# Deckel FP1 dividing head and punch milling accesories



## Friendly non murdering Sword (Apr 4, 2021)

I recently bought a new toy for my Deckel FP1 milling machine...

It is a dividing head with lots of accesories like an almost complete set of punch milling attachments. The FP1 dividing head is well thought out in my opinion and with all the availabe accesories (if you can still find them) quite versatile. The divding head can be tilted in both directions and it fits the usual Deckel collets.






It also came with a Zweibackenfutter (self-centering two jaw vise), but it lacks a three our four jaw chuck and the faceplate, I'm already on the lookout for those.




The most interesting accesories I got with it is imho the punch milling attachment. I have no idea when I will ever use it, but if that special day comes and there is no other way to do a milling operation, I will be the most happy person.  (the crosshair on the setting glass might look out of tram, but it can be set with the setting screws underneath)







Punch milling on manual mills is not a thing anymore since the uprise of CNC mills, but if anyone was wondering how these tools would have been used back in the day, here are some excerpts from the manual (dating back to the 1950s):





(translated with deepL
_Dividing head FVT 
The dividing head FVT (Fig. 15) serves as a clamping and round dividing device for indirect and direct dividing, as well as for any angular divisions according to degrees for the production of milling and dividing work of all kinds. The sturdy, carefully designed construction and the precise design, which is carefully monitored with modern testing equipment, enable high dividing accuracy for both indirect and direct dividing. The dividing accuracy in both cases is +- 90 arc seconds. On special order also 45 arc seconds. The final inspection is carried out with the optical inspection device from Carl Zeiss. In the case of indirect dividing, the dividing head spindle is rotated by the dividing crank over the swivelled-in worm and the worm wheel by the desired angular pitch. With the aid of 3 perforated discs, graduations of up to 1/1080 can be performed according to a graduation table. In the case of direct graduation, after disengagement of the worm, the dividing head spindle is engaged manually to the desired angular graduation by means of a twelve-grooved graduated disk fixed to the spindle. In the case of any angular graduation, the angle is set according to the degree graduation applied to the engagement graduated disk. The dividing head spindle is clamped after adjustment, which can also be done with the other dividing methods to maintain the accuracy of the worm wheel and detent dividing plate. _

Setup of the punch milling attachment:


_Punch milling unit. Setting of radius centers on the sliding chuck - Centering needle 

The sliding chuck of the punch milling unit, which is clamped on the dividing head, makes it possible - in conjunction with the various setting and measuring devices - to mill exact circular arc profiles. By turning and shifting the clamping flange, the center of the circular arc to be milled can be set exactly to the dividing head spindle axis. The lower part A, which can be clamped on the dividing head spindle, contains the eccentric clamping E and the fine adjustment screw F for the slide B. On this lies the rotary flange C optionally suitable for holding a three-jaw chuck or a clamping plate for direct attachment of cutting punches (Fig. 1). The displacement range is 45 mm. On one workpiece, all radii whose centers lie within a circle of 90 mm can be milled in one clamping. In this case, all radii up to 50 mm are set with the setting glass, especially if the center points lie outside the punch. Radii larger than 50 mm can only be set with the center point drilled in Fig. 1 using the centering needle. A center point lying outside the axis of rotation of the dividing head (Figs. 2 and 3) is set as follows : The center point 1 is brought to the center of the longitudinal axis by turning the flange C and set by moving the slider B above the dividing head axis. The fine adjustment is made after clamping the screw R. Centering needle The centering needle 1 (Fig. 4), which is to be accommodated in the dividing head counterholder block 2, is used for the exact adjustment of the drilled radius center 3 to the rotary axis of the dividing head. The slide of the slide chuck described above is adjusted while simultaneously turning the clamping flange until the centering needle, the lower tip of which is seated in the drilled radius center, no longer deflects. The observation of the two upper needle tips is facilitated by a 20-fold transmission. If, for example, the lower needle tip is 0.02 mm outside the center of rotation, the high gear ratio at the upper needle tip results in a total deflection of 0.8 mm.  0.01 mm coverage error =0.2 mm needle deflection 





