suggestion.
Bog's,
I'll check out those threads you mentioned. Didn't follow them that closely. Interest wasn't there at the time. As I sit here surrounded by my shop I got to thinking of what projects I wanted to do. Seems like all needed some kind of tooling. Next question was, do I make it or buy it. Looks like some will be bought and some made in the shop.
Bernd
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I have had a short look at that part Arnold.
It does have backlash compensation, for the times you have to go back and forth. On the return journey, it overshoots the start mark by whatever amount you wish to enter, then it winds itself to the start mark again, ready for the next cut, and taking out the backlash. Of course, while this is all happening, you would retract the cutter if you were doing a slot.
I want it to cut both ways, for making deep slots, and for that reason, I need to eliminate as much backlash as possible, and hopefully, it will be close enough to what I want without using the backlash compensation. Or if it won't do it, only use backlash compensation on a final cut sequence.
I will do my best to put it thru it's paces, but other projects are pulling me ever and ever harder towards them, and I expect a lot of my learning curve will be done 'on the run' while working with other projects.
The operational and programming manual is very good, and really it is a matter of using your imagination as to what it could be used for. Each time I look at the thing sitting on my kitchen table, I think of another use it could be put to, and go back to the manual to see how it can be done. It really is a lot more than a precision indexer for drilling holes.
That is another thing I need to mention. This unit can be used on unmodified RT's, you just need a method of getting the stepper to turn the input shaft. I will be modifying mine, not only with a thrust washer system, but with a home made Oldham coupling end that screws onto the spindle rather than using the plain portion where the normal turning handle fits. So there is no need to follow my internal mods at all if you don't want to. I am just trying to squeeze every bit of backlash out of mine. It might work, it might not, but unless you try it, you don't know if it will succeed.
John
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I too will be interested in seeing it in action.
Great work as always Bogs :thumbup: :clap:
cheers Graham
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John,
That must be really frustrating. You are doing really well to be back in there, everybody is glad to see you back in the shop but just take it easy.
As I've said before, I've got no excuses other than I am lazy. I can't even remember when I started those 'poppin' engines and still not finished, think it was fairly early this year though. I need to get back onto those next.
That will be a really useful bit of kit I'm sure as well as making life easier for you.
Nick
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Topic split at John's request... find the Sterling power sources under "how do I"
Eric
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Hi Eric, that would be Stirling, as in Robert, not sterling as in flatware, not to quibble, but it might make a difference in search terms. :poke: mad jack
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The project that I have been doing since the beginning of March is now done and dusted, and the chappie is over the moon with the results.
It looks like there are at least four patentable items that I have come up with during the build, so when those bits are sorted out legally, sometime later this year, I will do a bit of a post on it.
So now my time is my own, I will get this project back underway now that I can get back into the shop.
The first part covers modding my RT to put a pair of home made thrust washers into the worm drive system, If you don't want to do this stage, then there is no need to, but I want to remove as much backlash as possible, all in search of that elusive accuracy.
The table came apart in a matter of minutes, the first time it has ever been apart in over 20 years. There was a tiny bit of surface rust inside, but not on any mating surfaces, and the original grease was still on the wormwheel and worm. For a more detailed description about getting this type of RT apart, there is a link on the DM site.
http://medw.co.uk/wiki/index.php?page=6inch+Rotary+Table+Conversion+Guide
At the bottom of the above page, there is a link to a few more piccies.
(http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/bogstandard_photos/From%20June2010/DM16.jpg)
The oilite bearing is the one I was waiting for over the Christmas period, and turned up a few days ago. The ID is 14mm and the OD 20mm, The length was of no importance other than I needed to be able to part a washer off either end.
The LH bit is the cam action to disengage the worm from the wheel and is also the support bearing for the worm shaft, and the RH item is the worm shaft itself
(http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/bogstandard_photos/From%20June2010/DM17.jpg)
The first job to be done was to part just over 2mm from either end of the oilite bush, these will be my thrust washers.
Now a bit about oilite machining. USE NO LUBE OR COOLANT, it already contains oil and you don't want to contaminate it with anything else. The next bit is most important, DON'T LET IT OVERHEAT, otherwise the oil it contains will turn runny and drip out of the bearing, not what you want to happen. Just take it steady, pecking away and letting it cool, then peck a bit more. My cut, which would normally be over in a few seconds, took me about two minutes for each end.
With it being made of a sintered material, it can easily break if you misshandle it, so take care when deburring.
(http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/bogstandard_photos/From%20June2010/DM18.jpg)
The two washers were then lapped on the cut face until they measured the same thickness all around the washer. I used 1200 W&D used dry (again no oil or water). One turned out at 2.10mm and the other 2.15MM, perfect for the job in hand. That job took about 10 minutes.
