Heavy Metal for a Freind

Well I don't know about Christos but I had a top day yesterday, working with him was a true pleasure, he arrived promptly at 9ish we knocked off somewhere around 7ishpm.

I did warn him it would take all day..........it wasn't just welding was it Christos?

Our aim was to make a motor mounting bracket for Christos's wood lathe. Similar to this one.

 I am glad I had spent the day before making the slide blocks,  I had been given some old die steel just last weekend thanks Ken. I cut two 30x30by50mm with a 18mm hole drilled for the slide bars, I had drilled to 13mm as I wanted to double check the diam of the steel mounting rods first which Christos had to bring with him. We cut the 18mm rods to 8 inches (lathe is pre metric) drilled the blocks out to suit and a tidy up of the rods to allow better slide as they were only mild steel black metal. A pilot hole for a lock bolt drilled and Christos will tap a thread later for the securing bolts.

I had made up a paper pattern from measurements taken at Cumberland Woodworkers club off their similar lathe.

Christos's 10mm mounting plate which he said was 200x300 was in fact 160x300,  ok no problem Christos had already sorted that out. After a short deliberation as to orientation of the motor to the plate, and positioning the slide blocks and marking the 10mm plate for cutting we set to work. Cutting the 10mm plate on my metal bandsaw both in the horizontal and vertical positions as the plate shape required as seen in the photo with the slide blocks of the paper pattern. This photo is of us doing the 2nd cut for one of the slide blocks to fit into.

Christos as usual full of enthusiasm took to everything, we were dodging sun and rain with some work having to be done out doors. He watched sun setting and was getting worried as the evening drew on that welding wasn't going to happen. The welding well its rough, wrong rods, tripping the power more than once with high amps 120 I think but we got there. Just as rain started again and dusk and fading outdoor light, and me getting tired took hold.

Unfortunately he has the hardest job to do yet the holes we drilled for the axlial slide of the motor have to be cleaned up and 10mmplate thats no going to be easy using a file. hope it holds.