UPDATE on Machine Completion (Ref: I Need A Gear Made...)

[johnoder]

Plate #2 in the B&S (and clones) indexing head has 27 holes.

VME sells the #4 milling cutter in 14 DP to cut 27 teeth

 

[triumph406]

If it was me, I'd machine some 4130/4140 to the right thickness, put in the correctly sized id hole, then find a wire edm shop to wire out the gear. There's a couple around here who could do it for a reasonable price.

If the op wants a stp,igs file of the gear I can generate one. (Cadkey98 and DraftPak98 still kicking ass)

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One thing the OP may not be taking into account is that for some companies, when that project comes across the threshhold for manufacturing, there's going to be recieving paperwork if the material needs to be purchased, there's going to be a travellor for the part, there's going to be time spent in the morning meeting figuring what machine and when it's going to be done. There's likely going to need to be an inspection criteria, even if it's across 3 gage pins. Somebody has to figure out what that dimension should be. Then it's signed off ready to ship. Then there's the guy who's got to pack the part, create a shipping lable, then OP the to say the package is on it's way. Yea a lot of paperwork.

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pity Les Shelley isn't at Action Gear anymore, he would have done it for a reasonable price, now he's running his own company, his prices have gone up, a lot from what I hear

 

[michiganbuck]

You made a simple inquiry, they gave you a simple answer.
That....We don't want the job.
Qt: (If it was me, I'd machine some 4130/4140 to the right thickness, put in the correctly sized id hole, then find a wire edm shop to wire out the gear.0
Or find a 27 gear close to need and grind or EDM it to needs.
I cant see it costing over a couple hundred for cast iron gear, even if you hacked it out of a used gear of a larger size.
Sounds like Emanuel Goldstein knows how to fudge up a gear, post #4.

 

[john.k]

When I first started buying and selling machines ,I would recut the broken teeth on busted gears with a combination of hacksaw and file .

 

[dalmatiangirl61]

OP,
do you have a mill? If so you can use your good 27 tooth gear to make a new gear, but you will have to buy the cutter. Its not that hard to cut a straight gear.

 

[Rob F.]

If you were to start a new thread asking for help making your gear you would get some real help.
The cheap vevor dividing heads are gaining popularity, buddy has on and he likes it...
You could make a handful of gear blanks and do several at a time on a mandrel and sell a few to pay for or at least offset some of the cost for your tooling.

 

[guythatbrews]

The quote from a company (who shall remain nameless in order to protect their type of comedy) was $2,775 for 1 or up to 6. They offer different levels of delivery - and the price goes up exponentially. If I wanted it in 48hrs - it was $11,100. Not kidding... (as an aside - I paid $800 for this lathe back in 1994)

I do have another complete single tumbler gear box - it is an earlier model that has the idler gear supported by only one side - the gear is pressed on a stud with a keyway/pin and the stud rotates in the idler arm. It is a QCG-100 and mine is a QCG-101. The earlier one use steel bushings on the two shafts vice bronze for my current one.
I am refurbishing both - the earlier one is in exceptional condition - filthy but the wear is very very minimal. I considered modifying the gear - the early one uses a .500 dia hole vs the .682" for the current one, but that would effectively take the functionality away from the older box.

Opsoff1 no matter what some of these guys are saying, these prices are outrageous. This is just an asshole way of saying we don't want the job. That said there is a lot of work to making a gear so expect to pay. if you can make the blank EG will cut it for you at a fair price.

Do you have a milling machine? As folks are saying you can cut a gear if you do. Especially since you have a good sample. Sometimes gears are cut at non-standard PDs but the sample will confirm that, and I'll bet your gear is standard.

 

[michiganbuck]

Agree the Vevor dividing head for around $300 would be a good asset for one's mill.
But for one gear a 27-gear could be bought to be used as an index and on a Tc or a surface grinder the needed gear could be made on a double-ended shaft between centers on a TC grinder, or using a V block for the holding spindle on a surface grinder.
One might come in with a wheel multiple times, or dress the full form on the wheel and just index at 90*.
I don't think I have a 27 index so if I took the job I would buy a 27tooth gear for $10 or $20 and use that for an index, or use it to grind an index.

I suspect EG would grind the gear rather than buy an expensing end mill or cutter for only one gear.

 

[EmGo]

But for one gear a 27-gear could be bought to be used as an index

Or 54 teeth, skip every other one and be twice as accurate ... or 81 for the ultra-high accurate version. 108 for super-ultra-extra-zamboni-high accuracy ?

Make sure to use aircraft quality military grade heat-treated subzereo frozen vibration stress-relieved billet ductile cast iron, and you'd really have something !