(http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/bogstandard_photos/From%20June2010/DM19.jpg)
This is a bad shot, I couldn't control my shakes, but what it shows is removing 4mm (roughtly the thickness of the two washers added together) from the end that goes into the RT, closest to the worm. After machining this cast iron bearing (wobbling about all over the place because of the centre hole offset, the hole ran perfectly true) it was polished and chamfered on the end by hand while the chuck was turning.
(http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/bogstandard_photos/From%20June2010/DM20.jpg)
The other end had the remaining 0.25mm taken off, purely because the turned face on the end looked like it had been done with a chisel. Again it was polished and chamfered.
So that was the sleeve done in a matter of minutes.
(http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/bogstandard_photos/From%20June2010/DM21.jpg)
Now this pic shows a thing that always annoys me.
This is the other end of the shaft from the worm, and when the RT was originally assembled, and the backlash adjusted out by means of a round nut, they just stuffed a couple of steel grubscrews into the nut to hold it in place. This is the damage it caused, and it took me ages to actually get the nut off, even after removing the grub screws because the threads were so damaged. All it needed was a tiny slug of brass down in the hole before the grub screws, and the thread would have remained undamaged.
As it was, I had to resort to my thread file to get things somewhere back into shape, and get the original nut to screw back onto the thread, 14mm x 1mm pitch, a metric fine. The round nut won't actually be used during final assembly as I will be making a custom Oldham coupling to replace it, I am trying to keep things as short as possible.
(http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/bogstandard_photos/From%20June2010/DM22.jpg)
So this is what it will look like on final assembly, except the new Oldham coupling will be fitted.
(http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/bogstandard_photos/From%20June2010/DM23.jpg)
Someone is bound to notice that I should really have taken a couple of mm's from either end of the sleeve, but I didn't want to do that because it would have meant taking off the boss machined on the small end, which if ever the RT is returned to normal, the division set could not have been used. All it means is that the worm sits 2mm closer to sleeve, and it might even help a little by having an unused bit of worm acting on the wheel.
Bogs
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Nice! I don't think I'll be taking my RT apart any time soon?? But if I do I have a full guide right there since it's exactly the same :thumbup:
Now I'm gonna say it and this is before I hit the old Goggle button.... What's an oldham coupling? (apart from a rotting pork joint :lol: )
Now back to serious.... Oilite bearings. I knew they were sintered etc but did not know about their machining. Do you ever need to re-impregnate them with oil? If so.... How? What with? Well someone was probably going to ask? Thought it might as well be me ::) :)
Liking the return to the Tuit list :thumbup:
Ralph.
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Ralph,
Oldham coupling.
http://www.arceurotrade.co.uk/Catalogue/Stepper-Motors/Oldham-Couplings
I have never had to repack oilite bushes, so I wouldn't know. As far as I am concerned is that they are classed as lubricated for life. That is why I took it so steady when machining, I didn't want to lose or contaminate any of the precious contents.
Supposedly they can be repacked by boiling in an hard setting grease like Linklife, used on mo'sickle chains. But I have never done it. They are cheap enough to replace anyway.
John
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John,
Great work there, interesting post this, thanks. Shame about those threads - a bit of thought by the manufacturer and that could have been avoided.
On the subject of oilite bushes, where do you get the oilite material from? You may have said but does it come with an accurate bore? I have 2 jobs in mind for some.
Thanks
Nick
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Nick
AFAIK you don't buy the material. They come ready made. Comme ca ..
http://www.bearingboys.co.uk/Oilite_Bearings-21-a
Just a supplier I used some years ago. There are others ..
Dave BC
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Ah right, thanks Dave.
Nick
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Right John, got it :thumbup:
All taken down and understood :)
Thank you.
Never did get near goggle.... Was kind of late! ::)
Ralph.
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Nick,
I got mine from the link Dave showed. I also buy their little boxes of engineering sundries like circlips, grommets etc. plus all sorts of little bits that one needs in the shop,
You don't nomally machine the bearings, as they come very accurately moulded ID & OD and also flanged to do the job in hand, it was just that, as far as I know, they don't produce washers like I required. So I just took the ends off a standard bearing which fitted my requirements perfectly.
John
-
The next little stage of the RT upgrade before I get to actually fitting the stepper.
Now ths is where I change my mind from my previous plan of making my own Oldham coupling end. For two reasons, I had made a balls up of my initial calculations which would mean I would be doing finger gymnastics trying to assemble the coupling and set up for no end float at the same time down the length of a fairly small diameter tube.
The other reason was that when I stripped down to the thrust washers this evening, the wear pattern on the faces was absolutely perfect, so rather than spoiling a good thing, I decided to go with what I had.
So I cut some soft brass slugs from a bit of 2mm rod, ground down a couple of grub screws to the right length. Then it was just a matter of a slug down the hole followed by a grub screw, this will stop damage to the threads, set up the zero end float and tighten things up. It turned out perfect, no detectable end float and the whole lot turned as smooth as the proverbial babies bum.
