Club Meeting: 11 September 2024
Report by: Bob Yandell

The club had the good fortune to have 4 experts present on the key equipment we have or use either at the Club or at home:

• Bandsaw 
• Bench Grinder 
• Lathe
• Chucks
  

Bandsaw – Mark Williams

Mark outlined his background associated with Bandsaws which began as a Saw Doctor in the Waipārera Sawmill through sales at Thode and his current position at Carbatec. Starting with the history of bearing blocks of Black Maire soaked in oil, multiple steel bearings through to Ceramics, again with oil and then the current home used bandsaws and their bearings. The affect of oil and sawdust on the performance of the bandsaw. 

The structure and choice of the Bandsaw blade was explained and the correct unfolding and folding of the blade drew admiration from all present. The ideal blade is a bimetal blade, 6TPI and 1/4 inch. The blade should be tensioned as much as possible and once tensioned a maximum of 5mm movement side to side. Clean the wheel with turpentine to remove any sawdust. Regular cleaning is recommendeD

Grinder – Dick Veitch

A quick overview of the key safety features to be observed.

• Safety shield should be put down after use.
• Lock the slide once correct position has been set. 
• Never put Tool Steel on CBN wheel.

The white or blue wheel (Aluminium oxide) is for tool steel tools. The aluminium oxide wheel can be cleaned and flattened with the diamond dresser. Tool Steel sparks much more when being ground, if in doubt test your tool on the aluminium oxide wheel.

Lathe – Roger Latimer

The focus was how to remove the clean and maintain the Headstock , tailstock and the banjo. 

The focus on the Headstock was the need to be sure to remove the power source and wait at least 5 minutes before removing the cover plate as the unit is designed to hold power for a short period to prevent damage. The Headstock only needs to be cleaned once a year or when an error message “0 or 1” is displayed. The locking pin is made of steel and the indexing wheel is made of aluminium so susceptible to damage if over loaded. Vacuum the dust out and be careful if blowing.

The tailstock should be cleaned more frequently as dust can get in the quill. Keeper plate is subject to wear on the headstock side due to the pressure exerted when drilling, it can be turned around or should be replaced. It needs to be lubricated with graphite grease.

The banjo can be adjusted and a light lubricant applied.

Chuck – Ian Connelly 

Remove the jaws.

Use quality circlip pliers to remove the circlip from the back of the chuck as the tension in the clip is likely to break cheaper versions.
Ensure the position of the slides are marked (use a sharpie) or a centre punch to mark the first slide. For a supernova chuck hit the insert with a wooden mallet and the protective dust cover will pop off. Remove the scroll ring and slides. Clean using throttle/carburetor  cleaner as it will not leave a residue and apply a light coating of grease. 

Reassemble in the reverse order. Push the slides into the centre. You may need to rotate the scroll ring to get it to seat correctly on the slides.

I serviced one of my chucks to make sure that I was following the directions and I failed, hence the need to move the scroll ring until the slide adjusters located. Refer Teknatool.com – How to service Nova Chucks.

A thorough and comprehensive series of demonstrations. Needs to be repeated.