Buddy came by today with a piece of 1/4" diamond plate aluminum he is
making a dashboard for his boat out of. He had come by a couple weeks
ago, and roughed it out on my WT bandsaw, and now needed to cut the
holes for the gauges, Tach etc. They were all bigger than normal
sizes..so had no hole saws big enough. I tried a decent wood type
circle cutter, which broke, made one up by tigging a piece of 3/8 x
1/2" tool steel to a 1/2" shank, and put it into my heavy boring head,
and grinding a tripanning profile on the tool steel. Which ran 1 hole
then broke the tool steel in half. Blink blink....

I finally finished all the gauge holes by hole sawing them, then using
a tapered face mill to plunge to the right diameter, and the Big tach
hole was done by hole sawing, then roughing to diameter with using
x/y handwheels and a big 2 flute end mill, finishing with a die
grinder and a carbide burr. T

there has to be a better way.

As the diamond plate "diamonds" stand proud..I finished up the gage
holes using a big face mill and put in a slight counter bore so the
gauges sit flat on a machined surface. Actually looks pretty good, but
took a lot of steps to do something that should be pretty simple.

Anyone got a link for a plan for a decent circle cutter? Something
tough enough to do this sort of thing? Something that will tripan
about a 6 or 8" hole or smaller and is adjustable? Or a pic of how
you made one? Id like to avoid reenventing the wheel.

Thanks

Gunner

"I think this is because of your belief in biological Marxism.
As a genetic communist you feel that noticing behavioural
patterns relating to race would cause a conflict with your belief
in biological Marxism." Big Pete, famous Usenet Racist

"Gunner" wrote in message
...
snip----

there has to be a better way.

There is, and you won't believe how simple it is.

I think it's Stanley that makes an adjustable circle cutter. It's a fly
cutter of sorts in that it uses a 1/4" HSS lathe toolbit that is held in an
arm with a set screw. The body has a 1/4" drill that acts as a center, so
all you have to do is set the arm out to spin the circle you desire and cut
away.

Before you jump to conclusions and suggest to me that it won't work, be
advised that I cut all the openings in the 400 amp switch and the CT can for
my 3 phase service with one, using a half inch Milwaukee drill. I cut
several holes.

Yep! Did them by hand, and it works great. Requires a little skill, but I
know you could handle it easily.

Remember, the items I cut are made of steel. Cutting aluminum would be a
breeze. It does require some skill in grinding the tool, and constant
lubrication, but you can handle that with something as simple as an acid
brush.

Harold

On Sun, 23 Apr 2006 00:53:51 -0700, "Harold and Susan Vordos"
wrote:


"Gunner" wrote in message
.. .
snip----

there has to be a better way.

There is, and you won't believe how simple it is.

I think it's Stanley that makes an adjustable circle cutter. It's a fly
cutter of sorts in that it uses a 1/4" HSS lathe toolbit that is held in an
arm with a set screw. The body has a 1/4" drill that acts as a center, so
all you have to do is set the arm out to spin the circle you desire and cut
away.

Before you jump to conclusions and suggest to me that it won't work, be
advised that I cut all the openings in the 400 amp switch and the CT can for
my 3 phase service with one, using a half inch Milwaukee drill. I cut
several holes.

Yep! Did them by hand, and it works great. Requires a little skill, but I
know you could handle it easily.

Remember, the items I cut are made of steel. Cutting aluminum would be a
breeze. It does require some skill in grinding the tool, and constant
lubrication, but you can handle that with something as simple as an acid
brush.

Harold


This is exactly the sort of cutter I first used..which broke.

I suppose I could scale it up..beef it up when copying it.

Gunner

"I think this is because of your belief in biological Marxism.
As a genetic communist you feel that noticing behavioural
patterns relating to race would cause a conflict with your belief
in biological Marxism." Big Pete, famous Usenet Racist

I got my hole cutter from Harbor Freight. It has about a 7/16 inch
drive, not flatted. The body is around 3/4 inch. The guide is 6mm IIRC
and requires a 6mm reamed hole. The square tool bit is easily removed
and ground. The guide is replacable.

I'd hex-mill the drive for use with a drill chuck to stabilize this
tool for heavier work.

Let's see,

4 inch hole in aluminum.

