Paint? Color?

Opinions wanted. I’m getting ready to refurb the labels and data plates. The Atlas roundel that I’m using is made of brass. The orginal from the head cover is smaller and it isn’t brass, its some sort of tin or similar material so it won’t polish up Like the brass.

The larger brass one is the same one on the change gear cover.

I like the polished brass look, but I’m trying to decide on what color to paint the “painted” parts of the medallion. For example:

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Obviously, red is an option. I know its the Atlas color, but sonehow it just doesn’t seem to go quite right with the metallic blue.

So any opinions on what color to add to it where the red orginally was?

Black? Blue? Original red? Purple? Pink? Same color as the lathe?
 
I would go original color, but I do not know what the shade of red that is... If not red, then I would suggest black... Not sure I would do the same color as the lathe because it would disappear...

But back to the initial answer... lol... paint it the color you like!
 
Black, red or a very dark blue. Or any other color you like!
 
Figured I might as well start paint matching accessories. Steady rest first:

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Still waiting for the paint to harden fully before reinstalling the brass fingers and bolts.

I think the milling attachment is going to be next after I paint the solid plinth mount for the qctp…
 
This looks like a museum piece. Really beautiful. The paint job accents the shapes of the lathe. Well done!
 
This looks like a museum piece. Really beautiful. The paint job accents the shapes of the lathe. Well done!
Thanks, but it's just your average TH42 with polished up shiny bits and wearing a party dress.

Not quite sure what to do with the raw Zamak pulleys though. Probably just give them a light pass with a nylon or wire brush once it's up and running again. Mostly just to take the dirt and discoloration off them. They've lasted this long, so I don't want to damage them or give corrosion enough of a foothold to break down the Zamak....
 
The Zamak degrades internally so not much one can do based on the literature. Polish and a clear coat is about it.
Pierre
 
well, that sucked!

I finished wiring the lathe back up and gave it a bit of a go.

Unbeknownst to me, the potentiometer on the speed control had somehow failed and gone to a dead short.

So when I flicked the power on, the lathe immediately went to full speed and started smoking! The potentiometer was set to "0" speed, so it took me completely off guard when everything went nuts.

Slammed the power off lickity split and there must have been enough power in a capacitor somewhere to engage the dynamic braking.

This caused the chuck to spin on the spindle thread and it threaded itself right off!

Dropped down and whacked the ways (fortunately, on the inside where it doesn't effect anything) and then it literally LAUNCHED itself into the air, directly at my head!

Luckily, even though I'm older and bodily broken, my reflexes are still quick enough that I was able to deke my head sideways as I simultaneously brought my hands up and caught the spinning chuck in mid air!

Was probably 1 sec or less from power on to standing there with the chuck in my hands. It happened that quick, so quick I actually don’t even remember any of the details of what happened. I just recall the broad strokes of the event. I know it happened, I know the chuck came at me and I know I was standing there with a chuck in my hands. The rest was/is pretty blurry…

Well, I needed a change of shorts and a good long sit on the couch with a coffee after that. Not to mention, I had to wait for the stinging in my hand to die down after getting smacked with a lathe chuck doing somewhere around 1500 rpm and hell bent on busting a hole through the opposite wall of the garage.....

Once I was back to a "not shaking" state, I took the speed control apart again. Nothing wrong, no wires chaffed, everything was numbered and connected correctly. But the pot smelled just like burn electronics.

So I pulled it out and took it apart. yep, somehow it had developed a short and killed itself. the control board must have seen that as a full speed command and off it went.

So yeah, the lathe is now laid up until I can get some 5k single turn carbon film 1w potentiometers.




Ugh. One step forward, two steps back....
 
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