On Dec 24, 6:15*pm, pyotr filipivich wrote:
Let the Record show that Gunner Asch on or
about Thu, 24 Dec 2009 10:19:07 -0800 did write/type or cause to
appear in rec.crafts.metalworking *the following:





On Thu, 24 Dec 2009 09:42:29 -0800 (PST), wrote:

On Dec 23, 7:47*pm, The Dougster
wrote:
I have seen and read a bit of Gingery's books on bootstrapping a
machine shop. I like 'em! Another book I've seen is how to build a
lathe from ground flat tool steel. That's one high precision machine
tool!
(snip)

If you've got a decent large library with back issues of The Model
Engineer, they had lots of do-it-yourself machine tool building in the
pre-50's issues, folks were a lot poorer and more motivated back
then. * One of the 1900's has a do-it-yourself hand-powered planer
series you could build with pattern-making directions and such.
You're supposed to take the patterns to your local foundry to get them
cast.

The local library has two of three volumes of historical machine tool
development, the set comprises lathes, milling machines and grinding
tools, they've got the ones for lathes and grinding. *There are others
on the subject out there, but you'd probably have to visit a large
university library to read them, that's where I read them. *Village
Publications has had several milling machine projects in their home
shop mags, one used an old 4 cylinder engine block for the arbor
foundation.

(snip)
Im curious though...given the decline in the metalworking in the US..the
absolutely cheap or free machinery that is out there now days...why,
other than as an excercise..why would anyone in the US bother with
making a machine tool?

* * * * They are really, really anal, about quality control? *That is,
they think they can make a better one?

The stuff is so cheap (except for shipping) that its cost effective to
simply BUY a machine with pocket change.

* * * * I used to make little wooden boxes, about 4" x 6". *Someone asked
"Why don't you sell these?" *Because it was something I did for the
doing. *You could not afford the eight hours labor that went into
making it all by hand (no power tools), let alone the parts and
overhead. *
* * * * But after getting some oak stock cleaned up, I quipped "Do it this
way, you understand why power tools were invented!"

Many thanks to all in this Christmas Eve thread

Yep, I remember the truck-piston lathe, too.

Why make a machine tool?

"The Perfect Toothpick"

A lumberjack had a pair of dentures that were giving him trouble.
Rather than get the dentures fixed, he cut down a tree...and that was
how the Perfect Toothpick was made! LOL

something like that? A case of extremely linear (and yes, possibly
anal-retentive) thinking, perhaps....

I still have the lost link problem. The site had pictures and
descriptions of hundreds of classic machine tools going back more than
100 years, and the owner did me a favor by putting in a new category
after Mills, Lathes, etc. It was Universal Machines. There were a
dozen or two, from benchtop to submarine to even larger models.

We all live in a yellow submarine
It's painted pink and green
You know what I mean

We all live in a yellow submarine
It's painted pink and green
Inside


Happy Happy Joy Joy Christmas, everybody!

Doug