I'm a homeshop machinist looking for cheap scrap metal.

I need some 3" dimeter material for a project.

Are truck drive shafts solid? And would the shafts be machineable on a
SouthBend 10" lathe using high speed steel bits?

Thanks in advance.

Rod
San Francisco

On Dec 10, 1:23*pm, rodjava wrote:
I'm a homeshop machinist looking for cheap scrap metal.

I need some 3" dimeter material for a project.

Are truck drive shafts solid? And would the shafts be machineable on a
SouthBend 10" lathe using high speed steel bits?

Thanks in advance.

Rod
San Francisco

Driveshafts (the front-to-rear shafts) are typically hollow.

3" diameter solid- that's going to be some project!


Dave

I've never seen a solid drive shaft on any vehicle


"rodjava" wrote in message
...
I'm a homeshop machinist looking for cheap scrap metal.

I need some 3" dimeter material for a project.

Are truck drive shafts solid? And would the shafts be machineable on a
SouthBend 10" lathe using high speed steel bits?

Thanks in advance.

Rod
San Francisco

On Dec 10, 10:41*am, "Bill Noble" wrote:
I've never seen a solid drive shaft on any vehicle

"rodjava" wrote in message

...



I'm a homeshop machinist looking for cheap scrap metal.

I need some 3" dimeter material for a project.

Are truck drive shafts solid? And would the shafts be machineable on a
SouthBend 10" lathe using high speed steel bits?

Thanks in advance.

Rod
San Francisco- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

My parts are small. 3"x2"

Rod

"Bill Noble" wrote: I've never seen a solid drive shaft on any vehicle
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Possibly a shaft-drive motorcycle?

"Bill Noble" wrote in message
...
I've never seen a solid drive shaft on any vehicle

Isn't the driveshaft inside the torque tube on old Chevys solid?

BTW I received the books the other day. Thanks, Steve

You have already found that they are hollow. Usually called "torque
tubes", I think.

Look around for some machine shops and welding or fabrication shops in
your area. They often have dumpsters out back where they put "shorts"
or "drops". A polite inquiry can't hurt. They may give you a chunk
or they may sell it to you, usually a scrap price. The big deal with
dumpster diving these day s is the owners' concern for liability if you
get hurt on their premises. If and when you present yourself at such a
place, you need to look and sound as though you are competent to dig out
a piece of scrap without harming yourself or screwing up their operation.
This may sound like a dumb thing to even mention, but many a good
"dumpster diving" place has beeen lost to all by just one guy who did it
wrong.

When I need something like that, I often go to a steel yard and ask if
they have any "mystery metal" in the size I need or if they have any
material that is under or oversize that would fit my needs. Sometimes
they'll cut you a deal. My favorite steel yard, Johnie's Dicount Steel
in Mpls also have a "drop" area where the pieces are priced at about
half of "normal".

No matter where you get the stock you need, cutting charges an come into
play. One cut could be anywhere from $2 (unlikely) to $10 (more likely).
So, as long as you have a way to cut the stock, you may be better off to
get more than you need and cut it to length on your own. It never hurts
the home machinist to have a little stockpile.

Since you were worried about being able to turn the "drive shaft":
Be sure to ask for annnealed stock when you get it. Bring a sharp
file with you just in case. If you can file the material, you can turn
it on your lathe. If the file just "skates" over it, leave it for the
next guy unless you know what it is and are into annealing.

Pete Stanaitis
--------------------------------

rodjava wrote:

I'm a homeshop machinist looking for cheap scrap metal.

I need some 3" dimeter material for a project.

Are truck drive shafts solid? And would the shafts be machineable on a
SouthBend 10" lathe using high speed steel bits?

Thanks in advance.

Rod
San Francisco

In article
,
rodjava wrote:

I'm a homeshop machinist looking for cheap scrap metal.

I need some 3" dimeter material for a project.
....
San Francisco

Being in a port town, you might look for marine propellor shafts, which
often are solid, and can be quite large.

--
Cats, coffee, chocolate...vices to live by

YOu might be better off looking for a piece of 2" thick plate that you
can turn to 3" dia.