CS * 4 / D

300 * 4 / 4 = 300 rpm but it's offset, so around 200 rpm maybe.

I did a 6 inch hole in particle board with this tool in a drill press.
Harbor Freight doesn't list it in Search, but may sell it if you can
find the item number. I don't have my box any more.

Doug

Gunner wrote:
Buddy came by today with a piece of 1/4" diamond plate aluminum he is
making a dashboard for his boat out of. He had come by a couple weeks
ago, and roughed it out on my WT bandsaw, and now needed to cut the
holes for the gauges, Tach etc. They were all bigger than normal
sizes..so had no hole saws big enough. I tried a decent wood type
circle cutter, which broke, made one up by tigging a piece of 3/8 x
1/2" tool steel to a 1/2" shank, and put it into my heavy boring head,
and grinding a tripanning profile on the tool steel. Which ran 1 hole
then broke the tool steel in half. Blink blink....

I finally finished all the gauge holes by hole sawing them, then using
a tapered face mill to plunge to the right diameter, and the Big tach
hole was done by hole sawing, then roughing to diameter with using
x/y handwheels and a big 2 flute end mill, finishing with a die
grinder and a carbide burr. T

there has to be a better way.

I recently had to cut out a pickguard for a heavy metal bass guitar from
aluminum diamondplate. I did the internal cutting using a jigsaw mounted on my
1949 Shopsmith. Worked fine, but a tad tedious. I *never* seem to have the right
size hole saw! Anyway pickup holes are rectangular with rounded corners so even
if I had every hole saw made it wouldn't have helped me.

GWE

"Gunner" wrote in message
...
Buddy came by today with a piece of 1/4" diamond plate aluminum he is
making a dashboard for his boat out of. He had come by a couple weeks
ago, and roughed it out on my WT bandsaw, and now needed to cut the
holes for the gauges, Tach etc. They were all bigger than normal
sizes..so had no hole saws big enough. I tried a decent wood type
snip

I've made big one-shot hole saws with a hardwood or plywood disk and band
saw stock screwed on the perimeter and a 1/2" commercial arbor. I can't see
why your cutter didn't work, you must have ****ed it up somehow...rethink
it. Did you get the software running? Tricky huh?

Grant Erwin wrote:
Gunner wrote:
Buddy came by today with a piece of 1/4" diamond plate aluminum he is
making a dashboard for his boat out of. He had come by a couple
weeks ago, and roughed it out on my WT bandsaw, and now needed to
cut the holes for the gauges, Tach etc. They were all bigger than
normal sizes..so had no hole saws big enough. I tried a decent wood
type circle cutter, which broke, made one up by tigging a piece of
3/8 x 1/2" tool steel to a 1/2" shank, and put it into my heavy
boring head, and grinding a tripanning profile on the tool steel.
Which ran 1 hole then broke the tool steel in half. Blink blink....

I finally finished all the gauge holes by hole sawing them, then
using a tapered face mill to plunge to the right diameter, and the
Big tach hole was done by hole sawing, then roughing to diameter
with using x/y handwheels and a big 2 flute end mill, finishing
with a die grinder and a carbide burr. T

there has to be a better way.

I recently had to cut out a pickguard for a heavy metal bass guitar
from aluminum diamondplate. I did the internal cutting using a jigsaw
mounted on my 1949 Shopsmith. Worked fine, but a tad tedious. I
*never* seem to have the right size hole saw! Anyway pickup holes are
rectangular with rounded corners so even if I had every hole saw made
it wouldn't have helped me.
GWE

You could have used one to cut the rounded corners ...
--
Snag aka OSG #1
'76 FLH "Bag Lady"
BS132 SENS NEWT
"A hand shift is a manly shift ."
shamelessly stolen
none to one to reply

On Sun, 23 Apr 2006 05:35:54 -0700, Larry Jaques
wrote:

On Sun, 23 Apr 2006 08:00:03 GMT, with neither quill nor qualm, Gunner
quickly quoth:

On Sun, 23 Apr 2006 00:53:51 -0700, "Harold and Susan Vordos"
wrote:


"Gunner" wrote in message
...
snip----

there has to be a better way.

There is, and you won't believe how simple it is.