Setting glass: The setting glass makes it possible to find a radius center point outside the punch material, the position of which is then also determined by scribing rather than by drilling. This setting device is of special value due to its clear and simple handling, especially for the preparation of the punch according to hand patterns, gauges or impressions. As can be seen from the adjacent illustration, the setting glass is also placed on the dividing head counterholder and moved downward in the guide of the counterholder until it rests on the stamp surface. The glass pane has a crosshair whose center is precisely adjusted to the dividing head axis. Half circles are etched around this crosshair at 0.2 mm intervals on one half and at 0.5 mm intervals on the other half. The punch clamped in the punch milling device is now rotated or adjusted, as already mentioned, until the radius of the hand pattern or crack to be milled coincides with the corresponding circular line of the glass sheet and thus also exactly in the dividing head axis. 



Measuring device. The requirement for the greatest possible accuracy necessitates a measuring device which allows the radius sections milled or to be milled to be continuously remeasured during the actual milling process. 
The above illustration shows the measuring process when remeasuring an inner radius section using a precision slide gauge with 0.02 mm readability. The slider of this gauge is rotatably mounted in the counterholder block, and the rotation and zero point is again located exactly in the dividing head axis. 
The adjacent illustration shows the use of this measuring device when rechecking an outer radius section. _


And here are some examples from the very same manual. The punch- and die makers from back in the day who were able to make these precision punches on manual machines must have been the grandmasters of their trade and I really enjoy these moments of travelling back in time.







I hope some people find these old tools and pictures interesing and if wanted, I can post some more threads on oldschool but cool Deckel tooling.

Happy easter from Germany, -Marco


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## markba633csi (Apr 4, 2021)

You are fortunate to be able to obtain Deckel equipment- very fine milling machines
-Mark


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## redbike (Jul 22, 2021)

Can anyone tell me the gear ratio that these dividing heads have. I am trying to work out how to cut a 23 tooth gear for a shaft driven Bicycle. I love my Deckal by the way


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## Friendly non murdering Sword (Jul 23, 2021)

redbike said:


> Can anyone tell me the gear ratio that these dividing heads have. I am trying to work out how to cut a 23 tooth gear for a shaft driven Bicycle. I love my Deckal by the way



The Deckel dividing head has a 1/40 gear ratio. Here is a .pdf file with most possible divisions, but it's in german.
You are looking for _Anzahl der Teile_ = number of divisions = 23.
_Volle_ = number of whole rotations of crank-handle = 1
_Umdrehung der Kurbel in Bruchteilen_ = Turns of the crank-handle in fractions = 34/46

So to cut that 23 tooth gear you need a 46-hole plate and you need to crank the handle one whole rotation and 34 holes on the 46-hole plate for each cut.


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## hman (Jul 23, 2021)

Ausgezeichnet!


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## pitton (Apr 23, 2022)

Hi everyone. I am  a newbie of this forum and I would appreciate to knowing if anyone had experience with a stuck main shaft of Deckel dividing head : I recently bought a dividing head which has the main shaft blocked, probably by old (polymerized?)grease or rust. If somebody had experience in disassembly of the head, I would appreciate any suggestion or photos of the parts of the dividing head after disassembly and/or a detail section drawing of the head, this would help me a lot in understanding how I could try to unlock the main spindle shaft.
Thanks in advance,


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## Friendly non murdering Sword (Apr 24, 2022)

pitton said:


> Hi everyone. I am  a newbie of this forum and I would appreciate to knowing if anyone had experience with a stuck main shaft of Deckel dividing head : I recently bought a dividing head which has the main shaft blocked, probably by old (polymerized?)grease or rust. If somebody had experience in disassembly of the head, I would appreciate any suggestion or photos of the parts of the dividing head after disassembly and/or a detail section drawing of the head, this would help me a lot in understanding how I could try to unlock the main spindle shaft.
> Thanks in advance,


Before you pull it apart... Did you loosen all locking mechanisms?

-There is the locking pin for direct dividing, did you loosen that? (In the picture it is in the locked position)




-Did you loosen the spindle locking lever?
-If you put the worm gear for indirect dividing in the dis-engaged position, can you rotate the spindle by hand or is it still locked?