Pete Stanaitis
--------------

rodjava wrote:

On Dec 10, 10:41 am, "Bill Noble" wrote:

I've never seen a solid drive shaft on any vehicle

"rodjava" wrote in message

...




I'm a homeshop machinist looking for cheap scrap metal.

I need some 3" dimeter material for a project.

Are truck drive shafts solid? And would the shafts be machineable on a
SouthBend 10" lathe using high speed steel bits?

Thanks in advance.

Rod
San Francisco- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -


My parts are small. 3"x2"

Rod

On Dec 10, 1:23*pm, rodjava wrote:
I'm a homeshop machinist looking for cheap scrap metal.

I need some 3" dimeter material for a project.

Are truck drive shafts solid? And would the shafts be machineable on a
SouthBend 10" lathe using high speed steel bits?

Thanks in advance.

Rod
San Francisco

An hour ago I turned down a hardened drive punch without annealing it
on a 10" SB, with carbide.

On Dec 10, 12:23*pm, rodjava wrote:
I'm a homeshop machinist looking for cheap scrap metal.

I need some 3" dimeter material for a project.

Are truck drive shafts solid? And would the shafts be machineable on a
SouthBend 10" lathe using high speed steel bits?

Thanks in advance.

Rod
San Francisco

Truck driveshafts are not solid. However the drive axles on large
trucks (think Peterbilt, Mack, Kenworth) are solid. Any truck repair
shop usually has several that have been twisted and have been replaced
and tossed on their scrap pile. Some off the road trucks might have
axles approaching three inches in diameter. It has been close to
twenty years since I got out of the trucking business so my recall of
dimensions may not be that accurate.

Dennis

On Dec 10, 6:15*pm, TwoGuns wrote:
On Dec 10, 12:23*pm, rodjava wrote:

I'm a homeshop machinist looking for cheap scrap metal.

I need some 3" dimeter material for a project.

Are truck drive shafts solid? And would the shafts be machineable on a
SouthBend 10" lathe using high speed steel bits?

Thanks in advance.

Rod
San Francisco

Truck driveshafts are not solid. However the drive axles on large
trucks (think Peterbilt, Mack, Kenworth) are solid. Any truck repair
shop usually has several that have been twisted and have been replaced
and tossed on their scrap pile. Some off the road trucks might have
axles approaching three inches in diameter. It has been close to
twenty years since I got out of the trucking business so my recall of
dimensions may not be that accurate.

Dennis



Just to emphasize this: Drive shafts (running lengthwise under car or
truck) are usually hollow (tubular) and half-shafts or drive axles
(from differential to wheel) are usually solid bar. There are very
few exceptions to this.

Taking a good file along when scrap hunting or dumpster diving is good
advice, as it the point made that if you can file it, even with a
little difficulty, you can turn it. Carrying a magnet with you is
also a good idea.

Wolfgang

Arminius

SteveB wrote:
"spaco" wrote in message
...
YOu might be better off looking for a piece of 2" thick plate that
you can turn to 3" dia.

Pete Stanaitis
--------------

Can you help me with the math? When I try, I get a headache.

Steve
Cut the plate into circular slugs , then machine .
--
Snag
every answer
leads to another
question

Up North wrote:
"Bill Noble" wrote in message
...
I've never seen a solid drive shaft on any vehicle

Isn't the driveshaft inside the torque tube on old Chevys solid?

BTW I received the books the other day. Thanks, Steve

Yes , and it's a lot smaller than 3" . More like 3/4" or maybe 1" .
--
Snag
every answer
leads to another
question

He said his parts were 3" dia. by 2"( I assume that means 2" thick).
So, he just needs a piece of 2" thick plate that's bigger than 3" X
3" square.

If he was a blacksmith, he could just take any piece of steel that is 15
cu inch or larger and forge it to 3" Dia. X 2" thick, couldn't he?

FWIW, I usually pick up drops at our blacksmith club's annual
conference. We have a number of vendors who allow us to dumpster dive
for the event, for free. We usually have a few tons of stuff from
them and I (usually) get a good price while supporting the club.

Pete Stanaitis
-----------------

SteveB wrote:

"spaco" wrote in message
...

