Subject: Re: beginners/advanced reading list

From: [email-masked] (Chris Kantarjiev)
Date: 4 Dec 1996 19:02:02 GMT

The Amateur's lathe by L. H. sparey, Argus Books.
	The Amateur's workshop by Ian Bradley, Argus Books.
	Screwcutting In the Lathe, Martin Cleeve, Argus Books.

I just received my copies of these. I ordered them via TEE Publications;
they have a Compuserve account, and also a new web site:

	http://www.fotec.co.uk/mehs/tee/
	
They drop ship to the US once a month, around the 15th. I ordered at the
beginning of November and they arrived yesterday. Overall cost for the
three books was #28, or about $45 by today's exchange rate.

Haven't had a chance to look at them thoroughly, but they seem to be a
nice addition ... once you get past the fairly outdated parts about
wiring a shop in the UK...

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From: edwin bailen <[email-masked]>
Date: Wed, 4 Dec 1996 21:26:18 -0600

On 1 Dec 1996, Edward Haas wrote:

> 	--Maybe the top of this thread has been deleted from my server 
> already, but a few other good books come to mind. Foremost would be 
> Machinery's Handbook. I don't know which edition is current, but anything 
> beyond the 21st ed. is probably useful. 

Now you tell me! I just paid $12 for a 21st ed. :=)  What's the most 
serious deficiency for this edition (relative to the tyro machinist)?

> 	-Other books: Colvin and Stanley wrote a whole series of books 
> and any you find in a used book store will be worth the price. 
> 	-Another one worth buying, either new or used is Marks' Handbook 
> for Mechanical Engineers. This one (particularly the older editions) has 
> many useful tables, particularly for those interested in steam projects.
> -- 
> 	"Steamboat Ed" Haas	:	Can you do  	
> 	COMING EVENTUALLY	:	the Tibetan Memory Trick??
> 	http://www.west.net/~steamer  	
> 		---Decks a-wash in a sea of words---
> 	
> 
> 

Regards,
Ed

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From: [email-masked] (Fitch R. Williams)
Date: Fri, 06 Dec 1996 06:26:13 GMT

>wiring a shop in the UK...

The wiring is dated, but the use of small DC motors to power
small tools like lathe carriage mounted drills or small
carriage mounted grinders or milling cutters is not so far
out of date.  The Surplus Center Catalog has a number of
small DC motors that could be used for these purposes, and
some relatively inexpensive small controllers to run them.  

Some of the small DC motors have very high rpms so are
better for grinders or relatively small cutters unless the
gear ratios get pretty big.  Might not be to hard to make a
thread grinder or tool post grinder using one.  Still, they
also have some DC gear motors that aren't to expensive.

If one had a source of inexpensive diamond laps, and could
machine a suitable hum, a couple of those small DC motors
might make a homebrew Carbide cutter grinder similar to the
Glendo machine.  Or maybe one could use a higher powered one
to make a cold saw.  

The authors of those books have a lot of wisdom to share.  I
think you have some real good reading ahead of you.  All the
postings about books I got them off the shelf and have been
working my way through them again.  It turns out I missed a
lot the first time through.

Fitch

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From: [email-masked] (Paul Amaranth)
Date: 6 Dec 1996 18:38:21 -0500

>Glendo machine.  Or maybe one could use a higher powered one

In order to make a Christmas project, I'm building a faceting machine. 
 (I'm always getting into these projects where I have to make something
to make something) I'm using an old 5 1/4 floppy drive as the source of
turning power. The _old_ drives had a little servo controller board on
the back of the drive - you could hook it up to 12V and use the little
pot on the board to vary the speed.  Later models integrated everything
onto one board and are not so easy to deal with.  I would guess you end
up with something in the range of 300-400 rpm.  That servo controller
gives a surprising amount of torque.

Anyway, I was at a lapidary shop and they were selling laps for around
$80-$100.  It has not escaped my attention that this might be a way
of sharpening tool bits as well.

-- 
Paul Amaranth          Tel: (810) 656-5975      Fax: (810) 656-6836
Aurora Group, Inc.     Rochester MI, USA    http://www.rust.net/auroragroup
[email-masked]          Consulting & Data Conversion Services

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From: [email-masked] (Peter Brooks)
Date: 4 Dec 1996 19:58:32 GMT

Edward Haas ([email-masked]) wrote:
: Machinery's Handbook. I don't know which edition is current, but anything 
: beyond the 21st ed. is probably useful. 

