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    British/European screwcutting benchtop lathes?

    If you spend time in London or read lathes.co.uk, you find hundreds of British and European companies that made benchtop screwcutting lathes throughout the 1900-1980 era. Myford is the famous one, but there are tons. Many look small (less than 250lbs) and have screwcutting. Do any of these...
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    Non-marring cover for magnets/mag-base (to attach to Piano's cast iron frame)

    I want to machine a permanent, lightweight magnetic mount to temporarily attach a small microphone + flexible gooseneck to the cast iron frame of a piano. Below is a picture of a pair of commercial models (I want one for custom microphones). That one is ABS or delrin I think, with Neodymium...
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    Trav-a-dial lubrication?

    I'm servicing a Trav-a-dial (silver bullet GB-42 type). In various posts, I have read conflicting advice to grease the gears, oil the gears, or leave them dry (they currently look completely dry). Also, some people say to leave the gears dry, but oil the little ball bearings. -What's the...
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    Heater for Ultrasonic Parts Cleaner?

    I have a nice 6 gallon ultrasonic parts cleaner that I use for cleaning both parts and tooling. I want to add a heater to it, as most units are sold with an 'optional' heater. Can anyone tell me what kind of heater arrangement is used? I see a lot of lab immersion heaters and/or...
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    Relocate motor capacitor & its wires? Drill motor housing?

    I'm rebuilding a small metal saw that's missing the motor. It takes a standard frame 56 motor, but the saw is a tight fit around the motor and the start capacitor that sits atop most frame 56 motors won't fit. Can I drill/tap new holes in the sheet metal motor frame and just move the start cap...
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    Educate me on slitting saws?

    In my whole time machining I have never used a slitting saw. I have needed them, but always found a way to get the job done with something else. I finally picked up a set of Sierra American arbors yesterday. Is there anything to know about selecting/using them? -Is it correct to think that I...
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    Trav-a-dial -- oil filled?

    I just picked up a Trav-a-dial 7S. These are the new/bigger black models with no knob. It was left upside down, and a bunch of oil has accumulated in the dial. Is this newer model oil-filled, or is this coolant that leaked in? I've taken a part a bunch of these, but only the older silver and...
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    Odd DRO: Carson? Mounted to milling machine *handwheels*(?!)

    I was just browsing Tony's site and saw a british jig bore with a strange, mini 'Carson' DRO attached to each of the feed handwheels: For Sale Downham-Elliott Mini Jig Borer They are branded 'Carson' and have buttons for 'zero', 'scale reset', and 'mm/inch' Or at least, it appears to be a...
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    GTD Greenfield Die Handle Sizes -- anyone know the list?

    I'm building a set of die handles/wrenches from GTD (greenfield tap and die). There's a sales catalog page floating around that lists all of their tap wrench sizes, but I haven't found one for die handle sizes. Does anyone know the full list? I'm aware of: -models 1751 (13/16" die), 1752 (1"...
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    Trav-a-dial repair question

    I just came across a new style trav-a-dial (model 7a without a big dial face and no knob). The rotating metal ring surrounding the dial face (which you spin to set 0) is loose -- it is supposed to be able to rotate to set 0. However, this one also wiggles from side to side and can be rocked or...
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    Save a swiss machine from the scrapper

    Charlotte, NC: Swiss machine for $350 or it goes to the scrapper. Looks like a nice planer with a vertical head, but title says it's a jig bore, so I'm not really sure. It's not mine -- just hope someone can save it from the scrapper. Sip jig borer, save it from going to scrap! - tools - by...
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    Source for Cast Iron/Durabar in *small* dimensions (0.125" x 0.3 x 13 -- for gibs)

    Source for Cast Iron/Durabar in *small* dimensions (0.125" x 0.3 x 13 -- for gibs) I can buy Durabar in reasonably large sizes (1"+ in all dimensions). However, I don't know of anywhere to get some that is 0.125" thick. I would like to make some replacement cast iron gibs for some small...
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    Biax Scraper -- Pictures of different models to help ID?

    I am trying to help a friend ID a Biax scraper. While I can find some threads here discussing the different models, none seem to have pics. Is there a place to see pictures / identifying features of older Biax models?
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    Why do toolroom lathes have a horizontal spindle, instead of one like a mill or VBM?

    Possibly stupid question of the day: I was thinking how I wish I could fit a larger capacity lathe in a smaller footprint, which got me thinking: why do toolroom lathes have a horizontal spindle? Why not a vertical spindle like a mill, or like a vertical boring machine (with the headstock down...
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    Tiny thrust bearing (in Trav-a-dial indicator) -- help ID & source?

    I need to replace one of the tiny thrust bearings & retaining washer inside a trav-a-dial. The cage was damaged, so the ball bearings can escape, and the retaining washer on one appears to be missing. Does anyone have a source for these bearings & retaining washer or found replacements for them...
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    Fix Wallowed Hole for roll spring pin in thin cast iron?

    The pics show a cast iron gib for a small Rusnok milling machine. It is retained in place only by a roll spring pin. The hole for the pin has wallowed out, esp. towards the non-bearing side. What would you do to it before reinstalling? My tentative plan was to reinstall the gib/pin, then use a...
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    Ultrasonic Cleaner lifespan & transducer wear

    I'm in the market for an ultrasonic cleaner for the shop -- something in the 1.5 to 6 gallon range (large benchtop). A friend mentioned that even 'good' transducers 'wear out' over time with normal use (or possibly with abuse, when people put stuff directly on the bottom of the tank). I have...
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    Good Source for Replacement Stainless Baskets for ultrasonic cleaners?

    It seems like one can't buy a replacement OEM stainless basket for an ultrasonic cleaner -- even a relatively small one -- for less than a couple hundred dollars. This makes no sense, as one can buy solid or perforated stainless baskets in many similar sizes for the restaurant/hotel industry for...
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    Remove surface rust from collets without removing laser etched sizes?

    I have a set of Erickson DA100 collets which got some surface rust on them during storage. Will dipping them in evaporust/rust chelant remove the laser-etched size markings on the collets? Is there a better way, or possibly something I could add to the ultrasonic cleaner tank that would take off...
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    Trav-a-dial replacement Lens (crystal) and Foam Wiper?

    I have seen a few threads here where people have mentioned sourcing replacement lenses (crystals) and/or foam wipers for for trav-a-dials. Buytrak.com sells a few, though one has to buy them in packs of 5, and it would be great to get a cheap one-off the way one can for most dial indicators &...
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