Tooling suggestions?

[P KUNDA]

To try to save money on indicators is not a good idea. A top indicator, that one can 100% depend on everytime is the only accurate way to go.

Peter

[Rustystud]

Good Day:

The last Remington 700 I measured was 1.360 OD.

For inletting stocks I have never needed a 1.360 ball endmill.

For wood you can use a router bit. Either purchasing it or making it.

For metal you can use a fly cutter with either having your stock verticle or at an angle.

Metal again, You can chuck up your stock in a lathe and use a boring bar.


Good Luck
Rustystud

[eddybo]

Thanks for the info. I was thinking about getting a flattop A3 and inletting it for a remington action. The Ball endmill looked like the easy way out. I am glad to find out other methods. I had thought a one pass cutter would be the way to go.
I saw a cutter someone made from a spade bit the other day that was contoured to match the profile of an action. I am thinking about going that route but worry about chipping around the tang. I have a few weeks before my new machines arrive. I guess I will wait on them before I tacle anything. I cant angle the head on my little lathe/mill and it lacks the travel to make the cut in one pass anyway.
I guess I will just keep making pillar blanks and odds and ends until I get better tooling.

[James Jones]

eddybo , like everybody mentioned their are several ways to inlet for the action and if its gonna be glass bedded your gonna need relief anyhow.

P KUNDA , your right about the indicators needing to be reliable , I use the cheaper indicators for measuring my tool movement rather than depending on the machine dials ,I setup indicators on everything I do ,when measuring my parts and things like runout I use either my Starret of Brown&Sharp last word indiators. Unless your lucky enough to have DRO's on all your stuff using dials in the only way to go and in the places these thing get put and the danage they see from time to time you don't want any $100 dials in thier.

[adam]

I kind of agree on the indicators with both camps. Good indicators are important, but I have used a number of the cheaper ones to good effect. The way I see it is: If you aren't going to pop for a digital, then stick to the cheap ones and buy a lot of them. they do tend to fall,crud etc. tossem n get a new one from the shelf.

However I do recomend spending the bucks on the best bases you can get your hands on. A good base can make a crappy indicator good enough.

[Jay, Idaho]

[quote=Anaother problem is that the ball nose endmills don't like to cut wood or fiberglass to much , I was thinking the next time I get the chance to inlet one that I would use a regular 6 flute center cutting endmill (I got a couple that are 1.350" now) and just clock the mill head over 45 degs so that your cutting on the side on the tool rather then the bottom.
[/QUOTE]

I don't want to be a smartass but you would have to tip the mill head to 90º to get a 1.350 radius with a 1.350 diameter endmill. Any angle less than 90º will result in a radius LARGER than the diameter of the endmill.
There is a formula for using a smaller endmill to cut a larger radius. I think that it is radius of endmill/radius desired = sine of angle to tilt head. It is a handy trick but you cannot get a full radius.
I use a 1.250 diameter ball endmill with a formula from Excel to cut a number of scallops that are ALMOST a true radius. A few strokes with a piece of sandpaper on a 1.325 diameter aluminum rod gives me a pretty darn good radius. I've done a lot of stocks and barrel blocks with this method.

[grpolarbear]

If your not fortunate enough to have DRO on your lathe a 2 inch travel dial on a mighty mag base works.I used to run a 2 incher and a top quality one ten thousand,s dial on my cross slide,Mitotoyo was what I used,anyway use the 2 incher for large moves and the tenths for tolerance work.Two dials are also good because they can verify each other.I also got in the habit of using the tenths with a DRO on close tolerance OD work,+ or - 2 tenths was easy on a decent lathe.Mill work requires a last word type dial, its a must.GRPB