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Question regarding coatings on S.S balls?

mprozycki

mprozycki

Member
Hello fellow enthusiasts,

I've been trying to reverse engineer some ball-socket joint designs using 360 fusion. I purchased these joints from John Wright model maker in the U.K. I'm doing this for personal use as I am a fan of stop-motion animation.

joint_01.jpg

The current joint I'm studying is made of stainless steel plates with a coated stainless steel ball. I also have a previous version that was made from mild steel and a 304 stainless steel ball (no coating). You can see both in the attached pic.

I just would like to find out more information on the coating used with the new joint design?

IMG_0282.webp

I'm assuming it's TiC to help improve mechanical function. I've read that these coatings help with lubrication and wear, among other things.

If someone knows a bit more about this sort of process, please fell free to share. Thank you.
 
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Cant help you on the ball but I'm curious about the seat surface under the ball surface. Is it a simple chamfer or..?
Is the general idea you want a certain amount of sticking tension so you can make a slight movement to an arm in the ball & it stays put? The screw is to set that tension?
 
Its a seat made with a ball-end mill. Like a chamfer but with a curved profile. You could just use a hole and a chamfer would develop over time with wear.

Screen Shot 2021-01-23 at 6.11.10 PM.webp

That's the idea. You have soldered pins that allow you to adjust the balls position and the screw tension keeps the ball in its place.
 
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Yeah, John Wright has been around for some time. I've always viewed his work as a industry standard. Not to mention these joints are wonderful when they're assembled into an armature.
 
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