Found Dreaming

Dave, in your video of 'the problem' it looks like the part's movement-axis is left-to-right (only in the picture, I'm not that daft) and the 2-thou error is at right-angles to that axis. If we now rotate the lump to its working orientation, i.e. upright, then the vertical error (less than 1/2-a-tho...

A week ago, I wrote to JRSToolcrib. Thanks to latzanimal for the nod. I am very pleased to pass on to you that: A/ They have been a pleasure to deal with. Thanks especially to "LJ." B/ They have found some cutters that will suit my needs at Very Reasonable Prices, which are now heading my ...

Thanks, All, I confess I was somewhat gobsmacked at the prices of most of the carbide cutters - a quarter of my month's pension for just one cutter. Doesn't leave much for beer (or food?) But I have just now written to JRStoolcrib in the hope that he can do HSS and a lot nearer to my available money...

Mike, I like the idea of using CNC for your pattern-making but ... How do you get a draft-angle on the patterns? I've often wondered if there are tapered router (or milling) cutters available? or will I have to manually hack one from a straight cutter? I guess that commercial pattern-makers must hav...

Sorry for my expression. I meant it makes a glue like nothing I've ever seen - doesn't want to let go of anything it touches, especially when mixed into sand. I have no idea what proportions I used - just a splash into some sand and mix it in a small plastic shopping-bag a.l.a. MyfordBoy. Ordinary p...

Phew! Only a gazillion years ago, I promised to try again at the weekend. Shouldn't have opened my mouth just before the monsoon-season. Updates: A company in Bangkok sold me a kilo of Silica-gel for 100 Baht (3 dollars US), so I set about trying to dissolve it in Caustic-soda solution. I should hav...

Frank, Hmmm. I think I need to start this mould all over again. My flour-filled cores are just about impervious - certainly to what little lung-pressure I can blow after too-many years of smoking. Over the week-end I'll try again, using your suggestions, to make a less-dense core. I poured with the ...

Last first: strangely enough, I haven't seen Rice flour over here but corn flour is on most shops' shelves. My core will be 22mm OD x 90mm long, of which 10mm each end sit in the core-prints. I have a piece of 3/4 (nominal) PVC water-pipe, whose bore is just about 22mm, and I have been 'extruding' m...

Oh dear! F.C., can't I persuade you to have some more flour ..... lots of it? I've been mixing about 1 cup of flour with 2-cups of sand (30%). No wonder the ants enjoy my cores when I set them in the sun to begin 'curing'. Since my green-sand contains bentonite, what you are suggesting is effectivel...

Finding the ingredients: By some miracle, a Thai company (Power Dry Co Ltd.) have responded to my emails, and I have ordered 1Kg of silica gel SiO2 for the princely sum of 100 baht (3 dollars, US, 2 pounds real money) plus post (another 50 baht.) Sodium hydroxide is easy - I have had a kg of Soda Fi...