I think it's Stanley that makes an adjustable circle cutter. It's a fly
cutter of sorts in that it uses a 1/4" HSS lathe toolbit that is held in an
arm with a set screw. The body has a 1/4" drill that acts as a center, so
all you have to do is set the arm out to spin the circle you desire and cut
away.

This is exactly the sort of cutter I first used..which broke.

I suppose I could scale it up..beef it up when copying it.

Did you clamp the holy **** out of the dash piece first and limit the
downfeed as you were breaking through? Stabbing through into a hunk of
wood might be the coup de grace. Excess movement is the killer there.
DAMHIKT, but I've generally come away without scars.


Yes...it was clamped down on a piece of MDF, flat on the table, and
when it broke..it was about .1 deep into the aluminum. Cutter had
plenty of side and bottom relief, slight hook and I was Gently
handfeeding. Same with the home brew cutter in the boring head. Its
possible I was running too slow...but not enough to cause this I dont
think. Shrug. At no time did I notice any change in sound of the 3
hp motor..IE lugging, and the chips appeared normal for this sort of
tool.

Shrug... Something turned to ****..Ill beef up the next one.

Least my welds held fine G

Gunner


-------------------------------------------------------------
give me The Luxuries Of Life * http://www.diversify.com
i can live without the necessities * 2 Tee collections online
-------------------------------------------------------------

"I think this is because of your belief in biological Marxism.
As a genetic communist you feel that noticing behavioural
patterns relating to race would cause a conflict with your belief
in biological Marxism." Big Pete, famous Usenet Racist

"Gunner" wrote in message
...


As the diamond plate "diamonds" stand proud..I finished up the gage
holes using a big face mill and put in a slight counter bore so the
gauges sit flat on a machined surface. Actually looks pretty good, but
took a lot of steps to do something that should be pretty simple.

Did you consider doing the cutting from the "back" side?

It's a lot flatter there and, while the "points" might need touching up with
a file/rotary rasp/sanding drum, the rest of the circle would be a simple
cut.

You might also want to consider a circle guide for a router or Dremel - HSS
bits or, for the router, hole saw bits can cut AL with few problems and
could also simplify the task of creating the border for the bezel.

BTW, do you have a rotating table and a vertical mill? grin

On Sun, 23 Apr 2006 14:57:35 GMT, "Tom Gardner"
wrote:


"Gunner" wrote in message
.. .
Buddy came by today with a piece of 1/4" diamond plate aluminum he is
making a dashboard for his boat out of. He had come by a couple weeks
ago, and roughed it out on my WT bandsaw, and now needed to cut the
holes for the gauges, Tach etc. They were all bigger than normal
sizes..so had no hole saws big enough. I tried a decent wood type
snip

I've made big one-shot hole saws with a hardwood or plywood disk and band
saw stock screwed on the perimeter and a 1/2" commercial arbor. I can't see
why your cutter didn't work, you must have ****ed it up somehow...rethink

Indeed..I screwed the pooch somewhere.

it. Did you get the software running? Tricky huh?


Not yet..Im on the road 4-5 days a week..and have been up to my ass in
alligators. Ill try the install later today or tommorow with luck.

Ive spent the last couple weekends going through the boxes of Stuff
and tossing things in the dumpster. Hated like hell tossing some of
that stuff..trying to decide what to keep..what to toss.

Ive posted repeatedly that it was open season on my Stacks O
Stuff..but no one was interested..so tossing all those good bearings
and rollers and electronics and PLCs sorta made me cringe..Still got
about another 5000 lbs to go through.

I really need to get some order out back..and unbury and move the
van..which is filled with computer equipment. Ive got about 5 trailer
loads of lumber stored at a friends shop in So. Cal..and want to build
a couple more outbuildings with it..but have no place to put it. I
serviced the 4 Lodestar hoists..painted and primped the one Im
keeping, appear to have sold one to a poster in Texas..need to crate
and ship it...and figure out what to do with the 4 perfectly good
Fairbanks platform scales sitting under my gantry. Ill off therm to
the local can recyclers. Shrug..too much to do while the weather is
reasonable, but the rain over the last couple months has been an
issue.

Gunner


"I think this is because of your belief in biological Marxism.
As a genetic communist you feel that noticing behavioural
patterns relating to race would cause a conflict with your belief
in biological Marxism." Big Pete, famous Usenet Racist

Hello Gunner,

One technique that has come in handy for this type of job is a plunge
router with a circle-cutting base plate. It is best to use a heavy duty
router, and a carbide cutter, a bit of cutting fluid, and aluminum
machines quite nicely.

