DIYbanter - View Single Post

Steve W.[_4_]

wrote:
The museum got a couple of gears cast. And that was good, but the
hubs do not have any hole thru them. So need to drill a couple of
holes thru the hubs. Not the easiest thing to do with the machinery
available. I think the holes are 2 and 5/16th in diameter and maybe
two inches in length.

I have a 20 inch drill press, but the gears are just over 27 inches
in diameter. And the drill press at the museum is smaller.
Fortunately the gears are spoked. So one plan is to take the head
off the drill press, put the gear on the base with the column going
up between the spokes. And put the head back on the drill press.
Sometimes you just have to make do with what you have.

So have been thinking about anular cutters. Maybe getting one off
Ebay. A brief look finds most of them will not make a hole two
inches long. So that could involve cutting from both sides. Which
is of course a PITA because you have to flip the gear over.

I have never used an anular cutter but have some suspicions. I
expect anular cutters do not work well in a portable drill. It would
be nice to drill using a portable drill and then flip the gear over
and drill from the other side. And get a fair sized hole thru the
gear hub before putting it on the drill press.

So is that possible, practical? Or is it a sure way to get beaten
to death by the portable drill when it hangs up?

The other question is would it be worthwhile to use a anular cutter
in the drill press and cut from both sides. Yeah that is a judgement
call, but what is your opinion.

Yes the gears should have cores in the hubs, but they did not.

One last thought is to drill a relatively small hole thru the hub
and enlarge it using a cutting torch and finish on the drill press.

Dan

drill it as far as you can then toss a boring bar in the drill press. IF
the press is even close to being a good one it should be able to handle
light cuts. OR Depending on the location you might be able to find a guy
with a mill in the garage that would do it for reasonable.

--
Steve W.