I just saw the 25th edition at Barnes & Noble.  Since I have a 24th, I 
refrained from buying it.....

Pete Brooks

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From: [email-masked] (Steve Rayner)
Date: Sat, 7 Dec 1996 11:05:36 GMT

Years ago, Model Engineer had an article about building a toolpost 
grinder.  It used a surplus DC motor.  The articles started in July
1968, if any one is interested.  The authors were Duplex ( Ian Bradley, 
and a Dr. ???? ).  Sorry, I can't remember the name of the other half of
" Duplex ".

In a previous article, [email-masked] (Fitch R. Williams) says:

>com!news.pbi.net!news.PBI.net!mournblade.ptw.com!never-00.ptw.com
>

-- 
Steve. 

******************Knowledge is wasted if it is not shared.*******************

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From: [email-masked] (Fitch R. Williams)
Date: Sun, 08 Dec 1996 21:23:34 GMT

You may be right.  I think you might need more torque than
the disk drives give though.

Fitch

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From: "PyroWare" <[email-masked]>
Date: Tue, 10 Dec 1996 09:05:21 -0600

I have seen slow, cold diamond laps in action.  Besides putting an
absolute mirror finish on HSS bits, they can lap hardened steel parts and
do all sorts of cool shop tasks.  The wheels are about $100, but you will
probably need 2 grits.  Any respectable machinist can make an adjustable
angle table, spindle, and drive train and have a very nice tool for $300.

Kurt Bjorn

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From: [email-masked] (Michael Horgan [Lughaid])
Date: Tue, 10 Dec 1996 19:49:04 GMT

The old Lapidary magazines, in the 50's, for example, assumed that you
could not buy the machines or tools you needed, Therefore, there were
lots of build-it articles. One technique that stuck in my mind, is
using a copper plate as the grinding surface for a vertical grinder.
Back it up with a steel plate for support. Spread grit, diamond or
silicon carbide, onto the surface of the annealed copper, and use a
hard roller under high pressure to force the grit into the surface.
Use it with a mist or drip lubrication, and one of these wil last for
years.  Cheap enough to make several, for different grit sizes.
Certainly lots cheaper than $100, even if you have to buy a supply of
the grits. If the plate gets scored, or worn, just chuck it up in the
lathe and surface it, then re-charge. 
>angle table, spindle, and drive train and have a very nice tool for $300.

Michael Horgan ([email-masked])
http://users.aol.com/Lughaid

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From: Paul Pierce <[email-masked]>
Date: Fri, 06 Dec 1996 07:40:05 -0700

Fitch R. Williams wrote:
> ..... All the

Wait until you go thru the the third and fourth time.  Each
time it seems like someone turned on another light.

-- 
Paul in AJ AZ  NRA Endowment Member

Checkout the Metal Web News at:
new address (11/23/96)

http://www.ten.k12.tn.us/~wgray

Checkout the FAQ at:
http://PLAINS.UWYO.EDU/%7Emetal/index.html

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From: [email-masked]
Date: Thu, 12 Dec 1996 13:19:35 -0600

Can anyone recommend an instruction book for a beginner wanting to cut
simple metal shapes. I've got some small patterns I've made out of wood
and would like to try them in metal. I tried the scroll saw but couldn't
hold the metal down enough. Any help is appreciated. Thanks.
Mary

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From: [email-masked](Roger Loving)
Date: 15 Dec 1996 01:59:13 GMT

>hold the metal down enough. Any help is appreciated. Thanks.

    Mary, clamp, screw, or glue the metal between two thin pieces of
1/4" plywood. This makes a sort of wood-metal-wood samdwich. Trace your
pattern on one of the plywood pieces and cut the whole thing at the
same time on the scroll saw. The wood backing will keep the metal from
jumping.
                                Roger L.

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From: [email-masked] (geoff beneze)
Date: 14 Dec 1996 16:41:01 -0700

> hold the metal down enough. Any help is appreciated. Thanks.

Mary,
how thick is your metal? What speed are you using for the cut, what kind
of blade, etc? I've cut metal with the jig saw and hand saw, VERY slowly
with a fine toothed blade, up to about 1/16".
-- 
geoff beneze ([email-masked])
NRA Life member
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