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  1. J

    WTB Optical flat

    These don't seem to pop up in here often, but I figured I'd ask here for a week or two before getting one of the Ukraine sourced ones on Ebay, good as I hear they are. Large flat and/or parallel set. Planning to make my own light source since those are harder to ship, but if you're within...
  2. J

    Smallest contact patch on a granite table?

    I’m in the process of making a few gauges which need to sit on a surface plate. Similar examples would be an indicator stand or a height master. I want them to be on 3 corner feet rather than one large flat because everything I have on large flats tends to develop a micron or two of play when...
  3. J

    Lapping plate material questions

    I've used planetary lappers with cast iron plates and SiC abrasive in the past. I'd like to understand the process a bit better, and am using hand lapping to get some practice with the fundamentals. Question 1: Low speed tool sharpeners like Glendo/Accu-Finish have a smooth ceramic plate as...
  4. J

    Alternatives to Atlas Copco DC Nutrunners

    I have an application where I want good control with torque and angle readouts. In the distant past I've been happy with Atlas Copco DC nutrunner tools for this. Last time I tried to contact a sales rep (phone and e-mail) it took a month to get a response, and that was after we had bought...
  5. J

    Making granite parallels and squares - is any granite sufficient?

    To start with, this is more an exercise in gaining some experience than it is a need for calibrated tools. I do regularly use some shop made steel parallels, but it's a bit more work to keep them from rusting than I'd like, being magnetic is inconvenient for some of my work, and occasionally I...
  6. J

    WTB Norton or similar brake dresser

    As the title says. Have an upcoming grind project with a diamond wheel and would like to stop truing with mild steel.
  7. J

    Measuring roundness/rotary table repeatability

    I have a part the size and shape of a margarine tub. I need to measure the roundness at a few different heights on both the ID and OD. Some of the parts are transparent and others are very shiny so my usual laser ranging device isn't getting a good reading. I do have a Tesa gauge head that is...
  8. J

    Correct bull gear position?

    I pulled this head apart a few years ago to replace several bearings and discovered the smaller bull gear (PN 34 below) was rubbing on the housing (PN 38). Parts diagram courtesy of H&W: Here is the housing (click for large version): Here is the gear I'm talking about (click for large...
  9. J

    Is this a knuckle thread?

    Trying to make a part that interfaces to something I already have. It's a low stress joint so just making something up would work, but I'd rather understand what's going on and learn something if I can. Manufacturer is in Germany, so I'm guessing metric. My thread pitch gauge is inch and...
  10. J

    Mitutoyo vs. Mahr height stands

    Now at a place developing optical systems. We have a CMM, but it's often backed up and we're still getting the operators up to speed on general metrology. As a result we've been doing a lot of manual layout. Parts are inconvenient to ship, and we typically want same day measurements, so we...
  11. J

    OSHA and 120 PSI air

    A seemingly silly problem, and far from the biggest one in my day, but I'd like to solve it and figure someone here can help. I'm working in a non-production environment in San Francisco. There is a prototype shop on site, but that is <5% of a mostly office environment. I'm trying to put an...
  12. J

    Pole direction on electric chuck

    In looking at electronic chucks today I noticed that the standard chuck comes with longitudinal poles and the fine pole chuck comes with transverse poles. I think I understand the benefits of going with a finer pole spacing, but I don't really understand the tradeoffs of pole orientation, and I...
  13. J

    Where to find foaming surface plate cleaner?

    There are plenty of references in this forum to foaming surface plate cleaner, but now that I'm trying to buy some I can't seem to locate any. A few jobs ago we used DoAll gage block cleaner in a spray can with success. The description mentions "Cleaner is specially formulated with lubricity...
  14. J

    Moving a Bridgeport inside a box truck

    The short version: How can I safely secure a Series 1 Bridgeport in a Uhaul type box truck (something in the 20' range) for a cross country move? I'm thinking build a 2x6 platform the width of the truck, then blocking it all the way at the front. Sort of worried about the metal floors, and...
  15. J

    3rd party metrology/inspection recommendations in San Francisco, CA

    I'm recently relocated to the bay area and could use a good third party inspection place for incoming inspection on prototype volumes of primarily machined aluminum components. Most of our parts fit in your hand, with a few as big as 12"x12"x8". I'm more concerned about meeting a promised...
  16. J

    Differences in surface grinders, Kent/Acer/etc. vs. Okamoto

    I'm tasked with specifying a surface grinder and my lifetime total operating surface and rotary (between centers) grinders is only 60-80 hours. I've always used whatever grinder my employer had, which was almost always older than me, and did just fine. Not splitting tenths, but holding them...
  17. J

    Issues with the wrong pitch bandsaw blade

    Our engineering lab has a Roll-in vertical (EF1459) band saw. What we cut varies from 1/16" aluminum and plastic sheet to 4" steel round and 2" plate. Other than some occasional free hand contouring everything is properly fixtured. On average I'd say this gets used between 5 and 15 times per...
  18. J

    Who makes a 5 jaw independent lathe chuck?

    A lot of our prototype work involves 5 sided parts. The size varies enough that a single custom collet isn't a good solution. We need to be able to dial in concentricity to a few microns, so want an independent chuck. For some tasks we bolt the part to a fixture, then put that in a 4 jaw, but...
  19. J

    OT: This forum is mirrored on other sites?

    Researching indicator holders I found this PM thread: http://www.practicalmachinist.com/vb/general/dial-indicator-holder-comparison-mp-tec-noga-photos-251614/ Interesting thread, I'm glad the comparison was made. A bit later I found this: Dial indicator holder comparison - Mp-tec and Noga...
  20. J

    Decent small drill press recommendations?

    The small floor standing drill press in our engineering lab is finally shot after who knows how many decades of use. Rather than buy an unmentionable and throw it away in another 5-10 years I'd rather replace it with something better. The main purpose if this thing is to keep people from...

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