Slughammer
Member
I've been thinking of machining a few 1 piece scope bases. Either one off parts or to solve some problem that I encounter. Mostly for picatinny rail spacing where no one offers it for a particular arm. Approximate length would be 8" long.
For machines I have an 8x33 bench mill and a 12 x 36 lathe.
What I've considered for the mill is making a 2 piece cutter. First a shank that gets milled, drilled and tapped to hold a disk or a portion of a disk. Then turn a disk about .1 thk to the diameter I need. Sharpen, heat treat and dress it. Then attach to the shank. The only issue is the custom cutter disk that would have to be fabricated to do just a few inches of cutting, possibly just one time. Plus what material to make the disk out of and how to control the thickness precisely.
What I've considered for the lathe is a 24" piece of 7/8" bar stock that is cross drilled to hold a tool bit in the middle with a set screw. I could chuck deeper if the part was significantly shorter than 8". For part holding I was thinking about taking the compound off and putting an angle block fixture in place. This cutter would be adjustable for different radii by moving the tool bit and I wouldn't have to fabricate a new cutter for each new size i encounter. The only concern I have for this is rigidity.
Any ideas on how you would tackle this type of cut for one off jobs at home?
For machines I have an 8x33 bench mill and a 12 x 36 lathe.
What I've considered for the mill is making a 2 piece cutter. First a shank that gets milled, drilled and tapped to hold a disk or a portion of a disk. Then turn a disk about .1 thk to the diameter I need. Sharpen, heat treat and dress it. Then attach to the shank. The only issue is the custom cutter disk that would have to be fabricated to do just a few inches of cutting, possibly just one time. Plus what material to make the disk out of and how to control the thickness precisely.
What I've considered for the lathe is a 24" piece of 7/8" bar stock that is cross drilled to hold a tool bit in the middle with a set screw. I could chuck deeper if the part was significantly shorter than 8". For part holding I was thinking about taking the compound off and putting an angle block fixture in place. This cutter would be adjustable for different radii by moving the tool bit and I wouldn't have to fabricate a new cutter for each new size i encounter. The only concern I have for this is rigidity.
Any ideas on how you would tackle this type of cut for one off jobs at home?
Last edited:
