# .Finally Pulled the Trigger on a Dapra Biax 7EL Scraper



## Ulma Doctor

I'm totally stoked !!!!
I won an auction on the site that rimes with D-Bay for a beat up Biax 7EL.
luckily shipping is cheap too!!!
the price was right and it comes with a set of carbide scraper blades.
i'll be sure to post pictures when it arrives
i just had to tell everyone!!!!!!


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## chips&more

That’s odd, I got an e-mail saying it’s being shipped to my house?


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## astjp2

I have not been able to justify the bag's prices on them, really old machines and over the top for prices.  There is a newer model on there now for a grand without any attachments....


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## vettebob

You were bidding against me. You won fair and square Bob
 Ps maybe you'll do a loaner some time :winner:


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## Ulma Doctor

i'll tell you Bob, you don't know how close you came to getting the Biax.
it was a huge leap of faith for me, but i figured either i'd get it for a decent price or
someone else would get it for a slightly increased cost.
to be honest with you you could have had it at auction if your bid was about $20 more than i ended up paying for it.
i didn't think i'd really win, i drew the line at 450 + frt.
i have seen beat down units go for a lot more.:headscratch:
but, i'll sleep better when it lands and i can run it for the first timehew:


thanks for the comments and thanks for reading!
pictures upon arrival!!!!


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## Ulma Doctor

astjp2 said:


> I have not been able to justify the bag's prices on them, really old machines and over the top for prices.  There is a newer model on there now for a grand without any attachments....




I have a hard time paying Champagne prices for Coors' Light.
i do buy new things, but even then i don't like paying full price if i can help it.
On the flip side of the coin, i will spend my hard earned dollar on high quality equipment and tools that have proven track records. i will gamble a little on getting stuff if i want it bad enough.
heck- usually i get things that are broken, super cheap, and return them to function.
sometimes i take the goodie and keep it (most times).
 sometimes i will trade them or give them to worthy people as an act of Machinery Karmic Alignment:jester:


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## Ulma Doctor

chips&more said:


> That’s odd, I got an e-mail saying it’s being shipped to my house?



:roflmao:

Can i at least get a picture of the Biax when it arrives ? I'd hate to wonder if it was lost in the mail :jester:

 Maybe borrow it for a quick scrape job, about 10 minutes max????


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## vettebob

My max was $450 including shipping, You won by shipping


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## Ulma Doctor

vettebob said:


> My max was $450 including shipping, You won by shipping



too bad we didn't know a couple days ago that we were biddin' against each other
things might have been a lot different.:thinking:


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## benmychree

Congrats!  that is a great price if it is not TOO used; make sure you look at the brush wear and replace if they look like they need it.

VTY  John


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## Ulma Doctor

benmychree said:


> Congrats!  that is a great price if it is not TOO used; make sure you look at the brush wear and replace if they look like they need it.
> 
> VTY  John




Thank You, John!
i figure if it's got some life left , i'll have some fun.
if not, i'll at least learn why/how they tick, and not make the same mistake!!!!:jester:

thanks for the suggestion about checking the brushes,
i'll be sure to give it the once over, twice !!!

all the best,
mike)


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## RWL

Congratulations.  Post a photo or two when it arrives.  Remember that you can make your own carbide scraper blades if you have a torch with sufficient heat to do silver soldering.  No need to spend $ on factory made blades.  Your next task will be to make a sharpener.  Diamond embedded lapidary lapping plates are available on ebay for around $14 each.  You need to step down the speed on a home made grinder/lapper to around 300 rpm.  You can make a fixed rest with a 5º angle using wood.  The sharpener doesn't have to be fancy.  A green carborundum grinding wheel won't provide an adequate finish on the scraper blades; it is only useful for rough shaping of the radius on the carbide.  It's been a year since I took Rich King's scraping class in Pittston, PA around this time last year.


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## Ulma Doctor

RWL said:


> Congratulations.  Post a photo or two when it arrives.  Remember that you can make your own carbide scraper blades if you have a torch with sufficient heat to do silver soldering.  No need to spend $ on factory made blades.  Your next task will be to make a sharpener.  Diamond embedded lapidary lapping plates are available on ebay for around $14 each.  You need to step down the speed on a home made grinder/lapper to around 300 rpm.  You can make a fixed rest with a 5º angle using wood.  The sharpener doesn't have to be fancy.  A green carborundum grinding wheel won't provide an adequate finish on the scraper blades; it is only useful for rough shaping of the radius on the carbide.  It's been a year since I took Rich King's scraping class in Pittston, PA around this time last year.