YOu might be better off looking for a piece of 2" thick plate that you can
turn to 3" dia.

Pete Stanaitis
--------------


Can you help me with the math? When I try, I get a headache.

Steve

No, the road tractor axle shafts aren't that big. I use them for
hammer heads and other struck tools. The ones I get are 2" dia. (I
just went out to the shop and checked). People tell me they are 4140,
but I think I have heard some rumblings saying 5160. In either case,
fairly tough. When I just need some stock from them, NOT hard, I cut
off 8: to 1 foot chunks (with an abrasive cut off saw) and heat them up
in the forge to beyond magnetic, then cover them with coke and let the
fire go out. This will get the stuff soft enough to machine with
conventional tooling, or whatever.

Pete Stanaitis
-----------------

TwoGuns wrote:

On Dec 10, 12:23 pm, rodjava wrote:

I'm a homeshop machinist looking for cheap scrap metal.

I need some 3" dimeter material for a project.

Are truck drive shafts solid? And would the shafts be machineable on a
SouthBend 10" lathe using high speed steel bits?

Thanks in advance.

Rod
San Francisco


Truck driveshafts are not solid. However the drive axles on large
trucks (think Peterbilt, Mack, Kenworth) are solid. Any truck repair
shop usually has several that have been twisted and have been replaced
and tossed on their scrap pile. Some off the road trucks might have
axles approaching three inches in diameter. It has been close to
twenty years since I got out of the trucking business so my recall of
dimensions may not be that accurate.

Dennis

"Bill Noble" wrote in message
...
I've never seen a solid drive shaft on any vehicle

3" and larger solid shafts are common for propeller shafts. Technically a
drive shaft, no?

Steve

"spaco" wrote in message
...
YOu might be better off looking for a piece of 2" thick plate that you can
turn to 3" dia.

Pete Stanaitis
--------------

Can you help me with the math? When I try, I get a headache.

Steve

On Wed, 10 Dec 2008 10:23:30 -0800 (PST), the infamous rodjava
scrawled the following:

I'm a homeshop machinist looking for cheap scrap metal.

Put an ad in your local paper "Will pick-up/buy your scrap metal
free/cheap)"


I need some 3" dimeter material for a project.

Are truck drive shafts solid? And would the shafts be machineable on a
SouthBend 10" lathe using high speed steel bits?

No and should be, respectively. They're made of tubing and have cast
iron yokes welded to them. Some of your local muffler shops might do
custom driveshaft work, too.

--
At current market valuations (GM is worth less than Mattel)
the Chinese government can afford to buy GM with petty cash.
--Bertel Shmitt on kencan7 blogspot

On Wed, 10 Dec 2008 20:00:21 -0800, the infamous "SteveB"
toquervilla@zionvistas scrawled the following:


"Bill Noble" wrote in message
...
I've never seen a solid drive shaft on any vehicle

3" and larger solid shafts are common for propeller shafts. Technically a
drive shaft, no?

Vehicle = wheeled object
Vessel = floating craft
"Propeller" shaft != "drive" shaft
shrug

--
At current market valuations (GM is worth less than Mattel)
the Chinese government can afford to buy GM with petty cash.
--Bertel Shmitt on kencan7 blogspot

On Dec 10, 9:11*pm, wrote:

Taking a good file along when scrap hunting or dumpster diving is good
advice, as it the point made that if you can file it, even with a
little difficulty, you can turn it. *Carrying a magnet with you is
also a good idea.

Wolfgang

Arminius
Varro

I take a breaker point file with the corners rounded and a 4" dial
caliper. Both fit a shirt pocket. I stopped carrying a magnet after
noticing my company badge hanging close to it, but keep one in the
car. The 4" caliper is more likely than a 6" one to fit under the head
of the mill to measure work in the vise.

The local scrap yard closed and became a parking lot, to the relief of
yuppies offended by the sight of anything rusty or industrial. I've
been using cast iron pipe fittings and dumbbells as a source of thick
metal.

Jim Wilkins

You may not be near any farms if you live in SFO-land, but it just
occurred to me that farm tractors often have large diameter axle shafts.
I's try a place that parts out farm tractors. Ask for broken or
damaged axle shafts.

