Prema Shaper Toolpost from scratch

[Dan Dubeau]

Almost at the finish line with this guy, just ran out of time tonight. It's been a long day, and I wanted to call it quits before I stuffed it up on the last op lol.


With the rough turning done it was time to dust out the cobwebs on single pointing on the myford. It's been a few years, as I primarily do any threading I need in the CNC at work, or the Hardinge. I honestly couldn't remember the last thing I single pointed at home, the change gears have been set to fine feed for a few years at least now.

I really didn't want an undercut on this, so I setup to thread away from the chuck, and wind in the compound as I went. A bit of a rythym to figure out, but wasn't too bad. Only once did I mishit the thread dial and engaged on the half, but it was the second pass, and I caught it, and back it out before any noticeable damage was done. Threading in reverse on a lathe with a screw on chuck is a bit of a gamble, but it's a low force, low speed operation, and with help from the live center, I wasn't worried about it. I had planned to finish with a die stock anyway, so didn't take it right to the #'s, more of a roughing/semi finish cut, and to keep the thread straight and true as I don't have a tailstock die holder. Anyway, it worked out perfect, although I did give up trying to run the die with the part in the chuck and swapped to the bench vise. Much easier.



Then I simply flipped it around, and turned the head end, and rounded the face of it to match the other hardware on the shaper.





I will finish cutting the square head tomorrow night when the brains a bit more fresh. Then I'll get on to making some toolholders......

 

[Dan Dubeau]

Had a good morning at the ski hill, and got a lot of runs in before lunch. Came home, did a bit of a cleanup, a sweep up and then cut my flats.

But first, a little side quest for enlightenment. I picked up this little Ikea LED light at the thrift store last week for $3.50. It had a cast iron base with plastic cover that I removed, but what I liked about it, was the flexible arm is long, and actually stays put when you bend it. Not super bright, but pretty good for spot lighting.



Now that I can see, it was time to cut a square.



I find it amusing the threads are Inch, but the heads are metric.



I had a bit of a change of plan looking at the other hardware on the shaper and decided to call an audible , and taper the face for aesthetics. So back to the lathe, and a bit fo file work to blend it all together.



A little different, but similar.


DONE!

 

[Dabbler]

An Ikea lamp!!! they are great!

Nice work on the tool post!

 

[Dan Dubeau]

Thank you. It was funny, they had 3 of them, but the others were $13. This one was marked down to $3.50 because it has a big scratch in the side. Jackpot.

 

[Dan Dubeau]

Of course I couldn't wait to play around with it, so I dug through my cutters, and found one that looked like a suitable start and gave it a quick touch up on the grinder.
[VIDEO]

I played around with various feeds, speeds, and cut increments to get a feel for the machine and what it could do, and it's various functions. Quite a few things to play with but I'm going to like it

. I am really looking to explore what I can do with it. First I need to give it a good cleaning, and address the lubrication needs before running it too much. It has zerks, so I either need to cobble together an oil gun that will fit them, or come up with a different plan to fit oil cups, or possibly a one shot oiler.

I also still need to make some toolholders, and sleds for toolbits, but a 1/2" toolbit in the 5/8" slot didn't seem to budge, so that was a pleasant surprise. I think I'd have more concern under a heavier cut, but running a shaper is all new to me, so there is a lot to learn.

But for now, I can close this chapter for a bit, and move on to another long awaited tool build....

 

[YYCHM]

Does your clapper clap? Mine is a little sticky and doesn't really clap.

Does the length of stroke scale on the side of the ram make any sense after setting it up? I can't make any sense out of mine.

 

[Dan Dubeau]

Yes, it actually claps. I actually chuckled and thought to myself while watching it run "hmm, wonder how you got your name".

The ruler on the side kind does make sense, and doesn't. Depends on where you position the ram for the stroke. I don't know if All shapers are like this, (I think they are) showing my ignorance here....but mine can vary the stroke length, and the stroke position. So it depends on where you've set the stroke position whether it aligns with the pointer or not. Sometimes it's off the end, and other times it will fall on the scale. More of a visual reference for stroke length, than an accurate positioning scale of any sort. That's my take on it though but then I've only got 20 minutes of shaper running experience so far and a lot of learn yet to do.

If you give yours a good cleaning and maybe a light stoning to restore the fit it would probably help. I'm sure mine could use the same after sitting collecting dust and grime all these years.

 

[YYCHM]

Yes, it actually claps. I actually chuckled and thought to myself while watching it run "hmm, wonder how you got your name".

