What Did You Buy Today?

[SouthernChap]

Have any of you ever felt like.... My shop is now complete? I have everything that is needed?

Yeah...for about 20 seconds and then my brain takes another look at its list of cool (sometimes even regularly useful) things that will fit in my 'English-sized' work shop and then I chuckle ruefully to myself.

That said, there aren't many items in my shop left now that have been gathering dust. Apart from a couple of 6" Abwood vices that were too big for my mill table and a Tapmatic 90x which was in a lot from Charter Auctions that I thought might be handy, but when I received was way too big for my mill, I've used pretty much every tool I have in there.

There are two missing capabilities left on my 'required' list and those are an air compressor and a smallish arbor press. The latter I have a line on something 'old iron' but I need to chase up Charter Auctions to see if they've nudged the seller into making the decision about my offer yet. The former will have to wait until next year, when the effect of my past spending sins has abated a bit!

Obviously I'd like a surface grinder, because who doesn't, a smallish shaper, because they're charming little machines, a quality drill press as drilling backup for my mill, one of those little benchtop BCA jig borers for very accurate small hole drilling, and a few other things besides, but being an Englishman with an English garage as a workshop, I can't really fit any of those in!

 

[FOMOGO]

That's very amusing. You might want to give standup a try. Mike

I log on to this page every other day or so. Have any of you ever felt like.... My shop is now complete? I have everything that is needed?

 

[verbotenwhisky]

Yeah...for about 20 seconds and then my brain takes another look at its list of cool (sometimes even regularly useful) things that will fit in my 'English-sized' work shop and then I chuckle ruefully to myself.

That said, there aren't many items in my shop left now that have been gathering dust. Apart from a couple of 6" Abwood vices that were too big for my mill table and a Tapmatic 90x which was in a lot from Charter Auctions that I thought might be handy, but when I received was way too big for my mill, I've used pretty much every tool I have in there.

There are two missing capabilities left on my 'required' list and those are an air compressor and a smallish arbor press. The latter I have a line on something 'old iron' but I need to chase up Charter Auctions to see if they've nudged the seller into making the decision about my offer yet. The former will have to wait until next year, when the effect of my past spending sins has abated a bit!

Obviously I'd like a surface grinder, because who doesn't, a smallish shaper, because they're charming little machines, a quality drill press as drilling backup for my mill, one of those little benchtop BCA jig borers for very accurate small hole drilling, and a few other things besides, but being an Englishman with an English garage as a workshop, I can't really fit any of those in!

I am adding a surface grinder to my collection first of the year, just need to go pick it up. My current shop is full at 6 meters square I'll have to shoe horn the machine in but where there is a will there is a way.

 

[GrifterGuru]

where there is a will there is a way.

@verbotenwhisky

Err...... Actually, that phrase is "Where there is a Will, there is a relative"...

 

[SouthernChap]

I am adding a surface grinder to my collection first of the year, just need to go pick it up. My current shop is full at 6 meters square I'll have to shoe horn the machine in but where there is a will there is a way.

Yeah, you can't fit a quart into a pint jug, even an American pint jug.

Honestly, I'm not even sure that a surface grinder would be my first purchase to put in the workshop on my 'lottery win' property. I reckon out of that list, a BCA jig borer might be might first in line for a "Oooh, I want one of those".

 

[woodchucker]

Yeah, you can't fit a quart into a pint jug, even an American pint jug.

Honestly, I'm not even sure that a surface grinder would be my first purchase to put in the workshop on my 'lottery win' property. I reckon out of that list, a BCA jig borer might be might first in line for a "Oooh, I want one of those".

what makes that little machine a jig borer?
I was reading https://www.lathes.co.uk/bca/

 

[SouthernChap]

what makes that little machine a jig borer?
I was reading https://www.lathes.co.uk/bca/

I think (and I'll admit to not knowing for sure) that the name "jig borer", at least in the UK, is used for drilling machines that are particularly precise.

From everything I've read about the BCA Mk 3* (Tony Griffiths' site, various UK model engineering forum posts, et al) these little machines were capable of some very fine precision.

Ostensibly, the Mk 3 especially could be used for light milling too, which might be handy, if true, for working on smaller precision parts, if my Deckel was already setup for something else!


*although I see that on the "BCA Jig Borer - Two Original Examples" on lathes.co.uk, someone's mounted a drill chuck in the spindle of one of them; these machines were supplied with Lorch collets for a reason

 

[GrifterGuru]

Purchased one of these....



As well as a 20T & 30T Timing gear.

@SouthernChap I have an idea you will know what these goodies are for and where they will end up

 

[ChazzC]

Tekton, I was ignorant for a long time they are a US company, 9" wide, 1-1/2", jaw open end adjustable wrench with a 3/8" square drive in the handle. Figure it's not for heavy loads, just convenient, and can live on the carriage lock.

U.S. company, but tools from all over:

"Growing U.S. Manufacturing​

"In our facilities, we cut, engrave, and polish steel, mold plastic, and carry out a range of finishing and assembly operations. We are an industry leader in using agile manufacturing methods that support fast engineering improvements.
We also work with carefully selected outside partners in the U.S. and in other countries. When we say that a tool is made in the United States, we mean both that the materials are U.S.-made and that the manufacturing takes place in the U.S.
About 79% of our current product lineup is made in Taiwan, 17% in the United States, 3% in Canada, and the remaining 1% consists of 20 items from Germany and 1 item from Poland. You can find the country of origin for every tool on Tekton.com by referring to the “Specs” section at the bottom of each product page."



I don't mean to imply anything other than clarifying: the few Tekton tools I have are excellent!

 

[ChazzC]

What really helped me the most is the US Navy Machinery Repairman manual. Very succinct. " There are two relief angles and two take angles and the angle of keeness is formed by grinding a rake angles and a relief angles." Then the manual goes on to describe the "why." Then they also throw in a few more terms with the what and why.

May not help too many others, but it helped me and most likely helped to train thousands of Sailors. I looked through several editions from 1952 IIRC, to the latest. The verbage never changed.

On the bookshelf to my TMBR 1, 2 & 3 and GHT's The Model Engneers Workshop Manual