(http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/bogstandard_photos/From%20June2010/DM24.jpg)
So that left me going the normal route people would take, just fitting an Oldham coupling to the 12mm handle spigot. My problem, 1" diameter coupling, fine, 10mm bore, not good.
(http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/bogstandard_photos/From%20June2010/DM25.jpg)
So a spell on the lathe with a boring bar had it opened up to the right size.
I need to mention a little about couplings such as this, especially the ones with this type of clamp system. On no account try to drill them out to size, all the cross cuts will deflect the drill, and the hole could end up almost anywhere. By boring, that problem doesn't occur, and only takes a few minutes anyway. That is a warning that should be followed unless you want to end up with a wobbly coupling.
(http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/bogstandard_photos/From%20June2010/DM26.jpg)
So everything was to my liking, and it was time to assemble everything into a RT. Just a reverse of the strip down procedure, and I assembled everything with bedway oil, which will also be used during it's machining life, that is why ball oilers are fitted and not grease nipples. But again two little things I did extra.
If you notice the main clamp screw on the casting top, I have knocked the tightening finger pin all the way thru to one side, this makes it much easier to do up/undo, but the screw must be in position before the main table is put on, otherwise you won't be able to screw it into the hole.
The other, is the clamp ring that is screwed onto the end. It has four locating bolts, but also four adjusting screws that are used to remove end play in the spindle assy to RT. A few minutes spent adjusting those and the locating bolts will get rid of all end play, but still allow smooth rotation of the worm spindle housing.
(http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/bogstandard_photos/From%20June2010/DM27.jpg)
Just a little mechanical marking out/measuring exercise to find the PCD of the bolt holes in this flange. It will be used when the support tube is made.
(http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/bogstandard_photos/From%20June2010/DM28.jpg)
So it is now at a stage where a few things need to be made.
(http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/bogstandard_photos/From%20June2010/DM29.jpg)
Hopefully that will be sometime soon.
Bogs
-
First things first, on the last post, I showed a bit of calculation written down on the undersheet. It said 16 PCD, in fact it should have read 16 PCR (pitch circle radius), so 32 PCD (pitch circle diameter).
I also need to apologise for little dribbly posts, I am doing my best in an attempt to get myself back into the shop, but at times I can't manage more than an hour or so, so you are seeing what I managed to achieve in that short space of time.
So now the next bit.
I am not completing the RT build up at this time, as it is easier for me to handle as it is.
I now needed to look at fitting the stepper motor to the RT. I am using one that I bought from Arc Euro, so the measurements I will be showing will be for that sized stepper.
First off, I mounted up the 6mm Oldham coupling (the other half of the one I fitted yesterday).
I am trying to keep the coupling tube as short as possible, so I marked up how much needed to be cut off the stepper shaft, a total of 10mm.
(http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/bogstandard_photos/From%20June2010/DM30.jpg)
A couple of minutes with a hacksaw and his buddy, a file, and things looked just right.
(http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/bogstandard_photos/From%20June2010/DM31.jpg)
Now I could get things into their correct positions and start to measure up.
The first thing was the OAL of the tube, everything else falls into place around that, and because the width of the stepper and the diameter of the flange on the RT is the same at 56mm, and because I don't have any 56mm square ali bar or larger available, I will be making a 2 part tube, loctited together when everything is lined up.
(http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/bogstandard_photos/From%20June2010/DM32.jpg)
This is the sketch that I will be using. There are a couple of things that need pointing out.
The first one is that the four corner holes on the flange should read '4 off 5mm tapped holes', plus the data sheet that came with the stepper motor showing dimensions didn't quite match what I was holding in my hand, there was up to 1mm discrepancy in places, especially around the holes area, so I will be waiting until it is all assembled before spotting thru for the four corner holes.
(http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/bogstandard_photos/From%20June2010/DM33.jpg)
Now there won't be any more posts on this until next week, as I am assisting Ralph over the weekend to 'fix' a couple of chucks.
Bogs
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Now there won't be any more posts on this until next week, as I am assisting Ralph over the weekend to 'fix' a couple of chucks.
Indeedy :thumbup: Apologies folks. Trying to get my machines sorted so that I can attempt to make something worth showing :scratch:
I suppose I'd best take a camera now that it's public knowledge?
I'll report back in a different thread on that one :headbang:
Looks like you're getting close on this too John. Sorry for the stoppage.
Ralph.
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No worries Ralph, anything to help a friend in need.
John
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How much do you pay Ralph to be your friend :lol: :lol:
Peter
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Mal always gets Ralph a lump of choccie(s) for when he visits, but if you notice Pete, it is all hidden when you scousers call :lol:
John
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Mal always gets Ralph a lump of choccie(s) for when he visits, but if you notice Pete, it is all hidden when you scousers call :lol:
John
we have a present waiting for you next time you come to liverpool.
