A question for anyone who has made or has thot about making a rotary
tool shank, like for attaching cutoff wheels.

What is an easy to find material for making a rotary tool shank?

I was thinking maybe using some rivet. Whatever, the qualities of the
metal rod have to be something like this.
....Drillable metal, not extremely hard.
....Straight.
....Diameter exactly 1/8" quickly flaring to 3/16" or whatever at some
point (it can be cut).
....Cheap.

To accuratly center the screw hole in the end of the shank, the unmade
shank can be inserted into a drill or rotary tool and spun against a
stationary drill bit.

Thanks in advance.

I don't understand! Please explain it better and there may be an existing
solution. How fast do they spin and what do you want to mount, and if you
are trying to do what I think you a DO-YOU-HAVE-A-VIDEO-CAMERA?


"John Doe" wrote in message
...
A question for anyone who has made or has thot about making a rotary
tool shank, like for attaching cutoff wheels.

What is an easy to find material for making a rotary tool shank?

I was thinking maybe using some rivet. Whatever, the qualities of the
metal rod have to be something like this.
...Drillable metal, not extremely hard.
...Straight.
...Diameter exactly 1/8" quickly flaring to 3/16" or whatever at some
point (it can be cut).
...Cheap.

To accuratly center the screw hole in the end of the shank, the unmade
shank can be inserted into a drill or rotary tool and spun against a
stationary drill bit.

Thanks in advance.

In article , John Doe says...

What is an easy to find material for making a rotary tool shank?

Steel.

Jim

==================================================
please reply to:
JRR(zero) at yktvmv (dot) vnet (dot) ibm (dot) com
==================================================

"John Doe" wrote in message
...
...Drillable metal, not extremely hard.

Ah, just order it *soft*, not *hard*.

...Straight.

Comes in *straight* and *bent*. Order the *straight*.

...Diameter exactly 1/8" quickly flaring to 3/16" or whatever at some
point (it can be cut).

Your local steel mill pumps out thousands of pieces *exactly* 1/8" in
diameter and then flairing to 3/16" (or something). Should be easy to find
at your local widget store (also check the thingamajig store down the
street).

...Cheap.

Well, who wants to pay more?


To accuratly center the screw hole in the end of the shank, the unmade
shank can be inserted into a drill or rotary tool and spun against a
stationary drill bit.

Ah! Yes, I see.


Thanks in advance.

No problem.

Regards,

Robin

twas one of my first projects with the 9x20, just a piece of 1/4" scrap
scrounged from something out of the junk box, turned out better than the
store bought ones actually.... pretty simple and straight forward
actually, I made the fore-end 1/4" for better rigidity.

mark

Robin S. wrote:
"John Doe" wrote in message
...

...Drillable metal, not extremely hard.


Ah, just order it *soft*, not *hard*.


...Straight.


Comes in *straight* and *bent*. Order the *straight*.


...Diameter exactly 1/8" quickly flaring to 3/16" or whatever at some
point (it can be cut).


Your local steel mill pumps out thousands of pieces *exactly* 1/8" in
diameter and then flairing to 3/16" (or something). Should be easy to find
at your local widget store (also check the thingamajig store down the
street).


...Cheap.


Well, who wants to pay more?


To accuratly center the screw hole in the end of the shank, the unmade
shank can be inserted into a drill or rotary tool and spun against a
stationary drill bit.


Ah! Yes, I see.


Thanks in advance.


No problem.

Regards,

Robin

mark wrote

twas one of my first projects with the 9x20, just a piece of 1/4" scrap
scrounged from something out of the junk box, turned out better than the
store bought ones actually.... pretty simple and straight forward
actually, I made the fore-end 1/4" for better rigidity.

So I walk on down to the corner steel mill and pick up what I need.

A corner plastic mill would be really great too.

Seriously.

Unfortunately, as I have many years of experience looking for unusual
parts, finding something which fits or which can be fashioned into what I
need is often a needle/haystack affair. Yes, it probably exists, somewhere.
The question is what and where.

....Some sort of nail?
....Some rivet?
....A 1/8" hex bolt?

A 1/8" hex bolt might work if I can find them. I could cut off the bolt to
length and turn the head against a grinder to shape it. Might be better to
use something which is more precisely made tho.

If the shanks could be 1/4" making them would be easy. But they need to fit
into the 1/8" chuck of a flex shaft.







mark

Robin S. wrote:
"John Doe" wrote in message
...

...Drillable metal, not extremely hard.


Ah, just order it *soft*, not *hard*.


...Straight.


Comes in *straight* and *bent*. Order the *straight*.


