• Spring 2024 meetup in Calgary - tentative date Saturday, April 20/2024. Other regions are also discussing meet ups. If you want one in your area get going on organizing it! discussion
  • We are having email/registration problems again. Diagnosis is underway. New users sorry if you are having trouble getting registered. We are exploring different options to get registered. Contact the forum via another member or on facebook if you're stuck. Update -> we think it is fixed. Let us know if not.
  • Spring meet up in Ontario, April 6/2024. NEW LOCATION See Post #31 Discussion NEW LOCATION

What's Paul up to?

PaulL

Technologist at Large
Premium Member
While I'm at it - anybody know what this stuff is called? Some form of modular warehouse stuff, I have an actual useful amount of it.
16853083581014994259383421296837.jpg
 

YotaBota

Mike
Premium Member
This followed me home today:
Good for you. Does it have a brother?

I am looking at adding a steel top to my work bench, priced out a piece of plate .500x2'x6' the other day,,,,,,,$800 - ouch, that won't be happening any time soon.
 

PaulL

Technologist at Large
Premium Member
Good for you. Does it have a brother?

I am looking at adding a steel top to my work bench, priced out a piece of plate .500x2'x6' the other day,,,,,,,$800 - ouch, that won't be happening any time soon.
Who did you call? I did better than that for the whole half-sheet delivered. (hardcore metals)
 

DavidR8

Scrap maker
Administrator
Moderator
Premium Member
Good for you. Does it have a brother?

I am looking at adding a steel top to my work bench, priced out a piece of plate .500x2'x6' the other day,,,,,,,$800 - ouch, that won't be happening any time soon.
I paid $200 for my 3/8” 2’ x3’ from Island Waterjet including cutting to size.
Is there a reason for the 1/2”?
 

PaulL

Technologist at Large
Premium Member
I paid $200 for my 3/8” 2’ x3’ from Island Waterjet including cutting to size.
Is there a reason for the 1/2”?
I did 1/2" so I'd have decent holding in threaded holes. 3/8" would have been much more reasonable. Though I'm really happy with the sheer mass of the resulting bench.
 

DavidR8

Scrap maker
Administrator
Moderator
Premium Member
I did 1/2" so I'd have decent holding in threaded holes. 3/8" would have been much more reasonable. Though I'm really happy with the sheer mass of the resulting bench.
I went with 3x3 125 wall tubing for the legs for added mass. I clamped my brake to the to it yesterday to bend that stainless and it didn’t budge. Probably in the range of 160- 200 lbs all in.
But mass is mass and a 1/2 top would be nice.
 

DavidR8

Scrap maker
Administrator
Moderator
Premium Member
What Paul said, mass and the ability to drill and tap holes is a bonus, plus I could weld things to the table then grind them off when done.
I also called the place out by the airport.... darned if I can remember the name... United Steel maybe? They were slightly less than Island WaterJet but I didn't want plasma cut edges. The reason I went the way I did is they made the corners dead square. Very handy for fixturing up assemblies to the edge of the table for corners and 45's.
 

YotaBota

Mike
Premium Member
I'll give Cutter and the waterjet guys a call tomorrow and see what they say. There is a demo place in Shawnigan as well that might have some salvage steel that could work for me.
 

PaulL

Technologist at Large
Premium Member
Delivery today.
PXL_20230603_032603781.jpg
[Edit:]
A bit of testing says that yes, the mill is getting the TouchDRO, and the lathe gets the HS800 currently on the mill. That will let me combine (or not) my quill Z and knee Z on the mill, and honestly, I do the fancier work there, so tthe TouchDRO interface will be better used there.
 
Last edited:

PaulL

Technologist at Large
Premium Member
This took much to long to do, but the DRO is now set up on the lathe. I used the "tape the scale to the machine" technique throughout, and was able to turn some scrap alumninium into a couple of brackets that bolt into the follow rest to hold the read heads. That annoying V notch is in the exact wrong place, though everything is quite firm how it's held now. And for the readout I have the old HS800 that I had on the mill until I installed the TouchDRO.
AJFCJaUnHOi2Ay12QHWZJ4irhCVTNq4F7Kd86kMyKkCN6Sv4SZtKHLr-zPYSB6UAq4DaR_-5ggyzCeplqKzd3a0IojM5xXYK0pBhUFNnfZqcm3iJxxjhaCVSBDnFWb7Y0dEnK_QAUSu7yLBFuhgxJITvuCtJ2AuKMRpcYTshQ38o0qVa5ALb2R1RbUrVfMYQ89sWwk5qMepWrDcykL4N0GNb0Kc3LwOv2XKm0igi9ap3TiyUeNGQxsHls8Cpc2RIufrDDl2_uUfyZYHhIyj272MpZ0LeOtq5md0vQvzzktu1NMDuqYEPfdrnI9EpX8QZGI6WnXINoIMRpEtBqHZ6Gvo2_4e1IoZBciskuz8yaBNg8N2UrKkF3eXLPPQqghp6bi1mHQNGw-w-qpG_l7-KFxEi-2Hyi0JrCxWhaaf6wWg729OTWWM5sKWDIPr32oFewhqLG5l9OkUY3uRadBEhysV3VV3OLJXrGSiUsQc7GnWCZPsVv2BYLgpmKmVtLU2F4VGiO2Vbi06yX_l1kgaTjNp8mgCgnDRIhh5FAk9iBOnYwhHJrIHmkZvvxWZXS8uv3bjFRB-wVlh8Kv0eeG71UIi1RhYE8WrBvjwi4pteYr_TZviCZHp8PQ7xNkwhJxfp2-ePtDrizrDJlJh95enOR82Vw6VDS_TA-JUpMkqRhA0VhR15w_6zV24rquZhyAZplKAsmdCMuVs9EY-CroszvZydblyJv4Mm2jkvjl-mWmRcDowkAD8RAgtdn3N_wBr1n5MKKCjoq6v-4-gDsOhfW-RPiB_bxRleb2k6SChgePX2GjemzaRdPGHbxnv-35anq7x1zkrdzQSmFlOasvWbaSItPV1SvmumsZ4IVjORP6g26gnlrea7aK3Ei7RklkmRvl8tpOiU9tGEadX2-NC-5POvCO0=w2002-h2658-s-no
AJFCJaWtZdDFPeRctE7ltXjmVAkSoyPwqDOVEEadGoUxorrCFqv2hopQQivkSKRYcIJdXXEA_FbgLR8WFVq-_hbn7Scg4EnpFLJpPXsxe4p_077SgYM0JpI-KBNwcMoGA7m42x2thQrs4J7drl5ZDVzoPlYFHppFPQ8d1hxV7Bd0PPjS5CsazGeOO1-DOHc2l_WrnE3PhPozmaLMXV2nNjeiZYzr5Y7haucZha6MKOxtbuJkHgzl2mGMrk6Z1DQfSDWW7cgaplppkPtw0gmLbW7LJghX_tSvhyED44N3_SKDtUgQ0JBmFPnWWOlAU-RYkwA85uRtF1FsZWSsXjlj6xZUwX5-MHv-iqYqwRblewrwc28vLvWm42roFZfXMxwhAFPfn1Z9kPE1P5jH9mR_noHw8rd88rSGuCQnDfAP8TvJFWpDPw5HLxRigjI91xkOD6GBfzRkovs2-U5hiiZhm-c9kPlwPf72OHR_Ve8pq09uTZ_5bLf1mo7ayuViB6bMFsssFlTOFxBM7PYR8Li7Lip6AIAgjAIoz127CWs_3iO7oqR7_vWrqmnDsOaappHb2KrPeniyO-cZcSnVUjCxQmvjipfjyCgvTjEEwM0-lumvgEZ9A8W4IhCSFwKUxjsRjkrphbwmXNfasC_XvaBAV-ZWNKL_bGgYJ0CcDqS09La2a-wOvW3_RoL_KmyxNZ-hQtTyd3xPci10bTWIYq_n39YKdGrvR336C7gyWRNq--nVRl5zYmZYD3Po2KzNrK3BE4Y-vczbeuD32h1ZoBlOxp9fc4QJDd2cyD3jJUpvPDJ1d0TsJeAJNqe7WPQ8Klscje7hiS7Y1w38NGyOv1J2VQhy3SU2nev7aymmuWsmzCXy2ANPWYpJbX9Dq4AswmQm-mbdWAp4cDfG0kR-aJKc-lVTlLY=w3530-h2658-s-no

The last piece of the DRO adventure will be to get my knee scale in on the mill.
 

PaulL

Technologist at Large
Premium Member
Added this orange boy to the shop today:
1686885148962.png
One hole in, I'm reasonably pleased. No negatives to write about yet. My steel-topped bench is gaining a section of 10cm grid, and my monster bench at the cabin will be getting holes to secure the bench shear and leg vise.
 
Top