:ddb: Peter :ddb:
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No need to go to Liverpool John to collect it.
I'll drop one off next time I'm passing.
Front window OK ?
[ That'll teach you to hid the chockie ]
John S.
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Nice 1 John, this makes it ultra clear for other people considering this mod. I really could do with a rotary table of any sort but one day will have one like this.
Nick
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Sorry about being a day late, but the weekend was a little too much for me.
So anyway, I got another bit made today, and it wasn't as straight forwards as I thought it would be. A couple of fixit jobs had to be done, all because I thought I had everything covered.
You know what thought did? He thought he had only farted, but in fact, he had s**t himself.
So it all started this morning, after I got back from taking Bandit for his run, he has to run, otherwise he gets left behind, as I am on my buggy.
I thought I had some 60mm ali bar to make this unit out of, but it turned out to be 75mm, and I wasn't going to waste material by having to turn it down that much, so I settled on a smaller piece, that was 2mm under my ideal size. But it won't matter that much.
So the first job was to part it down to rough length.
(http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/bogstandard_photos/From%20June2010/DM34.jpg)
Following that, faced up to exact length and the spigot end that is going into the flange was turned on the end.
(http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/bogstandard_photos/From%20June2010/DM35.jpg)
Followed by a 19mm drill all the way thru.
(http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/bogstandard_photos/From%20June2010/DM36.jpg)
The boring out took a bit of time, but with lots of patience and plenty of lube, I got it to final size.
(http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/bogstandard_photos/From%20June2010/DM37.jpg)
The now tube was flipped end over, and the 19mm hole was opened out to the required 21mm.
So that was the basic tube made, or so I thought.
(http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/bogstandard_photos/From%20June2010/DM38.jpg)
It was tried for a rough fit, looks OK.
(http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/bogstandard_photos/From%20June2010/DM39.jpg)
Then an assembly fit, spot on. I was getting very cocky by now, things were going great.
(http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/bogstandard_photos/From%20June2010/DM40.jpg)
So just a roughie mark up where the access hole needed to be, and it was time for lunch. Bad move.
(http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/bogstandard_photos/From%20June2010/DM41.jpg)
So duly fed and watered, I decided to carry on, instead of my usual beauty nap in the afternoon.
Onto the mill with it now, and I hacked a 10mm slot thru to roughly where I had marked it up. It isn't critical, it is only there for guiding the coupling down the tube on assembly and tightening up the grub screw.
(http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/bogstandard_photos/From%20June2010/DM42.jpg)
This is where I needed my RT, to put the three holes in the bottom, but because it is stripped down, I used the PCD function of my mill DRO for doing it.
So the first thing was to get the hole in the tube centred up with the quill and the DRO zeroed.
(http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/bogstandard_photos/From%20June2010/DM43.jpg)
This is where things started to go pear shaped.
I was just about to drill the third hole, and then realised I had fed the wrong data into the DRO, and I was drilling on an arc rather than a circle. The second hole I had drilled was way off position.
So all I could do, rather than making a new tube, was to accept the extra hole (it won't be seen), re-enter the correct data and carry on drilling the second and third hole. They ended up in their right places.
(http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/bogstandard_photos/From%20June2010/DM44.jpg)
After that bodge up, I tried to fit a screw thru one of the holes from the inside. It was then I realised I hadn't allowed for the cap screw heads while boring, and they were catching on the inside of the bored tube, kicking them over at an angle.
So what I did, was to remount the tube back onto the lathe and from about 15mm in, I enlarged the internal bore, so that the screws would fit OK.
This pic shows the duff screw hole, and the enlarged bore.
There is something to be learned here, don't try to machine while you are tired, as I was. Not just for safety's sake, but you can easily make simple calculation mistakes, as I did.
(http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/bogstandard_photos/From%20June2010/DM45.jpg)
So anyway, things turned out OK in the end. It is now awaiting the flange to be made, which is tomorrows job.
(http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/bogstandard_photos/From%20June2010/DM46.jpg)
I'm now going to catch up on my sleep that I missed this afternoon.
Goodnight
Bogs
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Does the job John :thumbup:
At least you had a way out of the bodge! :borg:
Hope you manage to get what you want done tomorrow :dremel:
Ralph. (listening to a bit o' Elvis :headbang: )
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Bogs, unfortunate error but no harm done really though. I often make silly mistakes when am tired but am just beginning to know when to down tools and go in now.
Nick
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Ralph,
You know what it is like here, one unexpected visitor, and the day is gone for me. I have to plan each hour I can be in the shop at the moment.
