- Joined
- Sep 29, 2017
- Messages
- 2,288
The first time I saw a riser block on YouTube, I thought now that is what I need for my knee mill seeing that I needed the space before on certain jobs and ran into a space problem.
So I measured my mill z-axis dovetail length and screw travel and saw that I will be able to raise the head by about 8.5inches (215mm). I wanted to do it the cheapest way but it had to be rigid. My plan is to make up a riser that fits between the machine column and the swivel base.
I got a piece of steampipe measuring 10"×7" with a 1/2" wall thickness and two 10.5"×10.5" steel plates a little over 3/4" (20mm) thick. I machined the pipe true and round on the OD only,no need to do the ID. I also faced the two plates on one side each just to have a flat surface to work with and a 1" hole for clamping purpose on my rotary table and machining of bolt holes.
I went ahead to square up the plates,mill the corners at 45dgr and set up on the rotary table for machining a recess for the pipe to fit and be centered.
Now the real fun part.......DRO(my newest toy) time. I programed the DRO for the bolt holes. Top plate was drilled and tapped M12 and the bottom one 13mm and counter sunk for M12×40 allen cap bolts.
I used my angle plate to square everything up (sorry no pic). I tack welded it together,took it off the mill and weld it completely.
To ensure that the riser was parallel and true to the mill spindle, I took a skim pass on both sides of the riser. I am always amazed by the mirror finish I get from my skimming head and resharpned WNMG 080408 insert. Then it just needed a coat of primer and paint and it is done.
I had a friend help me to install it using a enjin jack to lift the head and bolt down the riser. And that is it,all done. I am glad I did it and now I don't have to swear when I need just that last 3/8" of space so the drill bit or boring head can fit. That's all from me.Before and after pics to follow.
Thanks for viewing.
Michael.
So I measured my mill z-axis dovetail length and screw travel and saw that I will be able to raise the head by about 8.5inches (215mm). I wanted to do it the cheapest way but it had to be rigid. My plan is to make up a riser that fits between the machine column and the swivel base.
I got a piece of steampipe measuring 10"×7" with a 1/2" wall thickness and two 10.5"×10.5" steel plates a little over 3/4" (20mm) thick. I machined the pipe true and round on the OD only,no need to do the ID. I also faced the two plates on one side each just to have a flat surface to work with and a 1" hole for clamping purpose on my rotary table and machining of bolt holes.
I went ahead to square up the plates,mill the corners at 45dgr and set up on the rotary table for machining a recess for the pipe to fit and be centered.
Now the real fun part.......DRO(my newest toy) time. I programed the DRO for the bolt holes. Top plate was drilled and tapped M12 and the bottom one 13mm and counter sunk for M12×40 allen cap bolts.
I used my angle plate to square everything up (sorry no pic). I tack welded it together,took it off the mill and weld it completely.
To ensure that the riser was parallel and true to the mill spindle, I took a skim pass on both sides of the riser. I am always amazed by the mirror finish I get from my skimming head and resharpned WNMG 080408 insert. Then it just needed a coat of primer and paint and it is done.
I had a friend help me to install it using a enjin jack to lift the head and bolt down the riser. And that is it,all done. I am glad I did it and now I don't have to swear when I need just that last 3/8" of space so the drill bit or boring head can fit. That's all from me.Before and after pics to follow.
Thanks for viewing.
Michael.