Spindex Rework

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GlennW
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Spindex Rework

Post by GlennW »

The new "Made in China" Phase II Spin Indexer with the unfinished sides and back on the base.

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The objective here is to square up the base and make it exactly 4" wide and centered under the spindle axis for easy setups as well as the ability to clamp it in the vise.

I first made sure that the base surface and the spindle axis are parallel, which they are!

Then measured the spindle diameter.

Set it up by supporting the spindle on the 2" side of precision 1-2-3 blocks and clamping the base to a ground knee.

Next was to calculate the desired height of the side facing up and scribe it so it can be rough machined in the mill. That would be the 2" block, plus one half the spindle diameter, plus the two inches needed to make the base 4" wide. Scribe it, flip it over, and scribe the other side. This is just the roughing setup.

A couple of views of the setup.

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Next the spindle is removed and the face checked for perpendicularity with the base, which it is.

The face is finished, but the back side isn't, so it gets set up on the surface grinder with the finished side down.

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And then ground parallel to the opposite face. One .006" roughing pass, and one .001" finish pass. I set it up on a bias to keep the heat down, but it's soft gray iron and grinds very freely.

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Next it will get set up on the mill and the sides rough machined.

That's it for play time tonight. Gotta go before my wife shoots me...
Glenn

Operating machines is perfectly safe......until you forget how dangerous it really is!
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coal miner
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Re: Spindex Rework

Post by coal miner »

Good one to follow . Have the same Phase ll type , but did not do the fine tuning as shown . More of a rough fix , than an accurate one . See some things I can go back and fix to nail down proper dimensions . Your pics and walk thru helps a guy understand the why's . Thanks , will look for ppg .2
The more I learn , The more I don't know !
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GlennW
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Re: Spindex Rework

Post by GlennW »

Clamped it in the vise and indicated the upper surface flat from side to side. Just a minor adjustment with a couple of taps with a screwdriver handle.

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Got out the vac and milled the sides back to my scribe lines, which were about .015" wide per side.

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Flipped it, squared it up, and milled a clamping area on the upper surface of the base parallel with the bottom surface using a corner radius end mill.

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Checked the clearance and bore. I set the bore gauge to the spindle diameter, so it seems it has about .0006" to .0009" clearance between the housing and the spindle. I say "about" as it has a few tenths taper from end to end. I guess a bit of heavy oil to lube it when assembled may help! The spindle has zero taper though.

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I am going to finish it by grinding the sides to the finished width just because I like grinding, but milling the sides to an accurate scribe line, as setup above, would be plenty good for one of these with that kind of clearance, which is actually pretty amazing for Chinese mass production.

That's it for tonight.
Glenn

Operating machines is perfectly safe......until you forget how dangerous it really is!
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GlennW
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Re: Spindex Rework

Post by GlennW »

Clamped it to a knee and adjusted it with a couple of taps with a screwdriver handle until the bore was parallel to the surface plate. That was done by checking it on both ends of the bore using a height gauge with a DTI attached. The bore was tapered by about .0003”, so I left one side .0001” lower than the other to compensate.

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Next it went to the grinder and a couple of roughing passes were made to get it close to the finished dimension.

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Then it went to the surface plate for a relative reading using the height gauge from the bore to the surface that was just ground. The measurement from the surface plate to the lower side of the bore, plus one half the bore diameter, plus two inches was what it needed to be. Gage blocks were used as a reference standard.

About .0012” to go.

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Done

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Next the housing was flipped and clamped to a smaller knee with the ground side down against the mag chuck. A clean up pass was done and the assembly was removed from the grinder and the width of the base was checked with a micrometer to ensure parallelism and get a dimension so I knew how much needed to be ground off.

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Back on the grinder and ground to the finish size.

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That’s it! A base with parallel sides, 4" wide, with the spindle axis centered over it.

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Another project that isn’t really about the Spindex, but more about getting to learn a little more, sharpen up on a few other skills, and get a little more grinding time.
Glenn

Operating machines is perfectly safe......until you forget how dangerous it really is!
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GlennW
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Re: Spindex Rework

Post by GlennW »

Well, upon inspection prior to use, the larger "precision ground" step angle block was a real POS, so it didn't escape the grinder.

The outer surfaces were parallel and pretty close to perfectly square, but the inside features were all over the place and far from parallel to the outer surfaces.

Sooo, it got tuned up!

When the grinders start running, nothing is safe...
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Glenn

Operating machines is perfectly safe......until you forget how dangerous it really is!
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coal miner
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Re: Spindex Rework

Post by coal miner »

Glen , you're sure giving me the "Jones " for a surface grinder . Ya , and I'm just a hobby guy , but that piece of equipment sure opens up some more areas of learning and exacting work . Don't know if I'm ready yet ?
That spin indexer has to be very accurate now . Thanks for showing the step by step so a guy can see the right way on the opps to get the desired results . I can only drool at some the work that you guys do .
The more I learn , The more I don't know !
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GlennW
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Re: Spindex Rework

Post by GlennW »

Thanks!

You're ready!

Too bad you're not closer, as I have one surface grinder that I hardly ever use. It's backwards from my others and I HATE it!
Glenn

Operating machines is perfectly safe......until you forget how dangerous it really is!
Richard_W
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Re: Spindex Rework

Post by Richard_W »

Now that you have fixed yours, have you seen this one with a tail stock?

http://www.ebay.com/itm/5C-Spin-Index-F ... 25692bd9df



Richard W.
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GlennW
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Re: Spindex Rework

Post by GlennW »

Oh, great, two things to fix! :shock:

Thanks!
Glenn

Operating machines is perfectly safe......until you forget how dangerous it really is!
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Harold_V
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Re: Spindex Rework

Post by Harold_V »

coal miner wrote:Glen , you're sure giving me the "Jones " for a surface grinder . Ya , and I'm just a hobby guy , but that piece of equipment sure opens up some more areas of learning .
I'll tell ya' coal miner---I spent about five years in the precision grinding department at Sperry. I loved the work. There's not much that's as satisfying as starting with a piece, often rough as a cob, and discolored from heat treat, and ending up with a piece of jewelry, for lack of better description. If I had to start over, working in the shop, I'd specialize in precision grinding. Nothing quite like it, in my opinion.

If you'd like a surface grinder, seize the opportunity when it arrives. Then keep your eyes open for a nice universal cylindrical with a drop down internal attachment. With those two machines you can turn out some pretty impressive work---things that look impossible right now.

Harold
Wise people talk because they have something to say. Fools talk because they have to say something.
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warmstrong1955
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Re: Spindex Rework

Post by warmstrong1955 »

Nice work!

I've got to do mine....but it'll be milled, not ground...which will be fine for the work I do with it...

Bill
Today's solutions are tomorrow's problems.
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coal miner
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Re: Spindex Rework

Post by coal miner »

warmstrong1955 wrote: I've got to do mine....but it'll be milled, not ground...which will be fine for the work I do with it...
Yep , me too .



Wife seys " whats a surface grinder ? " I said " new couch for our room ." She seys "OK"

She does indulge me . LOL

Research time now . I'm a complete noobie , other than web , U-tube and so on . All pts of interest wanted . Size , manual or not , no 3phase in shop (phase converter) , used , $$$$ new ??? Accessories for the machine appear to only need different grades of stones pertinent to material being ground and magnetic chuck . Not gonna happen overnite . Got to heal up from neurosurgy on lower back that was gonna be debilitating , but everything is good now . Won't ever be normal , but can stand at the machines now . Glen , got a son and dnl in Bradenton that might be persuaded to come North for a visit .
The more I learn , The more I don't know !
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