WOW gab. I've been using oxy-acetylene for 40+ years and I've never made that clean of a cut. what's your secret??????
Russ
Russ
Home made tools and equipment
- Thread starter Youngster
- Start date
Last couple of weekends I have been making use of wasted shop space. The two that came to mind are my drill press, and band saw. The bandsaw has the standard base that takes up a lot of room and offers very little storage. So for that I built this:
This will hold most of my metal as well.
I enjoy doing woodwork also. that's nice work there. Most folks don't appreciate how difficult (proper) drawer making really is. what am I seeing in the inside front of the drawer corners? looks like something to do with the drawer face attachment perhaps??
Thanks,
Russ
George ... I built a manual panagraph years ago. Times got tough and I sold it but it's just down the street. I kinda patterned it after the Torchmate that was on the market at the time. I use a rubber band to hold the follower. Got a 2 drawer file cabinet full of 16ga. patterns. Sometimes I just feel creative and start looing around the shop. Like you said, "it's just plain fun."
Keeper ... Like you I needed storage for my drill press accories. This is my rendition ;
The drawer holds my drill bit, chuck keys and hold downs. behind the door are my Drill Dr., vice and transfer punches. The top is a pan that catches most of the drill filings. It just lifts off for empting.
Ron
Humm ... time to empty the scrap tub I see.
Keeper ... Like you I needed storage for my drill press accories. This is my rendition ;
The drawer holds my drill bit, chuck keys and hold downs. behind the door are my Drill Dr., vice and transfer punches. The top is a pan that catches most of the drill filings. It just lifts off for empting.
Ron
Humm ... time to empty the scrap tub I see.
Hotrod46
Member
Russ, I'm not GAB, but I have used a pantograph type cutter for years with the same results as George. The secret is a very clean tip and running proper pressure and speed.
I clean the tip and adjust the pressure until I get a slight fluttering sound when the cutting oxygen is applied. The cutting flame will get long when the tip is clean and the cutting trigger is pressed.
When cleaning, the idea is to make the holes as round as possible and to remove the carbon build up in the passages. Don't use a tip cleaner any larger than needed. Also, make sure the end of the tip is flat and square. A trick I learned many years ago was to heat the cleaned tip up and briefly touch a piece of paraffin to the end of the tip. I does seem to help, but I rarely do it any more.
Adjust the speed until you get the cutting spark trail angled about 20 to 30 degrees or so ahead of the torch travel.
If done right you will have almost no slag to remove and what is there will come off easy.
We used to reguarly cut ends for tractor wheel spacers from 1/2" to 5/8" plate that had to fit over a machined boss on the axle flange. With a machined pattern and careful cutting, we could make the fit with no other operations. I have also cut 2" thick oil field flange blanks that look as slick as the plates GAB pictured.
We also used propane for fuel most of the time, since it was cheaper than Acetylene. The speeds and pressure had to be adjusted for the propane.
Mike
GAB
Member
Russ,
Mike nailed it. The only thing that I might add would be to slightly open the oxygen valve when lighting the torch so that you have a somewhat neutral flame instead of just an acetylene flame with the soot which will contaminate the tip. The dross trail will tell you about the speed of the cut. If it is falling away in blobs, your speed is too slow. If the it is closer to horizontal than vertical, the cut is too fast. A gentle slightly curved shower of sparks indicates proper speed.
Ron,
This is where my patterns are supposed to be, but they end up all over the shop. I've probably got several thousand. The biggest problem for most people is making the patterns with the offset for half of the tracing rotors diameter.
Mike nailed it. The only thing that I might add would be to slightly open the oxygen valve when lighting the torch so that you have a somewhat neutral flame instead of just an acetylene flame with the soot which will contaminate the tip. The dross trail will tell you about the speed of the cut. If it is falling away in blobs, your speed is too slow. If the it is closer to horizontal than vertical, the cut is too fast. A gentle slightly curved shower of sparks indicates proper speed.
