The Home Machinist!

You don't, not unless you have Brown & Sharpe bore micrometers, and precious few have them. Not a problem, however. What I do is judge the diameter by placing a part next to the bore. Hook one jaw, then see how much overlap there is. Translate that to thousandths, and take a cut, although less than ...

The grind of taps indicates their intended use. Hand taps have straight flutes with no change of angle at the cutting end. They don't direct the chip--it is intended to enter the flute, and be broken by reversal of the tap. Taps intended to be power driven may look similar, but they have a lead angl...

Might be a good idea to better describe the taps. Are they hand taps, or are they intended to be power driven?

H

But I reread and don't see where I referred to an indexer as a dividing head or the reverse. I see your point. I was concentrating on your comment about rapid movements with a dividing head (that is generally not the case, but is true of an indexing head), overlooking the possibility that it may be...

So I believe I do understand the difference, and I'm still not sure where I trampled on the terminology. I try to be precise, so I genuinely want to know what I said that was wrong. I prefer that it be addressed as confusing, not wrong. In both instances, indexing is precisely what occurs. The diff...

I received an email from Rose. Dave's heart was irregular, with doctor's prognosis of a chance of survival not favorable. He was removed from life support and passed away around 12:30 today. His candor is going to be missed.
Rest in peace, good friend.

Harold

I thought that was what I was saying. You said: A dividing head as shown in the pictures is really designed for relatively light work which needs reliable quick indexing by division. For instance, 4, 6, or 8 even divisions for fluting a shop made cutter/reamer/etc, or gashing a gear with even divis...

I run the mill on a rotary phase converter and only really get 2/3 of the rated HP of the motor in that configuration. Are you positive? Rotary phase converters provide an honest three phase, unlike static converters, which do provide only 2/3 the rated power. In fact, if well balanced, they should...

I don't use DRO's, but the way I operate milling machines, having one on the quill doesn't make as much sense as one on the knee. I generally lock the quill and use the knee to deepen the cut, as that's how I have the most control. If I'm drilling and need to control depth, I have a quick stop that ...

I just received an email from Rose, Dave's wife. Here's her comment:
"Harold, dave's heart stopped. After 20 minutes they got a weak pulse and he is now on a ventilator"
Not be best news we could hope for.

H

Terminology is being trampled here. A dividing head is not an indexing head, nor is an indexing head a dividing head. Of the two, a dividing head provides unlimited indexing, while an indexing head generally has preselected stops. Both are useful, but not necessarily interchangeable. A rotary table ...

I am familiar with the 295° caustic black oxide (I've done it several times), but not at all familiar with what you call rust bluing. However, your response makes it perfectly clear why a barrel would be plugged, and I thank you for that. Sure does make sense.

H