 

[michiganbuck]

QT EG (Make sure to use aircraft quality military grade heat-treated subzereo frozen vibration stress-relieved billet ductile cast iron, and you'd really have something !)
Or make the gear out of solid gold so when it was done you could sell it for enough cash to buy a new lathe that has a 27 gear,.

(X) I know (suspect), Gold really loads up a grinding wheel...darn.

 

[john.k]

I believe there is a dedicated gear cutting accessory for the South Bend lathe.

 

[Philabuster]

If it was me, I'd machine some 4130/4140 to the right thickness, put in the correctly sized id hole, then find a wire edm shop to wire out the gear. There's a couple around here who could do it for a reasonable price.

Easiest would be to machine the stock to the correct thickness and pop in two starter holes. Let the Wire EDM guy finish the bore and then come in and wire out the gear profile using the second starter hole. Done.

 

[EmGo]

Easiest would be to machine the stock to the correct thickness and pop in two starter holes. Let the Wire EDM guy finish the bore and then come in and wire out the gear profile using the second starter hole. Done.

Why you guys think a wire edm is easier than a gear shaper or hobber that would cut those teeth in ten minutes max, unattended, is beyond me.

 

[gbent]

Because its far easier to find an idle wire machine. Not a lot of idle gear shapers or hobbers in ready to work condition, with the necessary tooling for a 14dp, and fewer yet that have the necessary trained set up man ready to make such gear.

I'm not a wire guy. I can see how to make half a gear, but how do you hold it to make the whole gear? Do you make it from plate and drop off, hold one half and then index 180 degrees, or some other method?

 

[michiganbuck]

Skip the BS at 4:59

 

[EmGo]

Because its far easier to find an idle wire machine. Not a lot of idle gear shapers or hobbers in ready to work condition, with the necessary tooling for a 14dp, and fewer yet that have the necessary trained set up man ready to make such gear.

That's just not true. He called the most expensive place on the planet that advertises they do breakdown emergencies for giant factories and was surprised at the price.

I don't know massachusetts at all but in the bay area I can think of four places that are still there today, all about 3000% cheaper than rush. LA has a lot more. There used to be literally three times as many but still, a shaper or hobber is about a hundred times faster and cheaper than wire edm. For some weirdass stuff yeah but not a simple 14 dp spur gear.

If you can find a wire shop that'll do that for less than $150 I'll be amazed. (That's not hard to do. You shoulda seen the one at the baozi stand this morning, almost drooled down my shirt. Spring is springing for sure!)

 

[john.k]

No,the most expensive place on the planet is Gold Coast Gear and Shaft ,who quoted me a similar price to calculate setups to make a simple 6DP spur gear about 6"dia....setups? for a spur gear?..........I figured why its called gear and shaft ...they got the gear ,you get the shaft.

 

[guythatbrews]

Thanks for this link. I almost didn't watch because of the BS at the beginning but I'm glad I did.

Crude fixture aside, this method will generate a true involute. A fixed, non-rotating gear hobbing cutter, swivelled to the appropriate angle, would form a multi-tooth cutter and be faster than the single point cutter.

Now I want a shaper even more.

 

[michiganbuck]

QT Guy: (I almost didn't watch because of the BS at the beginning but I'm glad I did.0
I added "skip the BS at 4:59," Thanks,

On a grinder, out of a work head, or between centers I would just use a snap finger set on a 17 gear or on a 17 index...yes making an arbor, fab the index, and grinding... Agree it likely would not be as fast as a shaper or hobber.

A slow way would be to use a lathe for a shaper by hand cranking the saddle left and right with the part (gear) on a stub arbor, or between centers...off an index.
Might have to make 100 (or more) travels for each tooth.

 

[guythatbrews]

QT Guy: (I almost didn't watch because of the BS at the beginning but I'm glad I did.0
I added "skip the BS at 4:59," Thanks,

On a grinder, out of a work head, or between centers I would just use a snap finger set on a 17 gear or on a 17 index...yes making an arbor, fab the index, and grinding... Agree it likely would not be as fast as a shaper or hobber.

A slow way would be to use a lathe for a shaper by hand cranking the saddle left and right with the part (gear) on a stub arbor, or between centers...off an index.
Might have to make 100 (or more) travels for each tooth.

The rub with using a gear to index is you have to have a gear with the right number of teeth. At least it doesn't have to be the same tooth form or diameter.

The shaper method could be used in a turning center with a positioning spindle axis or a machining center with a rotary table. It would generate a true helix and I'll bet a pretty accurate gear. You don't need a gear with the same number of teeth. Still slow but automatic for one-offs.

I knew a gear shop that would charge double for gears with a prime number tooth count. This wouldn't beca problem with the cnc shaper method.