High Speed Turbine Engraving Spindle

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Pete W.:
Hi there, Andrew,

That looks like a useful addition to the foundation machine.

While browsing your pictures, I was reminded of the way Sperry drove some of the cockpit gyro instruments of WW2 vintage. The outer surface of the gyro wheel had a series of curved grooves (can't think of a better description) that looked as though they'd been cut with a dovetail cutter. If I remember rightly, the jet(s) were offset so they aimed at one side of the groove and the air went round the groove and exited from the other side, giving up its energy with the minimum of turbulence. (I don't think my techno-jumble museum has any examples in-stock, I'm afraid!) They were actually driven by vacuum rather than compressed air and they had pendulous lids to various ports on the gimbals that applied 'puff' in the right direction to precess the gyro to the right orientation.

If you're looking for something to try out your engraver, I have a very early Myford ML7 tail-stock barrel that needs an engraved scale - maybe we could agree some quid pro quo?

awemawson:
Pete,

Do you have a graphic of what you want to achieve - preferably a .dxf ? I'm not sure I'd approach a tailstock spindle engraving off the lathe but rather might want to use the feed screw to get the lines at exactly the screw pitch.

Pete W.:
Andrew,

I'll do some research :scratch: :scratch: and send you a PM when I've got my act together!!

awemawson:
The Postman bought a couple of parcels this morning :thumbup:

Firstly cap screws to replace those hex headed ones on the air 'terminal block' so those went in quickly and it looks so much better.

Secondly a replacement Regulator: Now the gauge on the Lubricator / Filter / Regulator unit didn't return to zero. Sealed unit so no finger poking possible! When I contacted the supplier they amazingly couldn't just replace the gauge, but wanted the whole assembly returned, then they'd send out a replacement :bang:

I explained that that just WASN'T going to happen, as not only was it buried in the bowels of a machine tool, but I'd had to reverse the 'handing' of it so that the lubricator was on the left to aid in the way pipes ran. After about a dozen too's and froe's they eventually saw that I wasn't giving up and offered to send out a complete unit and please keep the old one. I couldn't get through to them that all they had to do was remove the (separately boxed) gauge and send just that !

Oh well, it's not my business :scratch:

Anyway - a touch of Loctite 542 - back in and aligned. This 542 is brilliant stuff. Seals threads very effectively, and allows you to put them in the alignment that you want, not just when the thread is tight. In most cases I've ceased using PTFE tape to seal threads and use the 542 for smaller threads and Loctite 577 for the coarser ones.

Still waiting for the air solenoid to arrive, but it's on a slow boat from China, so that could be quite a while yet :med:

Now I just need to sort out what to use in the lubricator - perhaps just WD40 - or a light oil cut with white spirit perhaps :scratch: Any suggestions welcomed :wave:

Pete W.:
Hi there, Andrew,

I did a search for 'high speed spindles' and this thread was the top of the list that resulted.

I have a couple of questions:

How do you attach the engraving tool to the shaft of the turbine? How much work does the turbine do when it's working?

I have to make a couple of components from 8 mm Delrin sheet but I don't have a mini (vertical) mill. My favourite option at present is to contrive a high speed spindle and mount it over the knee & tables of my Flexispeed minimill (horizontal). A friend has given me some small milling cutters, the sort with 1/4" or 6 mm shanks that have a grub-screw flat and I expect to try using one of those for profiling the part. I don't think my spindle will be turning as fast as yours but I'm a bit apprehensive that the grub-screw fixing will be out of balance and cause vibration problems. What do you think?

My spindle will be electrically driven - I don't have compressed air in the shop. I did wonder whether I could use my Dremel but its business end won't take 1/4" or 6 mm.

This project could galvanise me into doing some renovation on the Flexispeed minimill, in the first instance to fit calibrated hand-wheels to the various feed-screws.

I know those small milling cutters are known as 'throw away' but the ones I've been given seem far from deserving that!

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