I prevent my lathe from rusting by using it often. That method worked for me when I lived back east too.
Printable View
I prevent my lathe from rusting by using it often. That method worked for me when I lived back east too.
good post! my biggest problem is dust, 9' garage door on each end of the barn makes a good air flow but causes a lot of dust. when i'm finished useing it i brush the chips and shaving's off with a paint brush, then i wipe it down with an oiled rag then cover it with a blue tarp. works well for me, no rust, no dust.
skimmerhead [smilie=f:
I find that a paint brush is a little undergunned for the chips that I tend to generate. I use a whisk broom & one of those giant aluminum dust pans.
iv'e been thinking about trying a peep hole sight on my ruger bisley 45. i've looked at a couple webb site's that have them but i'd like to try my hand at making my own. does anyone have any suggestion's on what type of metal, ect. to use? thank's
skimmerhead:confused:
You going to do this by hand or with machine tools? By hand a thick washer would be easy to work with, I used one to make a front sight for my S&W 686.
The first thing you need to do is figure out how you are going to hold the part to work on it.
Is that an adjustable sight? Pic would help.
You may want to start a new thread about making a sight blade and ask if anybody has been there done that.
Milling thin stuff can be done, using small mills at fast speeds and slow feeds. It also helps to sandwich it between some thicker metal strips to make it more rigid.
I'd use a piece of 1/8" thick low carbon ground stock because it's already got a good surface finish on it & it will accept bluing.
I'd grab the piece in a mill vice & leave about 1/2" hanging out the end. Then I'd form the shape that I wanted & drill the necessary hole(s). Then I'd take a series of easy passes with a fly cutter to thin it down. Then I'd cut it off & finish the edge by hand with a file. Then I'd blue it.
That's just one way to skin that cat that comes to mind off the top of my head.
hi Jim, how your doing? ain't talked in awhile. been busy getting my mill ready to go to work. it's ready! got the thing clean, got the head set with dial indicators, x and y, made a set of way covers for it, set the backlash on the x and y feeds. i put a kurt 6" vise and set it with my last word indicator till there was no difference from either end. i'm gonna give it a try to make that ghost sight. i'm not familiar with blueing what should i get? thanks for the tip.
skimmerhead :2_high5:
I wish mine didn't show a change from end to end. I knew that looked like a good machine Danny.
It sounds like you've been busy. It also sounds like you've been spending your time wisely. I'm starting to get busy again (which is a good thing) so I haven't been able to get out into the shop as much as I would like.
For bluing, I just use the cream style cold blue from Beachwood Casey that is available at many gun stores. Other people here on the board (that probably have more experience with it) recommend other brands from Brownells. More info on that here- http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?t=118260
edit:
Once I get a vice indicated dead straight, I like to drop a pair of 1/4" dowel pins in the base that will line up with the table slot. That way, after I take the vice off the table, I can get it back to square again quick & easy.
I may be wrong, but I think you are talking about two different things. I think that he is talking about indicating the master jaw of the vice parallel to the x-axis travel & you are probably talking about the table being flat from end to end & not having any wobble or droop at the extreme ends of x-travel.
i don't know much about these type machines. but i know machines, i never met one i couldn't break, never met one i couldn't fix. this machine would be in better shape if it had been cared for instead of having it in a trade school where care and maintence would have been the rule. but it has a good home now! before i trammed the head to the table i honed the table top a bit to get any nicks out. i had to adjust the side to side about 5 thou. and the forward tilt about two thou. when i put the vise on i used a last word indicator chucked in the spindle and got it to zero all across the jaw face, then i tourqed the bolts and checked everthing again and everything is good to go. i stripped that big elictrical box that was on the side and used it to mount the vfd in it. i mounted it on the rear of the mill so it'll be protected. i got a 3 meter cable to use the control panel remotely. put an on off disconnect box on the side just in case. changed the way wipes, made a set of way covers. i think i got it all done. i'm gonna make a collet rack for it when i get a chance, there was one there cause the holes are drilled and tapped and i could see the outline where it was. tell snoop hi for me!
skimmerhead:2_high5:
thats a good tip! glad your getting busy again. been spending alot of time in the shop, it keeps my mind occupied. things have settled down here, no more funerals lately, my wife is getting better, i'm feeling better also so thats a good thing. we had kinda rough spell for awhile. i hope things stay quiet. thanks for the tip.
skimmerhead :goodpost:
To blue your sight blade just heat it with a torch and plunge it in some oil, it does not have to be red hot. I blue screw heads the same way.