I pulled my dividing head apart completely, too. Unfortunately this was one year ago and I didn't take any pictures, so I can't describe in detail how to do it, anymore. You have to remove the worm drive, first if I recall correctly. Then remove the spindle nut and you should be able to pull the spindle out. I recall that disassembly was completely self explanatory and quite simple, so just give it a try I would guess. Maybe this also helps:




If you have further questions on the dividing head or are stuck during disassembly, you can reply here and I'll see if I can help you out.


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## Brento (Apr 24, 2022)

hman said:


> Ausgezeichnet!


Dont you swear at me!!


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## hman (Apr 24, 2022)

That's not swearing.  It's German for "Outstanding!"


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## pitton (May 25, 2022)

Friendly non murdering Sword said:


> Before you pull it apart... Did you loosen all locking mechanisms?
> 
> -There is the locking pin for direct dividing, did you loosen that? (In the picture it is in the locked position)
> 
> ...


Thanks again for your kindness. I am continuing with WD40, to see if I can somehow remove old rust and grease, The angegement pin shown in your photo is disengaged, I succeeded to remove also the back gear and the spacer which covers the thrust bearing in the back of the spindle


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## pitton (May 25, 2022)

I would appreciate your opinion regarding a doubt I have : can be that the locking clamp of the spindle is clogged and therefore it is not releasing the main spindle shaft ? this locking device is locaded just in the back of the front mandrel and is normally securd in position by the locking screw, I suppose this screw is closing two half circular arms which lock the spindle shaft in position. Do you remember how these arms are done and how they engage the main spindle shaft ? I wonder if they are perhaps blocked in a sort of groove realised in the shaft, which perhaps is full of dirt.
I am thinking to heat the body of the dividing head, to see if I can have a small movement due to thermal expansion of the pieces. Do you think could be a viable trial ?

Thanks again,

Mauro


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## Dabbler (May 25, 2022)

@pitton When it is really bad, we submurge the entier unit in kerosene or diesle fuel, and several times a day, give it a light rap or 2 with a plastic hammer.  The vibrations help with the penetration, and the petroleum will seep far deeper into the unit.  Of course you have to keep it covered, and away from sources of ignition.


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## Friendly non murdering Sword (May 25, 2022)

pitton said:


> I would appreciate your opinion regarding a doubt I have : can be that the locking clamp of the spindle is clogged and therefore it is not releasing the main spindle shaft ? this locking device is locaded just in the back of the front mandrel and is normally securd in position by the locking screw, I suppose this screw is closing two half circular arms which lock the spindle shaft in position. Do you remember how these arms are done and how they engage the main spindle shaft ? I wonder if they are perhaps blocked in a sort of groove realised in the shaft, which perhaps is full of dirt.
> I am thinking to heat the body of the dividing head, to see if I can have a small movement due to thermal expansion of the pieces. Do you think could be a viable trial ?
> 
> Thanks again,
> ...


Unfortunately I can't remember how these parts looked during disassembly.

I unscrewed the handle for the locking mechanism right now and tried to pull the locking mechanism out by hand (while the spindle is still assembled, of course), but I couldn't. So I also believe the mechanism is made out of two half-circular parts.

The disassembly of the spindle should be possible without removing the locking mechanism first.

So lets go one step back... when you engage the worm wheel, can you rotate the spindle with the crank handle? When you disengage the worm wheel, can you rotate the spindle by hand, grabbing it i.e. at the spindle threads or is it not moving?

Do you maybe have some pictures of your partly disassembled dividing head?


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## pitton (May 26, 2022)

Dabbler said:


> @pitton When it is really bad, we submurge the entier unit in kerosene or diesle fuel, and several times a day, give it a light rap or 2 with a plastic hammer.  The vibrations help with the penetration, and the petroleum will seep far deeper into the unit.  Of course you have to keep it covered, and away from sources of ignition.


Dear Dabbler, many thanks for your advice. The first attempt I did was to keep the dividing head completely immersed in the diesel fuel, but without hammering the body. I left it in the diesel fuel for about 15 days, but with no significant improvement.
I will try again, hammering the unit, to facilitate the penetration of the diesel fuel. cross fingers !

Many thanks,


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