Two additions to my shop tooling.

[ml_woy]

Yesterday I started building the horizontal fence for the Delta sander. Material was procured from the local steel supplier and aluminum remnant supplier. The steel was cheap, the aluminum was pricey. I decided to build two sets of fences, one for myself and another for a good friend. The drawings are done so yesterday was the time to start making chips.

I decided to start on the long fence first. The one I am making is three inches shorter than the one shown in the Delta manual, reason my piece of material came up a little short when it got home. I made changes in the drawings to reflect the shortfall.

Here is a picture of the fence just before I welded the ends on it:

   

Welding complete:

   

Welds cleaned up ready for fastners:

   

The fence will have two arms attached to it that will be secured with bolts to the top of the sander. There will be two positions the fence can be fixed, one when it is used alone and one when it is used in conjunction with the cross fence. This will require two separate attachment points located two inches apart.

The mounting arms are going to be made from aluminum and will be fastened to the fence with 1/4" x 1 x 20 cap screws. the hollow fence will have pieces of 1/2" round stock welded into the fence face and tapped for the 1/4" x 20 cap screws.

Here is a picture of the fastening points being prepared to be drilled and tapped:

   

Tapping these fasteners is difficult, I have already broken one tap and have fifteen more to go when I get back out in the shop next week.

[stevec]

Dunno why your having problems tapping the round stock 1/4-20.
Are you power tapping?
If the hole is drilled #7 right thru it should be duck soup to power tap them with the lathe in a nice slow back gear.
What brand - quality are the taps?

[EdK]

Try using some cutting fluid and see if that helps. I detest WD-40 and don't allow it in my shop but a lot of people like to use it on aluminum. It's worth a shot.

Ed

[stevec]

Except you misspelled SH$T Ed.

[TomG]

Not sure why the intense dislike for WD-40. It is THE best cutting fluid for aluminum and does an excellent job of cleaning up machinery, but as Steve points out, it isn't worth a SH$T as a lubricant. I literally go through the stuff by the gallon for machining and especially tapping aluminum. It also makes a good hand cleaner in a pinch.

Tom

[ml_woy]

(08-19-2013, 04:50 PM)stevec Wrote: Dunno why your having problems tapping the round stock 1/4-20.
Are you power tapping?
If the hole is drilled #7 right thru it should be duck soup to power tap them with the lathe in a nice slow back gear.
What brand - quality are the taps?

Steve:

No, I am just feeding the tap by hand while supporting the wrench in the tail stock of the lathe. Drilled a #7 pilot hole right through the piece and I am using a good quality cutting oil and a good USA tap. The tap just feels really tight and I can only get one half a turn before I break the chip. When the tap broke I probably had tried to get three quarters of a turn on the tap and built up to large of a chip.This CRS I purchased from the local hardware store is really tough stuff. First time trying CRS usually I purchase hot rolled steel. I agree it should tap easier. I completed three holes and my 67 year old left arm was a little tired. Looks like it is going to be a slow process.

[TomG]

I would try a different tap, just because it's a good USA tap doesn't mean that it's right. Like Steve says, on a through hole like that you should be able to power tap it with no trouble, regardless of the steel.

Tom

[EdK]

(08-20-2013, 07:41 AM)TomG Wrote: Not sure why the intense dislike for WD-40. ...
Tom

Tom,

I dislike it because it makes me sick to my stomach. I can smell it a mile away. Even a little whiff of it makes me sick. I must be allergic to it.

Ed

[TomG]

Ed,

You would be miserable in my shop then because everything is bathed it the stuff.

Tom

[EdK]

Tom,

I wouldn't make into the shop. I'd smell it long before then.

Ed