01-30-2018, 05:22 PM
One more milestone accomplished albeit a small one. The base for the tripod head is done except for adding three teflon glides on the bottom. The purpose of the ten holes can be seen in the photo below. .458 cast lead bullets (NOT cartridges, just bullets for reloading .45-70 rifle cartridges) were placed in a pie pan over a stove burner to melt off the wax-base lubricant with which the bullets are coated.
The bullets were then epoxied into the holes in the base. There is clearance in the holes on the back for installing the glides.
Here's the assembly with tripod head screwed to the base. There are infinite degrees of freedom in this setup, the head can be adjusted to any elevation and rotation in any axis. The height of the tool vise is controlled by sliding the vise mounting plate (with vee grooves) up and down in the vee ways of the head, then clamping in place.
The cast bullets add nearly a pound to the rear of the base to partly balance the weight of the vise and vise mounting plate. In use, the tool to be sharpened is clamped in the small toolmaker's vise and adjusted to the correct angle and height. The base of the tripod head is free to slide in any direction on the top of the aluminum jig plate. The bullets provide enhanced stability.
The jig plate will be anodized, either dark blue or black. Obviously, this will improve the appearance but is mostly for wear resistance, providing a hard, smooth surface for the teflon glides.
I haven't yet decided if I want to drizzle some black paint (or black epoxy) onto the top of the bullets for appearance - any opinions ? The head needs to be removed so that I can buff out the base to remove some fine tooling marks
The bullets were then epoxied into the holes in the base. There is clearance in the holes on the back for installing the glides.
Here's the assembly with tripod head screwed to the base. There are infinite degrees of freedom in this setup, the head can be adjusted to any elevation and rotation in any axis. The height of the tool vise is controlled by sliding the vise mounting plate (with vee grooves) up and down in the vee ways of the head, then clamping in place.
The cast bullets add nearly a pound to the rear of the base to partly balance the weight of the vise and vise mounting plate. In use, the tool to be sharpened is clamped in the small toolmaker's vise and adjusted to the correct angle and height. The base of the tripod head is free to slide in any direction on the top of the aluminum jig plate. The bullets provide enhanced stability.
The jig plate will be anodized, either dark blue or black. Obviously, this will improve the appearance but is mostly for wear resistance, providing a hard, smooth surface for the teflon glides.
I haven't yet decided if I want to drizzle some black paint (or black epoxy) onto the top of the bullets for appearance - any opinions ? The head needs to be removed so that I can buff out the base to remove some fine tooling marks