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Re: Adapting the Unimat 3 Threading Attachment

 

I recently bought one of his ELS units, fully assembled and tested, $150+ shipping from Canada. Not planning on putting it on my Unimats, though. Going to put it on the Smithy CB-1220XL my brother insisted I need. I think it's a hint he wants me to make stuff for him. ;)

Bill in OKC

William R. Meyers, MSgt, USAF(Ret.)

Aphorisms to live by:
Good judgement comes from experience. Experience comes from bad judgement.?
SEMPER GUMBY!
Improvise, Adapt, and Overcome.
Physics doesn't care about your schedule.
The only reason I know anything is because I've done it wrong enough times to START to know better.
Expect in one hand, expectorate in the other. See which one gets full first.



On Sunday, March 5, 2023 at 01:38:54 PM CST, Neil Morrison <neilsmorr@...> wrote:


There's another group on :?E-Leadscrew

That should be cheaper and better.

"ELS" - Electronic Lead Screw — is an alternative to full CNC for simple bench lathes — especially those lathes which do not have a "Quick Change Gear Box". For such lathes, it would be useful to have a cheap method of sychronizing spindle speed to lead screw speed. If this can be realized electronically, then all threading can be done without the necessity of changing manual gears. Also, all saddle traverse speed ratios become possible.

The aim of this group is to develop a simple, cost-effective electronic and mechanical system for implementing ELS - which in theory would be cheaper than CNC, and which can be ported to hobby-class bench lathes.

Member John Dammeyer has led the way in these discussions. He has designed a system, which is described in a comprehensive article "Electronics Gear Control" in the magazine "Circuit Celler" — Nov/2006, Issue 196, pp 36-43.

Neil Morrison
-----


On Sun, Mar 5, 2023 at 6:26?AM OldToolmaker via <old_toolmaker=[email protected]> wrote:
Hello Keith,
I also think it is possible to couple the lead screw to the spindle through a set of change gears to obtain various thread leads. It could be an interesting design exercise but not very practical for me as I have a 7X 16 lathe for this sort of work.
Dick

Re: Adapting the Unimat 3 Threading Attachment

 

There's another group on :?E-Leadscrew

That should be cheaper and better.

"ELS" - Electronic Lead Screw — is an alternative to full CNC for simple bench lathes — especially those lathes which do not have a "Quick Change Gear Box". For such lathes, it would be useful to have a cheap method of sychronizing spindle speed to lead screw speed. If this can be realized electronically, then all threading can be done without the necessity of changing manual gears. Also, all saddle traverse speed ratios become possible.

The aim of this group is to develop a simple, cost-effective electronic and mechanical system for implementing ELS - which in theory would be cheaper than CNC, and which can be ported to hobby-class bench lathes.

Member John Dammeyer has led the way in these discussions. He has designed a system, which is described in a comprehensive article "Electronics Gear Control" in the magazine "Circuit Celler" — Nov/2006, Issue 196, pp 36-43.

Neil Morrison
-----


On Sun, Mar 5, 2023 at 6:26?AM OldToolmaker via <old_toolmaker=[email protected]> wrote:
Hello Keith,
I also think it is possible to couple the lead screw to the spindle through a set of change gears to obtain various thread leads. It could be an interesting design exercise but not very practical for me as I have a 7X 16 lathe for this sort of work.
Dick

Re: Does anyone make new thread guides for the db /sl?

 

True enough, but you can still employ the Unimat to chuck the part and use the tailstock center to line it up straight while tapping.

Tim in VT
Re: Adapting the Unimat 3 Threading Attachment

 

Hello Keith,
I also think it is possible to couple the lead screw to the spindle through a set of change gears to obtain various thread leads. It could be an interesting design exercise but not very practical for me as I have a 7X 16 lathe for this sort of work.
Dick
Re: Does anyone make new thread guides for the db /sl?

 

Thanks Peter
I think a tap is the right answer to 27 tpi. The sl approach may have been a force fit because i have a “new” toy.

Best Regards
John



On Mar 4, 2023, at 10:39 AM, Peter Brooks <peter@...> wrote:

?You have a ‘65 Lotus Elan? I'm greener than green with envy... my favourite car when I was a lad (I'm a '57 model) and it probably still is...

(Some wags say Lotus stands for 'Lots of trouble, usually serious' though. I hope not in your case).