It is a combination of heavy woodworking tools augmented with carbide
cutters. With the router set at 20k rpm, it seems to work nicely.

It is best if you use a backplate of wood to insure the dowel, and the
o.d. of the part you are cutting don't move when things get detached.
Otherwise things can get exciting. A couple of clamps will keep the
gauge plate fixed w.r.t. the dowel.

Leaves a nicer finish than most other tools, and is more accessible than
the milling.

Use at your own risk...

Guy

On Sun, 23 Apr 2006 10:57:19 -0500, "RAM³"
wrote:

"Gunner" wrote in message
.. .


As the diamond plate "diamonds" stand proud..I finished up the gage
holes using a big face mill and put in a slight counter bore so the
gauges sit flat on a machined surface. Actually looks pretty good, but
took a lot of steps to do something that should be pretty simple.

Did you consider doing the cutting from the "back" side?

Considered it. Didnt seem to matter that much..its aluminum..not
hastalloy.

It's a lot flatter there and, while the "points" might need touching up with
a file/rotary rasp/sanding drum, the rest of the circle would be a simple
cut.

You might also want to consider a circle guide for a router or Dremel - HSS
bits or, for the router, hole saw bits can cut AL with few problems and
could also simplify the task of creating the border for the bezel.


True indeed. But then Im back to making tools to make tools to do a
job. He showed up at 11 am...

BTW, do you have a rotating table and a vertical mill? grin


sure. First thing I thought of was how to get that 5' long dashboard
on my biggest 12" rotory table and get it to spin completely around on
the table of my vertical miller. G

gunner



"I think this is because of your belief in biological Marxism.
As a genetic communist you feel that noticing behavioural
patterns relating to race would cause a conflict with your belief
in biological Marxism." Big Pete, famous Usenet Racist

Gunner wrote:

On Sun, 23 Apr 2006 05:35:54 -0700, Larry Jaques
wrote:


On Sun, 23 Apr 2006 08:00:03 GMT, with neither quill nor qualm, Gunner
quickly quoth:


On Sun, 23 Apr 2006 00:53:51 -0700, "Harold and Susan Vordos"
wrote:


"Gunner" wrote in message
m...
snip----

there has to be a better way.

There is, and you won't believe how simple it is.

I think it's Stanley that makes an adjustable circle cutter. It's a fly
cutter of sorts in that it uses a 1/4" HSS lathe toolbit that is held in an
arm with a set screw. The body has a 1/4" drill that acts as a center, so
all you have to do is set the arm out to spin the circle you desire and cut
away.

This is exactly the sort of cutter I first used..which broke.

I suppose I could scale it up..beef it up when copying it.

Did you clamp the holy **** out of the dash piece first and limit the
downfeed as you were breaking through? Stabbing through into a hunk of
wood might be the coup de grace. Excess movement is the killer there.
DAMHIKT, but I've generally come away without scars.



Yes...it was clamped down on a piece of MDF, flat on the table, and
when it broke..it was about .1 deep into the aluminum. Cutter had
plenty of side and bottom relief, slight hook and I was Gently
handfeeding. Same with the home brew cutter in the boring head. Its
possible I was running too slow...but not enough to cause this I dont
think. Shrug. At no time did I notice any change in sound of the 3
hp motor..IE lugging, and the chips appeared normal for this sort of
tool.

Shrug... Something turned to ****..Ill beef up the next one.

Least my welds held fine G

Gunner


-------------------------------------------------------------
give me The Luxuries Of Life * http://www.diversify.com
i can live without the necessities * 2 Tee collections online
-------------------------------------------------------------


"I think this is because of your belief in biological Marxism.
As a genetic communist you feel that noticing behavioural
patterns relating to race would cause a conflict with your belief
in biological Marxism." Big Pete, famous Usenet Racist




Feed with the table and not with the quill.

john wrote:



Gunner wrote:

On Sun, 23 Apr 2006 05:35:54 -0700, Larry Jaques
wrote:


On Sun, 23 Apr 2006 08:00:03 GMT, with neither quill nor qualm, Gunner
quickly quoth:


On Sun, 23 Apr 2006 00:53:51 -0700, "Harold and Susan Vordos"
wrote:


"Gunner" wrote in message
...
snip----

there has to be a better way.