I'm glad you like the oldies :headbang::ddb: :ddb: :nrocks: :nrocks:
Nick,
At one time, things wouldn't happen like that with me, everything would be checked and double checked, and very rarely would something be amiss. But I have to accept now that I am just not the same guy I used to be a year ago, and I now work to the best of my abilities. It is very frustrating at times.
But I am still enjoying what I do, and that is the only thing that matters now.
John
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John, that is exactly right, enjoying it is the only thing that matters and it's great to see you back in the shop, still turning out brilliant work and writing brilliant articles.
I think some of the loco brigade at our model engineering club sneer at me at the fact I've got a fair sized lathe and milling machine and mess around with piddly little engines. Maybe they think I should be blindly following the plans and machining castings to build a 5" gauge loco that's been done a million times before. I appreciate that there's a lot of work in them and some excellent workmanship but I get more enjoyment messing around with small scale things and working out designs for myself. It also lets me see projects to completion (although not quickly), with only a few hours a week of workshop time there'd be no point in me starting a huge project - it wouldn't be finished until I retire!
Nick
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I had a bigger bonehead move yesterday :hammer: although it somehow turned out OK.
I was CNC drilling some 3/16" through holes (4.76mm) in a piece of 12L14 3/4" (19mm) thick. Except I "forgot" to set the drill height above the surface. So I got a rapid move (~50ipm) straight down at 1400 rpm. Somehow it punched right through and didn't even break the drill. :med:
I can't claim fatigue as it was the first work of the day.
-
I had a bigger bonehead move yesterday :hammer: although it somehow turned out OK.
I was CNC drilling some 3/16" through holes (4.76mm) in a piece of 12L14 3/4" (19mm) thick. Except I "forgot" to set the drill height above the surface. So I got a rapid move (~50ipm) straight down at 1400 rpm. Somehow it punched right through and didn't even break the drill. :med:
I can't claim fatigue as it was the first work of the day.
Now you know your speeds and feeds for the rest of the job. :lol:
-
I had a bigger bonehead move yesterday :hammer: although it somehow turned out OK.
I was CNC drilling some 3/16" through holes (4.76mm) in a piece of 12L14 3/4" (19mm) thick. Except I "forgot" to set the drill height above the surface. So I got a rapid move (~50ipm) straight down at 1400 rpm. Somehow it punched right through and didn't even break the drill. :med:
I can't claim fatigue as it was the first work of the day.
Now you know your speeds and feeds for the rest of the job. :lol:
Hi John, I have to support John S. as to the feeds and speeds, it ought to go pretty fast that way though.
nice looking pieces going together, makes me look forward to the day I get on the ball on that job for my rotary table. :lol: mad jack
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Sorry I didn't get this finished yesterday, I nearly got it done, but not quite, so I finished it off today.
The final part to be made is the stepper mounting flange. I made this out of a bit of 12mm thick ali gauge plate.
First off was to get the top and bottom parallel and to the right size.
(http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/bogstandard_photos/From%20June2010/DM47.jpg)
Next off I machined one of the untouched sides sqaure to the two finished ones, then it was stood up on that end to have the fourth side brought down to correct size.
(http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/bogstandard_photos/From%20June2010/DM48.jpg)
This is it showing the four square finished edges.
Becasue the stepper actually has slightly tapered edges, I made this to a nominal size as shown on the sketch.
(http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/bogstandard_photos/From%20June2010/DM49.jpg)
The next job was to machine off the anodised surfaces and bring it to 8mm thick using my large flycutter.
(http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/bogstandard_photos/From%20June2010/DM50.jpg)
After that, I found rough centre, and marked a circle to 1mm under what is required. This will allow me to blitz to this mark, then take it steady after that to bring it to size.
(http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/bogstandard_photos/From%20June2010/DM51.jpg)
Using a range of drills, most of the excess material was got rid of, much quicker than boring it all the way.
(http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/bogstandard_photos/From%20June2010/DM52.jpg)
For me, it is easier to bore using my mill, purely because I have a power feed on the Z1 axis.
(http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/bogstandard_photos/From%20June2010/DM53.jpg)
Even though I only have an Imperial boring head, because I have learned to work in both standards at the same time, I find I can usually get close enough to what is required.
(http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/bogstandard_photos/From%20June2010/DM54.jpg)
Not bad, only 0.01mm (0.0004") out.
That will be just fine, as the Loctite requires a bit of space to work.
(http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/bogstandard_photos/From%20June2010/DM55.jpg)
The tube fitted just right, a nice sliding, but not sloppy fit.
(http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/bogstandard_photos/From%20June2010/DM56.jpg)
The next bit were the four holes for stepper mounting. As I mentioned earlier, the info sheet with the stepper didn't match exactly, so I resorted to manually measuring it.