Talking of Jags, my dad had a 3.4 Mark 1 when I was a nipper. Later on (when he had won a then relatively huge ?2.5k on the football pools) he bought himself a powder blue 2.8 XJ6. Both leather, burr walnut, real quality and craftsmanship.

Best of luck with the 27 TPI thread anyway :-)
Re: Does anyone make new thread guides for the db /sl?

 

You have a ‘65 Lotus Elan?? I'm greener than green with envy... my favourite car when I was a lad (I'm a '57 model) and it probably still is...

(Some wags say Lotus stands for 'Lots of trouble, usually serious' though. I hope not in your case).

Talking of Jags, my dad had a 3.4 Mark 1 when I was a nipper. Later on (when he had won a then relatively huge ?2.5k on the football pools) he bought himself a powder blue 2.8 XJ6.? Both leather, burr walnut, real quality and craftsmanship.

Best of luck with the 27 TPI thread anyway :-)
Re: Adapting the Unimat 3 Threading Attachment

 

Actually, looking at it again I find that a simple ratio of 16:17 from the chuck to the leadscrew will give a pitch of 26.9875 tpi -probably good enough for what I suspect is a short collar. However the problem is to make that connection between the spindle and the leadscrew. It can be done, and might be worth the effort if you had a lot of them to do, and couldn't buy a tap for less than $30.
Re: Adapting the Unimat 3 Threading Attachment

 

On Fri, Mar 3, 2023 at 03:45 AM, Neil Morrison wrote:
There used to be a weird system that kind of did that but it was a big box that sat under the lathe and only did a few threads.

Look for?CarlcoPatent4171649.pdf in the Files section. Much discussed long ago. It represents the only practical way to add a threading and feeds box to the DB/SL, but I reckon anyone doing it now could do it better. For a start a decent range of gears is (effectively) much cheaper now than they used to be and working methods to get them to mesh nicely are better too. However the gearing needed to get a 27 tpi thread using a 1 mm pitch lead screw are complex even with clever use of 17 tooth gears, as on the SL, or with 19 tooth gears as I have seen on other lathes using an inch lead screw to get metric threads - and even more cunning to generate π to turn worms in both DP and Mod pitches. On a very good day I can understand it. Not that good a day today.
Re: Adapting the Unimat 3 Threading Attachment

 

There used to be a weird system that kind of did that but it was a big box that sat under the lathe and only did a few threads.

Not sure where you'll find info - check the Links section which is called Databases?here.

Neil
-----


On Thu, Mar 2, 2023 at 2:34?PM OldToolmaker via <old_toolmaker=[email protected]> wrote:
Would it be feasible to adapt the Uni 3 threading attachment to the Unimat DB 200?

Re: Does anyone make new thread guides for the db /sl?

 

Would you be willing to share the dimensions or provide a link to your source? I'd like a chance to take a hack at making some using subtractive manufacturing. ;)

Bill in OKC?

William R. Meyers, MSgt, USAF(Ret.)

Aphorisms to live by:
Good judgement comes from experience. Experience comes from bad judgement.?
SEMPER GUMBY!
Improvise, Adapt, and Overcome.
Physics doesn't care about your schedule.
The only reason I know anything is because I've done it wrong enough times to START to know better.
Expect in one hand, expectorate in the other. See which one gets full first.



On Thursday, March 2, 2023 at 07:53:41 PM CST, Mike Gidley <mike.61dley@...> wrote:


Found the dimensions.
Made some STL files for the 3D people.

Re: Does anyone make new thread guides for the db /sl?

 

Found the dimensions.
Made some STL files for the 3D people.

Follower27tpi.stl
Follower27tpi.stl
Master27tpi.stl
Master27tpi.stl

Re: Adapting the Unimat 3 Threading Attachment

 

Having both a U3 and an SL, each with it's appropriate threading accessory, I absolutely agree with Matt. In fact, it would be simpler to build an attachment from scratch than to try to adapt the ’wrong one’ to your machine.

I’d recommend you sell the U3 attachment and buy the correct one for the DB200... Or else sell the DB200 lathe itself and replace it with a U3 ?

