tooling telescoping tube - update ??

Archiver

Hi Tracy,

it's been a few weeks and I (and probably a lot of others) was
wondering how you cut the tube and how pleased you were with the
results.

Dave





--- In basicstamps@yahoogroups.com, Tracy Allen <tracy@e...> wrote:
> I wonder if you guys who make robots and mechanical things might
have
> any advice about this.
>
> I have a 2 inch long stainless steel tube, 5/8" o.d., 0.029" wall,
> and I need to cut a longitudinal slot in the wall. The slot has to
> be between 0.08" and 0.1" wide, and it has to be 0.6" long,
starting
> 0.25" from one end of the tube.
>
> I don't know what tooling would work best to cut a clean slot.
side
> cutter? grinder? rotary tool? I have a lathe and a die grinder.
>
> The idea is that this tube will telescope into another tube, and a
> #52 machine screw will come through the outside tube into the slot
> and constrain the travel. There will be a detector switch at the
end
> inside the slot that will be activated by the screw coming in from
> outside.
>
> -- best regards
> Tracy Allen
> electronically monitored ecosystems
> http://www.emesystems.com
> mailto:tracy@e...

Archiver

Hi Dave,

Thanks very much for your help with that problem, indeed, thanks to
everyone who had suggestions about how to do it and sources of
supply. I'd like to try some of the other methods, including the
grinder method Jim just brought up, and I'd like to see what the
laser could do.

A photo of the result can be seen at
<http://www.emesystems.com/images/teletube.jpg>.

I ended up using a cobalt steel 3/32" end mill. The SS tube was
clamped in a vise, mounted on a vertical slide, in turn mounted on
the lathe's cross slide. That made lining the work piece up with
the tool real easy. The tool plunged in and then we fed the cross
slide slowly to get the desired length. I didn't make much of a jig
to hold it in the vice and to keep it from deforming (too much rush
to try it out). I don't think it deformed too much while making the
short slot. We did try also a carbide cutter, and it plunged in just
fine but it broke immediately ($!$) when we tried to feed it to the
side. We were using oil, but the maximum speed of this lathe is
about 750 rpm. Maybe that just shows that the fixture was not rigid
enough. I don't know, but one cobalt tool lasted long enough to cut
6 tubes and was still going strong. The finish was kind of rough,
but a little filing made it good enough for now.

-- Tracy








>Hi Tracy,
>
>it's been a few weeks and I (and probably a lot of others) was
>wondering how you cut the tube and how pleased you were with the
>results.
>
>Dave
>
>--- In basicstamps@yahoogroups.com, Tracy Allen <tracy@e...> wrote:
>> I wonder if you guys who make robots and mechanical things might
>have
>> any advice about this.
>>
>> I have a 2 inch long stainless steel tube, 5/8" o.d., 0.029" wall,
>> and I need to cut a longitudinal slot in the wall. The slot has to
>> be between 0.08" and 0.1" wide, and it has to be 0.6" long,
>starting
>> 0.25" from one end of the tube.
>>
>> I don't know what tooling would work best to cut a clean slot.
>side
>> cutter? grinder? rotary tool? I have a lathe and a die grinder.
>>
>> The idea is that this tube will telescope into another tube, and a
>> #52 machine screw will come through the outside tube into the slot
>> and constrain the travel. There will be a detector switch at the
>end
>> inside the slot that will be activated by the screw coming in from
>> outside.
>>
>> -- best regards
>> Tracy Allen
>> electronically monitored ecosystems
>> http://www.emesystems.com
>> mailto:tracy@e...
>
>
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