Thread: Vernier FV.3.TO Milling machine

Originally Posted by RayG

I'm not sure what the 50:1 taper pins do? Does the Vernier have dowell locations for when it's in tram?

Hi Ray,
Thats exactly it, one for each axis. They need to not only be tapered but be threaded on the fat end so they can be removed. Like the useless one the HM50 comes with only tapered. I'm using O-1, geez its nice to machine. If it wasn't for the price over here i'd use it more.....
Trying to get the taper right is fun. I may end up having to make a cast of the pin in situ if i can't find the right angle.

Edit, here is a pic of them from the French forum. It seems you can still get these from the company that now owns the Vernier name.

Nice job you are doing of your mill.Enjoy looking at nicely made stuff.
On another note finally got to check out the Great Scot here re headstock they are the same as yours has been rebuilt at 1 stage and is in good condition.Am glad you were able to solve the chatter issue.I was thinking on this rebuild to fit up good quality tapered rollers to head stock therefore enlarging the bore.seems feasible as bed is solid also raising spindle height by 2 inches.Only reason being is the large boring table it has on the saddle and it will suffice as a multi function m/c tool.It is hoped to fit it into the old coach am renovating to travel so got an on board facility.Wouldnt be with out a lathe as i use 1 every other day.John.

Thanks John.
I finished the pins today, took a few more tweaks to get the taper right but it correct now. It worked out to be 1.4 deg or so per side, so a total taper closer to 25:1. The reaming on the head was also different depths with just added another level of fun.......
She is now sitting head less with some nice clean paper towel underneath where the leak should be....hopefully i'll have an idea of where its coming from tomorrow.

Cheers
Ew

Originally Posted by RayG

.....
I wasted half a day today looking around town for tapered pins and reamers... all I got was frustrated and confused. Maybe I should be making my own..
Regards
Ray

Ray, what size taper reamers are you looking for? I have several - the biggest about 8mm at the fat end.
Yell out if you need to borrow them for the next 6 weeks (I won't be using them )

Originally Posted by jhovel

Ray, what size taper reamers are you looking for? I have several - the biggest about 8mm at the fat end.
Yell out if you need to borrow them for the next 6 weeks (I won't be using them )

Thanks Joe, I think I'm pretty well sorted, I'll machine the pins as required and I've found the reamers on ebay. I thought the nut and bolt places would carry stock of these sort of things.. not so.

Those pins look great Ewan, I like the threaded end for removal, having just watched Josh have to end up drilling out a stuck tapered pin on the Varnamo shaper.

Regards
Ray

Well i'm a bit bummed....

I spend some time yesterday and today making some t nuts and the hub for the rapid traverse lever. I had coolant splashing all over the place for a good while, it is clear i need to make a tray for her, but i noticed something this arvo that has me stuffed. The main knee oil bath has gained a few hundred mils of fluid and is now a greeny white colour. Coolant has gotten in big time but i don't know where, not at least in that sort of volume......

I think i need to make rubber (or even leather, which i think was an option when sold) guards like i did for the HM50, and maybe a tray that fixes under the vice overhang to catch all the runoff there.

I also am still thinking of the tramming pins, it has me stumped how it can be so far out. In degrees its not much but over a 100mm face cutter its really noticeable. I think Aarons suggestion might be a good one, i just have to find a 3deg drill......

Thanks again to RC for the bandsaw clamp, it was used for the first time today and worked a treat.

How is the oil well supposed to be sealed?

how well did you seal up this front section Ueee ?

http://www.woodworkforums.com/attach...478-large-.jpg

Originally Posted by Ueee

Well i'm a bit bummed....

I spend some time yesterday and today making some t nuts and the hub for the rapid traverse lever.

I have to say that you have touching faith in your depth of cut settings and your collet chuck to cut that close to the mill table. ER collet chucks are good, but I wouldn't even do this using a Clarkson type autolock chuck where the cutter *cannot* walk out.

Tempting fate like this is something I'd never do and I'd never allow anyone I saw doing it to even touch one of my machines.