The ruler on the side kind does make sense, and doesn't. Depends on where you position the ram for the stroke. I don't know if All shapers are like this, (I think they are) showing my ignorance here....but mine can vary the stroke length, and the stroke position. So it depends on where you've set the stroke position whether it aligns with the pointer or not. Sometimes it's off the end, and other times it will fall on the scale. More of a visual reference for stroke length, than an accurate positioning scale of any sort. That's my take on it though but then I've only got 20 minutes of shaper running experience so far and a lot of learn yet to do.

If you give yours a good cleaning and maybe a light stoning to restore the fit it would probably help. I'm sure mine could use the same after sitting collecting dust and grime all these years.

Sounds like your length of stroke scale experience is the same as mine then.

I think my clapper issue has been caused by the fact that I oiled it. I need to clean the oil off it and try running it dry.

 

[Tom O]

I found that extending the stroke too far caused the cutter to bounce on the return stroke causing a mark noticeable on the work finish about 3/4” in.

 

[Dan Dubeau]

I found that extending the stroke too far caused the cutter to bounce on the return stroke causing a mark noticeable on the work finish about 3/4” in.

Funny you mention that, I read that last night after posting here. http://neme-s.org/shapers/columns/shaper_column_14.html. While I didn't really notice issues caused by that on my test cuts, I definitely have the tool traveling too far past the work. I can follow the logic in that and will keep that in mind moving forward.

I'm about 1/3 through reading these articles, and there is some good wisdom contained within. Craig, the one I linked above is a good one to read about clapper box operation too.

http://neme-s.org/shapers/shaper_columns.html

 

[historicalarms]

Damn you!!! I thought I was wayyy past the lusting for a shaper....now I'm back envisioning being able to make all sorts of falling block or rolling block homemade rifle actions again. ...its a good thing my eyesight has taken turn for the worse recently or our bank account would be looking sideways ar me!!

 

[Dan Dubeau]

That's a great use for a shaper, you should get one .

I have always wanted to make a matched pair of family heirloom quality falling block 22s, with Damascus actions, and stocks from walnut cut from our property for the kids. By the time I ever get around to doing it, it'll either be illegal, or I will have to make a few more for grand kids lol.

 

[Dabbler]

@Dan Dubeau our little cabal of local gunsmiths/hobby machinists looked into making actions for each of us. we found the maze of requirements and licensing to be beyond daunting, and we gave up on the idea. It seems you cannot build a rifle from scratch at home without becoming a "Licensed Firearms Manufacturer" with attendant insurance, etc.

 

[140mower]

@Dan Dubeau our little cabal of local gunsmiths/hobby machinists looked into making actions for each of us. we found the maze of requirements and licensing to be beyond daunting, and we gave up on the idea. It seems you cannot build a rifle from scratch at home without becoming a "Licensed Firearms Manufacturer" with attendant insurance, etc.

..... I think, as long as nobody knows, it's as legal as anything. The secret is keeping your head down under the radar.....

 

[Dan Dubeau]

I was afraid it was something like that. I had heard a while back that Non restricted were fine to manufacture yourself, for personal reasons, but not for resale, but what you describe above were the rules for restricted. I've always been curious, but my online research never led me to any conclusive answers. That was about 7-8 years ago I heard that from a brief conversation about it with a firearms manufacturer (we were making parts for them at work), and no doubt things are different now. I'm not really a big gun guy, just a recreational hunter and user of tools that solve problems, so I am not always up to date on the ever changing gun laws. If that is the case, and the average Joe is no longer able to make their own legally for personal use it's a shame.

Don, that answer applies to a lot of grey areas in life, but in this case, I'd like to stay on the right side of the law. This is one area where I play by the rules. I don't always agree with the rules, especially when they change for NO factual reason.....

I don't think this board is firearm friendly, so I'll not share anymore opinions on that.....If anybody can point me in the direction of the actual letter of the law I'd be more than grateful.

 

[Gennady]

Hi Dan. I have Prema Shaper no 3. Glad to see anybody also having and using this shaper. Mine was abandoned and kept outside high school workshop, stuffed with grease and covered with rust. I never had any papers for it. Wondering of you have something and if you can share it. Thanks.

 

[Dan Dubeau]

Hi Gennady, Glad to see another Prema Owner. Information has been sparse over the years. There used to be a couple rebuild threads around the net, and one i remember specifically on mad modder, but all the pictures are gone now. That might have been a handy thread for a shaper in your condition. https://www.madmodder.net/index.php?topic=3853.0

Aside from that the Lathes.co.uk site has some Good prema info, and this recent thread on Practical Machinist has some good info and manual pictures too. That's all the info I've been able to find over the years I've owned it since 2011.
https://www.practicalmachinist.com/forum/threads/metal-shaper-owners-manual-reqd.420834/

Best of luck. Post up some pictures and create a thread here on your progress.