MLA Filing Machine
MLA Filing Machine
I have wanted a filing machine ever since I saw it on the Clickspring YouTube channel. After watching the Metal Lathe Accessories castings for a couple of years I finally decided I needed to make the plunge.
Andy Lofquist was a pleasure to work with. After a couple of emails the castings were shipped out very fast and arrived looking great.
The basic kit includes a set of drawing, a piece of bar for the table support and castings for the main body, cover plate, table, and yoke. Andy also offers a hardware kit, bronze for the bearings and a casting for the pulley as add-ons. I got the hardware kit but opted to not get the bronze or the pulley casting.
The other builds that I found used a milling machine to machine the body casting. My Atlas horizontal mill could have been used but I lacked some of the tooling I would have needed so I'll do the bulk of the machining on my lathe.
I started with the main body since everything else mounts to it. So far I am most of the way through machining. I have the vertical bores for the file rod done and the counterbore for the back cover done.
Machining has gone pretty well on my 9” Logan. The castings were well designed.
The main thing I would have done different is before facing the bottom flat drilled a center on the drill press. It was just too hard trying to get the bottom of the casting to running true and square at the same time with it hanging out from the chuck so far.
The bottom really only needed to be square so I focused on that. The result was a but of a wobble while machining but nothing functionality wrong.
I ended up having to make the back cover about 1/8" oversized from the plan so that the tapped holes don't break through the inner edge of the casting. Andy says in the build notes that it is not uncommon for the core to shift slightly during casting making the inner cavity is off center. There is plenty of extra material on the cover casting that this is not a problem.
Andy Lofquist was a pleasure to work with. After a couple of emails the castings were shipped out very fast and arrived looking great.
The basic kit includes a set of drawing, a piece of bar for the table support and castings for the main body, cover plate, table, and yoke. Andy also offers a hardware kit, bronze for the bearings and a casting for the pulley as add-ons. I got the hardware kit but opted to not get the bronze or the pulley casting.
The other builds that I found used a milling machine to machine the body casting. My Atlas horizontal mill could have been used but I lacked some of the tooling I would have needed so I'll do the bulk of the machining on my lathe.
I started with the main body since everything else mounts to it. So far I am most of the way through machining. I have the vertical bores for the file rod done and the counterbore for the back cover done.
Machining has gone pretty well on my 9” Logan. The castings were well designed.
The main thing I would have done different is before facing the bottom flat drilled a center on the drill press. It was just too hard trying to get the bottom of the casting to running true and square at the same time with it hanging out from the chuck so far.
The bottom really only needed to be square so I focused on that. The result was a but of a wobble while machining but nothing functionality wrong.
I ended up having to make the back cover about 1/8" oversized from the plan so that the tapped holes don't break through the inner edge of the casting. Andy says in the build notes that it is not uncommon for the core to shift slightly during casting making the inner cavity is off center. There is plenty of extra material on the cover casting that this is not a problem.
Re: MLA Filing Machine
I made good progress on the back plate. I left the center of the back since it might be useful later.
I located the mounting holes using a paper template. It is not the most accurate but I’ll be match drilling the body any way. I’ll just need to match mark since it will likely only fit one way.
The drilling and conterboring of the mounting holes was done in the lathe. I had to use a 5/16 endmill to counterbore and didn’t really have a better way to rigidly hold the plate. It meant having to re-center the piece for each hole but it worked quite well. Sometimes you have to work with what you got.
I located the mounting holes using a paper template. It is not the most accurate but I’ll be match drilling the body any way. I’ll just need to match mark since it will likely only fit one way.
The drilling and conterboring of the mounting holes was done in the lathe. I had to use a 5/16 endmill to counterbore and didn’t really have a better way to rigidly hold the plate. It meant having to re-center the piece for each hole but it worked quite well. Sometimes you have to work with what you got.
Re: MLA Filing Machine
I was able to get the holes from the back plate transfered to the body, drilled and tapped.
Re: MLA Filing Machine
I'd like to comment on your tenacity. The way you've approached the machining of this kit is remarkable. Of special interest is the way you drilled and counterbored the back plate.
Well done!
H
Well done!
H
Wise people talk because they have something to say. Fools talk because they have to say something.
Re: MLA Filing Machine
I’m just hoping my tenacity doesn’t leave me with a door stop at the end of all this. Fortunately the scotch yoke mechanism is pretty forgiving so I shouldn’t have any problems.
I really like the challenge of making the tooling I have work but this experience has definitely made me pine for a vertical milling machine.
I have most of the machining done on the body casting. The shaft bore was also machined on the lathe. It took a lot to get the casting aligned but it looks like I was successful. The base flange meant I had to have the bar sticking out much farther than I would have liked. I got some chatter until I had a continuous cut but after that it was manageable.
I really like the challenge of making the tooling I have work but this experience has definitely made me pine for a vertical milling machine.
I have most of the machining done on the body casting. The shaft bore was also machined on the lathe. It took a lot to get the casting aligned but it looks like I was successful. The base flange meant I had to have the bar sticking out much farther than I would have liked. I got some chatter until I had a continuous cut but after that it was manageable.
Re: MLA Filing Machine
I moved on from the body for a little bit to get some of the other parts done.
The hat, so named for its appearance, was made from a block of steel I had in my scrap box. It probably ended up costing me some time in machining but it got rid of a chunk of steel that I had no other real use for. There was about 20% of the material left by the time I was done.
The hat, so named for its appearance, was made from a block of steel I had in my scrap box. It probably ended up costing me some time in machining but it got rid of a chunk of steel that I had no other real use for. There was about 20% of the material left by the time I was done.
Re: MLA Filing Machine
Nice work.
I had thought MLA had disappeared.
Did someone buy it and bring it back?
Never heard anything but good things about their products and the quality of their castings.
Steve
I had thought MLA had disappeared.
Did someone buy it and bring it back?
Never heard anything but good things about their products and the quality of their castings.
Steve
Re: MLA Filing Machine
The website changed domains a couple of years ago but MLA is still under the original owner as far as I know.
http://mlatoolbox.com/MLA-18.html
Not much progress to report. I've been plugging away at some of the smaller parts. So far the only part that is done-done is the hat. I'm starting to get anxious to get back on my Clishay so I'm hoping to get some time to get this done soon.
http://mlatoolbox.com/MLA-18.html
Not much progress to report. I've been plugging away at some of the smaller parts. So far the only part that is done-done is the hat. I'm starting to get anxious to get back on my Clishay so I'm hoping to get some time to get this done soon.
Re: MLA Filing Machine
The crank assembly just about done. I still need to drill the hole for the 1/16" roll pin which I'm not necessarily looking forward to.
Re: MLA Filing Machine
I'm still chipping away at the small parts. I got the file rod done. Next up is the yoke casting.
Re: MLA Filing Machine
Very cool!
Must have experienced some weird vibrations with that casting being so heavy on the one side in the lathe.
Must have experienced some weird vibrations with that casting being so heavy on the one side in the lathe.
Vision is not seeing things as they are, but as they will be.
Re: MLA Filing Machine
Actually it wasn't too bad. You can see in the first few pictures where I tried to counterbalance the casting but I found that I really didn't need it. I kept the RPMs low enough that the offset load wasn't a problem.
When I did get chatter it was more due to the interrupted cuts. Once I got the full surface clean they went away.
When I did get chatter it was more due to the interrupted cuts. Once I got the full surface clean they went away.