Thanks RWL!!
Pictures will be posted upon arrival!!!!:ups:
i hadn't considered making a sharpener, until now!!!!!:thinking:
Great idea!!!!:rubbinghands:

It's been a year and a half since my last scraping class, i'm ready to get some scraping done!!!

thanks for the suggestions!!!
:man:


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## LEEQ

Nice find. I got a variable speed for myself (Biax).   I look forward to seeing your take on variable speed(biax). I saw the magic smoke let out of one of those plugged into an old gizmo. (variac maybe?) I have no idea what the exact diagnosis was Doc, but it was enough to convince me not to try to play electrician on one of these. I'll leave that to you guys that know what you are doing and read about it later.) I look forward to seeing your scraping also.


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## LEEQ

Bob put one of those discs on the outside of a grinding wheel on a grizzly low speed grinder. It doesn't turn quite as fast as the Glendo, but looks like it would do perfectly with little cash outlay, or work. I plan on shamelessly stealing the good ideas and making a rest to fit for setting sharpening angles. I believe the grinders are even further reduced in price in the current xmas flier.


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## Ulma Doctor

Thanks Leeq!!!

i have a spare DC motor and variable PWM controller that i'm considering for use as the powerplant.
i'll have to construct the gizmo but i think i could copy a couple ideas and produce a functional facsimile.
but thank you for the suggestion.
always good to hear from you!
mike)


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## LEEQ

Ulma Doctor said:


> Thanks Leeq!!!
> 
> i have a spare DC motor and variable PWM controller that i'm considering for use as the powerplant.
> i'll have to construct the gizmo but i think i could copy a couple ideas and produce a functional facsimile.
> but thank you for the suggestion.
> always good to hear from you!
> mike)



Would an old sewing machine provide good parts for that type of sharpener?   In my first post I was talking biaxes and their speed control) I'm afraid I wasn't too clear there.


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## Ulma Doctor

i was talking in reference to a 1/2 hp dc motor that i could use as the sharpener motor
sorry for the confusion, i should have added a few words and separated posts!!!
:footinmouth:


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## LEEQ

Sometimes what I type doesn't look like it sounds in my head:rofl:  Would a sewing machine motor have enough juice to sharpen biax bits? I ask because I think I have a donor.


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## Ulma Doctor

LEEQ said:


> Sometimes what I type doesn't look like it sounds in my head:rofl:  Would a sewing machine motor have enough juice to sharpen biax bits? I ask because I think I have a donor.




i'm not sure,:thinking:
 there just might be enough juice there for powering a diamond wheel.

thank you very much for the offer,  :thumbsup2:
but, i got motors and controls coming out of my ears


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## LEEQ

Looking forward to your sharpener build. I would like to see your take on making a single speed biax variable, too. Do you plan to vary the speed in your biax?


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## Ulma Doctor

I hadn't thought of varying the speed of the Biax, but it would be an interesting idea to play with.
a router controller could accomplish the same thing i suppose:thinking:

the sharpener seems like it would be a fun project !!!

thanks Leeq!!!!
mike)


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## astjp2

Look at this post for a diamond lap, I have about 120 invested along with about 3 hours...Tim

http://www.hobby-machinist.com/showthread.php/17741-What-tools-to-buy?p=163005&viewfull=1#post163005


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## Ulma Doctor

Nice Work Tim!!!!

:man:

WOW!!!
very professional looking.
thank you very much for the great ideas!!!!
mike)


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## astjp2

Look at the whole posting, it shows some of my other goodies.  I  got the gear motor from ebay for like 59, the diamond lap was 60ish and I had to buy a molex connector and I am working on mounting it on a box with the wiring inside.  

Here you go... http://www.ebay.com/itm/GEAR-MOTOR-...ultDomain_0&hash=item5415359cc7#ht_322wt_1153


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## astjp2

That link is only an example of a motor, you want around 6-800 rpm, the one I linked to was 180


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## Ulma Doctor

Thank you astjp2!
i have a DC motor and PWM controller.
i'm thinking the variable speed would be a nice feature )


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## vettebob

Did your biax come in yet. It looked like it may have been modified already in the eBay pic. Look at the picture showing the handle. There appears to be a thumbwheel sticking up.  Bob


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## Ulma Doctor

:ups:

the Biax came in today!!!!!!

i'll open the box and take pictures after lunch!!!!

Drum Roll Please.....!!!!!