There is, and you won't believe how simple it is.

I think it's Stanley that makes an adjustable circle cutter. It's a
fly
cutter of sorts in that it uses a 1/4" HSS lathe toolbit that is
held in an
arm with a set screw. The body has a 1/4" drill that acts as a
center, so
all you have to do is set the arm out to spin the circle you desire
and cut
away.


This is exactly the sort of cutter I first used..which broke.

I suppose I could scale it up..beef it up when copying it.


Did you clamp the holy **** out of the dash piece first and limit the
downfeed as you were breaking through? Stabbing through into a hunk of
wood might be the coup de grace. Excess movement is the killer there.
DAMHIKT, but I've generally come away without scars.



Yes...it was clamped down on a piece of MDF, flat on the table, and
when it broke..it was about .1 deep into the aluminum. Cutter had
plenty of side and bottom relief, slight hook and I was Gently
handfeeding. Same with the home brew cutter in the boring head. Its
possible I was running too slow...but not enough to cause this I dont
think. Shrug. At no time did I notice any change in sound of the 3
hp motor..IE lugging, and the chips appeared normal for this sort of
tool.

Shrug... Something turned to ****..Ill beef up the next one.

Least my welds held fine G

Gunner


-------------------------------------------------------------
give me The Luxuries Of Life * http://www.diversify.com i can
live without the necessities * 2 Tee collections online
-------------------------------------------------------------



"I think this is because of your belief in biological Marxism.
As a genetic communist you feel that noticing behavioural patterns
relating to race would cause a conflict with your belief
in biological Marxism." Big Pete, famous Usenet Racist





Feed with the table and not with the quill.



and lock the quill

"Gunner" wrote in message
news
On Sun, 23 Apr 2006 10:57:19 -0500, "RAM³"
wrote:

"Gunner" wrote in message
. ..


As the diamond plate "diamonds" stand proud..I finished up the gage
holes using a big face mill and put in a slight counter bore so the
gauges sit flat on a machined surface. Actually looks pretty good, but
took a lot of steps to do something that should be pretty simple.

Did you consider doing the cutting from the "back" side?

Considered it. Didnt seem to matter that much..its aluminum..not
hastalloy.

It's a lot flatter there and, while the "points" might need touching up
with
a file/rotary rasp/sanding drum, the rest of the circle would be a simple
cut.

You might also want to consider a circle guide for a router or Dremel -
HSS
bits or, for the router, hole saw bits can cut AL with few problems and
could also simplify the task of creating the border for the bezel.


True indeed. But then Im back to making tools to make tools to do a
job. He showed up at 11 am...

BTW, do you have a rotating table and a vertical mill? grin


sure. First thing I thought of was how to get that 5' long dashboard
on my biggest 12" rotory table and get it to spin completely around on
the table of my vertical miller. G

gunner

You might want to find one of these
http://www.vermontamerican.com/produ...086&GRP=167801
for your tool box.

A 1/4" drill/saw combination bit, I've found it very useful, when chucked in
a plunge router, for a wide variety of materials. I've also used it,
freehand, with a pneumatic die grinder to rough out openings.

I also have a 1/8" one that I've been known to use with a
Dremel-and-circle-cutter-attachment.

Having a mix of metal- and wood-working tools, I've long been known to find
unconventional uses for each. grin

"john" wrote in message
...

Feed with the table and not with the quill.



and lock the quill

I'd just use the quill powerfeed, starting on .0015" (assuming a BPT-type
mill) and perhaps 100 RPM, just to see how everything's running. Then
increase as the machine/setup/workpiece will allow.

I've found that the nice thing about large machines like mills and radial
arm drill presses is the powerfeeds, as far as drilling/boring is concerned.
I've used a carbide endmill to plunge-drill out a broken reamer (someone
else broke it, not sure how) on a radial arm drill press using the
powerfeed. While I wouldn't even attempt it, I'd be surprised if the endmill
would have gotten .005" into the material with handfeeding. Unbalanced cuts
are very intolerant of an operator's flimsy arms.

