Re: What is the Best Unimat ? and WHY !
The answer is simple, the one I am going to sell you. On Tue, Mar 7, 2023 at 8:22?AM clankennedy2004 via <clankennedy2004= [email protected]> wrote:
OK Guys, A bit of a provocative topic here but please all weigh in your thoughts and opinions on what is the BEST Unimat and why ! I'm still new to the channel and am a bit confused between the Unimat SL the Unimat 1000, the Unimat 2,3 or 4 ? Seems like lots of different designs with lots of attachments to buy/waste money on/ invest in ? Please your thoughts on why you prefer your model over others available ?
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Do a web search on "how to make Hammered paint" many web site show how, and if you can do it then so can a good paint supplier.
paintingleader.com/how-to-make-hammered-paint/
https://www.madbeanpedals.com/forum/index.php?topic=24219.0
https://www.painttalk.com/threads/how-to-get-wrinkle-effect-or-hammer-effect.38546/
https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/hammered-paint-help.720291/
https://www.garagejournal.com/forum/threads/hammered-paint-in-a-custom-color.474021/
https://forum.shopsmith.com/viewtopic.php?t=14875
Hammered paint was used on a lot of stuff from antique cars to radio, so there are a lot of people out there matching the color for their needs. And you can still buy "Hammerite Paint"?paint and mix or have it mix to the color that you need.
Because I have several Unimats,?
I got lucky and bought a bunch before Rust-oleum stop making it.?
Jeff
-----Original Message-----
From: John Hutnick <johnhutnick@...>
To: clankennedy2004 <clankennedy2004@...>; [email protected]
Sent: Tue, Mar 7, 2023 1:12 pm
Subject: Re: [Unimat] #db200
Has anyone actually asked this famous "local paint shop" what they will or won't do?? I did ask, and they cannot do hammered.? To me, that is a significant part of the Unimat appearance.
Otherwise, if someone would like to match just Unimat green as a metallic, go to the auto paint supplier with your lathe, and ask what is the minimum that they can mix.? Also include a can of thinner for that paint.? And do not forget primer.? Please report back the cost.
I think that you may find a dead horse again.
Instead of all this farting around in circles like the dog wanting to find a place too pee, we should be able to take a clean green Uni, and get a paint supplier to tell us a brand and formulation of a metallic green that most closely matches.? Then we will have a paint once and for all.
For example, I took a recommendation from someone in the UK of a formula for Great Western Railway green for my model trains.? I gave this to a US auto paint place.? It came out well.? But with thinner, it was almost $100.
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Has anyone actually asked this famous "local paint shop" what they will or won't do?? I did ask, and they cannot do hammered.? To me, that is a significant part of the Unimat appearance.
Otherwise, if someone would like to match just Unimat green as a metallic, go to the auto paint supplier with your lathe, and ask what is the minimum that they can mix.? Also include a can of thinner for that paint.? And do not forget primer.? Please report back the cost.
I think that you may find a dead horse again.
Instead of all this farting around in circles like the dog wanting to find a place too pee, we should be able to take a clean green Uni, and get a paint supplier to tell us a brand and formulation of a metallic green that most closely matches.? Then we will have a paint once and for all.
For example, I took a recommendation from someone in the UK of a formula for Great Western Railway green for my model trains.? I gave this to a US auto paint place.? It came out well.? But with thinner, it was almost $100.
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Paint stores like Sherwin Williams will also mix up paint. You want to get a machine enamel.
?Jeff
-----Original Message-----
From: clankennedy2004 via groups.io <clankennedy2004@...>
To: [email protected] < [email protected]>
Sent: Tue, Mar 7, 2023 11:48 am
Subject: Re: [Unimat] #db200
Ive just had a thought ! My local paint shop will mix up any shade of paint you like as long as you have the color code. If this service is available in your area you could get a Gloss paint to match the color you require. It would not be hammer finish perhaps but its sorta ugly anyway so... At least it would be the shade of green your after. However I would show some caution as certain paints are poor at resistance to oils and hot swarf etc ! Perhaps a little research into the dyes and chemicals used in hammer finish paints and it may be possible to just mix up your own !
