Shop Made Tools

[bborr01]

This is something most of you have probably already seen or used, but here it is anyway.

It is just a piece of 1/4 inch cold rolled rod with a slot cut in the end with a band saw or hack saw. I have used it to take burrs out of holes and the like.

You can pick your grit of sandpaper. Use either strips ripped from cloth sandpaper or use the stuff that comes on a roll.

As the sandpaper gets loaded up or gets dull, just rip the bad part off and it is like new again.

I have used it mostly in a cordless drill.

If you decide to use it in an air grinder, I would recommend making it shorter and be VERY CAREFUL as the spindle speed of an air grinder could turn it into a bent rod and a real hazardous tool.

[Frank Ford]

Here's yesterday's project - a set of "telescoping" plug cutters for veneer repair. The smallest cuts a plug for a standard drill size, and the one above it cuts the plug for its hole, and so on:

[gary hart]

Reading the recent thread - Drill Bit Sharpening... -
There was mention of the Web page

http://www.gadgetbuilder.com/DrillSharp.html

Had heard of 4 facet drill sharpening but it wasn't what I had thought it was.
Gadget Builder gives information from Derek Brown's article describing his Four Facet Sharpener for small drills (#42-#80)

Sounds good, so built one. Need button head screws to replace the SHCS on the axles and a diamond pad. Also got to build the magnifier for aligning the drill bit in the collet.



The four collets for holding drills from 3/32 down to #80

[KiddZimaHater]

My drill sharpener, modeled after "the Champ" style drill grinder.
Base is held by the surface grinder's magnet.
"Y" travel is used for fine-feed.

[bborr01]

Bump.

Or should that be bump and grind?

Just trying to keep this thread from getting lost.

I will be back to my shop within the next week after a 14 week absence and have a few more items to post.

Looks like everyone else is posted out.

Brian

[Frank Ford]

A radius dresser for my little Sanford surface grinder:



The welded angle and most of the parts of this came from my scrap drawers.

A few angle divisions marked on the knob and a flat to lock the shaft for straight dressing:



I measured the center height as it happened to come out and stamped it on the tool to remind me to calculate the radius when I use it:

[bborr01]

A radius dresser for my little Sanford surface grinder:



The welded angle and most of the parts of this came from my scrap drawers.

A few angle divisions marked on the knob and a flat to lock the shaft for straight dressing:



I measured the center height as it happened to come out and stamped it on the tool to remind me to calculate the radius when I use it:

Hi Frank,

Do you just use a height gage to set the raduis?

Brian

[polepenhollow]

You can either use a Jo Block build up with the dresser inverted, c/h + the radius, or a Jo block build up, - the radius, and put a small parallel across the Jo's and the diamond and indicate "0".
I preferred the parallel method. The diamond did not contact the Jo's and I felt it was more accurate.
Ken

[Doc Nickel]

I was hoping this post would be made into a sticky at the top of the page.

-I hate to be something of a party pooper, but this is actually a poor choice for new (to the board) projects like Frank's dresser.

New creations, especially ones as detailed as that dresser, should have their own post. One, so we can discuss that project by itself, and two, so it'll be easier to find when doing a search at some point in the future.

And that latter is important- if you search on "radius dresser", it'll bring up this thread, among others. But to find the post on the dresser itself, you'll have to look through some sixty pages of postings, and wait for close to a thousand photos to eventually load.

A thread like this is an excellent place to collect stuff that's been posted before, but kind of a poor place for a detailed new project that deserves it's own post.

Doc.

[BadDog]

Hey, I actually took a picture of something, so now I can play too!

I needed a very flat, very nice surface on a large (roughly 1" x 12" x 9"). I had nothing that could cut it in a single pass. I borrowed a fly cutter BARELY capable of making the cut, but it wasn't heavy enough for the sweep and chattered horribly. I couldn't get a decent finish. So I made this. It's (from memory) about 2.5" side, 1.25 or so thick, and 10" long, with a 7/8 shaft. But one of the key points is that the shaft is slightly recessed to clear the domed/protruding collet face., This allows it to pull up hard on the spindle nose (like Tormac(?) I've since learned) when the R8 collet is tightened. Material is some sort of reasonably soft medium carbon steel (based on sparks). Carbide tooling cut it easily.

