How to hold flat washers to increase hole size

[Chipps]

Take a black iron pipe nipple that is closest in size to your washer OD. Chuck in lathe and bore to size for your washer. Leave step when you are boring as an end stop. Then stack the washers and tighten on a pipe cap. Chuck on lathe and go wild.

[darryl]

Make a simple jig to hold two vice grips. Space them apart appropriately and clamp then in place with thumbscrews or whatever. The bottom jaws on the vice grips should allow this. Then you can set them for any diameter of washer, and can also use the jig for other small parts that you want to drill holes in. It's a drill press jig.

[Tim The Grim]

Take an appropriate sized hex nut and bore a recess the depth of the washers thickness and .003/.005 bigger than the diameter. Cut completely through one side with a hacksaw and 1/3 through the opposite side.

When the nut is back in the lathe Chuck it will pinch down on the washer OD so you can drill or bore it. If you’re careful when releasing the Chuck, the nut will remain in place because you allowed that little extra on the diameter and the washer will come right out.

[mtraven]

Don't your chuck jaws on your lathe have notches on the area that touches the workpiece? Mine all have notches. I had to drill out some washers with 10mm holes to fit 12mm bolts the other day. I just mounted each washer in the lathe 3 jaw chuck in the notches on the jaw and slam bam thank you mam' done.

i've done that too, works pretty well. even if he doesn't have the serrations, a simple spider would do the trick in a 3 jaw. though re-reading his post, he tried some setup with a 3 jaw--the flats left by the jaws were unacceptable for some reason. kind sounds like he didn't have anything keeping them in place axially, use the notches or a spider might allow much less clamping force & less damage to the od of the washer.

[Rich Carlstedt]

I think doing it in the lathe is fine and I have done it as BF said above, but when I have to do a few washers, I use a Vise Grip ( VG) as Bob mentioned in Post 13
No fixtures except that I clamp one jaw of the Vise Grip even to my drill press (DP) vise and the washer is supported vertically with the DP jaws
and the Vise Grip is up, making easy changes to clamp and unclamp.
Also very important is to use a 3 or 4 flute Ball Endmill as a drill/cutter - makes it a snap to do , no jarring eccentricities
if your hole will be larger than the VG jaws are wide, add a parallel to the VG jaw clamp to get a bigger opening ( like 3/4" )

Rich

[Black Forest]

Don't your chuck jaws on your lathe have notches on the area that touches the workpiece? Mine all have notches. I had to drill out some washers with 10mm holes to fit 12mm bolts the other day. I just mounted each washer in the lathe 3 jaw chuck in the notches on the jaw and slam bam thank you mam' done.

[jimsehr]

Material cost were low.

[jimsehr]

I need a half dozen washers for a project so I am using pennies to make them.

[mtraven]

my method choices per quantity:

<10 --basic od reg + CA glue (assuming I don't have an appropriate step collet)

10-50 -- step collar chuck, one by one 😑

50+ -- bulk compression, like this: (basically a fancy version of what boslab outlined in the post directly preceding this one)

if you need a feature like a bevel on either side of the od, you'd have to 1 by 1 in a step collet, I'd probably still knock the od itself out in a bulk stack

the fixture in the video is a 1 off, but you could easily thread it to compress the stack, & have a reusable fixture. throw a thrust bearing in the head if ya wanna get fancy.

I also think if you're doing thicker parts, & thus few at a time, you shouldn't need ax much axial compression.



alt method: get yourself some bar stock & just cut em the way ya want them.😁

[boslab]

Stack them on a bit of pipe bored to suit, if it’s thin pipe the thing flexes enough to grip them if there a good fit, ca glue if needed and do them at the same time
id use a 135 topped standard drill, not the fancy split point, find them grabby myself,
mark

[Mr Fixit]

HI Group,

These are ALL fantastic suggestions and it seems to be the common method of holding small items. I want to do about 80 of them so the fixture is well worth the time. I will be in the shop tomorrow making the suggested holder using what I find in the scrap bin and a combo of your ideas, then I'll crank out a bunch of washers to fit the project.

Thanks for all the ideas and methods to consider.

TX
Mr fixit for the family

Chris

[jimsehr]

This is how I held a nickel to make two headed nickels. I can load in seconds.

[paul463]

Last time I needed to do something like that I took a piece of square aluminum about 4" long. Sawed a slot down 1/2 the length. Cross drilled a hole for a bolt perpendicular to the slot. Then chucked it up about a 1.5" deep in the 4 jaw and bored my washer diameter and depth into the end of it, and leave it in the chuck. Then pop a washer in the end and tighten the cross bolt to hold it and bored my hole. Loosen the bolt change the washer, repeat.

[oxford]

Just a quick question it was never stated on how much you need increase the I'd of the washer ????

This, plus how many are we talking here. 10, 100, 1000?

[RB140]

Just a quick question it was never stated on how much you need increase the I'd of the washer ????