On Tuesday, 7 March 2023 at 16:11:49 GMT, John Hutnick <johnhutnick@...> wrote:
We are beating a dead horse again.? Rosemary paint is not made and has not been for some time.? Black is limited to earlier Unimats, and is a crackle finish.? Of the Rustoleum hammered spray paints that can be had today, gray or silver are the closest to any color ever used on Unimats.
If you search for various words about paint in past messages, you can find all of this.
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Ive just had a thought ! My local paint shop will mix up any shade of paint you like as long as you have the color code. If this service is available in your area you could get a Gloss paint to match the color you require. It would not be hammer finish perhaps but its sorta ugly anyway so... At least it would be the shade of green your after. However I would show some caution as certain paints are poor at resistance to oils and hot swarf etc ! Perhaps a little research into the dyes and chemicals used in hammer finish paints and it may be possible to just mix up your own !
On Tuesday, 7 March 2023 at 16:11:49 GMT, John Hutnick <johnhutnick@...> wrote:
We are beating a dead horse again.? Rosemary paint is not made and has not been for some time.? Black is limited to earlier Unimats, and is a crackle finish.? Of the Rustoleum hammered spray paints that can be had today, gray or silver are the closest to any color ever used on Unimats.
If you search for various words about paint in past messages, you can find all of this.
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Re: What is the Best Unimat ? and WHY !
It all depends what you want to do with it, for me it is the SL, a small footprint capable of doing most work on small clocks. But I needed to change a few things to make it better for me, I did not want a cnc but I wanted to get power movement to both axis which I have now done I replaced the bed ways fitted a small stepper motor to each and can now get movement at the press of a button. I later want to add indexing to the head and gear cutter on the cross slide. I have retained all old parts to revert it back to a SL lathe again if needs be. Here it is so far: Phill Before cast iron lathe in need of a little care.  Work in progress.  ? Index controller I built for a dividing head.?? 
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Re: What is the Best Unimat ? and WHY !
Hello
Jeff:
I've
had my first Unimat since 1974 and have used it for many
projects. One job called for 3/4" holes in 3/4" aluminum
plate. I set the Unimat up as a drill press and drill the hole
in steps for 1/4" up. Another job called for milling 1/2" x 1"
holes in 3/32" aluminum, 75 times. With patience the Unimat
did both jobs. Now my favorite job is cutting styrine plastic
with the table saw at slow speed. This avoids melting the
plastic! I've even made an adapter to use the Unimat head on
my Smithy Lathe as a live spindle for cross drilling lathe
work.
Carl.
On 3/7/2023 10:31 AM, Jeff R. Allen
wrote:
toggle quoted message
Show quoted text
As a brand-new SL owner, I am biased and not very
well informed. Par for the course on the Internet.
The Unimat SL is tiny, it has a very constrained
working area, which makes it physically incapable of lots of
things, but also loveable and small enough to move on and off
a work table. So you need to NEED a small lathe to love it,
because then you are motivated to work with its limitations
instead of being frustrated by them.
Jeff
On Tue, Mar 7, 2023, 16:22
clankennedy2004 via <clankennedy2004= [email protected]>
wrote:
OK Guys, A
bit of a provocative topic here but please all weigh in your
thoughts and opinions on what is the BEST Unimat and why ! I'm
still new to the channel and am a bit confused between the
Unimat SL the Unimat 1000, the Unimat 2,3 or 4 ? Seems like
lots of different designs with lots of attachments to
buy/waste money on/ invest in ? Please your thoughts on why
you prefer your model over others available ?
|
We are beating a dead horse again.? Rosemary paint is not made and has not been for some time.? Black is limited to earlier Unimats, and is a crackle finish.? Of the Rustoleum hammered spray paints that can be had today, gray or silver are the closest to any color ever used on Unimats.
