PTS Flowbench Forum

To continue my old thread ( see http://www.tractorsport.com/cgi-bin/for ... ;f=12;t=95 ) I quote my last posting from the 17th of March:

In the last month, I haven't done so much, due to health problems and working very long at the daily job.

However I started to prepare my mini-workshop for electronics work and small metal work in my homes attic in December and early January.
I bought a small milling machine (chinese made) in September last year, but it wasn't ready to use as I hoped. So I started to buy all kind of parts to make it usable. First thing was exchanging all the weak chinese screws and bolts and exchanged the machine support from 2 mm tube (!) to a solid pillar (from a hydraulic parts seller). The electric had to be fixed up too, as everything was quite loose-fitting.

Next thing will be a small lathe (anything below 300 lb weight), but I have time to wait for a bargain

The first little table for the vertical milling machine wasn't that good nor large enough, so I started to build a new table which still fits into the attic and is large enought to fit the milling machine and the small lathe as mentioned before.

I found some nice wooden beams for small money in the constructions area of a home improvement store. These beams are 3,15 inch x 3,15 inch and strong enough for the small machines.

On tuesday I had the chance to drive over to Luxembourg, where a machine dealer had his main outlet. My idea was to buy a 9" x 29" lathe, but when I saw that machine in front of me, I wasn't so sure if it still fits into my attic anymore. So I had chosen a smaller version of it ( 9" x 19" ). The lathe is a chinese origin ofcourse, as all other machines would have been out of my budget and maximum weight.

I asked a friend to help me to carry the lathe out of my little van to the attic and even though I removed everything I could inside the van, we still needed 1 complete hour and several pauses to get the machine to its new place. Again, I know that these very steep and narrow stairs into my appartment (and to the attic) are complicating such jobs.

To make a long story short: here is a photo of the lathe and the mini-mill on the new workbench:


I have to remove both machines again as I have to lay a new floor and I will add some crossbeams to support the table legs.

The working table just cost me around 40 Euros in material, but is much more stable than the table before.

Cheers,

Daniel

Nice setup!!!

Yes, this is a very nice setup. I really like the workbench. What material have you used for the benchtop surface?

Ray

Hi,

Thanks guys. The bench surface is a 1 1/2 inch kitchen wooden countertop, which is supported by the same 80x80 wooden beams.
It is very low on budget and is astonishing solid. I was surprised how good is already is. However the additional support will be mounted
before I start working on it.

Cheers,

Daniel

Thats a Real nice setup there MrHiJit I like the lay out looks like its good and Strong

Congratulations! good organization

Daniel,
Great job. I love the feel of your shop. I like that a lot. I have some friends that have huge shops and have them so stacked full of crap that you cannot do anything anyway so why have a big shop. Just having a lot of "stuff" does not mean you are creative or productive. I love what you have done. You are a doer which most people are not. Good job!

John

I used the easter holiday (beside walking through the woods and fields with my girlfriend and dog) to fit the first digital read-out to the mini mill. The factory mechanial read outs are more or less a joke, as they are more decoration than a precise measurement tool. You can see the factory readout on the left handle: They just printed a scale on the turning handle.



So I had the idea to use digital vernier scales, which can be digitally read out with a 4 cable connector. To cover the scale, I used an 30x30mm steel L-profile , so there is a little roof over it, but I can see the display for the first builds till the central 3 axis display is ready. The L-profile also enlarges the mill bed and prevents metal flakes from falling inside the mill. I will add a second L-profile on the rear too as it does not harm the travel ranges of the bed.

Next step will be the y-axis and then the z-axis.

Cheers,

Daniel

Hello Daniel
you can pass these rulers digital site, for I study. or manufacturer to find

Hello Hotz,

I hope I understand you right.
I bought them from ebay in Germany. These are typical chinese made digital vernier scales. There are many manufactors in China who are building them and so it is hard to differ between them.

I have some links to some websites who worked out how to utilize the external interface of them:
Technical:
http://www.shumatech.com/support/chinese_scales.htm
http://www.yadro.de/digital-scale/protocol.html

Programming
http://www.cnczone.com/forums/showthread.php?t=62704
http://www.auv.co.za/blog/attiny45quadraturedecoder

Regards,

Daniel