The Home Machinist!

Starting to figure out that "maybe" it's more fun improving our lathes, mills and saws than actually making something with them. The little things we do to make our machines better, faster and prettier. I think for myself anyway I'm having a lot of fun just working on my 3-In-One just to make it perform the way it was designed. Added DC motors, switches, tools to use with are lots of fun to pursue. Looking across the Web there are so many things made or modifications that just were obviously a "labor of love!" If you would like to share a pic of your improvements please do so. Pics inspire all us newbies, and maybe some of the more experienced, to get the brain matter percolating with new ideas! Some of my improvements, so far, are very small but bring a little experience with acquainting me with my lathe/mill-drill. Couple things I did so far are:

Modded Shars tool post to fit smaller compound slide
Cut offset 15/16" wrench for new tool post locking nut
Removed and cleaned apron of all the casting sand and grit
Replaced pivot gear
Polished all gigs
Rounded gib adjustment screws for better fit to gibs
Added work light for chuck work
Replaced lead screw drive pin with brass pin
Bought DC motor for future mod for variable lathe speed

There's maybe more fun in seeing a meager increase in the stock market than getting out before it falls. Either way, long as you live there will be reasons to have the ability. These particular days it seems barely worth the effort when repair parts are so affordable and notice that what breaks is not that easily reproduced. When push comes to shove and before that, knowing your machine can actually save you or another. We see the signs of that and also to be creative.
May not make sense now but what insurance policy does, until you need it?

Did my first practical project with my new Grizzly. I have a '90 Miata that I secure at night with a steering wheel club. I lost the duplicate key long ago and if I lost the original I'd been up the creek. Locksmiths say they can't make them. Only problem I had was with my choice of steel. I had a piece of drill rod that I used. This was some "hard" metal. Ruined a TiN drill bit and chipped tip of carbide insert. Think next time I'll put the metal to a grinder to see what kind of spark comes off it. Anyway it was a lesson learned.

As a side note it got almost up to 98 degrees inside my shop. Gonna have to do something in the way of ventilation, insulation and air-conditioning. Otherwise work and learning will only be done in mornings or nights.

Ron

Very nice job.

Ken.

ken572 wrote:Ron
Very nice job.
Ken.

Thanks Ken.
Well, nice, not really! Functional, yes! I don't know what kind of rod that was but I wish I had been working with some bronze and it would have been "much more gooder." LoL

As another side note, I just check temp in shop and it's still 93 degrees at 9:00pm!

The steel key will be a back-up key. I'll be that if I would use it regularly it would eat up the tumblers inside the lock mechanism. "Maybe" that's why they make them out of bronze/brass material. Hmmmm I wonder!

I live on the east coast of fl and this is the hottest spring I remember. have two large fans moving air in and out of my shop. helps a lot plus the bugs can't settle on you. .....running an a/c would be very obvious on the FPL bill

juiceclone wrote:I live on the east coast of fl and this is the hottest spring I remember. have two large fans moving air in and out of my shop. helps a lot plus the bugs can't settle on you. .....running an a/c would be very obvious on the FPL bill

Have two fans runing. Had to have a smaller oscillating fan to keep them darn skeeters off me! I've had a new air conditioned, still in the box, that I have been too lazy to install. "Maybe" this is the time to get-r-done. Damn be the utility bill! LoL

Just thought of something else that will really help. I'm going to buy a bathroom exhaust fan for external wall mount. Home Depot has a 180 cfm model for $30. My shop is only 10x15, barn style, and that should suck a lot of the heat out. That in congestion with the other two fans should bring that temp down.

Spent this morning making carriage gib adjustment bolts/pins. Took Torch's idea of using bolts to use a gib adjusters instead of the set screws. I used M8x1.25 threaded rod with two flange nuts. This will make life a little easier for adjusting.

Has anyone modded the carriage lock? The lever wants to flop down on mine just from vibration during the cutting process.

I've never modified a carriage lock, but something as simple as an O-ring between the handle and it's mating surface might keep it from moving when vibrating.

redneckalbertan wrote:I've never modified a carriage lock, but something as simple as an O-ring between the handle and it's mating surface might keep it from moving when vibrating.

I don't think that would work. The shaft of the handle, before it goes into the carriage gear box, stick out abut 2.5" and just doesn't seem like a viable solution. "Or maybe you mean make a groove, on the shaft, to put the o-ring onto just inside the casting to create friction fit."