Eburg_Erin
off to a rocking start
Member since April 2020
Posts: 2
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Post by Eburg_Erin on Apr 2, 2020 2:17:08 GMT -5
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EricD
Cave Dweller
High in the Mountains
Member since November 2019
Posts: 1,142
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Post by EricD on Apr 2, 2020 8:02:42 GMT -5
Welcome to the forum
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herb
spending too much on rocks
Member since November 2011
Posts: 444
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Post by herb on Apr 2, 2020 8:49:34 GMT -5
Yup, velcro backed disks, not wheels go on it. Looks like a homemade version of the polisher Richardsons Ranch sells. With the tray underneath, looks like the original owner used it wet with the tub filled with water and the piece you are working on held under water. Seems like that would cause a lot of water to fly out in every direction. If it is meant to be used dry, be aware that rock dust is very bad to inhale. Wear a good mask if using it dry, like an N95 mask. If running it dry, I would not use that machine indoors, the entire room will be coated in rock dust eventually.
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herb
spending too much on rocks
Member since November 2011
Posts: 444
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Post by herb on Apr 2, 2020 8:53:15 GMT -5
BTW, those kinds of machines are generally used to face polish slab and thunderegg halves in case you are wonder what to use it for.
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bobk
starting to shine!
Member since September 2018
Posts: 34
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Post by bobk on Apr 2, 2020 10:12:22 GMT -5
That is a bench top drill press; quite possibly the lever arm has been removed and the chuck no longer travels up and down. Not knowing if there are other modifications, it is hard to say.
You should be able to insert different diameter rods / all thread to enable you to use different grinding pads/disks.
You will need a little enginuity to use other grinding pads/discs as many of them are meant to be used on other machines and that usually means a different size whole in the disc for different sizes of arbors.
You will want a waterproof apron and keep the water level at least beyond the top of the stone. If you could get a deeper bucket, that would help water splashing everywhere.
-Bob
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Tommy
Administrator
Member since January 2013
Posts: 12,652
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Post by Tommy on Apr 2, 2020 10:51:47 GMT -5
Welcome to the forum Eburg_Erin As was said above that is a bench top drill press from Harbor Freight and definitely not designed for a wet environment. If you do decide to use it with water you'll need to take great pains to dry all the surfaces and oil the chuck after every use or it's going to rust quickly. I did some wet hole drilling in cabochons with a similar Craftsman bench top drill press a few years back and it went south fast and the chuck was locked up in no time at all.
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bobk
starting to shine!
Member since September 2018
Posts: 34
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Post by bobk on Apr 2, 2020 11:51:29 GMT -5
And to add to the water issues above, you should use a gfci outlet/switch for any wet tools. Must think safety!!! That drill press may not accept 5/8", but maybe you have a good friend with a machine shop that could help in milling it to fit your drill press. There may be something online as well. this is a 5/8 threaded, velcro back soft pad. I like using larger sanding discs, with the smaller backer pad, to smooth uneven surfaces; this works well by focusing the 'rough' section of stone with the edge of the backer pad, the sanding disc will follow the contour of the stone. You will wear discs more this way. Also be mindful of disc ripping and flying off. ---- Wear safety glasses and/or face shield. diamond barrel with 5/8" threaded rod [[nut on bottom not needed with double nuts as shown in next photo.] do not allow rod to project below bottom of barrel. 5/8" thread diamond disc fixed shaft, there are plenty of resources out there for this sort of thing: wood working / auto body / surface preparation.... I am always looking for ways to use different types of grinding/sanding attachments with regards to their axis of rotation, so this usually involves adaptive measures for different tools. But always, one needs to be safe - -Bob
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Eburg_Erin
off to a rocking start
Member since April 2020
Posts: 2
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Post by Eburg_Erin on Apr 2, 2020 17:34:34 GMT -5
Welcome to the forum
Thank you! I have not seen anything like those before. It makes more sense now why it has been so hard to find them in his storage unit. I know it's a drill press. I just don't have much experience with them. The lever has been removed but it is still able to move up and down. Not that it really needs to. I would not have thought about oiling the chuck though. Thank you all for the safety tips but I did already know. I'm not interested in getting cancer or electrocuting myself because of ignorance! Lol. I just moved so I'm still setting up my work area but I do use an N95 mask for working with most rocks and I got a respirator for rocks that might have asbestos related minerals since there is a quite a bit or serpentine near where I live. I've also got a fan and filter to reduce the amount of dust.
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