Thread: Where to obtain metal shafting and tubing in Australia

Hi Everyone,

I'm a woodworker who is about to build my first wooden clock, with the assistance of a CNC router. Among the materials I'm trying to source is reasonably accurately ground metal tubing (preferably brass - 1/4" or 6mm to start with, but other diameters further down the line) plus brass tubing to fit snugly over and provide bearings.

Can anyone suggest an Australian supplier? I've searched online but in vain and don't want to order from the USA if I can avoid it.

Any advice would be gratefully received.

Out of my depth (where metal is concerned)

Thanks and best regards,

Mervyn Mitchell
Wynyard, Tasmania

Wall thickness and length/s required ?
There seems to be any amount on Australian Ebay.

Do not know about ground brass tubing, though.

Not so sure about using tube as bearings .My father was a watchmaker and by extension fixed all manner of clocks. He made bearings on a watch makers lathe or purchased the bearings - bushings really.



Welcome to the MetalWork forums.

Grahame

Look up E and J Winter model engineering supplies in Bathurst NSW - they have everything you want.
Steve

https://ejwinter.com.au/

My mate in Alice Springs makes wooden clocks, you won't find precision ground brass any where, you will need to machine your own from solid stock or find some one with a metal lathe that can do it for you

Welcome to the forum Mervyn.

Ross

If you want off-the-shelf ground material that's relatively precise, silver steel (AKA drill rod) is probably your best bet (it doesn't actually have any silver in it, it's just called that because of how it looks); it's a form of tool steel which is easy to machine but is still fairly wear resistant in its unhardened state.

The sizes you'd need should have a tolerance around +0 / -0.015mm, so definitely not bearing level precision, but it's probably as good as you'll get without machining the material yourself.

Thanks everyone for your fast and informative replies, which have enabled me to find an Australian supplier of brass rods. The bushings remain more elusive but a friend has told me he can machine them easily from thicker rods, so I'm now in business. I've just had an email from a well-known American clock maker who tells me that precision fitted bushings on precisely machined shafts tend to jam when the wooden frame of the clock undergoes inevitable sag - they mustn't fit too tightly, so it appears I was in danger pf over engineering the shafts and bearings anyway.

Thanks again folk!

Mervyn