Reading the recent thread about making tools rather than more "useful" things
got me to thinking. Thinking about how I am probably the only one who knows
exactly what those tools are for. And that I'd better mark them after I make
them, lest someone think they are useless and toss them.

I've made an awful lot of special purpose pullers, bushing removers and
installers, alignment tools, wrenches and such over the years. Some are kept
with individual machines, but many of them are stored in a couple of big boxes
labelled "machine fixtures, jigs & special tools". I can pull those boxes down
and tell you exactly what each tool was made for and how it works. Except for
a few....and my memory doesn't seem to improve with age.

Just came up from the basement after stamping three tools. All for an old
Gravely walk-behind tractor. "Gravely Fan" is a 1-1/2" open end wrench, made
from 5/16" plate, bent handle, and milled down to about 3/16" at the head.
Only way to get at the spindle nut up under the fan pulley. But someone might
toss it if they didn't know. "Gravely clutch" is a six-fingered socket-type
tool used with a torque wrench to check the release on the attachment clutches.
With a 1/2" square hole with recesses to hold it on the socket drive people
might guess that it is designed to be used with a socket handle, but what for?
"Gravely stand" is nothing more than a piece of angle iron with a couple of
drilled 1-1/2" x 3/8" flats attached, to support the front end of the tractor
when transporting it without an attachment, but it works really well.

Now on to the tools for the Wallace jointer. I'd sure hate to have one of my
boys call up in 25 years and ask "Hey Dad, how do you adjust the rear bearings
on the jointer cutterhead?" and have to tell them that in that box of junk they
tossed was a mystery tool made just for that. Then on to the drill press
stuff.

With a couple of different sized steel stamp sets and a vibrating engraver,
there shouldn't be any more ambiguity.

Then on to some other things, like listing all the lube points on the
horizontal mill. Including the ones that I usually forget about myself.

John Martin

In article , JMartin957 says...

With a couple of different sized steel stamp sets and a vibrating engraver,
there shouldn't be any more ambiguity.

I just write on them with a sharpie pen and toss them into the
'special tools' drawer. The trouble is after I find there's
already one _in_ there, marked the same way....!

Jim

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

An other idea would be to take a couple of digital snap shots of the tool in
use with a little blurb of how and why. Then also mark the machine, tool
or part drawing with a reference number to the file to avoid making the same
tool twice or finding out too late that a jig that retains the framus in
place while the whiffler is being serviced is sitting in the box.


--

Roger Shoaf

About the time I had mastered getting the toothpaste back in the tube, then
they come up with this striped stuff.
"JMartin957" wrote in message
...
Reading the recent thread about making tools rather than more "useful"
things
got me to thinking. Thinking about how I am probably the only one who
knows
exactly what those tools are for. And that I'd better mark them after I
make
them, lest someone think they are useless and toss them.

I've made an awful lot of special purpose pullers, bushing removers and
installers, alignment tools, wrenches and such over the years. Some are
kept
with individual machines, but many of them are stored in a couple of big
boxes
labelled "machine fixtures, jigs & special tools". I can pull those boxes
down
and tell you exactly what each tool was made for and how it works. Except
for
a few....and my memory doesn't seem to improve with age.

Just came up from the basement after stamping three tools. All for an old
Gravely walk-behind tractor. "Gravely Fan" is a 1-1/2" open end wrench,
made
from 5/16" plate, bent handle, and milled down to about 3/16" at the head.
Only way to get at the spindle nut up under the fan pulley. But someone
might
toss it if they didn't know. "Gravely clutch" is a six-fingered
socket-type
tool used with a torque wrench to check the release on the attachment
clutches.
With a 1/2" square hole with recesses to hold it on the socket drive
people
might guess that it is designed to be used with a socket handle, but what
for?
"Gravely stand" is nothing more than a piece of angle iron with a couple
of
drilled 1-1/2" x 3/8" flats attached, to support the front end of the
tractor
when transporting it without an attachment, but it works really well.

Now on to the tools for the Wallace jointer. I'd sure hate to have one of
my
boys call up in 25 years and ask "Hey Dad, how do you adjust the rear
bearings
on the jointer cutterhead?" and have to tell them that in that box of junk
they
tossed was a mystery tool made just for that. Then on to the drill press
stuff.

With a couple of different sized steel stamp sets and a vibrating
engraver,
there shouldn't be any more ambiguity.

Then on to some other things, like listing all the lube points on the
horizontal mill. Including the ones that I usually forget about myself.

John Martin

(JMartin957) wrote in message ...
Reading the recent thread about making tools rather than more "useful" things
got me to thinking. Thinking about how I am probably the only one who knows
exactly what those tools are for. And that I'd better mark them after I make
them, lest someone think they are useless and toss them.

I've made an awful lot of special purpose pullers, bushing removers and
installers, alignment tools, wrenches and such over the years. Some are kept
with individual machines, but many of them are stored in a couple of big boxes
labelled "machine fixtures, jigs & special tools". I can pull those boxes down
and tell you exactly what each tool was made for and how it works. Except for
a few....and my memory doesn't seem to improve with age.

Just came up from the basement after stamping three tools. All for an old
Gravely walk-behind tractor. "Gravely Fan" is a 1-1/2" open end wrench, made
from 5/16" plate, bent handle, and milled down to about 3/16" at the head.
Only way to get at the spindle nut up under the fan pulley. But someone might
toss it if they didn't know. "Gravely clutch" is a six-fingered socket-type
tool used with a torque wrench to check the release on the attachment clutches.
With a 1/2" square hole with recesses to hold it on the socket drive people
might guess that it is designed to be used with a socket handle, but what for?
"Gravely stand" is nothing more than a piece of angle iron with a couple of
drilled 1-1/2" x 3/8" flats attached, to support the front end of the tractor
when transporting it without an attachment, but it works really well.

Now on to the tools for the Wallace jointer. I'd sure hate to have one of my
boys call up in 25 years and ask "Hey Dad, how do you adjust the rear bearings
on the jointer cutterhead?" and have to tell them that in that box of junk they
tossed was a mystery tool made just for that. Then on to the drill press
stuff.

With a couple of different sized steel stamp sets and a vibrating engraver,
there shouldn't be any more ambiguity.

Then on to some other things, like listing all the lube points on the
horizontal mill. Including the ones that I usually forget about myself.

John Martin

John

I agree with you about marking all tools and fixtures as I
occasionally come across something I made many moons ago and cannot
remember what or why. Can it be I am getting older? (yes)

JRW

John

I agree with you about marking all tools and fixtures as I
occasionally come across something I made many moons ago and cannot
remember what or why. Can it be I am getting older? (yes)

JRW


Damn it J.R., I think you've got it. Those pieces I can't identify are yours.
I'll trade you for your mystery pieces.

Because it sure can't be that we're both getting forgetful.

John Martin

"J.R. Williams" wrote in message
om...

John

I agree with you about marking all tools and fixtures as I
occasionally come across something I made many moons ago and cannot
remember what or why. Can it be I am getting older? (yes)

The dies at work frequently have tens of insert steels. If someone gets
lazy, the blocks are only marked with a paint marker. Could be an issue with
someone trips with the acetone.... ;-)

That being said, paint marker labelling is actually quite robust if the
surface is not used too much. It's at least better than a Sharpie.

Regards,

Robin