Regards,

Robin

On Sun, 23 Apr 2006 15:50:48 GMT, with neither quill nor qualm, Gunner
quickly quoth:

On Sun, 23 Apr 2006 05:35:54 -0700, Larry Jaques
wrote:

Did you clamp the holy **** out of the dash piece first and limit the
downfeed as you were breaking through? Stabbing through into a hunk of
wood might be the coup de grace. Excess movement is the killer there.
DAMHIKT, but I've generally come away without scars.

Yes...it was clamped down on a piece of MDF, flat on the table, and
when it broke..it was about .1 deep into the aluminum. Cutter had
plenty of side and bottom relief, slight hook and I was Gently
handfeeding. Same with the home brew cutter in the boring head. Its
possible I was running too slow...but not enough to cause this I dont
think. Shrug. At no time did I notice any change in sound of the 3
hp motor..IE lugging, and the chips appeared normal for this sort of
tool.

What, precisely, broke?


Shrug... Something turned to ****..Ill beef up the next one.

Drill and screw the scrap piece down next time, too, to make sure it's
secure.


Least my welds held fine G

Welds? Oh, you must have welded the tool together. Carry on.


Gunner


-------------------------------------------------------------
give me The Luxuries Of Life * http://www.diversify.com
i can live without the necessities * 2 Tee collections online
-------------------------------------------------------------

"I think this is because of your belief in biological Marxism.
As a genetic communist you feel that noticing behavioural
patterns relating to race would cause a conflict with your belief
in biological Marxism." Big Pete, famous Usenet Racist


-------------------------------------------------------------
give me The Luxuries Of Life * http://www.diversify.com
i can live without the necessities * 2 Tee collections online
-------------------------------------------------------------

On Sun, 23 Apr 2006 14:52:31 -0400, john
wrote:



Gunner wrote:

On Sun, 23 Apr 2006 05:35:54 -0700, Larry Jaques
wrote:


On Sun, 23 Apr 2006 08:00:03 GMT, with neither quill nor qualm, Gunner
quickly quoth:


On Sun, 23 Apr 2006 00:53:51 -0700, "Harold and Susan Vordos"
wrote:


"Gunner" wrote in message
om...
snip----

there has to be a better way.

There is, and you won't believe how simple it is.

I think it's Stanley that makes an adjustable circle cutter. It's a fly
cutter of sorts in that it uses a 1/4" HSS lathe toolbit that is held in an
arm with a set screw. The body has a 1/4" drill that acts as a center, so
all you have to do is set the arm out to spin the circle you desire and cut
away.

This is exactly the sort of cutter I first used..which broke.

I suppose I could scale it up..beef it up when copying it.

Did you clamp the holy **** out of the dash piece first and limit the
downfeed as you were breaking through? Stabbing through into a hunk of
wood might be the coup de grace. Excess movement is the killer there.
DAMHIKT, but I've generally come away without scars.



Yes...it was clamped down on a piece of MDF, flat on the table, and
when it broke..it was about .1 deep into the aluminum. Cutter had
plenty of side and bottom relief, slight hook and I was Gently
handfeeding. Same with the home brew cutter in the boring head. Its
possible I was running too slow...but not enough to cause this I dont
think. Shrug. At no time did I notice any change in sound of the 3
hp motor..IE lugging, and the chips appeared normal for this sort of
tool.

Shrug... Something turned to ****..Ill beef up the next one.

Least my welds held fine G

Gunner


-------------------------------------------------------------
give me The Luxuries Of Life * http://www.diversify.com
i can live without the necessities * 2 Tee collections online
-------------------------------------------------------------


"I think this is because of your belief in biological Marxism.
As a genetic communist you feel that noticing behavioural
patterns relating to race would cause a conflict with your belief
in biological Marxism." Big Pete, famous Usenet Racist




Feed with the table and not with the quill.

I learned that long long ago. I was doing that when the 3/8 x 1/2
chunk of tool steel snapped in half.

Gunner

"I think this is because of your belief in biological Marxism.
As a genetic communist you feel that noticing behavioural
patterns relating to race would cause a conflict with your belief
in biological Marxism." Big Pete, famous Usenet Racist

Robin S. wrote:

"john" wrote in message
...

Feed with the table and not with the quill.



and lock the quill


I'd just use the quill powerfeed, starting on .0015" (assuming a BPT-type
mill) and perhaps 100 RPM, just to see how everything's running. Then
increase as the machine/setup/workpiece will allow.

