Hi Guys, been a while!
OK. Not that exciting! But it's my latest completed project
I know I'm looking a bit like a one trick pony but it is fun.... So here's my latest torch
160 pic's of this so I'll shorten it a bit...
We start with some phosphor bronze.
Drilled and threaded as my torches are..
First error of the build... Shattered parting tip... Bronze is chewy! (really.... S H A T erd is on the banned list!
)
Finished the parting off with a hacksaw!
Made the tailcap thread and used it as an arbour.
Set the compound over and started the angled cut...
Got to this stage and...
The end fell off!!
So, the Mk2 was constructed and had less of a taper and much thicker side wall.
The cunningly hidden join of the two halves. Done this way cause once the nose is shaped it would be near impossible to get the two halves to match up.
A special version of the LED was created to deliver the LED to the end of the torch. The rim was machined off so the LED passed through the 5mm bore.
One leg was insulated with heat shrink and then both legs passed through an acrylic tube before they are bent through and around the insulator disk.
An arbour was made from a bit of hex with a male and female thread. This was used for the cross drilling for the keyring hole (something I keep thinking I should not have done?)
It is also used to make the slots for the fins later.
The cone was made free hand step cut and then shaped. Finished with files and emery.
Close to how it was drawn
The slots were cut at 120' using the hex arbour and digital angle gauge.
The fins are made from stainless. This is the second set as I tried to drill the holes in the first set after shaping.
Realising I'd need them for the silver soldering later.
It all went horribly wrong
(I was so annoyed at myself
this was the cause of a 6 month delay in this build!)
Anyway, this is the Mk2 set of fins. Made from 4mm flat bar stainless and thinned to 1.8mm. Stuck together with double sided tape and cross drilled.
I used the drills to keep the bits from moving while I shape them with the mill... I made little dowels for when I filed and finished the edges.
I made a special arbour and mounted the base section to a slow moving geared motor from a kids mirror ball.
This allowed me to silver solder all three fins at the same time. The flux was applied then the fins and then some silver solder foil (I know...Never knew it existed either... Got it from Bogs). Then bound with stainless spring wire (also from Bogs)
This is the end result -
After 3 hrs of cleaning and polishing!!!
Finished! (Well, nearly...)
Decided it needed a launch platform
The final "arty farty" shot (I know, finally!
)
Well, that's it 25 odd hours that I can recall. But when you have an image in your head..... It just had to be done
Ralph.