PDW

Peter, you have good eyes but are off the mark on that one. The boss was machined on the rt with a 1/4 spacer on it. The reason there is about 1mm left is purely out of laziness, the boss is 25mm thick, and having setup with a 12mm roughing cutter I realized its cutting length was only 24mm I could have milled the last bit off but the damn thing moved just as I finished off the cut. Since there will be a decent chamfer on it it doesn't really matter. Like you I wouldn't thrust the er collet that close to the table, especially taking such a cut.

John, the front section you show has a sealed plate over it, sealed with the non drying type sealant. There is also another gearbox on the front not in that pic, it is sealed in the same manner.

RC, as well as the front fixed plate, there is one at the rear as well, to either side of these are coolant drain holes. There are 2 tessellating plates front and back, these are dovetailed into the knee on either side so they can slide over each other and the front and rear plates.
Between the plates there is a rubber seal, which is in good condition. The rear of the saddle has a full width rubber wiper, but the front does not as yet. I can't believe however that about 700mls (my estimate based on the area of the bath and the level gain) has got in under the front of the saddle..... It could seep in through the dovetails on the plates though, but again, it just seems to be too much...

Cheers,
Ewan

Hi Ewan,

Hope you can find the coolant leakage path, in any case, how can you clean it out? is there a drain in that section?

Those T slot nuts look good.

Regards
Ray

Easy enough to drain Ray, there are 2 drain points, one at the front and one at the back.

I'm starting to think i must have missed sealing something major. The more i think about it the more i think that such a large amount of coolant couldn't just seep in. The worst part is its about 10l of oil in there.....

Ray, i blackened 2 of the t nuts with linseed in the fire, but i really need to torch them...there was some ash stuck to them. I went looking for the gas torch but realised i lent it to my father last year and haven't seen it since......I'm out of acetylene and am handing back the bottles for now.....rent is just too pricey.

Cheers
Ew

I'm so glad I have found this. As I have one of these.Vernier2.jpgVernier 3.jpgVernier 4.jpgVernier 5.jpg

I have briefly switched it on, and everything seems to work, except the gearbox for fast/slow, the long yellow handle pointing down. It has to be lifted, or there is an almighty crunch from the gearbox. Lifted the top lid partly off the box, and a big brass gear looks much worse for wear. It moves the bed incredibly fast, so care has to taken not to leave any handles engaged. They are supposed to be spring loaded off the engagement, but some are missing the spring and others are just missing.
I guess gearbox off as a first step.

Hi Kaiser and welcome to the forum.

They are a lovely machine, very rigid and powerful and easy to use. Yours is a little different to mine, mainly the cap and back door.

Have you found the manual and parts breakdown on the Usinages forum yet? if not i can dig up a link for you. They are in French but are better than nothing.

The gearbox is very easy to remove, take the bolts out (except there is one at the top above the rapid lever that does not hold the box in place) and there are also 2 or 3 locating pins. The whole box should come off, the infeed shaft is connected via a flexible coupling that just pulls apart, and the out put is similar.
The bronze worm gear gets driven when the feed is being used normally, when you pull on the rapid lever it disconnects a dog clutch from the worm gear and closes up the multi plate clutch. There is a spring on the bolt i mentioned above that you are compressing when you pull the lever. The yoke slides on this bolt too.
If you are going to take the cover of the front console (above the Y and Z handwheels) be careful there are not only the 6? large countersunk bolts but 2 little ones in the middle. My little ones were painted right over and it took me an age to work out why i couldn't get the aluminum cover off.

I probably have heaps more photo's than what i have put up in this thread, if you need any more just ask.

Cheers,
Ewan

Hi, and thanks!
Yes, I think mine might be an older version, but I don't know.
It has a lot of swarf scattered around, and those filings are big! Obviously not a toy!.
However in my use it will be like retirement, I guess.

The box has already been loosened and is currently held by the two top bolts, draining some very heavy oil and water. Mine has been indoors, so I think the water might be from the cooling fluid?

As for the manuals, yes, have been there, downloaded a few, and printed out two.

I will need to manufacture some locking pins, some ball handles and a couple of wheels at a stage.

Enough to bite into, I would say.

But then I should be equipped for almost any task, having an old Martin Lathe as well.

I stand with this machine where I was 3 years ago with the lathe. Pull a handle here, see what happens, turn a wheel there and see what happens. The lathe I am on talking terms with now, guess that will happen with the milling machine as well.

By the way, your machine was an absolute steal, and it looks very good!