Friendly regards
Alan
Geneva, Switzerland
Re: Adapting the Unimat 3 Threading Attachment

 

Not really. It would make far more sense to sell it and buy the correct attachment.
Adapting the Unimat 3 Threading Attachment

 

Would it be feasible to adapt the Uni 3 threading attachment to the Unimat DB 200?
Re: Does anyone make new thread guides for the db /sl?

 

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Hi Gang:

If what you are tapping is thin, a 26 or 28 tap could cut a usable thread.

Carl.

On 3/1/2023 9:29 PM, Jkle379184 via groups.io wrote:

?I just checked my Unimat SL masters and followers set and these are the ones that I have for inch and Whitworth.
13, 14, 16, 18, 20, 22, 24, 26, 28, 30, 32, 36, 40, 48, 50, 56 TPI
Some of these are not listed in the unimat catalogs.
?Jeff


-----Original Message-----
From: Jkle379184 via groups.io <jkle379184@...>
To: [email protected] <[email protected]>
Sent: Wed, Mar 1, 2023 5:28 pm
Subject: Re: [Unimat] Does anyone make new thread guides for the db /sl?

1/4" x 27 TPI was used on old electric lamps for brass parts. There are a lot of "odd" ones out there.
?Jeff


-----Original Message-----
From: vt_biketim <tchock59@...>
To: John Entwistle <jentwistle3@...>; [email protected]
Sent: Wed, Mar 1, 2023 4:52 pm
Subject: Re: [Unimat] Does anyone make new thread guides for the db /sl?

This has piqued my curiosity—what equipment used 27tpi? It must have been common enough somewhere b/c I just googled it and found it's stupid easy to get 3/4-27tpi taps and dies. Not even that dear, really, the tap is under $25.

Tim in VT

Re: Does anyone make new thread guides for the db /sl?

 

开云体育

Hi Gang:

The masters have no relationship to the form of the cut thread. The thread form between the master and the follower might not matter either. As a tool designer I would harden the circular guide and use brass for the follower.

Carl.

On 3/2/2023 1:21 AM, Michael McLachlan wrote:

Tim

Metric threads are 60 degrees, the 55degree masters are Whitworth.

Michael
On Thu, Mar 2, 2023 at 12:55 PM, OldToolmaker wrote:
Tim,
The Unimat thread masters I have had were not buttress thread form but “V” form. I would assume the metric thread masters are 55 degree thread form but I am not sure and the US version is most likely UNF 60 degree (unified national fine).
Perhaps someone here on this group can clarify this
.
Customized Unimat

 

开云体育

Hi Gang:

Here is a customized Unimat with several bright ideas:


Take care, Carl.
Is anyone looking for a sl1000? #db200

Sub
 



I have this untouched sl1000 for sale. I'd like to get $550 for it. It comes with the upgraded motor, vertical attachment, headstock handle, tool holder and power feed. Mechanically it is in very nice shape, it only needs a new belt. It looks bad but its just old age grime, and a bit of surface rust that will polish off. I have not even wiped it with a cloth yet - in as found condition. :)

I bought it as a fixer upper, but I have too many projects (And Unimats! - I have another full cherry one available for $750 if anyone is interested). I'm refreshing a maximat 7 now, and thats been my labor of love for some time!?
Re: Does anyone make new thread guides for the db /sl?

 

开云体育

Ouch!
Clearly a tap is the right answer?
But it is disappointing not to be able to use my “now” SL.

Best Regards
John



On Mar 2, 2023, at 8:08 AM, OldToolmaker via groups.io <old_toolmaker@...> wrote:

?Back in about the year 2000 my dad gave me a complete Unimat DB200 he was given by a man who had purchased it new. The man had a terminal illness and knew my dad was a machinist and wanted it to go to someone who would appreciate it.
Some years later after my dad passed away I was cleaning out his shop and came upon several small boxes, each with individual threaded items in them. I had no idea what they were and tossed them into the trash. They were unused in original boxes.
I could still kick myself to this day.

Re: Does anyone make new thread guides for the db /sl?

 

Back in about the year 2000 my dad gave me a complete Unimat DB200 he was given by a man who had purchased it new. The man had a terminal illness and knew my dad was a machinist and wanted it to go to someone who would appreciate it.
Some years later after my dad passed away I was cleaning out his shop and came upon several small boxes, each with individual threaded items in them. I had no idea what they were and tossed them into the trash. They were unused in original boxes.
I could still kick myself to this day.
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