Why Are There SO Many Things That Go Wrong????

[rake60]

In home machining we all seem to be coming up with new and unique
problems. Well they may not be new issues, but they are new to
us. So we type out a question here to ask opinions for a better way.

That's what we are all about here!

If everything in your home shop went effortlessly, with perfect results
every time, would you be happy?

For how long?

If it was easy, everyone would be able to do it and our jaws wouldn't be
dropping when we see the pictures that are posted here.

The challenge is what makes it interesting and keeps you going to back
to the shop to try to find a better way. Our own best way may be quickly
overturned by the suggestion of fellow hobbyist’s way of doing it. :idea:

Rick

 

[Cedge]

Rick
Somehow that just doesn't help much when I've just hung a 1/2 end mill into a slab of aluminum and suddenly hear the motor on the mill race while the bit stops spinnning and just sits there ...LOL.

I'm off to the LMS site.... Looks like it's time to go for the belt drive conversion.
Steve

 

[rake60]

You see my point Steve?

Now you have the opportunity to learn how to repair a mini mill.
How many people of the general population will ever get that chance? LOL
(I'd convert to the belt drive. Those nylon gears are lousy.)

If machines never broke I'd be out of a job.
There would be no need for machinists if there weren't parts to be made
or reproduced. We might not get it right the first time, but we always
get it right eventually.

Rick

 

[Davyboy]

Aw, shucks, I was feeling sorry for m'self. Spent about an hour turning on a bit of aluminum, drilled 15/64, looked nice and true to the eye. Skipped the boring bar, saved five minutes, and the dumb reamer cut over size at .258 dia :x . Tomorrow I start over on the other end. next time I WILL bore it before reaming, to true it up and to leave less for the reamer. BTW , I used water sol lube on the reamer.

 

[Bogstandard]

Rick,
Bit confused about this one, but I think I have the general impression.
If we all had exactly the same equipment and tooling, things would still be different for everyone, slight diffence in angle on a cutting tool, couple of thou difference on the height, all give totally different results.
Everyone has different methods of doing things, and textbooks are only right to the person who has written them, another book just might show a different method of achieving the same thing.
All you can do is show whoever asked the question your method of doing it, and hope that their interpretation of the answer will put them in the ballpark of the result that is required.
There are bound to be different solutions to every machining problem or task. Again interpretation and tooling to hand come into the equation. It is up to the person who is doing the job to make the descision whether to use the advice given or try a different way, or a combination of answers with a bit from each one.

Now Steve, rather than going for the easy way out and getting a belt drive, you should be looking at ways to make a new gearset out of nimonic steel, I am sure there is someone amongst the membership who could point you in the right direction. :lol:

John

 

[rake60]

John my intended point was, if everything were easy, we'd quickly become
bored with the hobby in general. Without the pit falls and challenges it
would be nothing more than going through motions.

When one of my boys was very young, he loved to play computer games.
When he would lose, he'd get very frustrated and upset.
To make a point I bought him a game that he had been asking for and
put in every cheat available for it.
He walked through that game in 20 minutes time and was left staring at
the computer with a disappointed look on his face.
He never had the same view of a challenge after that. :wink:

Rick

 

[Bogstandard]

I see what you are about now Rick.
I fall into the same trap each year when I make my engines for sale, I start with good intentions, but because I have done it so many times before, boredom sets in and it is a real struggle to finish them off so that I can get back to making something with a challenge.
BTW, you should see the first conrod I made for this new engine, in fact I am a bit too ashamed to show it. Sometimes things just don't go right, but isn't that the challenge.
In fact I have just come in from the workshop, where I was shortening the cylinder for my new engine. I forgot to put protectors on the finished surface and ended up causing myself a lot of extra work having to clean off the jaw marks. But that is life as they say.

John

 

[rake60]

On the topic of things not going right....

A salesman was leading a small tour through the shop this afternoon and
they stopped at my machine. He asked if it would be possible for me to
open the door of the machine so they could see exactly what was going
on in there, and explain what the machine was doing at each step.
I was cutting 14" aluminum cylinder heads so I was able to
turn the coolant pump off during a rough cut so they could watch the
machine cut through that cycle and for the process of the automatic tool
changer removing the rouging boring bar, and affixing the finishing boring
bar.

All went well.

Several months back, we had a previous tour come through.
It was lead by the Plant Manager and General Manager of the company.
While they were next to my machine, it went through the same sequence
of calling up the finishing boring bar. The automatic tool changer fumbled
the 4 pound boring bar and dropped it against the spinning chuck.
No damage, but it sounded a lot like a train wreck.

That is a VERY rare thing to happen, but when today’s tour was there it
was a VERY REAL MEMORY! :shock:

Rick

 

[1Kenny]

The centrifugal switch ring cracked in the motor on my lathe today. It wouldn't un-switch the start windings. So I have the motor off and torn down. Of course I am half way through making some crankshaft parts.

Kenny

 

[wareagle]

The centrifugal switch ring cracked in the motor on my lathe today. It wouldn't un-switch the start windings. So I have the motor off and torn down. Of course I am half way through making some crankshaft parts.

Kenny

Ah... I see Mr. Murphy left my place and is visiting you. He wore me out his last visit! :wink:

All kidding aside, good luck with the repairs!