I plugged her in and she sings like an angel !!!! She came with 7 Carbide scraping tips!!!!
i dropped a few drops of oil on the reciprocating mechanism and flicked the switch.
The unit is not variable speed, the switch in the handle is a simple on off.
there is a strange hole in the end of the drive motor cap near the plug that is puzzling me:thinking:...
the hand strap is also missing.
but otherwise it should be a serviceable tool for a while.
i'll check out the carbon brushes after dinner,
So far i'm very pleased.
i'll need some other supplies before i can dive right into scraping, but soon the scrapin' will start again!!!!!

thanks guys for reading and the suggestions, 

keep em coming, i'm all ears and smiles:biggrin:
mike)


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## vettebob

Congrats. Were You one of Richards prior students as well? Happy machine rebuilding.  Bob


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## Ulma Doctor

Quote["Congrats. Were You one of Richards prior students as well? Happy machine rebuilding. Bob] Quote

Yes Sir, i was one of "the chosen ones" like you :rofl:
about a year and a half ago, i took the class. 
The absolute best money i have ever spent in my life.
not cheap but well worth it.
i'd consider a week course to be the best week of my life, seriously!!!
i had a really good experience.
i'll be honest i was not as good with hand scraping as i was with one of Richard's Biax's
once i got hold of that thing, i easily got the hang of what the machine was doing.
i started to wield the biax like an extension of myself , then the class ended and the joy of scraping subsided.
i searched, not daily, but weekly most assured. i have seen them come and go.
i even almost pushed the go button 6 months ago for an even scarier proposition, but got into it with the seller over a $15 lower offer bid. i offered to pay full boat for shipping but wanted a discount for an unknown running condition tool with a cut cord and no carbide to boot!
lucky that happened, for me anyway.
it eventually lead me to today,
 Hopefully others will share the taste of sweet nectar that is BIAX!!! :jester:


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## benmychree

Ulma Doctor said:


> Thank you astjp2!
> i have a DC motor and PWM controller.
> i'm thinking the variable speed would be a nice feature )



The first Biax I had was a constant speed model, and I used it with an autotransformer for speed control; this worked fine, without reservation, but later on, I was given a variable speed model that a deceased friend had bought, along with the flaker, so I sold the old one to one of my classmates at Richard's class in Oakland Ca.


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## middle.road

<resurrecting old thread>
Did you ever get it setup for variable speed Doc?

(I have got to quit clicking on posts down in the 'Similar Threads' section...)


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## 4GSR

Don't feel bad, I left a "like" on one of the earlier post before I realized this thread is almost a year old!


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## Uglydog

You are going to like the powerscraper!
My right shoulder won't tolerate hand scraping very long. The powerscraper has made all the differnce.
Note: I'm still very much a novice, and still believe that we need to pay our dues with the hand tools.
Congrats on the Biax!!

Daryl
MN


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## Joe in Oz

Congratulations!
The easiest sharpener to build is: take any old single phase motor from 1/4 HP up. 4 pole (1440/1700rpm depending where you live) is preferable. Slower is of little advantage but faster is a nuisance. Find a cast iron disk you can fit to the shaft. I used an old solid CI pulley and machined off the partially broken V-belt rim. Fit it up on the shaft as accurately and solidly as possible. If you have a large enough lathe, put the ENTIRE motor including the disk between centres and true up the CI disk perfectly - on all surfaces, so you get as little as possible vibration from any imbalance. The motor body will of course not spin because of the bearings in it. Just stop it spinning accidentally by tying it up.
You then put a small sealed ball bearing on a short handle of some sort to roll-embed diamond paste on the face of the CI disk.
The best size diamond paste/grease is around 10 micron. Just smear a small amount on the CI plate and spread it with your fingers.
Then start the motor and push the ball bearing on the handle aganst the spinning disk with paste, l;etting it spin on its circumference. That pushes the grit into the CI, making it a sort of lap for tungsten carbide.
A 5 deg (sloping up topward the wheel) tool rest completes the set-up. Put the toolrest on the side of the disk which moves UP (opposite normal grinder operations).
You may be surprised how fast it sharpens the scraper bits, but I wouldn't try to reshape the radius much, for example. But you can certainly put the two angles on a square ground end of a new scraper with it easily.
You will feel when the embedded diamonds have lost their cutting edges. You then just replace it with your bearing tool.
I'm still on my first 5ml syringe of the cheap diamond paste after a lot of scraping and sharpening over several years now.
Cheers,
Joe


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## Ulma Doctor

middle.road said:


> <resurrecting old thread>
> Did you ever get it setup for variable speed Doc?
> 
> (I have got to quit clicking on posts down in the 'Similar Threads' section...)



Yes, i used a router speed control box from HF as a test for a 6 hour day of scraping- on and off for blueing up and right back to it.
it worked beautifully, the biax accepted the router speed control like it was meant to be there.
i didn't turn the speed below 50% for fear of overheating due to low fan speed,
the motor didn't run hot at all at 50% speed


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