Ron,
This is where my patterns are supposed to be, but they end up all over the shop. I've probably got several thousand. The biggest problem for most people is making the patterns with the offset for half of the tracing rotors diameter.
benT
Active Member
Best thing we built was an adjustable frame table. We realized that we'd never get a straight frame building off of our uneven garage floor. My Pop's knees can't take that either. So prior to starting the build of my '27, we built the frame table you see below. Our goals were to build a table high enough so welding was reasonably easier, wide and long enough for most hot rod frames, be height adjustable to compensate for different floor conditions, have flanges for clamping, and be mobile to be stored. The design is a couple 2"x3" rails, tied together, with heavy angle legs with casters and adjusters. We purchased some W6x9 (6" tall x 9lb/ft) scrap beams from a local metal yard and were able to make 5 movable cross beams. The beauty of the design, is that you can slide the beams where you need them and lock them in place. This makes the table very user friendly and useful for an bunch of tasks. We've built a few T frames on this now and welded all kinds of other stuff on it. Its probably the best money on fabrication equipment we've spent. I think it cost us a total of about $125 as much of the material I acquired as leftover scrap from a jobsite I was on.
GAB
Member
Ron,
Try this for an idea about a jig. Use the bulk and weight of your cement floor as part of the jig. A couple of simple frame structures that are anchored to the floor when in use are the major items. Add longitudinal stringers of square or rectangular tube and crossmembers as needed for the project. Stores easily when your finished with it.
Try this for an idea about a jig. Use the bulk and weight of your cement floor as part of the jig. A couple of simple frame structures that are anchored to the floor when in use are the major items. Add longitudinal stringers of square or rectangular tube and crossmembers as needed for the project. Stores easily when your finished with it.
benT
Active Member
In theory, the heavy angle legs on our table can be unbolted along with the wide flange rails and leaned up out of the way, but when not in use we tend to just push it in a corner and put a sheet of plywood on it. We've never broken it down, as we've always found room for it. With the plywood on it, it makes for pretty useful table.
You could juut as easily build a similar frame with bolted connections...
You could juut as easily build a similar frame with bolted connections...
Added some 1/2 x 2 to the ol' bead roller. got it all done and THEN found a way to motorize it.
Got this maple stump from the guy down the street last fall. Last week I found a rotary wood rasp at the farm store and by God it worked great!
Working on a stand alone hole punch now. Pic's by the end of the week, I hope.
Ron
Got this maple stump from the guy down the street last fall. Last week I found a rotary wood rasp at the farm store and by God it worked great!
Working on a stand alone hole punch now. Pic's by the end of the week, I hope.
Ron
Zack
Member
Will do. i will snap one this weekend.
Keeper
Active Member
Added some 1/2 x 2 to the ol' bead roller. got it all done and THEN found a way to motorize it.
Got this maple stump from the guy down the street last fall. Last week I found a rotary wood rasp at the farm store and by God it worked great!
Working on a stand alone hole punch now. Pic's by the end of the week, I hope.
Ron
I have also been looking for a stump. I have not done a whole lot of metal work, but thats another on the list to learn. I have seen some pretty neat stuff on just a stump.
Pics of the motorized attachment?
Next thing for the stump is to turn it over and use my skill saw to make a round shallow dimple. I need to make a stand for it too. Was thinking of using a 13" rim up side down with a piece of 3/16" welded in it and some running nuts and all thread to secure it. You gotta try this Keeper. It's great fun!
The motorized attachment is simply a garage door opener with a foot pedal. Looking for a used door opener for the large sprocket and chain. I found a place where I can buy the DC motor and converter for $10 plus shipping and I have a foot pedal here. The framework I have the beader in is a copy of Lowbucks frame. I can take the beader out and put my soon to be English wheel in. The E-wheel is about half finished. Found the top and bottom anvils from HF in a nearby town and bought them for less than half of the purchase price. Hope to have pic's by weeks end.
Other tools I'm thinking about adapting to the frame are a panishing hammer, a small break and a louver press. Big dreams I know but the beader was a wish list item for years.
The motorized attachment is simply a garage door opener with a foot pedal. Looking for a used door opener for the large sprocket and chain. I found a place where I can buy the DC motor and converter for $10 plus shipping and I have a foot pedal here. The framework I have the beader in is a copy of Lowbucks frame. I can take the beader out and put my soon to be English wheel in. The E-wheel is about half finished. Found the top and bottom anvils from HF in a nearby town and bought them for less than half of the purchase price. Hope to have pic's by weeks end.
Other tools I'm thinking about adapting to the frame are a panishing hammer, a small break and a louver press. Big dreams I know but the beader was a wish list item for years.
