rashid111 wrote:
Ken -

do you mean use a pantograph style device to transfer dimension of a
die
to the target ? Can you elaborate a bit here ?

I did look around on the Web and have quite an extensive collection of
metalworking literature @ home, so I do have a pretty good
understanding
of a what an industrial SG looks like and how it works etc.

My whole setup is in a garage and I can not get a used SG from Ebay in
there,
unfortunately. But then again, my work envelope is tiny (1x3"),
compared to even the
smallest industrial SGs (6x12")

I thought about making a belt driven spindle for the grinding wheel
and it does look like
something I can tackle (I have a mill and a lathe and some spare time).
Just might
go that route if the router spindle is too bad. I am trying to keep the
size and weight
of the Z assembly down.

In my dreams I see myself loading a (pre-cut) strip of blue steel
onto the chuck and carefully
aligning it with the X -0 point, loading particular reed's profile into
Mach2 and hitting "go".
Minute later I have a complete reed, tuned to within 50 cents of target
or, may be, dead on



I don't really have to spin @ 4000rpm, can probably go much lower.

About X-Y travel: just might have to go that route. Ideally as long as
I am doing it,
I'd like to build a X-Y-Z CNC assembly that I can use for milling or
grinding. One immediate
problem is the grinding dust - it will be offly hard to absolutely keep
it out of the ballnut.

Another is price: my very limited grinding envelope doesn't require a
whole lotta of travel,
there is no forces to speak of - and it means I can go with short
5-10mm ballscrews and
linear rails.

Building milling-capable assembly is a whole different ballgame - 3-4
times more expensive.
Much longer and beefier rails and ballscrews.

Sorry I missed the part about space being an issue . I was thinking
conventional surface grinder . Still I think it would be cheaper to make
up the die and have them ground at a shop or a friends grinder . The
time and expense of building a " high tolerance " machine would cover
the cost of a box load outsourced . Still pretty cool to have your own
CNC set up but business wise I think other solutions might be more
profitable . Luck
Ken Cutt