Back to the Blog

Sorry for being away from the blog, a few years had passed, jobs changed, so many things happened both in everyday life and in my basement shop. Let's only see the basement shop here, that is the blog about, isn't it?

The small machine park expands step by step.

I often used the lathe's main chuck as workpiece holder for milling. In order to avoid unnecessary dismantling of the chuck, I ordered a spare one, and if I order, why not order also a four jaw one? I found such a pair made by Vertex, both are compatible with the machine's main spindle. It became to be a very good decision, I realized later how useful a 4 jaw chuck can be. I can put almost anything to it, even round shaped pieces can be trued more precisely than in the 3 jaw one. The same jaws can be used 180 degrees rotated as inverse, or even mixed, so a wide range of eccentric workpieces can be machined in it. Setting the four separately adjustable jaws may seem to be a pain at first glance, but it turns to a short enjoyable play after some practice. There are several tutorials can be found in this subject, for example here.




I also bought an ER11 collet set for the mill. The conventional drill chuck mostly rests in the drawer since that moment. BTW drawer! Sometimes in a bygone job I installed cash registers, and there were customers, who did not need the drawer box of the machine. They asked me to dismount it, and some of them especially asked me to take the heavy box away. After a few decades of warehousing them I realized how useful these boxes could be with their electromagnetic opener, see the topmost picture.



And just one more important issue: from time to time I - and maybe you guys - have to prove how useful and essential our workshop is. Happens again and again, that I buy something without a certain purpose, but somehow definitely feel that it will be more than useful. Actually it was the rotary table. See the flower I could machine with it. It will never wither, watering of it is not only completely unnecessary, but prohibited, since it has small ball-bearings in the pot to enable rotation of the flower. (Very precise bearings can be found in faulty computer hard disks at the head movement arm.)

The parts, ready to be assembled

So if someone happens to ask you why did you spend your time in the shop, give her/him such a flower or something else machined in the shop!









Happy machining to all of You there!



- Gabor