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Old 10-24-2007, 06:07 PM   #6
cinqster
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Re: AF Machining Gallery

I'll throw some pictures in - they're nothing particularly special but were the first parts I made last year when experimenting.



These are dashboard switches for the 1/8th Jag. I turned the stock down to the correct diameter them machined in a step for the domes. If I want a dome like this I then cut a small 45 degree bevel then 2 really small cuts at 30 and 60 degrees. I'm a bit of a cowboy and normally round the bevels off by hand though I don't recommend it! I'll use anything from jewellers files to bits of 6mm plywood with various grades of wet'n dry paper stuck on! I do lots of work like this and will often spin the work in worn wet'n dry to get rid off machine marks, and I spin the work in Autosovol soaked cotton to get a high polish - works for me. The ideal way would be to have curve notched cutting tools but I've not started grinding my own yet.



The switches were matched by eye as I couldn't get my digital calipers on the shoulder of the domes. I'll often stick the first finished part on double sided tape onto the top of the lathe (near the chuck) so I can match them as I go.

The gearknob was tricky and this was my third attempt. Ideally you need a ball cutter for the task but I had to try it anyway! After getting the ball diameter correct I did my trick of cutting 45, 30, 60 degree bevels again. Again, I rounded everything off with hand files - this is very dangerous so be warned!

If you are stupid enough to use hand tools like ths it's worth adding a cover over the lathe bed to protect it, just in case you slip! I use a piece of 10mm MDF board.

My eyes are getting old so I use a light with a magnifying lens built in hovered just over the work. Helps with the seeing and gives me more protection as well as the googles.



The gauge bezels were fun! I found that I can cut inner shoulders to about 4mm deep using ordinary square cutters on material over 10mm in diameter. The bezels are about 1.5mm thick so they can be very carefully parted off without distorting. I'll often flat sand on the backs of finished items like this on wetn'dry sheets to match the thicknesses saves trying to get it right on the lathe and removes any tearing that you may get from the parting tool.
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