Inexpensive Parallels

[Wrist Pin]

Hi All
By not paying attention to humidity levels this past summer, I ruined a good set of parallels. Where I used to work, we would cut and deburr Starrett flat ground stock and use it for parallels in various widths and thicknesses.
Those days are long gone and Starrett flat ground stock is now big $$$$. Where are you guys finding the best deals on ground parallels?

 

[Mainer]

About 5-6 years ago a bought a set of I think 9 pairs of 1/8" parallels from www.travers.com. They came in a fitted blow-molded case and were hardened and ground. There were a few surface imperfections where they hadn't allowed quite enough grinding allowance, but they generally looked good. Measuring the best I could, they were matched in the pairs and parallel to less the half a thou. There was a bit more variation than that from nominal dimensions (e.g. the 1" wide parallel may actually be 1.001") but they are still pretty close, and I can't see why the variation from nominal matters; the main thing is, they are parallel to close limits. I think I paid something like $29.95 for the set on sale, which it always seemed to be. I don't know if Travers still carries them or not.

 

[krv3000]

HI well old Bering's mack good parallels cut them in have and you get 4 two from the outer ring and two from the center ring

 

[Tin Falcon]

I have used discarded steel packing straps as parallels.
Tin

 

[ksouers]

I've used 1/4 inch and 1/2 inch HSS lathe tool bits in a jiffy.

I've also made my own out of aluminum, steel and brass. Not hard to make at all, just need to make sure your mill is in good set up.

 

[Springbok]

Try Fleabay
Have seen them there occasionaly
;D

 

[Ken I]

I take long pieces of HSS stock and cut them in half - since it was from the same piece the two match perfectly in height and thickness.

Ken

 

[dwentz]

I picked up a set from Harbor Freight a while back that were on sale for $30.00 with a nice plastic case. They are 1/8 inch thick. I am very happy with them They all matched up in under .0005 when I checked them, and you sure can not beat the price. I think there are 8-10 different sized. Enco has parallels on sale all the time, I am looking to pick up a thin set in the future. In the past I had made most of mine, Used lots of aluminum and key stock. I still have them. If you need good small ones cut up some length of drill rod and face the edges, It is very consistent in cross section.

Dale

 

[Wrist Pin]

Thanks Guys

 

[Dr Jo]

Be careful using HSS as parallels: whilst opposite sides are are parallel that does not mean that it is actually square (in both angle and size) or that any piece of the same sold size is actually identical in measurement to the next one.

Jo

 

[rake60]

When I was working in a large job shop, we used rollers out of big bearings as set parallels.
Bearing rollers are precision ground and the lengths are within tenths of a thousandth.

This is a common LM11949 wheel bearing that is used in many trailer wheels and can be
found at any auto parts store for about $5.00 USD.

Cut the cage off and you have about 16 perfect to length parallels.

Never throw away a worn out roller bearing!

Rick

 

[chuck foster]

thanks for the ideas guys 8) 8)

chuck

 

[Wrist Pin]

I see Little Machine Shop has a set of parallels for under $15.
Anyone have these? Are they any good?

 

[prof65]

Hi Wrist Pin

I bought this set from Little machine Shop some years ago:
www.littlemachineshop.com/products/product_view.php?ProductID=2924&category=

Good:
the working surfaces are parallel within 0.005 mm, so they do the job

Bad:
1) I don't like the black finish on the sides, but it's just an aesthetic problem.
2) They come in a poorly cardboard box, so you have to build a better box for keep them separate and avoid scratches and dents.

At that price, I think they surely worth the money.

Roberto

 

[Wrist Pin]

Thanks Roberto!