Moore #1 Jig Grinder

I ran manual and CNC Moore jig grinders for 3 years back in the 80's (when CNC machines used punched tape!). We had 60 of those screamers in one room. There's a lot you can use them for but operating one isn't cheap by a long shot. Even if you never need to repair anything, the air consumption of the 40k, 60k and 100k rpm heads requires a monster compressor to keep them up to speed. Notice that the one in the photo doesn't have the turbine driven spindle in it either, that'll set you back a serious chunk of change. As a measuring instrument it would be about as accurate as a CMM but 1000 times slower.

Oh, in the early 80's I was running No.3's. Hard telling how old a No. 1 is.
 
Wow that looks like a very clean machine......however based on Holescreek feedback it looks like some downsides too. Air powered? never seen one of those!
I am certain my compressor could not keep up with it.
Thanks for the education!
-brino
 
Yes the actual grinding head is an air turbine which is mounted to a spindle driven by an electric motor in the back. The plate the turbine is mounted on moves in and out manually for larger/smaller holes via an allen wrench for gross movement and the little graduated dial on top of the head for fine movement. While all that is spinning the head also can move up and down via air valves to whatever stroke you want it to take. It's quite an impressive machine. Several of ours were used for "jig milling" in which we used single flute carbide cutters to cut features into fully hardened A2 steel with cutting depths of no more than .005" at a time. A buddy who is also an ex-jig grinder is always trying to talk me into buying one so he can come play on it.

If you can ever find a copy, Moore literally wrote the book on precision grinding and their machines are capable of holding tolerances in the millionths of an inch realm. Given the precision involved even small replacement parts you might need can run into thousands of dollars depending on what it is (providing they're still available on a machine this old).

 
Here is another photo off Cl. Is this where the turbine resides??

I wondered what the leather seal was all about - a seal perhaps. I wonder if they striped off the critical components to sell seperately, and are now trying to unload the poor old carcass?

Nice looking machine though-- I was ready to put it on the top of Christmas wish list! Oh well, looks like I will be sticking to a nice ( small) shell mill wish...

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Nice machines....ran one for some years when I was a special machine builder. That and a moore jig bore. ran em til started assembling the machines. But it does take a lot of air to run those.
 
What a beautiful thing, I would want it just to dress up the shop, look at ..............almost better than photos of pretty women.

Tim
 
The book is "Foundations of Mechanical Accuracy" by Wayne Moore. It is an incredibly fascinating book showing the history of increasing accuracy both from scientific and from practical aspects. I was able to download the book from the internet, but I cannot seem to find the free download now. It is $150 from Moore tools. It is well worth finding and reading a copy. After you read it you will never be able to hear a machinist say "perfect" when they measure a part without biting your tongue. T'aint no such thing...

Edit: The book also shows how those machines, and others, were designed and built. It also talks at length about accuracy standards, their evolution, and how they were made and stored.
 
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What does need have to do with buying tools? Go get that beauty for your shop. You know you want it.
 
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