Very nice. ... What size is it? (Diameter)

About 16" diam, 1.25" thick

Even at 60.....your still darn good :p

Wish I had one for some fat cats in our Country.Would send them to a place where it is hot.:)

Top clamp on all 4 corners.
Circular face the flat area for the symbols.
42mm dia cutter, bottom speed, F1200. A couple of minutes.

Engrave all lines, 10mm v, Mid speed, f1000. 16 Minutes, ran the path twice, saved on sanding time.

Carve the symbols, same as above. 10 minutes.

Rough dish the mid section, 12.7mm Ball nose, 5mm d.o.c., 6.35mm step over, F1200., 20 minutes.
Finish dish, 4mm ball nose, F3200., 50 minutes.

Outside profile, 12.7mm cutter, 5mm d.o.c., f1200, 6 minutes.

A couple of hours to sand, defuzz, seal, varnish and apply a bracket.

A piece of the wood broke away and jammed between the cutter and the outer profile.
There was a jolt. Result, a broken cutter and the Z axis out of alignment.
I made a trammel out of a cutter shank and a 2.6mm welding rod.
The Z is now better aligned than it ever was.
I plan to make a new router plate with gussets welded on.
Should get rid of some slight flexing.

Some of this tropical hardwood is hard and dense.:eek:

I could send you one Hennie, but there is no guarantee attached.:D

Very nice indeed.

Rotating things
 

I made a simple 4th axis last year.
It was my intention to build a proper one and try a reduction drive.
I gathered the parts over the last year.
After a period of not wanting to do anything for 6 months, I made a start yesterday.
I have 3 nema 23 motors from my old machine.
I made a 6:1 reduction drive from plywood to prove it works.
It did, very impressed.
Started work on the 4th axis today.
The shaft, and other bits came from a scrapyard, motorbike parts, hence the gears.

I have a plan for the nema 23 motors and reduction drive.
It involves a lathe.
I will ask the questions on the 'Catchall' thread.

Been wanting to do this myself, but sit on the couch til the feeling goes away.

Sitting on the couch is more comfortable than sitting on the fence.:D

Hey, mine is sitting on the floor. Have not had the time to integrate it into the machine yet. So I have been on the floor for 2 years. They say all good things come with time. I am trying to convince myself of that. :o

I am in the Club too :-)

Mine too :o have I really been that busy that I have not been able to get mine fitted or am I just a grade 1 procrastinator? :)

Once you start 4 sided machining...or continuous 4th axis...it's like an addiction.

Oh sure, Sean....now you tell us....

Take Sean`s word for it.

:). Lol.

The Bolt test
 

I tried out my 4th axis in earnest this morning.
It worked better than I had hoped.
It didn't bat an eyelid .
No missed steps. It worked.

Both the 4th axis and and myself passed the bolt test(as performed by Isla WW).

MechMate, every day a new adventure.:D
Now, about this lathe.

Nice test!

Congrats Al, looks awesome!

Very happy for you.....;)

Congratulations !
I wonder if I could 3D print the big pulley ... I cannot figure how much force there is on the rotary axis, the PLA of the 3D priner is very strong but it's not metal ... is driven by a nema 23 motor ?

Silverdog.
Yes it is a nema 23 motor.
Geared 6:1
I took 3mm depth of cut with a 42mm dia cutter,20mm step over in Padauk(hardwood) while roughing out.
No problem.
The big pulley cost 18 Pounds Sterling last March.
Might get another to gear the Z axis.
The dp of the big pulley is 114.59mm, 72 teeth.
Hope this helps you.

Thanks Al :-)

Very Nice!

I would recommend an idler. If it is 6:1 then I assume then you have a 12 tooth driving pulley. This would leave only 4 teeth engaged in the drive pulley unless your center to center distance is really large. Only a suggestion. Nicely executed.

nicely done....

Thank you for the positive comments gentlemen.

#98, sage advise as always.
Yes, I did think about the small contact area.
If I had a lot of serious work for a 4th axis, I would build another with a longer belt and an idler.(Anyone got a STL file of a bust of William Shakespeare]

But for now my new toy will do.:D
All part of the MechMate adventure. :)

If you find that stl, I am interested as well.

There are some on http://www.123dapp.com/

I got back from a visit to England a few days ago.
I got some timing pulleys and belts.(Corian, drill bits , files, screws, tea bags, razor blades) 15kg more than what I went with.
I will make a reduction drive for my Z axis.

Today I moved the electrical box from under the machine
and mounted it on the wall.
I can still get down but getting back up is becoming more of a problem
as time passes.