Because I had made the plate spot on size all ways, it was a dead easy job to use an edge finder on two sides to find the first hole centre, then it was just a matter of moving the plate around, push up to the stop and drill. All holes ended up spot on in line with the ones in the stepper.
It always pays to spend a little more time getting your base sizes correct.
(http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/bogstandard_photos/From%20June2010/DM57.jpg)
It was exactly the same for when the corners were rounded over, set up the first and the rest follow suit.
(http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/bogstandard_photos/From%20June2010/DM58.jpg)
The finished mounting plate.
(http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/bogstandard_photos/From%20June2010/DM59.jpg)
Everything fits OK.
(http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/bogstandard_photos/From%20June2010/DM60.jpg)
Before I could progress any further, the RT had to be completely built up.
Correct greases and oils used in the right places, and the thrust washer underneath adjusted to give no drag or backlash.
(http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/bogstandard_photos/From%20June2010/DM61.jpg)
The reason for assembly was so that I could get the just made flange in approximately the right position in conjunction with the tube.
The worm was engaged using the cam arrangement, and the parts marked up before being removed.
(http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/bogstandard_photos/From%20June2010/DM62.jpg)
Some fast acting, but high shear strength Loctite (clone) was used to join the two pieces together.
I clamped it up in the vice, and went and had some lunch.
(http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/bogstandard_photos/From%20June2010/DM63.jpg)
It was rock solid when I got back, but for a belt and braces measure, I drilled and tapped four 4mm holes at the joint between the two. Grub screws with a little more Loctite were inserted, making sure they were below the surface when tightened.
There is no way these two are going to come apart in normal use.
(http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/bogstandard_photos/From%20June2010/DM64.jpg)
So the assembly was finished off, and the whole lot bolted to the mill table in the normal RT permanent position.
Once everything is fine tuned, I will put a piece of metalic tape over the tube access hole, just to stop swarf getting in there.
(http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/bogstandard_photos/From%20June2010/DM65.jpg)
This is just a quickie demo.
On the third move, I noticed that the motor strained just momentarily, I think I have the worm a little too tight against the wheel, but if that is all that is wrong, I am very happy with it.
This is just the way I did things. There must be dozens of other ways to mount up the stepper.
Also you would have to take into account the sizes and shapes of the bits you will be trying to join together, so don't follow my actions religiously, you will most probably have to make the sizes to fit what you have got in your hands.
Hope you enjoyed the journey.
Bogs
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Nice... :ddb:
I'll have a look see next time I'm over. And see if I can't get a push of the odd button or two under tuition :zap: :thumbup:
How big is that drill bit :bugeye: :lol:
Ralph.
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Great job !!
Thanks for the inspiration.
Pete
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Great write up as usual :thumbup: Thanks for documenting this. I too have a rotab that I will be converting to stepper control, so I am bookmarking this thread as a reference.
Tim
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Really professional job that John, works brilliantly. Thanks
Nick
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How big is that drill bit :bugeye: :lol:
Ralph.
That's not big,
This is big :clap:
(http://homepage.ntlworld.com/stevenson.engineers/lsteve/files/R8_drill.jpg)
John S.
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Nice job there John. Glad to see you have it up and running.
-
That's not big,
This is big :clap:
He says as he slaps it on the table and photographs it!!! :lol:
Couldn't resist :)
Ralph.
P.S. No size ref' it could be a little tiny model of one!
-
Not sure what size it is, it started life as a 5 Morse taper which has enough meant on the shank to convert it to R8
You can often get these at car boots for peanuts as they don't think there is any life left in them but in fact you want just the worn out stub.
John S.
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Ralph,
I don't look at the drill size when working in the rough, I just use one that is big enough to get rid of excess material.
The one I used was from a slightly larger 'blacksmiths' set, having a 3/4" shank rather than the standard 1/2". I have had these for a fair while now, but only just starting to use them in anger. I could use them on the mill in a collet, but I had no chuck large enough to hold them in my lathe tailstock. But RDG came to the rescue fairly recently when they started to sell these, which match my other hand tight chucks, and the quality is great for so little money. 6th one down, 5 to 20mm keyless.
http://rdgtools.co.uk/acatalog/3MT_Keyless_Drill_Chuck.html
I also treated myself to an R8 one for the mill at the same time and price.
I thought you would have noticed them on my drill rack when we were in there the other weekend.
Using large drills can save you hours of machining time, by getting rid of excess material very fast before final boring.
John
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The only big drill I have is a 3MT 1" and I love it! My grandad must have sharpened it as with about 1/4" pilot hole it'll go through anything - if the time ever comes when I need to sharpent it I'll probably cock it up though!
-
The larger they get Nick, the easier they become to sharpen, as they are much easier to see what you are doing. If pushed I suppose you could even do it with an angle grinder.