Pete Stanaitis
------------------------

rodjava wrote:
I'm a homeshop machinist looking for cheap scrap metal.

I need some 3" dimeter material for a project.

Are truck drive shafts solid? And would the shafts be machineable on a
SouthBend 10" lathe using high speed steel bits?

Thanks in advance.

Rod
San Francisco

On Dec 10, 11:23*am, rodjava wrote:
I'm a homeshop machinist looking for cheap scrap metal.

I need some 3" dimeter material for a project.

Are truck drive shafts solid? And would the shafts be machineable on a
SouthBend 10" lathe using high speed steel bits?

Thanks in advance.

Rod
San Francisco

A source for larger diameter stock I've used is large hydraulic
cylinder shafts. We had a scrapyard that got cutoffs from a local
construction machinery builder, anywhere from 1 1/2" to 5" or better.
Biggest problem after chopping the stuff off was turning off the
chrome-plated surface. Once that was done, it turned very nicely.
Using the same approach as with cast iron worked, take a good-sized
cut starting from the outboard end and and turn off the plated surface
at one go. I was using a 9" South Bend at the time, so it was very
close to what you've got. I made a lot of stuff out of shafting using
HSS. So check your implement dealers for junk cylinders, ditto scrap
yards.

Stan

On Dec 10, 1:18*pm, spaco wrote:
You have already found that they are hollow. *Usually called "torque
tubes", I think.

Look around for some machine shops and welding or fabrication shops in
your area. *They often have dumpsters out back where they put "shorts"
or "drops". * A polite inquiry can't hurt. * They may give you a chunk
or they may sell it to you, usually a scrap price. *The big deal with
dumpster diving these day s is the owners' concern for liability if you
get hurt on their premises. *If and when you present yourself at such a
place, you need to look and sound as though you are competent to dig out
a piece of scrap without harming yourself or screwing up their operation.
* *This may sound like a dumb thing to even mention, but many a good
"dumpster diving" place has beeen lost to all by just one guy who did it
wrong.

When I need something like that, I often go to a steel yard and ask if
they have any "mystery metal" in the size I need or if they have any
material that is under or oversize that would fit my needs. *Sometimes
they'll cut you a deal. * My favorite steel yard, Johnie's Dicount Steel
* in Mpls also have a "drop" area where the pieces are priced at about
half of "normal".

No matter where you get the stock you need, cutting charges an come into
play. One cut could be anywhere from $2 (unlikely) to $10 (more likely).
So, as long as you have a way to cut the stock, you may be better off to
get more than you need and cut it to length on your own. *It never hurts
the home machinist to have a little stockpile.

Since you were worried about being able to turn the "drive shaft":
* * Be sure to ask for annnealed stock when you get it. * Bring a sharp
file with you just in case. * If you can file the material, you can turn
it on your lathe. *If the file just "skates" over it, leave it for the
next guy unless you know what it is and are into annealing.

Pete Stanaitis
--------------------------------



rodjava wrote:
I'm a homeshop machinist looking for cheap scrap metal.

I need some 3" dimeter material for a project.

Are truck drive shafts solid? And would the shafts be machineable on a
SouthBend 10" lathe using high speed steel bits?

Thanks in advance.

Rod
San Francisco- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

Good discussion Pete.

I would add that the days of just being given a piece or two is likely
gone.

When metal prices were WAY UP the days of free dropoffs
disappeared....and even though prices are down again many people still
consider anything metallic to be worth its weight in gold.

TMT

On Dec 10, 10:23*am, rodjava wrote:
I'm a homeshop machinist looking for cheap scrap metal.

I need some 3" dimeter material for a project.

Are truck drive shafts solid? And would the shafts be machineable on a
SouthBend 10" lathe using high speed steel bits?

Thanks in advance.

Rod
San Francisco

Rod,
Across the Bay in San Leandro, is ALCO.
http://www.alcometals.com/
I wouldn't call them cheap, but better than new prices. Ask about
cutting charges before you commit.

If you need some slabs cut off the stock, I'm in Pleasanton, but my
little 4x6 takes a while, but gets the job done.

Dave J.