Lathe experiment: captive ring

Hot Topics:

By Becky Stern
Posted 2010/01/21 @ 11:13 am
Category General

Our own Matt Mets has been experimenting with a metal lathe at Hack Pittsburgh, and made this aluminum rod with a captive ring in collaboration with Matt Stultz by carving the ring our of a section of the rod. Rad, and great photo!

In the Maker Shed

Telegraph Decoder Kit by Spikenzie Labs

BrushBots

Make: Getting Started with Soldering Kit

MAKE Rovera 4WD Arduino Robot Kit

7 Responses to Lathe experiment: captive ring

A M on January 21st, 2010 at 12:07 pm said:

I think it is cool that you are experimenting with your machining talents. Just a practical suggestion, now that you know you can do this, on a new piece, cut the main shaft on a taper that narrows as you go towards teh finished end after you cut out the captive ring in that approximate area of the piece. Then machine the tip of the unfinished piece into a bullet nose and you have a spinning top… if you calculate the diameters correctly and can do some advanced machining, I think the ring should float up along the tapered shaft as the top spins and then settle back down as it looses revs.

Hey, not sure if it works that way, but I love to see people making things and I follow the blog and think it’s a great idea. Everyone ! Keep up the great work and congratulations to all MAKERS !

AM

Reply ↓
Simon on January 21st, 2010 at 1:53 pm said:

I know a wood turner who makes 1/12 scale dolls house stuff including wine bottles and goblets with captive rings on the goblet stem only a few mm round!

Reply ↓
Patrick IV on January 21st, 2010 at 2:33 pm said:

It’s a classic turning piece. Mine ends with two polished spheres, and is done in 6061 aluminum. Not sure why this was featured, considering how old it is.

Reply ↓
- oskay on January 21st, 2010 at 2:58 pm said:
  
  Actually, I think that the dismissive comment about how something has “already been done” is even older than captive turnings on a lathe.
  
  Reply ↓
  
  Becky Stern on January 21st, 2010 at 3:26 pm said:
  
  Yeah, I agree, @oskay. It was featured because it’s exciting that a member of our community is learning something new (no matter how old it is to you, Patrick), and he also took an amazing photograph!
  
  Reply ↓
Andy L on January 21st, 2010 at 5:14 pm said:

Impressive.
Now, I want to see someone use the makerbot-manufactured lathe on Thingaverse to do this!

Reply ↓
fubarator on January 22nd, 2010 at 5:36 pm said:

Yay! Real stuff! Not a computer-rendered object! Not that there’s anything wrong with that.

Reply ↓