...Diameter exactly 1/8" quickly flaring to 3/16" or whatever at some
point (it can be cut).


Your local steel mill pumps out thousands of pieces *exactly* 1/8" in
diameter and then flairing to 3/16" (or something). Should be easy to
find
at your local widget store (also check the thingamajig store down the
street).


...Cheap.


Well, who wants to pay more?


To accuratly center the screw hole in the end of the shank, the unmade
shank can be inserted into a drill or rotary tool and spun against a
stationary drill bit.


Ah! Yes, I see.


Thanks in advance.


No problem.

Regards,

Robin

John Doe wrote in message 8...
mark wrote

twas one of my first projects with the 9x20, just a piece of 1/4" scrap
scrounged from something out of the junk box, turned out better than the
store bought ones actually.... pretty simple and straight forward
actually, I made the fore-end 1/4" for better rigidity.

So I walk on down to the corner steel mill and pick up what I need.

A corner plastic mill would be really great too.

Seriously.

Unfortunately, as I have many years of experience looking for unusual
parts, finding something which fits or which can be fashioned into what I
need is often a needle/haystack affair. Yes, it probably exists, somewhere.
The question is what and where.

...Some sort of nail?
...Some rivet?
...A 1/8" hex bolt?

A 1/8" hex bolt might work if I can find them. I could cut off the bolt to
length and turn the head against a grinder to shape it. Might be better to
use something which is more precisely made tho.

If the shanks could be 1/4" making them would be easy. But they need to fit
into the 1/8" chuck of a flex shaft.






OK, it seems you want a holder for Dremel type cut off disks.
The kind that Dremel makes, and sells.....
To use in a flexible shaft..

The shank from Dremel is dirt cheap.
And, the center is drilled on center already.

If you are determined to make something yourself,
The difficulty as you imagined is to get the screw
hole exactly on center...
Thst could be tough with a drill press or a lathe.

If you can use a drill press, you can take a small
block of aluminum, or steel, and drill and tap
for a screw.
Turn the block over, and drill just big enough for
the shank you are going to use.
The block should be clamped securely, and the hole you
just drilled will intersect with the screw hole you
jst made.
This allows you to put the shank into the hole, add
a screw to clamp it. If the block was clamped securely all
this time, the shank is now exactly lined up with the
drill press.
Now, you can drill and tap the screw hole in the end
of the shank you are making.... It will be lined up
with the shank since the shank is inserted into the
hole you just drilled in the small block.

Without a drill press, or lathe, it will be much
harder to get the screw hole in the shank lined up
exactly on center.
It might be possible. But it would MUCH easier to
earn enough money to buy the shank from Dremel,
for example, then to struggle without the proper
tools to make it.

I don't think I spent over $4.00 for mine.

Pete

(Pete Logghe) wrote

OK, it seems you want a holder for Dremel type cut off disks.
The kind that Dremel makes, and sells.....
To use in a flexible shaft..

The shank from Dremel is dirt cheap.
And, the center is drilled on center already.

If you are determined to make something yourself,
The difficulty as you imagined is to get the screw
hole exactly on center...
Thst could be tough with a drill press or a lathe.

If you can use a drill press, you can take a small
block of aluminum, or steel, and drill and tap
for a screw.
Turn the block over, and drill just big enough for
the shank you are going to use.
The block should be clamped securely, and the hole you
just drilled will intersect with the screw hole you
jst made.
This allows you to put the shank into the hole, add
a screw to clamp it. If the block was clamped securely all
this time, the shank is now exactly lined up with the
drill press.
Now, you can drill and tap the screw hole in the end
of the shank you are making.... It will be lined up
with the shank since the shank is inserted into the
hole you just drilled in the small block.

Without a drill press, or lathe, it will be much
harder to get the screw hole in the shank lined up
exactly on center.
It might be possible. But it would MUCH easier to
earn enough money to buy the shank from Dremel,
for example, then to struggle without the proper
tools to make it.

I don't think I spent over $4.00 for mine.

Pete


I appreciate your reply.

I think that making a dead center hole is pretty easy. I put the shank in
the rotary tool and hold a sharp drill bit against the end. With the
material turning fast enough, it should be near perfect.

An alternative method to hold the drill bit is to drill down into a block
of wood, remove and roughen the bit a little, and then super glue it upside
down in the hole. Keeping the block clamped to the drill press base might
help. Then use that block of wood with the bit sticking upwards, under the
shank which is turning in the drill press.

I think that might be what you are saying. But using a sharp drill bit and
the fast spinning rotary tool without clamping might be better for a really
precise hole. It could be flared a bit on the end but that's probably OK.

Time will tell.

