- Joined
- Nov 28, 2013
- Messages
- 197
I bought the MB vise-clamps referred to in another post here and am much impressed by them - just the thing for grabbing work pieces like those I use.
But there was a problem, with the two clamps secured to the table, a 5/8 inch thick workpiece held by the clamps wouldn't clear the bottom of the Z axis way which meant I couldn't do what I'd had in mind. But wait!!
With the Sherline, I could add a 2 inch spacer to the support column. I did this and by also using a Beall spindle I was able to cut the metal I intended. It's possible that I took too enthusiastic a cut into the 6061 - .250 2/flute bit .040 depth and 5 ipm feed at 2500 rpm, but it did seem to work ok.
After a while it got noiser and I realized that the setup had come unstuck.
I concluded that I should have better tightened the two 11/16 nuts which secure the head radially and in pitch. I'd tightened them by hand using a box wrench with an 11 inch handle. I can vaguely remember my boss 60 years ago tightening similar bolts on the old Brown and Sharpe first strong arm and then by whacking the wrench with a bronze hammer a few times until the wrench wouldn't turn any more.
What I'd done on the Sherline was to tighten as far as I could and then hit the hand holding the wrench with the other hand to give a bit more torque.
So how do you get these nuts tight, and do I really need to worry about over-tightening them??
But there was a problem, with the two clamps secured to the table, a 5/8 inch thick workpiece held by the clamps wouldn't clear the bottom of the Z axis way which meant I couldn't do what I'd had in mind. But wait!!
With the Sherline, I could add a 2 inch spacer to the support column. I did this and by also using a Beall spindle I was able to cut the metal I intended. It's possible that I took too enthusiastic a cut into the 6061 - .250 2/flute bit .040 depth and 5 ipm feed at 2500 rpm, but it did seem to work ok.
After a while it got noiser and I realized that the setup had come unstuck.
I concluded that I should have better tightened the two 11/16 nuts which secure the head radially and in pitch. I'd tightened them by hand using a box wrench with an 11 inch handle. I can vaguely remember my boss 60 years ago tightening similar bolts on the old Brown and Sharpe first strong arm and then by whacking the wrench with a bronze hammer a few times until the wrench wouldn't turn any more.
What I'd done on the Sherline was to tighten as far as I could and then hit the hand holding the wrench with the other hand to give a bit more torque.
So how do you get these nuts tight, and do I really need to worry about over-tightening them??
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