Bob Engelhardt wrote:

In the latest issue of HSM, there is a tip from a reader about static
balancing, using the arbor-on-rails technique. He uses a lathe bed to
get a level foundation, which is a good idea, if your wheel is small enough.

He says to turn the ends of the arbor down to .150 or less, because "The
smaller the diameter of the axle bearing surface, the more accurate your
balance will be." This sounds exactly backwards to me. It seems to me
that smaller diameters have greater resistance to rolling and hence
would be less accurate.

The resistance to rolling (friction) might increase as the diameter gets
smaller but not as much as the change in diameter. A 1.5" diameter would
need to have 1/10 the rolling resistance to perform as well as .150

-jim


Am I missing something?

Bob