woodfarmer
Established Member
I have been making something from stainless steel plate 10mm thick. all nicely turned and screwed the first component to it yesterday evening just by one screw. Today needed to drill and tap the hole for teh second screw.. easy drill bit already in the drill. so off I go. after I had drilled the hole and separated the wo pieces to tap the steelplate. I realised the hol;e was too big.. I had used the drill that I used last night to make a clearance hole for the screw. For a moment thought I would have to do three days machining all over again on a new base plate.
Then I came up with a rescue plan. As it happens I have some 2 metre lengths of 12mm stainless steel bar, so enlarged the 6mm hole (which should have been 5mm tapping size for 6mm thread) to 11.5 or therabouts with another drill. Then turned a bit of teh end of one of the 2 metre bars to be a very tight interference fit with the base plate heated hot. Seemed a good idea to fit the plate to the end whilst still in the chuck in the lathe. An hour later when I checked it the base plate was just warm to the hand and fixed solid. Feeling pleased with myself on way back to the house, Then a thought dawned on me. How to remove the steel bar with the base plate attached from the lathe. I may just have to either remove the tailstock or even use a hand hacklsaw
Anyway, once the bar has been cut I will weld both ends to the plate, drill it 5mm and tap 6mm it so I can continue with the build.
Incidentally I have been very disappointed with the carbide tipped tools. Nothing like as good as using HSS for cutting stainless (EN316). Sadly I am getting very low on my stock of hand forged tool steel boring bars. Doubt I will ever find any more.
Then I came up with a rescue plan. As it happens I have some 2 metre lengths of 12mm stainless steel bar, so enlarged the 6mm hole (which should have been 5mm tapping size for 6mm thread) to 11.5 or therabouts with another drill. Then turned a bit of teh end of one of the 2 metre bars to be a very tight interference fit with the base plate heated hot. Seemed a good idea to fit the plate to the end whilst still in the chuck in the lathe. An hour later when I checked it the base plate was just warm to the hand and fixed solid. Feeling pleased with myself on way back to the house, Then a thought dawned on me. How to remove the steel bar with the base plate attached from the lathe. I may just have to either remove the tailstock or even use a hand hacklsaw
Anyway, once the bar has been cut I will weld both ends to the plate, drill it 5mm and tap 6mm it so I can continue with the build.
Incidentally I have been very disappointed with the carbide tipped tools. Nothing like as good as using HSS for cutting stainless (EN316). Sadly I am getting very low on my stock of hand forged tool steel boring bars. Doubt I will ever find any more.
