Re: Outdoor Welding

"Bob La Londe"  wrote in message news:104174i$2vgmn$2@dont-email.me...
I am sure you are aware that some of the old school apprenticeship
projects were to make precision tools with files.  Making something
better by filing is only occasionally within my self taught skill set.
it is absolutely a reality in machining.
It doesn't have a gap bed?  Have you looked?  I know smaller lathes
often don't have this feature (none of mine do), but 10inch is
approaching commercial size.  The PM1440 does, but I have not used it.
I'm a bit paranoid about removing a precision section of the bed and
being able to get it back in place accurately enough.  May be more me
than the machine, but...
If you have a swing head you can machine off the side of the table for
taller parts.  The setup is a bear, but I have confidence in your
ability to wrestle a bear.  Being a smaller machine than mine that
capability is less, but it is still there.
Bob La Londe
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When Segway redesigned the Balance Sensor Assembly I was tasked to make blank circuit board models of the daughter boards that hold the "gyro" sensors at various angles. The CNC mill was tied up as usual so I sawed and filed them by hand, within ~0.005". The engineer joked about using JimCNC for backup. I have several single cut, safe edge, untapered  "hand" files for precise work. They leave a nearly mirror finish that a Cratex only slightly improves.
https://www.researchgate.net/figure/Photograph-of-Balance-Sensor-Assembly-Segway-Inc-2006_fig8_341655913
The two cables connect to duplicate control boards that both have to agree. The "gyros" are solid state, with micromachined vibrating sensing elements for acceleration rate and the gravity vector, like in a cell phone or drone.
The SB Light Ten could have a gap bed, the Heavy Ten was meant for 5C collet work close in and didn't AFAIK. Earlier today I parted off a washer-like custom repair tool close to the collet. The H shaped carriage can overlap the headstock far enough to position the cutoff bit 1/2" to the left of the end of the spindle, or finish the back side of an installed chuck backplate or gear blank. Right now the carriage on mine is tucked behind extended chuck jaws for drilling and tapping clearance. This 9" SB shows how the carriage and headstock or tailstock can overlap.
https://www.airgunnation.com/threads/carriage-stop-for-the-lathe.1307406/
The Clausing head swivels on the column and tilts on its round ram. It doesn't have nod. I reassembled it and know about repositioning and tramming the head, the two ram clamp screws shift the head in opposite directions when snugged. One of the reasons I didn't install the DRO is because it would block the side of the table for drilling there. To some extent I can drill into an end with work held in the lathe milling attachment and steady rest.
My 1950's/60's model shop sized machines are quite versatile at the expense of rigidity and power. Every pivot and adjustment decreases stiffness, more with wear. I also have a surface grinder with a swiveling head and table to sharpen cutters between centers and a cast iron Shopsmith for wood which is great for accurate horizontal end drilling, my father converted two single beds into a bunk bed by end drilling the corner posts for steel rods.
jsw