Topics include, Machine Tools & Tooling, Precision Measuring, Materials and their Properties, Electrical discussions related to machine tools, setups, fixtures and jigs and other general discussion related to amateur machining.
I'm suddenly tempted by the inexpensive Spin Index Fixture (spindex), even the economy version seems quite affordable. The PhaseII model is on sale now at Enco, and with the monthly code I just might have too...
Also, I was just watching oxtoolco on youtube modifying the spindex to accept multiple index plates. He's not done with the series yet (and make yourself a big bag of corn puffs if you like that style of video, because it will be hours on end before you're done).
Anyhow, I thought I was going to get a dividing head, and would still like one, but they are a bit out of my price range now...
I think someone here mentioned how much they liked their spindex. It's just an excuse to buy C5 collets, which will then require collet blocks... I also got an inkling that Tom the oxtoolco guy likes to poke fun and play quien es mas macho... so he needs someone to outdo his spindex mod...
Standards are so important that everyone must have their own...
To measure is to know - Lord Kelvin
Disclaimer: I'm just a guy with a few machines...
I own both the spin-dex and an index head. Depends on what you are going to do as to which one you choose for a job. Also you can get a small 3" 3 jaw chuck mounted to a 5C shank. This makes the spin-dex even more attractive because you are no longer limited to the collets you have.
And depending on what tooling you already have, Arc Euro Trade in the U.K. sell a modified Spindex that's been redesigned by John Stevenson to take the ER-32 collets. Plus if you were to go that route, they also sell both square and octagon ER-32 collet blocks when you can get by with just 2,3,4, or 6 divisions. In some ways that might be the most cost effective route to go. If your using collets, then it's rather pointless to use inaccurate and poorly built ones. A full set of good accurate 5C's manufactured by a known producer of those good accurate 5C's aren't exactly cheap today. For a commercial business I'd think the 5C's would be the way to go for all the various bits of tooling that's been developed over the years just for that industry standard. But for a home shop? You might be able to get by with the ER-32's. I of course decided on the ER-40 size before these ER-32 accessories were designed.
I now have both a 6" Vertex R/T I bought first, then I added the tailstock and dividing plates. But I also bought a Vertex Universal D/H. If I had to do it all over again, I'd still buy what I did and in the order I did. That R/T with the division plates can do pretty well what a standard D/H can do other than tilt. But they even make those. I do think the 6" size R/T is quite small and a bit tough to work with just finding room to get anything fastened to the table. So if you've got something of around a Bridgeport sized machine, I'd personally start out buying the 8" table size at least.
Whatever you buy or already have, there always seems to be something else that will work just a little bit better on the very next part your building.
pete wrote: I of course decided on the ER-40 size before these ER-32 accessories were designed.
Pete
Exactly! Why dont they make Spindex or Collet Blocks for ER-40? Seems like a bit more utility for not too much more size, plus Ive already got a full set of ER-40 and dont want to have to buy ER-32 or 5C.
LC,
Yeah I can sure relate to your thoughts. Even though the ER-40'S take up a bit more room on the Z axis, I chose that size because I wanted to also use them on my lathe for work holding. And since I expected to get a lot of use out of them, I bought a full set of Bison's. They cost me a fair chunk of change at the time, and I really don't want to fork out what it would take to again buy a known brand of the 32's since they would just duplicate a lot of what I already have.
But for the HSM types or what they call Model Engineers in the U.K. that ER-40 size is rarely mentioned, and a lot of the tool dealers in the U.K. don't even sell the 40's. I'd guess that's why they didn't and haven't made a set of those Collet Blocks and Spindex for this size. It would be handy though. I guess you could build a set of the Collet Blocks and build a new spindle for any brand of Spindex, I'd still rather have hardened and ground though.
This is just MO of course. The chuck and larger attachment put a strain on the locking arrangement. They are not a ridged head. If you think they are(as I do, limited) the chuck more interesting is the 4-jaw. A Pot chuck(I see them called but don't agree) the larger outside collets (Hardinge) and associated outer plates don't relate to oblong work. With the 4-jaw you can index in the middle of something irregular or true up for central. The reason I say this is because I've been ready to get one or make one for a long time.
It just becomes more interesting when I decide and they are sold out. They are ~95 ish new.
