The Home Machinist!

If you are using a box anyway fill it with sand. The only advantage of a concrete counterweight is that it needs no box and you can leave it out in the rain. Think of all the ways that you would not be able to use such a box were it irreversibly filled with concrete.

The instrument does, yes (unless you consider the standard cell part of the instrument, in which case it has only two). You've clearly confused a Leeds and Northrup type instrument with more general potentiometers which both pre-date and post-date the instrument, your argument that the instrument t...

I find that fingernail clippers work well for gripping splinters and pulling them out. They can cut through a bit of epidermis if necessary to get a grip on a splinter that doesn't stick out.

The instrument does, yes (unless you consider the standard cell part of the instrument, in which case it has only two).

Two to the unknown voltage source and two to the standard cell.

The term potentiometer has been abused, though, first to refer to a resistor with a movable tap used as a voltage divider and later to refer to any low power variable resistor. It has also been shortened to "pot".

75 to 1000 ohms is not going to work as a rheostatic speed control. You need zero ohms for full speed. A carbon pile pedal control has a set of contacts that short out the carbon pile when the pedal is fully depressed. Before that it needs to get much lower than 75 ohms to get near full speed. If yo...

Remember that there are times to build a watch and times to build a locomotive and get it out on the track. My similar approach was, "I'm not sending this to the international space station" when it came to precision on some parts. Yes, there are certain very critical dimensions and toler...

Just wondering how you guys feel about it when for example you drill out a bearing a little bigger than you should have and it has a sloppy fit, or do anything where you took off a little more meat than you should have. Do you just live with the sloppy piece and continue working on the next parts j...

Elecrojim writes: There's anodizing, of course, which can be done in colors and provides an aluminum oxide layer that is very hard and durable. But it's a relatively expensive process (although it can be done at home... don't try it, kids), Right. Stick with safe, easy stuff like casting metal and b...

I checked my Dumore control (OEM) It has no rating printed on it but when you first depress the pedal , you get maybe 100 RPM The control shows 1000 Ohms at that point, and fully depressed (max RPM ) the control shows 75 Ohms When not touched, the Ohm meter displays-- infinity for resistance I woul...

No high watermarks I can see. The Clausing looks pretty good. The Bridgeport is rusty and covered with cobwebs, making it hard to see just how bad the rust is. Even if it isn't restorable, though, I'd love to scrap it out for parts. Same with the shaper. There's tooling, too. What's the attachment o...

Looks dirty and neglected, but not necessarily scrap. Certainly doesn't look flooded to me.