The Home Machinist!

Here is the printed info from when I bought my Harrison VS330TR in 1994. It was one of the last ones, because they took too much time in production, and they were moving on to the Alpha series of computer controlled lathes. My lathe may have been built on the same line shown in the video, by then, 1...

When I was about 9, a long tyme ago, I wanted to fix an old clock that was missing part of the wire, I took two wires wound them together, put rubber tape and friction tape over, and plugged it in. The sparks flew, the fuse blew, and at that point I learned it took two separate wires to conduct elec...

I have purchased lotsa stuff from Harbor Frate, but I do believe their quality is marginal. The closest HF is about 7 miles west in a place called Crystal Lake, but on the way there is also a Menard's, so with my Menard's Card I go there first, they are just slightly better in tool quality. To my ea...

Before buying that H.F. Lift, I would spend awhile looking at https://www.ebay.com/b/Hydraulic-Lift-Tables/bn_7024932961 You will get some idea about better quality and what used prices are. That's where I found those two Presto and one Econo Lift tables, of course, I did this over a span of about t...

It's all about attracting the youth, and here is an AFS attempt. On this site, they have a magazine designed to show those looking for a career, how metal casting can be that one! Will it work, only time will tell: http://meltingpoint.squarespace.com/digitalmagazine Ye olde folks who have been comme...

I have three Harbor Frate Lift tables, and they all have one problem, when you pump them up to a desired height, they slowly go back down. My brother, an expert in oil seals, believed it was the rubber compounds the Chinese used. I have two like the one shown below, and a smaller one used for vises,...

Here are three hydraulic tables we bought off of eBay, one is used for an assembly/welding table in my garage, the other two are used in conjunction with TT#1 and TT#2. In that third photo, I'm welding up the locomotive holder for the top of TT#2's lift table. The yellow Econo Lift was most expensiv...

Here is a case of poor civil engineering, it happened just a few months ago.

Probably cost several million to correct:

http://www.chaski.org/homemachinist/vie ... 5&t=107870

If you have the $$$ and time, this class may be of interest: https://www.afsinc.org/conferences/cast ... s-workshop

Third World was our world in 1906!

Photo #1: Below is a 1906 Photo out of a book on crucibles, how many OSHA violations can you find.

( I had put this on before.)

Photo #2: Here are Ean and I dressed to make OSHA happy!

Gotta keep and eye on their shipping costs, it can be rather high.

Way back, I think Dremel had their factory in a suburb north of Chicago (North Chicago?), I remember their service was very prompt and correct. Today they are in Racine, I might think of driving that far, but I usually will buy a newer model, if it goes bad. Google: "dremel factory store" to read ab...