(Pete Logghe) wrote

But it would MUCH easier to earn enough money to buy the shank from
Dremel,

Believe it or not, sometimes I do things for the fun of it. Whether it
costs more or less isn't my only concern. I know where to get the shanks. I
know how much the shanks cost. I can afford to buy the shanks.

"John Doe" wrote in message
...

Believe it or not, sometimes I do things for the fun of it. Whether it
costs more or less isn't my only concern. I know where to get the shanks.
I
know how much the shanks cost. I can afford to buy the shanks.


Well pardon us, smart guy. Machinists and toolmakers are practical by
nature. Many here (and the companies that employ us) cannot afford to be
spendy with our time. For example, press time at the place I work is worth
$5,000/hr.

If you're convinced you can make it, and you seem to have it all planned out
(and not willing to take our centuries of combined experience) then why
don't you go and MAKE it?

Regards,

Robin

"Robin S." wrote
"John Doe" wrote

Believe it or not, sometimes I do things for the fun of it. Whether
it costs more or less isn't my only concern. I know where to get the
shanks. I know how much the shanks cost. I can afford to buy the shanks.

Well pardon us, smart guy.

)

Machinists and toolmakers are practical by nature. Many here (and the
companies that employ us) cannot afford to be spendy with our time.
For example, press time at the place I work is worth $5,000/hr.

Perhaps I read the group name wrong.

Can't we all just get along?

If you're convinced you can make it, and you seem to have it all
planned out (and not willing to take our centuries of combined
experience)

I haven't rejected anything.

I cannot use 1/4" rod because it has to fit a 1/8" chuck. I cannot lathe
anything, especially not metal.

The material has to be 1/8" and quickly flare to up to 1/4". I haven't
seen any specific suggestions about that yet.

I know it has to be metal. I suspect it exists ready made.

then why don't you go and MAKE it?

Because I haven't got the material yet.

I appreciate your prior encouragement, but I'm still looking.








Regards,

Robin



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From: "Robin S."
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Subject: A question for anyone who has made a rotary tool shank.
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I cannot use 1/4" rod because it has to fit a 1/8" chuck. I cannot
lathe anything, especially not metal.

You mentioned a drill press. Presumably IT has a larger than
1/8" chuck. Chuck a lenght of 1/4" rod in drill press. Leave
enough sticking out to be the 1/8" portion. Start drill press.
Apply file. Stop press now and then and check with one of your
1/8" collets, or with some other piece of metal with a 1/8"
hole in it for use as a gauge. When it fits, stop. Remove
rod from drill press, cut off 1/4 in portion to leave flange of
the length you desire. Note: Leave enough room for screw
threads, so that the hole for the screw doesn't bottom out at
the 1/8" part of the flange, and thus remove it.

YMMV, HTH, etc.
--Glenn Lyford

My Dremel Advantage (flex shaft removed) has both, a 1/8" and 1/4" chuck.

Hoyt McKagen wrote

Won't work, he'll be off-center in a few hundredths of an inch.

Glenn Lyford wrote:

I cannot use 1/4" rod because it has to fit a 1/8" chuck. I cannot
lathe anything, especially not metal.

You mentioned a drill press. Presumably IT has a larger than
1/8" chuck. Chuck a lenght of 1/4" rod in drill press. Leave
enough sticking out to be the 1/8" portion. Start drill press.
Apply file. Stop press now and then and check with one of your
1/8" collets, or with some other piece of metal with a 1/8"
hole in it for use as a gauge. When it fits, stop. Remove
rod from drill press, cut off 1/4 in portion to leave flange of
the length you desire. Note: Leave enough room for screw
threads, so that the hole for the screw doesn't bottom out at
the 1/8" part of the flange, and thus remove it.

YMMV, HTH, etc.
--Glenn Lyford

Won't work, he'll be off-center in a few hundredths of an inch.

Glenn Lyford wrote:

I cannot use 1/4" rod because it has to fit a 1/8" chuck. I cannot
lathe anything, especially not metal.

You mentioned a drill press. Presumably IT has a larger than
1/8" chuck. Chuck a lenght of 1/4" rod in drill press. Leave
enough sticking out to be the 1/8" portion. Start drill press.
Apply file. Stop press now and then and check with one of your
1/8" collets, or with some other piece of metal with a 1/8"
hole in it for use as a gauge. When it fits, stop. Remove
rod from drill press, cut off 1/4 in portion to leave flange of
the length you desire. Note: Leave enough room for screw
threads, so that the hole for the screw doesn't bottom out at
the 1/8" part of the flange, and thus remove it.

YMMV, HTH, etc.
--Glenn Lyford