I've found that the nice thing about large machines like mills and radial
arm drill presses is the powerfeeds, as far as drilling/boring is concerned.
I've used a carbide endmill to plunge-drill out a broken reamer (someone
else broke it, not sure how) on a radial arm drill press using the
powerfeed. While I wouldn't even attempt it, I'd be surprised if the endmill
would have gotten .005" into the material with handfeeding. Unbalanced cuts
are very intolerant of an operator's flimsy arms.

Regards,

Robin




By using the knee to feed you will not have the work grab the tool and
pull the quill into the work. Feeding with the knee gives you better
control because of the .100 per rev. and the knee is heavy enough not to
be pulled up into the work.

John

"john" wrote in message
...

By using the knee to feed you will not have the work grab the tool and
pull the quill into the work. Feeding with the knee gives you better
control because of the .100 per rev. and the knee is heavy enough not to
be pulled up into the work.


I'm weary of agreeing that one has greater control over the feedrate using
the knee as opposed to the quill powerfeed. I'm not saying it won't work,
but having a balanced and continuous cut is essential.

I don't think grabbing would be a huge issue, especially while using the
quill powerfeed at such a low number. Also, grinding a tool with neutral as
opposed to positive rake, and very little front clearance would
reduce/eliminate the risk of grabbing.

Given that Gunner only had a handful of holes to make, I'm sure the reduced
speeds and feeds to give a successful cut would be preferred over more
efficient although possibly disastrous cutting conditions.

As others have said, it sounds like what he was doing should have worked...
As with most things in this trade, the devil's in the details.

Regards,

Robin

"Gunner" wrote in message
...
Not yet..Im on the road 4-5 days a week..and have been up to my ass in
alligators.

Did you forget? YOU'RE THERE TO DRAIN THE FRIGGIN' SWAMP!!!

On Sun, 23 Apr 2006 08:00:03 GMT, Gunner
wrote:

On Sun, 23 Apr 2006 00:53:51 -0700, "Harold and Susan Vordos"
wrote:


"Gunner" wrote in message
. ..
snip----

there has to be a better way.

There is, and you won't believe how simple it is.

I think it's Stanley that makes an adjustable circle cutter. It's a fly
cutter of sorts in that it uses a 1/4" HSS lathe toolbit that is held in an
arm with a set screw. The body has a 1/4" drill that acts as a center, so
all you have to do is set the arm out to spin the circle you desire and cut
away.

Before you jump to conclusions and suggest to me that it won't work, be
advised that I cut all the openings in the 400 amp switch and the CT can for
my 3 phase service with one, using a half inch Milwaukee drill. I cut
several holes.

Yep! Did them by hand, and it works great. Requires a little skill, but I
know you could handle it easily.

Remember, the items I cut are made of steel. Cutting aluminum would be a
breeze. It does require some skill in grinding the tool, and constant
lubrication, but you can handle that with something as simple as an acid
brush.

Harold


This is exactly the sort of cutter I first used..which broke.

I suppose I could scale it up..beef it up when copying it.

The trick to this, other than very rigid workholding, is how the tool
is ground. It needs to be radiussed or tapered so the tail doesn't
drag in the cut. If nothing moves and you're curling a nice chip,
the stress on the cutter really isn't that great -- it's just cutting
aluminum, same as in a lathe -- but side stress will snap it in a
heartbeat.

I have a Val-Cut trepanning tool I found at an auction that can easily
make 8" dia holes in 1/4" aluminum. The crossbar is about 22mm square
while the actual cutter is ground from a 1/4" square HSS toolbit. Kerf
width is less than that, maybe 1/8". Needs lots of lube.

I've had best luck drilling 3 or 4 holes in the part that will be
scrap (hole or disc), bolting it tight to a thick piece of wood and
clamping the lumber to the mill. Ya need the other part of the
workpiece clamped too so it doesn't get away from you at breakthru.
Lock X & Y tight, feed with knee.

On Sun, 23 Apr 2006 22:55:02 GMT, "Tom Gardner"
wrote:
"Gunner" wrote in message
.. .

Not yet..Im on the road 4-5 days a week..and have been up to my ass in
alligators.