John
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True. I found that out last night. I tried a drill that made a horrid scraping noise on some stainless, it looked ok but had to try sharpening the smaller one 3 times before I got it to cut acceptably. Ended up putting more of a point on it and that seemed to work.
I've got a bench grinder, might be able to do it on that, not sure whether the drill is too big actually suppose it should be ok. I've got a cheapo drill grinding jig but it's a PITA to set up and it really needs careful adjustment for each different size of drill so just do it by eye now!
Nick
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Hi John, I took a gander at the video, after going through the log, and it looks great, I know what mine should work like when I get to doing it up, and I can't say I've seen better from a rotary table, and what yours does will suit my needs perfectly. Now my only choice is whether to build or buy the electronics, very nice job all in all, and fine performance. I don't know how common the six by 48 belt sanders are there, but they are very popular here, and they have a nine inch sanding disk, usually, which goes dull with its first use, usually, unless you're working wood. I was replacing the bearings on mine, and realised the shaft being five eighths, and a nine inch disc grinder having five eighths eleven threads, I threaded the end of the shaft, pressed a shrink fit shoulder on it, and replaced the aluminum disc for sandpaper, with a nine inch grinding disc, and have used the first disc for a couple years and it's still in good shape, and will flat out eat steel at the edge, and at the same time, flatten and leave a fair good finish on steel, when pressed against the face of the disc and the disc remain sharp. It will dress up drill bits two and a half inches and larger with no problem, and it doesn't move about like a disk grinder lying on a table when trying to use it as a grinding wheel.
All in all, a good build log, great expose on the division master to start with, and well managed assembly and machining of the parts to make it work, nice job all around. I hope you get many good years of use out of it. :bow: mad jack
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John.
This was a great build; I thank you for showing it.
It makes me smile to see the extra effort you spent on putting the grub screws in on the flange where you had previously sealed it, when this piece of equipment gets handed on and the guy opens it up for whatever reason he should recognize the little quality touch.
God bless, Anthony.
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Good going John; excellent build log as always as well.
I like the way the controller software accelerates and decelerates the rotation near the start and the end.
Regards, Arnold
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Thanks for the compliments chaps, now it is up to me to get the best out of it, I am sure it is going to help me a lot in the future.
Ralph,
1.5" (about 38mm) diameter drill. But you've got to remember, I have the power to turn one at very low speed.
I did some fine tuning this morning, I adjusted the worm to wheel, there is a small grub screw on the casting that allows you to set it spot on and repeatable. It now runs like silk with no grumbling tight spots, and still no backlash. I will set all the ramp up/down and running speeds when I come to use it in anger, plus I have to learn all about those things first, before fiddling with the settings.
I also took the opportunity to modify and fit a small folding handle handwheel on there, just in case I still want to use it in rough manual mode.
(http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/bogstandard_photos/From%20June2010/DM66.jpg)
If you decide to fit a handle for any reason, one thing you MUST DO FIRST is UNPLUG the motor from the DivMaster before turning it, as under certain circumstances you can turn the stepper into a genny, and you don't want power feeding back to all those electronics.
I'm sure I will do other little twiddle twaddle bits to it, like cable clamps etc, but now, mechanically wise, this is definitely finished.
John
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1.5" (about 38mm) diameter drill. But you've got to remember, I have the power to turn one at very low speed.
Indeed! Damn huge bit as far as I'm concerned! I'd have been boring it out from about 25mm (largest slot drill) Still would have got a similar result though, just a lot slower :)
Looks good with that handle on now John :thumbup: I went looking for similar but found nothing.... I'll look again next week.
Now awaiting the first results of the testing on a workpiece :dremel:
Ralph.
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Ralph,
It came from RDG, but not the normal site, this small size isn't listed on there, but from their shop on eblay.
John
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I got a couple of these Ralpf they work well nice and strong but take up little room and fold as it's supprising how strong a stepper of that size is.
the ones at the bottom of the page
http://www.arceurotrade.co.uk/Catalogue/Machine-Spares/Machine-Handles
Peter
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Tried the e-bay shop John as that's what you said when we were discussing the one you have there... Nothing listed?
But got that link from Peter that should do the job just as well :thumbup:
I'll go measure the spindle on my machine and see what I can do about the old "handle in the wrong place :bugeye: " issue ::)
Ralph.
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Ralph
This seems to be the one. Slightly different size to the Arc one ( -5mm)
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=290353081170&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT
Pete
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That's the one Pete, it is perfect size for these small steppers, and the smallest one they do with a folding handle.
They also do another one at 125mm.
This morning, I had another play about and did this vid to show a few of the things it can do.
This is by no means it's full capabilities, just what a basic learner can get up to very quickly.
John
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Hi John
Thats just the job :dremel: :bugeye: :clap: :clap: :clap:
Most of all good to see you back in the shop and posting :thumbup:
Rob
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Thanks Rob,
It is really nice getting a bit of my own stuff done, and getting my confidence back. I nearly gave it all up a couple of times over the last year.
