I have only hand cranks with dials. On the Clausing they are 0.100" per
turn
"Jim Wilkins"-a wrote in message news:10udfbi$21u77$1@dont-email.me...
I have only hand cranks with dials. On the Clausing they are 0.100"
per turn
On a Bridgeport with a DRO-a I use it instead, of course. I've found that
I can approach, slow and stop at the dimension faster on the Clausing because I can read the moving stamped numbers on the dial more easily
than the blur on the DRO.
"Bob La Londe"-a wrote in message news:10ud0mp$1s72q$1@dont-email.me...
On my big (for me) manual mill (10x54 table, 5hp, 16x36 travels) I
almost never use the dials on the hand wheels, but they have threaded
collars that snug them in place when using them.-a Less damaging I
suppose than set screws, but they have a problem.-a They back off on
their own over time.-a I've gone so far as to snug them down with a pair
of slip joint pliers.-a I find them to be awkward and in the way
sometimes.-a On the knee it activates the safety switch and prevents me
from powering up or down the knee.-a I don't want to get rid of them,
because I do know how to machine using the hand wheels and not that long
ago one of my DRO scales flaked out.-a I had to use the hand wheels to do some work until I fixed the DRO.
----------------------------
I have only hand cranks with dials. On the Clausing they are 0.100" per
turn and the dials are large enough that I could guess them to 1/4 of 0.001". For the backup to losing turns count I place a ruler graduated
in tenths on the work against the zero stop and move the tool to the
inch and tenth, then the dial to the thousandth. A red mark at the zero
lets me spin the crank too fast to read the numbers if I forget the
crank handle zero position, which changes when I move the vise to spread
out wear.
Most of you are probably aware of the basic idea of liquid thread
locking compounds.
"Red" - High strength for medium to larger bolts most people will run across.
"Blue" - Medium strength for the mid size and smaller bolts most people
will run across.
Until I ran across needs that was about the limit of what I knew.-a I
expect most non professional mechanically inclined people start there.
The next one I ran across was "Green" which was a sleeve and bearing locker.-a I used it on a "press" fit hose fitting on a pickup truck
engine I was working on.-a Probably in my early 20s.
Then later I discovered "Purple" which is a light thread locker.-a I used
it on fishing reel components I still wanted to be able to get apart
without heating up small parts that probably can't take the heat not
even accounting for plastic parts nearby.
Then I started learning that the colors were just a rough guide, and
that there were various formulas for special applications.-a Steam
fittings, thread sealers, etc.-a Yes, still talking about "thread
lockers" formulations here.
A while back I was working on an air rifle (real small game power) which
use a pair of set screw to restrict airflow and regulate power.-a One was turned into a hole that crossed the air passage until reaching the
desired power/velocity, and the other back stopped the first to "lock"
it in place.-a The back stop didn't always work.-a The answer was VC3 from Vibratite.-a Its a non locking thread locker.-a Its supposed to prevent a
a screw (or other threaded item) from moving from vibration, but allow
it to move using a tool and not need to be reapplied for many cycles. It
was perfect for dialing in that air gun flow restricter.-a Then I just
set it and forget it.-a I did gently put in the back stop screw, but the
VC3 kept the screw in place through a few days of adjusting and tweaking
to get just the power and velocity I was looking for.
On my big (for me) manual mill (10x54 table, 5hp, 16x36 travels) I
almost never use the dials on the hand wheels, but they have threaded collars that snug them in place when using them.-a Less damaging I
suppose than set screws, but they have a problem.-a They back off on
their own over time.-a I've gone so far as to snug them down with a pair
of slip joint pliers.-a I find them to be awkward and in the way sometimes.-a On the knee it activates the safety switch and prevents me
from powering up or down the knee.-a I don't want to get rid of them, because I do know how to machine using the hand wheels and not that long
ago one of my DRO scales flaked out.-a I had to use the hand wheels to do some work until I fixed the DRO.
Do you think a couple drops of VC3 on the threads of those locking
collars would be a good idea?
I'm not sure how much force would be required to move them, but I
suppose I could drill a hole, and use a spanner if its more than my hand strength.-a The spanner for my keyless chuck (which is always right
there) might be made to work.
On 5/17/2026 11:16 AM, Bob La Londe wrote:
Most of you are probably aware of the basic idea of liquid thread
locking compounds.
"Red" - High strength for medium to larger bolts most people will run
across.
"Blue" - Medium strength for the mid size and smaller bolts most
people will run across.
Until I ran across needs that was about the limit of what I knew.-a I
expect most non professional mechanically inclined people start there.
The next one I ran across was "Green" which was a sleeve and bearing
locker.-a I used it on a "press" fit hose fitting on a pickup truck
engine I was working on.-a Probably in my early 20s.
Then later I discovered "Purple" which is a light thread locker.-a I
used it on fishing reel components I still wanted to be able to get
apart without heating up small parts that probably can't take the heat
not even accounting for plastic parts nearby.
Then I started learning that the colors were just a rough guide, and
that there were various formulas for special applications.-a Steam
fittings, thread sealers, etc.-a Yes, still talking about "thread
lockers" formulations here.
A while back I was working on an air rifle (real small game power)
which use a pair of set screw to restrict airflow and regulate power.
One was turned into a hole that crossed the air passage until reaching
the desired power/velocity, and the other back stopped the first to
"lock" it in place.-a The back stop didn't always work.-a The answer was
VC3 from Vibratite.-a Its a non locking thread locker.-a Its supposed to
prevent a a screw (or other threaded item) from moving from vibration,
but allow it to move using a tool and not need to be reapplied for
many cycles. It was perfect for dialing in that air gun flow
restricter.-a Then I just set it and forget it.-a I did gently put in
the back stop screw, but the VC3 kept the screw in place through a few
days of adjusting and tweaking to get just the power and velocity I
was looking for.
On my big (for me) manual mill (10x54 table, 5hp, 16x36 travels) I
almost never use the dials on the hand wheels, but they have threaded
collars that snug them in place when using them.-a Less damaging I
suppose than set screws, but they have a problem.-a They back off on
their own over time.-a I've gone so far as to snug them down with a
pair of slip joint pliers.-a I find them to be awkward and in the way
sometimes.-a On the knee it activates the safety switch and prevents me
from powering up or down the knee.-a I don't want to get rid of them,
because I do know how to machine using the hand wheels and not that
long ago one of my DRO scales flaked out.-a I had to use the hand
wheels to do some work until I fixed the DRO.
Do you think a couple drops of VC3 on the threads of those locking
collars would be a good idea?
Well, I decided to try it. 3 drops 120 degrees apart on each of the 4 threaded locking collars.-a (2 on the table, 1 on the saddle, and 1 on
the knee)-a It might be a while since I very rarely use the dials, but
when I find out I'll let you all know how smart or how stupid it was. Anybody know how long it takes VC3 to cure?
Anybody know how long it takes VC3 to cure?
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