Did you forget? YOU'RE THERE TO DRAIN THE FRIGGIN' SWAMP!!!

A swamp? In Taft? Are you daft, man? You might find Quicksand...

Now his "midweek palatial residence" in South LA on the other
hand... Nahh, that's a cesspool. Similar, but not quite.

I've got the swamp here - I just found out Dad has "forgotten" to
take care of the pool for a few months, and I have to whip it back
into some semblance of shape. Oy, the things I do to have a water
source after an earthquake...

-- Bruce --

--
Bruce L. Bergman, Woodland Hills (Los Angeles) CA - Desktop
Electrician for Westend Electric - CA726700
5737 Kanan Rd. #359, Agoura CA 91301 (818) 889-9545
Spamtrapped address: Remove the python and the invalid, and use a net.

On Sun, 23 Apr 2006 22:55:02 GMT, "Tom Gardner"
wrote:


"Gunner" wrote in message
.. .
Not yet..Im on the road 4-5 days a week..and have been up to my ass in
alligators.

Did you forget? YOU'RE THERE TO DRAIN THE FRIGGIN' SWAMP!!!

Damnit!! I KNEW I was forgettting something!

Sigh..and Ive still not mailed your ball screws to you yet.

Gunner

"I think this is because of your belief in biological Marxism.
As a genetic communist you feel that noticing behavioural
patterns relating to race would cause a conflict with your belief
in biological Marxism." Big Pete, famous Usenet Racist

"Robin S." wrote in message
...
snip-----

I don't think grabbing would be a huge issue, especially while using the
quill powerfeed at such a low number. Also, grinding a tool with neutral
as
opposed to positive rake, and very little front clearance would
reduce/eliminate the risk of grabbing.

Give that man a cigar!

Not only will rake and clearance control hogging, it will also strengthen
the tool because less metal is removed. It's also important to provide
minimal side clearances, which helps maintain the strength of what is, for
all practical purposes, a skewed parting tool. If I can get one to hold up
for cutting steel by hand, there's no doubt others can do it in aluminum.

Harold

What John wrote.

Quils are for _pushing_ stuff through. You need a fine, stiff feed .
Yeah, the table. Next time.

Monday morning quarterbacks, we are. Where were we when you first got
the job?

Doug

Why not cut with a plasma torch ?
Make a circle cutter or just make a disk with a hole the size - and trace the hole with
the tip. Adjust for offset...
Just use a plank of plywood...
Martin

Martin Eastburn
@ home at Lions' Lair with our computer lionslair at consolidated dot net
NRA LOH & Endowment Member
NRA Second Amendment Task Force Charter Founder
IHMSA and NRA Metallic Silhouette maker & member


Gunner wrote:
Buddy came by today with a piece of 1/4" diamond plate aluminum he is
making a dashboard for his boat out of. He had come by a couple weeks
ago, and roughed it out on my WT bandsaw, and now needed to cut the
holes for the gauges, Tach etc. They were all bigger than normal
sizes..so had no hole saws big enough. I tried a decent wood type
circle cutter, which broke, made one up by tigging a piece of 3/8 x
1/2" tool steel to a 1/2" shank, and put it into my heavy boring head,
and grinding a tripanning profile on the tool steel. Which ran 1 hole
then broke the tool steel in half. Blink blink....

I finally finished all the gauge holes by hole sawing them, then using
a tapered face mill to plunge to the right diameter, and the Big tach
hole was done by hole sawing, then roughing to diameter with using
x/y handwheels and a big 2 flute end mill, finishing with a die
grinder and a carbide burr. T

there has to be a better way.

As the diamond plate "diamonds" stand proud..I finished up the gage
holes using a big face mill and put in a slight counter bore so the
gauges sit flat on a machined surface. Actually looks pretty good, but
took a lot of steps to do something that should be pretty simple.

Anyone got a link for a plan for a decent circle cutter? Something
tough enough to do this sort of thing? Something that will tripan
about a 6 or 8" hole or smaller and is adjustable? Or a pic of how
you made one? Id like to avoid reenventing the wheel.

Thanks

Gunner

"I think this is because of your belief in biological Marxism.
As a genetic communist you feel that noticing behavioural
patterns relating to race would cause a conflict with your belief
in biological Marxism." Big Pete, famous Usenet Racist

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