Woodruff keyseat needed.......No cutter.

[Suzuki4evr]

I have a bit of a sticky situation. I need to make a woodruff keyseat,but I do not have a 16.5×4 cutter. Now,is it possible to make a keyway with say a ball nose cutter and the radius function of the DRO or am I dreaming. Help needed.

Thank you
Michael.

 

[Suzuki4evr]

Just to give a better idea,here is some measurement. I work in metric,but set the digital caliper to imperial just to make it easier for our imperial friends.

Total length of shaft.

Length of key slot.

Width of key. (4mm)

Estemate depthe of keyway.


I want to do the job right, but I don't have a cutter and the stuff is sooooooooo expensive here in SA, but the customer wants me to make a plan, but does not wat to cover the cost of the cutter,but neither do I cause I don't know when I will use it again. The cutter costs more than the job is worth,soooo O must make a plan. If I can get the key to kinda fit,the customer will be happy with that. So any advise will be welcomed.

 

[benmychree]

You do not really state the size of the key, just approximations; is it metric or is it inch sized? Bear in mind that the length of the key is a bit longer than the keyseat itself, for the width I see both .160 and .187", which is it? For length, I see .589, which is perhaps not either metric or inch, but if .187" is the width, the length may be 5/8" (.625") What is the national origin of the part?

 

[Suzuki4evr]

The customer must still supply the key,but I know it must be 4mm. The 0.187" is the depth as is indicated above the picture and the 0.160" is the width of the slot as showed in the pic. I actually did say that I work in metric,but sorry for all the confusion benmychree. The 0.589" (14.96mm) about the length of the slot so I think the key should be around 16mm (0.629") in length. Once again sorry for the confusion. I am not sure about where the pump was made in wich the shaft works,but everything measures in metric. It is a hydraulic pump for a fertilizer spreader. Hope this helps.

 

[benmychree]

Yes, that does clear things up, looks like you need to make it clear to the customer that if he wants the job completed, that he is going to have to pay. I was in the machine shop business for about 35 years until I retired, and had little patience for folks like that; but you nor I need to indulge their penchant for stinginess. A part that is probably unavailable otherwise should not be something to be negotiated price wise. So far as other methods to create the keyway, I see none. If it were my job, I'd take another cutter, such as a 5/8 X 3/16, and regrind it in diameter and width, a relatively easy task if one is equipped with grinding equipment.

 

[machPete99]

For cheap you could mill a slot with a regular end mill and stick a piece of keystock in there.

 

[ErichKeane]

Do you have a fly-cutter small enough to make the dimension? Just grind a tool bit to cut the side like that (perhaps do in a couple of steps).

You could also just take a cheap/chipped 16.5mm endmill and grind it into a keyseat cutter easily enough. I did that at one point with an endmill that I broke some of the tips off of.

 

[pdentrem]

Is there any reason to not simply mill a flat slot and use a standard key? The slot only needs to be as long as the key, thus it is captured like the woodruff would be.
Pierre
I see that this was already suggested.

 

[Nutfarmer]

To expound on what Erick said you can take a small boring bar for the lathe hand grind it to the correct width and adjust the dia . by moving the cutter in or out. It's just a piece of round stock drilled crossway with a set screw in the end to hold the tool bit. From a business point of view i agree with John York.

 

[derf]

Just thinkin' out loud here......I don't know how much torque in on that shaft, but being as it is tapered, that should take the majority of the load. I'd just drill a hole and put a pin in it.