If you search for various words about paint in past messages, you can find all of this.
|
Re: What is the Best Unimat ? and WHY !
The best "new" Unimat may be to buy a current Sherline.? It is $750 with chucks.? All parts and attachments are available.? Made in the US.? It will not become a saw like the Uni.? But you can get a vertical attachment to make a milling machine.
Yes, it was designed for small work and it was well designed to be able to do the tasks of many machines. Think hobbyist, Jewelers, clock makers etc. I know of no other unit that can do as much as a full equipped Unimat can. I have been collecting them for years and it is unbelievable how advanced they were for their time. I have a 10" atlas and a 14" Monarch lathes and there are many projects that I turn to the unimat to do. How many lathes do you know of that can fit in a small case that you can carry with you. And then be set up and ready to run in minutes?
?Jeff
-----Original Message-----
From: Jeff R. Allen < jra@...>
To: [email protected]
Sent: Tue, Mar 7, 2023 10:31 am
Subject: Re: [Unimat] What is the Best Unimat ? and WHY !
As a brand-new SL owner, I am biased and not very well informed. Par for the course on the Internet.
The Unimat SL is tiny, it has a very constrained working area, which makes it physically incapable of lots of things, but also loveable and small enough to move on and off a work table. So you need to NEED a small lathe to love it, because then you are motivated to work with its limitations instead of being frustrated by them.
Jeff
On Tue, Mar 7, 2023, 16:22 clankennedy2004 via <clankennedy2004= [email protected]> wrote: OK Guys, A bit of a provocative topic here but please all weigh in your thoughts and opinions on what is the BEST Unimat and why ! I'm still new to the channel and am a bit confused between the Unimat SL the Unimat 1000, the Unimat 2,3 or 4 ? Seems like lots of different designs with lots of attachments to buy/waste money on/ invest in ? Please your thoughts on why you prefer your model over others available ?
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Hello
Jeff:
I love
dividing problems!
You
might build a indexer similar to the 5C spin indexer. They
have a 36 hole disk with a 10 hole vernier to give a 360
degree index. If you had a 29 hole disk and a vernier you
could have your 290 spacings.
For a 9
inch blank you might mount the gear and indexer on the
carriage and tilt the head until you can reach the cutter,
perhaps a one tooth fly cutter?
Paper
print outs might make it possible to drill the index disks.
Good
luck, Carl.
On 3/6/2023 12:07 PM, Jeff R. Allen
wrote:
toggle quoted message
Show quoted text
I'm getting ready to make one of John Wilding's clocks,
which will need a 290 tooth great wheel. I'm expecting to
create some kind of digital dividing head for that, because I
don't think 290 is a common gear size! Certainly not on
Unimats(though I guess it's unlikely I can fit the 9 inch
blank on the Unimat SL anyway).
Jeff
Hello
Bill,
I prefer the simplicity of a mechanical system over a
digital one, although they each have pluses and minuses.
To each his own I guess.
Dick
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Re: What is the Best Unimat ? and WHY !
Yes, it was designed for small work and it was well designed to be able to do the tasks of many machines. Think hobbyist, Jewelers, clock makers etc. I know of no other unit that can do as much as a full equipped Unimat can. I have been collecting them for years and it is unbelievable how advanced they were for their time. I have a 10" atlas and a 14" Monarch lathes and there are many projects that I turn to the unimat to do. How many lathes do you know of that can fit in a small case that you can carry with you. And then be set up and ready to run in minutes?
?Jeff
-----Original Message-----
From: Jeff R. Allen <jra@...>
To: [email protected]
Sent: Tue, Mar 7, 2023 10:31 am
Subject: Re: [Unimat] What is the Best Unimat ? and WHY !
As a brand-new SL owner, I am biased and not very well informed. Par for the course on the Internet.
