Hi Bill,
The diameter of the shock absorber rod is 0.865 while the large end
OD of the collets is 0.830 so I can't be too sloppy when centering;
the body OD is 0.650. This shock was bigger than most, enough
material for 4 collets. Messy business draining the oil out of the
shock itself.
I use a Sawzall for cutting metal and it removed the outer shell of
the shock very nicely. The turned down ends of the rod cut easily
too. The chrome part seemed very hard; I tried a regular hacksaw to
make sure the Sawzall blade was OK and the hacksaw wouldn't cut it
either. I was surprised that the ends were notably softer than the
rest of the rod. Cooking it in the fireplace for a couple of hours
made it much more workable. However, I still have the newbie problem
of a rough finish on steel so I use a file to remove the last mil or
so, even after using my "finish" tool.
The largest diameter 3C collet seems to be 1/2 inch although in the
7x10 group someone said they had a 3C slightly larger (I've not seen
anything larger than 1/2 offered in catalogs).
Thanks for the info on 5C collet diameter. I don't know why my
collet is expanded along the narrow split part. I'm looking for a
steel collet for use as a standard in place of the brass collet I'm
presently using -- perhaps the steel collet won't have this.
John
--- In 7x12minilathe@..., William A Williams
<bwmsbldr@j...> wrote:
I am surprised that the strut rod steel is hard to turn as it
comes from
the strut! In my experience once you get under the chrome plate it
is
very nice turning. Except of course where it has been spot welded!
I am a
little surprised that the rod is big enough to make 3-C collets.
What is
the maximum diameter of a 3-C? I may need to reevaluate my need for
a
set!
Bill in Boulder "Engineering as an Art Form!"
