Scott NC Posted April 28, 2022 Share Posted April 28, 2022 Here is a photo of my old basement machine shop. There is a Wards metal lathe, Atlas metal shaper and Atlas milling machine. I taught myself to cut small gears on each machine and built the fixtures. Rack, spur, bevel, etc.... Workable gears, mind you, tolerable for my uses. Nothing NASA would approve of. I never could understand helical and herringbone's though so I never tried. I have lost my lust for tolerances and used the funds from the sale of them to invest in a shop and metal shaping equipment of a different sort..... I do still have a South Bend heavey 10 tho. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted April 28, 2022 Share Posted April 28, 2022 Glad to have you on the "Dark Side" of metalworking! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anachronist58 Posted April 28, 2022 Share Posted April 28, 2022 Glad you kept the Southbend. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scott NC Posted April 29, 2022 Author Share Posted April 29, 2022 19 hours ago, ThomasPowers said: Glad to have you on the "Dark Side" of metalworking! Took me a while to see the light! 18 hours ago, Anachronist58 said: Glad you kept the Southbend. Oh, and a milling attachment for the crosslide. Couldn't go cold turkey..... you never know..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
anvil Posted May 9, 2022 Share Posted May 9, 2022 Just to test your tolerance for tolerance, a traditional smith should have no problem to working to a '64th. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scott NC Posted May 9, 2022 Author Share Posted May 9, 2022 64th's sounds like a nice soothing tolerance to shoot for. I think I can manage that.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted May 9, 2022 Share Posted May 9, 2022 Traditional smiths tended to do a lot of "fitting" too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scott NC Posted May 9, 2022 Author Share Posted May 9, 2022 I used to be a fitter at Zidell barges in Portland. Different kind of fitting I suppose. I think we had to hold at least a 64th or maybey things would get out of hand.... But I think I know what you mean. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted May 9, 2022 Share Posted May 9, 2022 Back before interchangeable parts you would "fit" parts together to make them work. Usually with a file or abrasive to remove slight amounts---well you hoped for slight amounts! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scott NC Posted May 9, 2022 Author Share Posted May 9, 2022 You make it work. I have been there. Nice to just buy it though. We are soft these day's I think. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted May 9, 2022 Share Posted May 9, 2022 The unwillingness to maintain stuff is what makes me wonder. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scott NC Posted May 10, 2022 Author Share Posted May 10, 2022 Laziness. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
anvil Posted May 11, 2022 Share Posted May 11, 2022 Actually, working to a '64th and being competent with bending forks and scrolling wrench, monkey tools etc, traditional smiths do very little "fitting by file". And of course its those danged "cowboy shoe'rs" who file a hoof to fit the shoe. Farriers fit the shoe to the hoof and both do this because it takes too much time to do it otherwise. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted May 11, 2022 Share Posted May 11, 2022 You DON'T trim and dress a hoof before fitting the shoe and after clinching the nails!? I know, of course you do or you wouldn't have any customers once word got out and there's a good reason "cowboys" filed a hoof to fit the shoe. Riding the range you carry a couple spare shoes, one front one rear, minimum, a hammer, file. A hoof pick and brush goes without saying. The only cowboys I knew who carried a clincher and nips either rode a horse that threw a lot of shoes or put spares on other's horses. Some guys were really good at it. Rocky ground caused a lot of flats too. My hammer let me straighten clinched nails and pull them and start the clinch on new nails. I was no real cowboy but I was no a Rexall Ranger. (That's "drugstore cowboy" for you younguns.) These were never permanent, Dad or I would pull the spare and have our farrier out to make it right soonest. You got me to reminiscing again. Good times. Frosty The Lucky. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
anvil Posted May 17, 2022 Share Posted May 17, 2022 Good memories. My farrier daze was a great time in my life, and a great lead-in to my smithing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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