Threading a universal support

[afx]

The tormek I got was an older one without the threaded support so I was wondering if it were possible to thread the arm to dial in an angle.

[Elden]

Yes, there has been more than one on the forum who has done so. Either a 12 mm or a 1/2 die may be used. I used a 1/2 x 20 die. See the following thread:

http://forum.tormek.com/index.php?topic=1541.0

Welcome to the forum!

[afx]

Thanks for the reply!

How well does yours work for you?

[Elden]

Very well. I see no need to replace it with the factory version, however a second  USB would be nice to have at times.    Make sure you are very careful to get the die started squarely as that is a long distance to thread. As Herman mentioned, I am sure the 1/2 inch will thread more easily than the 12 mm. The 1/2 inch is a little larger, but provides plenty of thread depth.

[Herman Trivilino]

Mine works great.  If you're at all familiar with the process of using a die to cut threads into a shaft, you know that youhave to keep backing off as you rotate.  That is, you turn and cut a little bit, then you have to back off to clear away the filings.  So you then cu some more, back off, on and on.  Well, this is a rather long shaft to thread, and I got quickly got sick of all that back and forth.

I ended up just cutting through, which worked ok. The threads look a but buggered up but they work fine.

I used a 12 mm die because the shaft is 12 mm.  I think it might be a lot easier to do this job with a 1/2 inch die (12.7 mm) as there'd be more room for the filings to fall out as you do the cutting of the threads.

[Herman Trivilino]

If your machine is that old, afx, you've no doubt got the original tool steel main shaft.  You may want to take it apart and lubricate the bearings, but before you do that read about my adventures with my rusty main shaft here.

http://forum.tormek.com/index.php?topic=929.0

Be careful about leaving the water tray attached when it's full of water.  You don't want to leave the grindstone soaking in the water as it will wick up and cause the main shaft to rust.

[Elden]

Good points, Herman. Once I got to going very far in, I never backed all the way off. I did back up a little ways to break the chips. I kept the air hose handy to blow away the broken loose chips. Made sure to use plenty of oil as well!

[afx]

I've been worried about the rusting main shaft even before I bought it. I've thought about removing the shaft and having a replica machined for me out of stainless but I'll cross that road later.

I tell ya, I tried to get a 1/2" die on this thing and it wouldn't catch on for the life of me. I kept checking it was really a 1/2" die and it's clearly marked so. Hell I took a caliper to the USB to make sure it wasn't somehow goofed up and it read .463" like it should.

I wonder if its just a crappy die.

[Herman Trivilino]

I've been worried about the rusting main shaft even before I bought it. I've thought about removing the shaft and having a replica machined for me out of stainless but I'll cross that road later.

Don't do that!  The MSK-250 is stainless and it's got the EzyLock feature: http://tormek.com/international/en/spare-parts/shafts/msk-250-stainless-steel-shaft/

I tell ya, I tried to get a 1/2" die on this thing and it wouldn't catch on for the life of me. I kept checking it was really a 1/2" die and it's clearly marked so. Hell I took a caliper to the USB to make sure it wasn't somehow goofed up and it read .463" like it should.

12 mm is 0.472", although that's only about 0.25 mm off so that shouldn't matter.  I don't have a lot of experience with this, but you may have to buy the 12 mm die and matching nut like I did.

[Elden]

Kirk,
This is dumb question on my end as I'm sure you know the difference. Where you trying to start the proper side of the die? One side has the teeth relieved for starting. They contact the rod first. Don't get mad at me, I'm just trying to analyze why it won't start.
Is it a fairly good quality die that is sharp? It doesn't have to be the absolute highest quality, but I don't trust Harbor Freight or comparable quality very far. I get my replacement taps and dies from my local lumber, hardware stores. They are kind of a medium quality material. If the die has seen a lot of use, it may be beyond its useful life expectancy.
A fair amount of down pressure on the die stock has to be exerted (making sure it is kept square) to start a die.
This is all from not knowing your level of proficiency with this type of work.

[afx]

Kirk,
This is dumb question on my end as I'm sure you know the difference. Where you trying to start the proper side of the die? One side has the teeth relieved for starting. They contact the rod first. Don't get mad at me, I'm just trying to analyze why it won't start.
Is it a fairly good quality die that is sharp? It doesn't have to be the absolute highest quality, but I don't trust Harbor Freight or comparable quality very far. I get my replacement taps and dies from my local lumber, hardware stores. They are kind of a medium quality material. If the die has seen a lot of use, it may be beyond its useful life expectancy.
A fair amount of down pressure on the die stock has to be exerted (making sure it is kept square) to start a die.
This is all from not knowing your level of proficiency with this type of work.

Oh no, that isn't a dumb question at all. I did make sure to use the tapered side of the die however it IS a cheap harbor freight set that I've used primarily for tapping and to run a damaged thread on a rod. Ill look into grabbing a 12mm and 1/2" die today.

Oh and I think I just misremembered the .463 number, I had measured it a few days prior.

[Elden]

Kirk,
That sounds great. I am pretty sure getting a better quality new die will solve your problem. My father-in-law picked up a 110 piece set years ago from a new tool auction (import items). That was before we had ever heard of Harbor Freight. That was and is a good set, but I imagine they were made in Japan. I think they sell  for around $200 now.

[Herman Trivilino]

Those are probably all carbon steel, not high speed (HSS) steel, right?

[Elden]

As far as I know Herman they are, but a good quality of it. High speed would be significantly higher in price, I'm sure. I noticed Tublcain only mentioned carbon steel as being cheap and used HSS.

[Herman Trivilino]

Well, he said they were better.  I really like the little holder he made with the drill bits and taps arranged by size.