Todays Project - What did you do today?

[f350ca]

The radius on the casting varied from top to bottom and tapered slightly. They sure didn't make it DRO friendly. Need to put a stop bolt in there or may move it to the front and loose the limit switches for the table feed. I've never needed them in the 15 years I've had the mill.

[f350ca]

Installed the DRO I took off the mill on the shaper. It was a Shooting Star that had been on the mill for close to 15 years. It uses a rack driving a rotary encoder, the small form factor made it work on the clapper box.


The ram retracts back into the body on this machine in order to get to the back of the table. Hence the scale needed to fit tight to clear the ways.



The table was a lot easier, just some simple brackets.



Looking at the photos, I guess the old girl could do with a wash.

[aRM]

(01-03-2018, 04:49 PM)TomG Wrote: Just finished remodeling the kitchen, and had a few spare minutes in the shop before starting the next project, a rocking chair for my daughter in law (I'm going to be a grandpa in May ). In hopes of learning auto upholstery this winter, I added a line laser to my sewing machine to make it easier to get straight top stitching. I'm using a contrasting color top stitch on the French seams, so straight stitches are kind of a big deal. Anyway, I grabbed a cheap line laser and power supply off Amazon, and made a bracket to mount it on the machine and allow left and right adjustment to either put the laser on the stitch, or on the edge of the fabric. I haven't had a chance to try it out yet, but it does what it is supposed to do quite well, so I suspect it will be fine.

Tom

Recalling all/most of Your previous projects, Tom, is there anything at all that U Guys CANNOT do !!! Your ability to make, create, alter, fix, repair just goes on and on. U Guys are truly amazing and gifted. Hats off, Sir.
aRM

[aRM]

(01-04-2018, 12:36 PM)f350ca Wrote: Felt lined my storage boxes.

Hats off to U too, Esquire GREG
Your superlative creativity just has no bounds nor limits. Awesome what U just go on making.
ATB
aRM

[SteveG]

Here's a simple welding table that I've been slowly putting together. Just got it to the usable stage today:

   

It has wheels on one end, and I wanted retractable casters on the other. After looking at a few ideas online, I came up with this variation.
Simply put a lever between the green piece and the upper horizontal and lever down and the casters will extend - then insert a suitable size block of wood, release the lever and move the workbench. When you've finished moving it, just insert the lever again, remove the block of wood and release and the legs are back on the floor.

Casters retracted:
   

Casters extended and block of wood inserted:
   

Its so nice to be able to just clamp or hold things to the table and weld them without messing around with getting an earth clamp on the workpiece.
It already feels like one of those tools that is so good to use that you wish you'd built it ages ago.

Steve

[SteveG]

And since I needed to test the new table, I welded up this angle plate that I've been planning to make for a while:

   

   

Then started to get the faces cleaned up on the mill

   

Steve

[SteveG]

Welding up the angle plate made me realise I needed somewhere to put the MIG gun when not using it as it wanted to slide off the table.

Took a long bolt, turned it into a clamp, and attached a piece of tube to insert the gun into:

   

   

   

And a bit of paint to finish it off:

   

   

Steve

[f350ca]

Like the lift mechanism for the table, may steal that idea. If I can remember it.

[SteveG]

(01-13-2018, 08:58 AM)f350ca Wrote: Like the lift mechanism for the table, may steal that idea. If I can remember it.

There are better examples on the 'net, but they put the upper horizontal member higher so there is enough height to use a small hydraulic jack or scissor jack to extend the wheels. Overkill for my little table, but would be good for something that was bigger/heavier.

Steve

[Pete O]

I needed a pair of 45 degree bevel gears for a project I'm working on- I'll post a thread on it when it's finished as I'm under time pressure with it. Had to post these up though, the first gears I have made. 12DP 40-tooth 45 degree parallel bevels. I cast the blank for one and machined the other from a chunk of aluminium plate. A bit of de-burring to do but I took a couple of photos when the second gear came off the mill.