The Secret Society of Lathe Trolls

I am cutting Souri's plastic discs. Lot of static and I had a lot of problems in the beginning. The swarf thread was clinging so hard to the disc, that my suction couldn't get it removed. But with PG treatment and the blower I don't have any problems anymore. The blower itself is not really noisy. O...

But .. since I have that nifty little blower (in the back) I hardly care anymore. Static? What static? Got it for 60 bucks on the Bay. Aerostat Ionizing Air Blower. Makes life a lot easier.

Actually - I am using PG (Propylene Glycol) and mix it 1:1 with Turtle Wax. Just one drop and my static is gone. But your mileage may very of course. PG has the nice added value that I can use it in my vapor e-cigarette as well. Without the turtle wax though ..

Michaela

I am wondering .. if something sounds too good to be true .. only one image? Hmm .. in Spain?

mm.

Hey guys (and gals) ..

I notice some chirping sounds on my cuts lately. Almost like a birding tweeting .. not loud, but noticeable. I am cutting with a Grampian and diamond stylus, no heat. Any ideas?

Michaela

Excuse my naivety, but what is it that limits what materials can be cut on any given lathe? I'm thinking the Rek-o-Kut was not designed to cut PVC, so are there issues with the cutter head, or is it all down to the shank used? i.e. does fitting a diamond shank/stylus and vacuum to "any ol' cutter" ...

Good progress, Michaela, And thanks for sharing your experience with the group. Have you ever tried a negative ion generator for dissipating static? Thanks and - now .. that's funny. I just bought a Simco Aerostat Ionizing Air Blower. This unit is supposed to be a sharp sword in the fight against s...

Ok - Here's part II. I had a few another unsuccessful or .. well less successful tries but the current version is actually working pretty well. I designed a "plug-able" suction with a 3/8th tube mounted to the bridge at the right side of the cutter head allowing a 1/4" tube to be plugged in. That al...

Fellow trolls: Over the last two months or so I have been experimenting with cutting plastic - myshank stylus and blanks. The relatively small prices for 10" blanks allowed me many, many tests. Especially to get suction working reliably. Here's a short overview what I did and what I found out: Backg...

Greg Reierson wrote:A would be stroking. C would be digging.

Thanks Greg.

Stroking? Digging?

mm.

Would you be able to post a few images?

mm.

I usually cut trying to keep a perfect 0 degree angle. However - some people suggest a slight angle, usually 3 or 5 degrees. I just don't know in which direction. So - should the stylus lean in the direction of the rotating disc or against it ? cutangle.png What would be the right direction? A or C ...

This may sound really, really well ... crazy .. but why would one convert an analog signal to digital only to cut it back onto an analog medium? If it comes out of a DAW - well, that's one thing. But if it comes from tape - well, it's just not analog anymore once you feed it through a digital delay....

Been there - tried it. Took a Recordio with a dead head, cut the recording arm and mounted a Presto. Worked ok.

Michaela

Howdy:

I got this microscope with boom pretty cheap - but obviously .. something is missing? I suppose something needs to get attached to the threads at the lower end. Any idea what?

I also get sometimes that kind of frizzy swarf, usually when the suction tube is too close to the stylus or the stylus heating too high, so the swarf build up in the space between stylus and tube, and with the heating it becomes like in the picture you show. PS: the stylus you are using doesn't loo...

Gridlock wrote:You should see my vacuum it's a wreck but what the hell. Try acoustic folk instead of grindcore

LOL .. good one. Though my test is a early 60s version of Benny Goodman's "Sing Sing Sing" .

Michaela

Thanks for the tips. I'll report back, when I have the new pump up and running.

Michaela

Well, the "old" system works fine as long as the swarf is undisturbed and smooth. Depending on the frequencies cut the tread get's frizzy, entangles and won't get sucked in anymore. That's my main problem. Teh cut is fine.

Michaela