Also, other than initial facing/squaring of the bar (using smaller fly cutters), it was done entirely (in one setup) on the lathe after careful centering using DTI across the narrow width. That ensures that the hole (actually bored and threaded 7/8-R NF) is concentric with the outer diameters for exceptional balance. Likewise the spud was turned and threaded in one operation with a small register to locate it in the main body (just like a chuck register). It was assembled with red loctite. Both slots (offset for standard rotation) and all 4 set screws are also identical, as are both bits. The only difference is one has a small point radius to maximize finish at low DOC, and the other is sharper for faster feed when making initial "roughing" (0.005 at faster feed) passes with lower load. Only one bit is in use at a time, and when in use they are dropped about 0.050 below the bottom of the body.

This thing cuts like a dream with no evidence of chatter (so far).


Click for larger image. Then click that image for full size.

[bborr01]

-And I agree. But if every new part or tool gets posted here, that actually makes it harder to find and read than if it were put up in it's own post.

What would be better is if everyone put a specific keyword in their post, such as "homemade tool" or "shopmade tool". That way the posts can be found with an easy board search, and if you're looking for something specific, it's easier to read through a handful of subject lines to at least narrow it down, rather than being pointed toward a seventy-plus-page thread that you'll have to dig through manually.

Doc.

Hi Doc,

I hear what you are saying about the radius dresser and some other tools like it might warrant their own thread.

I don't see any reason that Frank or someone else can't post their tools in the "shop made tools" thread and give them their own thread too.

In addition, if I live long enough to learn how to develop a website (just kidding) I intend to make a website called shopmadetools.com and turn most of the shop made tools thread into a more organized website.

And there is also a book in the making.

Stay tuned,

Brian

[mattinker]

Cool & Tutter Grinder tooling

Hi,

some time ago, Ibought through ebay a Clarkson Mk I tool and cutter Grinder. Advertised as having "some tooling", which turned out to be a pair of centres and a couple of worn grind wheels, all I had to do was make some tooling!

Armed with "Sir John's" Mrs's CD, the March Clarkson manual and a little inspiration from McGyver, I set to.



The "bits", made a "V" block from a chunk of found rusty mild steel. It figures in my previous post entitled "back bar". The other parts were cut out of 15 mm hot rolled with my band saw. I added a passing "shop made" tap wrench to the picture as it was there.




Clamped up before welding.



Mig welded together. Peened with a hammer whilst still hot lead to virtually no distortion.

Limited to 4 images per post, Continued!

[mattinker]

Cool & Tutter Grinder tooling

Part 2.



The clamp was assembled in the same way.



The first try with a 50mm bit! I was really pleased with how well it worked.



The rear stop mechanism. I kept it as simple as possible. The bit that I was sharpening is a 5/8" bit that has been in my possesion for the last thirty five years, it was new when I got it, I used to use it for mounting fifth wheels on tractor units. I don't use it much anymore, but after all those years of hand sharpening, it was an apropriate guinea pig.



Again the 5/8" bit, seen from the front, the finger holder that worked really well for the 50 mm bit was difficult to use on small bits.

[mattinker]

Cool & Tutter Grinder tooling

Part 3



The Mk 2 finger holder is cranked down so that the hacksaw blade finger is near perpendicular with the flute.



My not very pretty "hand" marked graduations and numbers. I have some very cheap hexagonal section stamps that I couldn't make a guide for as the faces don't line up with the sides the same way on each one! A bad buy.



General view.

Most of this was hand made, I'm a very in-experienced machinist, but I've done a lot of fabrication and welding. When training as a vehicle mechanic, I learn't to file the old way, a 4" of 3/4" round bar cut square with a chisel and filed square to 10 thou tollerances. I don't have any quarms about truing up things with a file, it's still quicker than setting up and milling most things! I used my slitting saw for the first time on this project!

Regards, Matthew

[courtjester]

Milling Table clamp/vice

HI
Attached are pictures of a Mill table vice of clamp. Simple to make I trued up some angle iron and welded on 2 taped round stock with 3/8” fine threaded bungs. Mounting hole were aligned to the slots in the milling table. With the use of “V” blocks it will clamp round shapes too.