The Unimat SL is tiny, it has a very constrained working area, which makes it physically incapable of lots of things, but also loveable and small enough to move on and off a work table. So you need to NEED a small lathe to love it, because then you are motivated to work with its limitations instead of being frustrated by them.
Jeff
On Tue, Mar 7, 2023, 16:22 clankennedy2004 via <clankennedy2004= [email protected]> wrote: OK Guys, A bit of a provocative topic here but please all weigh in your thoughts and opinions on what is the BEST Unimat and why ! I'm still new to the channel and am a bit confused between the Unimat SL the Unimat 1000, the Unimat 2,3 or 4 ? Seems like lots of different designs with lots of attachments to buy/waste money on/ invest in ? Please your thoughts on why you prefer your model over others available ?
|
Re: What is the Best Unimat ? and WHY !
As a brand-new SL owner, I am biased and not very well informed. Par for the course on the Internet.
The Unimat SL is tiny, it has a very constrained working area, which makes it physically incapable of lots of things, but also loveable and small enough to move on and off a work table. So you need to NEED a small lathe to love it, because then you are motivated to work with its limitations instead of being frustrated by them.
Jeff
On Tue, Mar 7, 2023, 16:22 clankennedy2004 via <clankennedy2004= [email protected]> wrote: OK Guys, A bit of a provocative topic here but please all weigh in your thoughts and opinions on what is the BEST Unimat and why ! I'm still new to the channel and am a bit confused between the Unimat SL the Unimat 1000, the Unimat 2,3 or 4 ? Seems like lots of different designs with lots of attachments to buy/waste money on/ invest in ? Please your thoughts on why you prefer your model over others available ?
|
What is the Best Unimat ? and WHY !
OK Guys, A bit of a provocative topic here but please all weigh in your thoughts and opinions on what is the BEST Unimat and why ! I'm still new to the channel and am a bit confused between the Unimat SL the Unimat 1000, the Unimat 2,3 or 4 ? Seems like lots of different designs with lots of attachments to buy/waste money on/ invest in ? Please your thoughts on why you prefer your model over others available ?
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Re: Rustoleum Green Hammered
Thank you for that, I can get that green locally as well as the stone finish locally. But that green is just not the right shade of green. But that may be what I¡¯m stuck with. So thank you.?
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I kept a copy of those plans just to use as reference in the event I might want to attempt to design something similar for the Unimat SL.
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OK, looking at??I see that the later cast iron base lathes did have the locating pin.
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Kevin Groenke @ PersonMakeObject
Looks just like my 2)cast iron mk4's "Unimat Mk. 4: Notable for the introduction of a rounded "step" in front of the headstock through which a simple vertical alignment pin could pass, this was the last version of the Unimat to use a cast-iron base. There was also a slight bevelling of the upper corners of the headstock support - an alteration that would be reflected in the forthcoming die-cast design - and the headstock itself may also have been increased in size slightly but with corners of a tighter radius (measurements are awaited) and its milling post-retaining pin moved to a position parallel to the spindle cartridge."
Is that a cast iron base? Looks like an alloy one to me - I don't think the locating pin for the headstock was used on cast iron. As regards paint, the problem many of us have is that we are so used to seeing the hammered green it is hard to imagine anything else, but the early ones were black. I think a high gloss finish white like on the U3 would be good for someone who makes a point of keeping it clean. There are some very hard paints available for home use these days. I don't recognise that motor, but if there are time limits it should say so on the rating plate.
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If you search the archive files you will find the plans for the gear box.?
toggle quoted message
Show quoted text
On 7 Mar 2023, at 3:26 pm, Brian Symons via groups.io <symons391@...> wrote:
?Way back, there was someone selling plans for a?Gear Cutting Gearbox for the Unimat 3.
They advertised it in several magazines.
Did anyone ever get the plans?
Thanks,
Brian.
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Way back, there was someone selling plans for a?Gear Cutting Gearbox for the Unimat 3.
They advertised it in several magazines.
Did anyone ever get the plans?
Thanks,
Brian.
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Carl
OldToolmaker