I have a few other small private jobs to do, but they can fit in anytime, just waiting on materials for one of them.
My problem is whether to finish off a few of my old projects, or dive in and have a go at some castings I bought last year at Harrogate. I have a large flame licker from castings that is crying out to be built, and it wouldn't be a big job either, say two weeks, then go back to the old stuff, or finish off the old bits first, maybe a couple of months, then build the licker.
Decisions, decisions.
John
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:clap: Now that's a smooth runner :thumbup:
I'll race ya John, I'll try to make one thing to fit any of my engines.... You finish one of yours :lol:
Some day soon I'll surprise you all.... Yep, I'll actually finish something worth posting about :palm:
Again, very nice machine you have there :dremel:
Ralph.
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Go with the castings, it's about time you got DIRTY :lol: :lol: :lol:
:ddb: Peter :ddb:
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John.
I just watched the video, superb job.
Let me tell you watching what you did proves to me CNC machining is within reach of the home guy at least to me, and I think you have taken the magic out of electronic machining, your basic approach with practical appliance to problems has taught me a lot on this subject.
Thank you. My shop in the near future will have electronic aids of some sort, I am now on a sojourn to add a little of this to my inventory.
God bless, Anthony.
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John, thanks for the video demo. Looks like a tool to kick out some flywheels to me. If you ever do a flywheel on that I would love to see a vid. Didn't you tell me that that same unit could be plugged into a computer to run from Mach3?
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John,
Forgive me if I'm telling you something you already know but if you use the 1 and 3 buttons instead of the plus and minus it moves at a slog jog.
John S.
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Many thanks gents.
Unfortunately, even though the RT could now be used with a CNC set up, this is about as far as I will go down that route. It is now giving me easy control over a problem tool issue that I had. I am sure that there will be some things that it can't do, hence the fall back to fitting the handle if needed, and in the future, there will be a thin vernier scale fitted behind the handle for when it does have to go manual.
John S,
Many thanks for that. I did know something about that feature, but it hasn't of yet been inwardly digested. I am just picking thru the manual learning the major basic bits first. But I will do, when I get the box mounted up on the side of the mill head, in a better programming and use position.
I have to take things slowly nowadays, otherwise my single brain cell can't absorb it all. In fact six months ago, this project would have been a definite no-no. New meds can take a lot of getting used to, and do limit your capabilities more than you realise.
I could hardly have a decent conversation when they first started, lots of blank seconds while I tried to think of the right words, but look at me now, I have got to the stage where I can count both my fingers AND my toes, and I can order a curry or chinese, with delivery, over the phone. What more can you want out of life. :lol: :lol:
John
BTW Peter, I fitted a new half round file to the die filer last night, and did a bit of trimming up on a nicely cast bronze flywheel.
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Great job John and a very interesting video
:clap: :clap: :clap: :clap: :clap: :clap:
That bit of plastic would make a cool flywheel if it were a bit heavyer :D
Thanks for showing
Stew
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Stew,
I can now make flywheel blanks as big as the machine will allow, even bigger than I could get on my lathe.
No more large friction turning for me, just wack on almost any shape of material and cut out the disc.
John
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Hi John, I had to go back to watch the video, and you've got a very nice piece of kit there, which will serve you in good stead. I wish I were ready to just jump in and get my rotary table going, and get past these other projects. I've got the cam blank for my radial engine sitting clamped on my table, and I don't much want to cut it having watched about two or three too many rotary table conversions, and almost want to hold off on the cam until I've modded the table. Having watched the video, I think I'm going to knock out the cam at the next opportunity, thus clear the table, and then I can start working on it, and get it electronically controlled with no pressure. That video convinced me of the quality of output, and the utility it has. I'm sure you'll learn much more as to its capabilities, but it sure looks good, and from your description it should get you back in the shop. If it were me, I'd celebrate by building something with castings, I always enjoy building with castings, and they look good. Great build and very noce log for us to follow :nrocks: mad jack
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John,
Brilliant demonstration I thought but the wife left about 1/4 way through the video :lol: I can see that's going to be another useful bit of kit that you'll enjoy as well as making life generally easier. That bit of plastic would make a cool flywheel if it were a bit heavyer
. Stew, you beat me to it, great minds think alike! A monster LTD stirling flywheel!
I know you don't want anybody to decide what to do next but my vote is Bruce Engineering Flame Licker! :thumbup:
Nick
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Too late Nick, it is already under way, I thought you would have picked up on it.
http://madmodder.net/index.php?topic=4219.0
John
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:D it's like your favourite series coming back on the box - just about to tune in!
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Just re-read this thread from the beginning. Turned out nice John. I hope you get a lot of use out of it. I know I want to do my RT now.
Eric