Oh no! My bandsaw just died!!!

[Michael G]

I think I'll just go with that cheap $80 ebay job, I sent the seller a message last night re freight. I'll turn up a small bush to adapt the shaft. It will only need a 1 mm wall thickness so it shouldn't require any keyway to be cut etc, that was the part I was trying to avoid.

Pete, I have a set of metric broaches (and a small hydraulic press to use them on) if you do need a keyway done. Keyways in larger bores I can do on the shaper, but for small stuff the broach is less mucking around (although not as thereputic)

Michael

[Pete F]

Thanks Michael, if I need to broach the keyway I'll just do it on the lathe, but don't think it will be required. Thanks anyway. Getting the correct size shaft would have just saved a minor amount of stuffing around. The seller of that little 80 buck motor got back to me, and freight was cheap enough so I'll just use that. I'm not expecting much and would have preferred a better quality alternative as I suspect I'll be in exactly the same position again in future, but it was the only one i found that was an easy fit.

Out of curiosity, how do you find broaching using a hydraulic press, and what type of press do you use? (see my other thread on this topic). I'd always thought that broaching using a hydraulic press would be glacially slow, and was one of the reasons I was considering building up a powered press.

Pete

[KBs PensNmore]

That is what I did with the motor on my DP when I upgraded it to 3 Phase. The stepped pulley had a 19 mm orifice but the new motor had a 16 mm shaft so I turned up a 1.5 mm thick bush. There was no keyway on the DP pulley, just a flat section on the shaft of the original motor and an 8mm grub screw on the pulley. The new motor had a 6 mm keyway so I drilled a 6 mm hole in the bush and turned the end of the grub screw down to 6 mm so that it went thru the hole in the bush and into the keyway.

One problem I had was the bush ended up just a whisker too thin and when I tightened it all up it threw the pulley out of centre and cause a small vibration which was irritating enough for me to eventually turn up a second bush which is much better. For good measure I also added a second grub screw.

So far so good - I have used it several times with a 25 mm diam MT2 bit in 16 mm steel plate without any problems. Hopefully the belts will slip before the grub screws break.

BTW the motor is a 1.5HP Leeson 240 V 3 phase powered from a single phase circuit using a VFD.
http://www.woodworkforums.com/f155/v...3/#post1622198
I never thought I would have a use for a reverse capability but at slow speed it's excellent for unjamming a bit.

At least if you've got a lot of tapping to do you'll be right.

Kryn

[Michael G]

I have an Enerpac 10 ton cylinder in their bench/ arbor press frame. I can say that even second hand it cost more than the one you pictured but I need the compactness and thought that it may come in handy for other things.
A-Series, C-Clamp, Arbor and Bench Presses | Enerpac
There is a V block that sits in the frame but I'm yet to find one (A-110 is the part no. if anyone sees one)
Typically two or three passes with a broach are needed to get the slot to the right depth. A hand pump is slow but not overly so for one off work. I prefer slowly pushing the broach through anyway as at the end of the day it is a long thin column made of hard (brittle) material and I don't want it buckling on me and shattering. I met a fitter once who insisted that broaches can be knocked through with a hammer but if the blow is not just right there is the risk of things not ending well. Provided the force is steady push speed is probably secondary

Michael

[Pete F]

Yeah I think I'll pass on pushing through broaches with a hammer Sometimes I think old Charlie (Darwin) was right.

Do you find your press has enough travel to push the broach all the way through, or do you need to take 2 bites at it to get enough travel? How much is your press' travel?

Compactness would be good, as I've passed crisis point in that regard here, but I figured I can mount wheels on the bottom of the frame and should be able to slot in in to a space somewhere. Once I've sold the Hercus Type O mill I will put the press where that was.

Pete

[Michael G]

Do you find your press has enough travel to push the broach all the way through, or do you need to take 2 bites at it to get enough travel? How much is your press' travel?

Damn! found out again.
The cylinder in the press has a stroke of 10", so long enough for most smaller broaches. The largest broach is 12" long, so I would have to broach about half way, retract the ram, block up the part being broached and continue. That doesn't hurt anything. The instructions that come with a broach set tell you to back off the ram soon after starting the cut in case there is some mis-alignment and then start pumping again. Most of the broaches in the set are 8" or less. (Individual broaches bought new are a ridiculous price. A second hand set is a much better proposition per broach. If you are lucky like I was you may find that the seller is selling a set that has been added to over the years with extra broaches bought for specific jobs.)

Michael