Finger Brake: Useful Tool or Waste of Money?

[spro]

You guys continue to feed Steve G with tips. He's razzing you, has welders and used them. Epoxy may be used as a "bed" in between the imperfect surfaces of welded angle but he isn't gluing stuff together.

[SteveHGraham]

Actually, I'm putting the finger brake together with Elmer's. You just have to make sure the surfaces are really clean.

[whateg0]

You guys continue to feed Steve G with tips. He's razzing you, has welders and used them. Epoxy may be used as a "bed" in between the imperfect surfaces of welded angle but he isn't gluing stuff together.

So, that's why it read like a "I'm building a trailer to move my excavator with my Weldpak 100, what settings should I use?" post? Meanie!

Dave

[SteveHGraham]

The kit arrived today. Must weigh 40 pounds. I got the guide rods aligned in the lower jaw, and then I quit. I took my time. I'm not going to bubba this thing up if I can help it.

I'm glad I have machining experience. I have seen other people complain about the difficulty of getting this kit put together, but because of the little things I've learned from machining, I had the tools and the know-how to get the rods aligned very closely.

The metal comes very filthy. I didn't clean it off because I want it oily to prevent rust while I assemble it.

I have some MIG work in my future. I plan to practice on scrap first.

[spro]

This all sounds good SG. You went for it and doing it. Not entirely sure why but one thing I know.. You're going to give information back to others thinking about it.

[SteveHGraham]

This project makes me think I need an anvil. My workbench is 2x4's on top of a 2x6 frame on 4x4 legs. You would think it would be pretty stable. I had to beat this project with a hammer in order to adjust it after pressing the guide rods in, and my bench bounced pretty badly.

I'm about to weld tabs on a piece of 4x4 1018 and bolt it to a stump. It will give me something solid to beat on while I consider fancier options with harder surfaces.

I'm also thinking a new vise is in order. My vise opens to 5.25", and this project took up nearly all of it. Yost's super-strong Chinese vises are looking pretty good right now.

[warmstrong1955]

You need to build something like this:

It's on wheels....just your style!

[SteveHGraham]

Maybe when I'm sure I'm situated permanently. Right now I'm thinking about wood.

[warmstrong1955]

Putting a piece of 1/2” or thicker plate on the top of a wood framed bench does wonders.
Doesn’t have to cover a lot of table top either.

[SteveHGraham]

Never thought of that. Thanks.

[whateg0]

I really think that stuff like this isn't meant to be assembled by machinists, or even those of us who pretend to be machinists, like me. I noticed that the channel appears to be bent. So, I'd guess that it is neither flat on the web or straight end to end. I'd also guess that no matter how straight and square you have everything, in the end it'll move when you weld it.

I would have put whatever needed adjusting in the hydraulic press. I find it's much easier to get predictable results from the slow and steady and controlled application of force than by the BFH.

Dave

[SteveHGraham]

You can't really adjust the guide rods with a hydraulic press. Not without some kind of monstrous fixture bigger than the part. The rawhide hammer worked fine. I can adjust the rods more minutely than makes any sense, given the lack of precision of the parts. I got it within 10 thousandths, and after that, the miniscule preexisting bends in the rods made it impossible to do better. The tolerance is probably almost 100 thousandths.

I have watched people put this thing together on the web, and it does warp upward when the bottom is welded together. I'm thinking of putting it in the press, putting a shim under the center, and bowing the ends downward slightly. Then I'll weld it while it's in the press. When I take it out, it should flex into a shape which is more straight than it would have been had I not used the press.

This is just my desperate genius idea, so feel free to tell me why it won't work.

This would not be a hard thing for a machinist to make from scratch, except for the hardened bits. The problem is the lack of drawings.

I'm wondering if people are putting too much weld on this tool. The guide rods go into holes, and you have to weld the bottoms of the rods to the insides of the holes. These rods are never going to be under any real stress, so it seems to me that there is no point in adding a ton of weld in the holes. A piece of angle iron forms the bottom die, and you weld it to the part that holds the guide rods. People are putting 20" of weld on each side of the bottom die, guaranteeing warpage. If the bottom corner of the die is in contact with the bottom plate, you would think it would provide support for the welds.

Jody from Welding Tips and Tricks assembled a similar model, and his warped. He said he "massaged" it later with heat. I don't have acetylene. I can't heat that thing up. Maybe it's possible to use the press to straighten it.

The inside of the bottom die has a big inner radius, and I'm not crazy about it. I think it will limit the sharpness of bends. I'm wondering if I should wait for the arrival of my mill so I can remove a little metal. The manufacturer's solution is to put smaller angle irons on top of the big one. Maybe that's best.

They also sell another part which tightens the radius. Big surprise!

This appears to be a highly useful product, so I will post the assembly instructions in case anyone else wants them. Oops...the system won't let me post it. Too big. It's on the Swag website.

https://swagoffroad.3dcartstores.com/as ... CTIONS.pdf