wrote in news:1114623076.356736.313220
@o13g2000cwo.googlegroups.com:

I think I was using the wrong terms. We are using a tool mounted on
the turret. It has two carbide rollers and the carbide cutter. We are
not using to cross slide for this. I've just been using the terms I had
heard for doing this.
I have almost no production experience and the owners of this place
have no experience at manufacturing. They were doing everything the way
the previous owners did. I We want to use something beside 12L14
because the cost of it 8xs 1018. This is just one of countless things
I'm involved in changing around here.
We are making screws for muzzleloaders trying to reproduce screws off
of original guns. So they have to be steel

12L14 isn't very strong even though it's steel. If the screws are holding
the gun together and are under load and or shock you should be using a
medium carbon steel and heat treating. More info he
http://www.americanfastener.com/tech...ings_steel.asp

Where were you having trouble with the surface finish? Was it in the
threads? I'm assuming that you are using a Landis or Geometric type die
head for threading. If the trouble is in the surface finish of the
threads then you could take a look at thread rolling on the machine.
Landis and Fette both make rolling heads that will work in a Brown &
Sharpe. Rolling heads cold form the thread rather than cut it. So you end
up with a stronger thread and a better surface finish because the thread
rolls will burnish the material as they are forming it.
http://www.landisthreadingsystems.co...ng/default.htm
http://www.lmtfette.com/threadfiles/thread.htm

If the problem is the finish on the un-threaded portion turned by the
box tool, you may be able to change the geometry of the tool and/or use a
bigger radius on the tool. If the box tool is an old style one that uses
bits instead of carbide inserts, the grind geometry is very important. If
you are using an insert type you can try a different grade, a larger nose
radius, and a different style chip breaker. With a box tool you probably
need not worry about spindle speed as the Brownie probably doesn't have
enough RPM to burn up the tool. What model machine is it, and what is
your RPM and feed rate?

--

Dan