Dust cover build for camera lens tester

Today’s task is to machine a bullet of aluminum into a lens cover for the lens testing equipment.

Lathe to turn down t the lender basic shape and then a dividing head will be used to machine the tabs which are used to security in place.

Hello is a picture of a lens mounting a piece used to fit a standard camera lens to a lens test equipment. He you can clearly see before tabs which i use to lock the mount in place.

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The restaurant has been drawn up to show the part i need to make. Parties to the machine from 3.5 inch tablet approximately 2 inches wide . This will feature the tab fixing brackets and a half inch diameter knurled handle.

First lady of malaysia news russian ballet . First lathe operations are within tolerance of -0.001+0 inch.

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The next operation sis to mount the part 12 the dividing head on a mail and using a 3/16th cutter, mill the 4 tabs.

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Clocking the milling machines we make everything central. we can fit a cutter and start making the tabs. The tabs need to reduce radius by 0.13 inch.

FinalĀ  tabs milled. All I need to do is sand down the edges using 1200 grit paper and to test fit. I also need to do the knurling on the handle.

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A quick sanding of the edges to remove the burrs gives us a time to test fit into the machine.2014-05-20 14.55.392014-05-20 14.55.43

 

 

Rats, it doesnt fit there is a small pip which is used to locate the mounts into place. I think i need to add these in, but as it can be fitted in 4 orientations, i need to add 4 holes!

Back to the dividing head, this time, i need to rotate the handle 10 times – 10 into 40 go 4 times, and as we need 4, i can place it.

Carefully aligning it up so that the pip hole is in the centre of the tabs, and a slot is milled at the correct distance, we can mill using a 3/16 cutter.

Now to test fit!

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Perfect! and it even fits in place once the cap is screwed!

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JOB DONE!

Milling tool rack

So, after a few months at Aardman, I have accumulated a number of end mills, which are rolling about the tray, which… is not the best, as any slight nick on the cutting edges can result in ugly surfaces – yes end mills are to cut side on! not really for plunging at ends, but we all do that anyway!
So I have about 12 or 10 cutters which I have tried to restrain usingcloths, wooden disks etc but each time the drawer is opened and closed they rattle loose…

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So, I decieded to mill out a ‘cutlery drawer’ style thing for them, you know the ones with slots to hold knives, forks, spoons, and that garlic crushed insert full of bits of old garlic that the spikey brush just can’t remove… Anyways you know.

So I got a bit of plywood 3/4inch thick, and roughly draw a few marks on it in the shape of slots that could hold my cutters, just to give an idea.

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I wanted a selection of sizes of slots so I picked the medium sized cutter I had, I think that was 5/8th or 3/4, tho I think it was the first, I clamped down the plywood and set up the cutter at the first roughly drawn slot.

Powering on the milling machine I made my fiirst cut to a depth of 350 thousandths and cut a series of slots, I got 6 slots horizontal about 3inches long which fitted my smaller cutters.

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The next set of slots are made wider by running the cutter offset from the first slot, again leaving a small edge between slots, this gave me again 6 slots by starting closer to the edges.

The final 3rd of wood is made into longer wider vertical slots to house 1 inch and 3/4 cutters, 3 slots are given. All this milling creates a lot of sawdust… time for a vacuuming!

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Removing the wood from the machine revealed lots of splinters on the edges of the top of the slots. A bit of sanding down and all done!

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Large cutter doesn’t fit! Oh no! So a quick chiseling….

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All done! Tidy drawers!