In need of some help please!

[Guest]

Does anyone know what type of clamp John uses in the YouTube as a stop?

 

[TRE]

i think the goat boy tool would me much easier

 

[Guest]

I like that Goat tool. It looks idiot proof!
In theory you could drill the holes as good as one of the predrilled blocks.
In the time allowed there is too much to learn and too many small things that are easy to overlook your first few times. Take it from a guy that always does things the hard way.
Start at the end and work backwards from there.
They are all BSA blocks at one point. Don"t worry. The BSA got their cut.

 

[TRE]

bsa got their cut LOL

 

[5KidsRacing]

Maybe we aren't on the same page... lol...

A straight bar/fence, 2 clamps and keeping the Silver Bullet nailed down when drilling is the key to success, not a perfect drill press. You could mark one rear hole 1" in front of the other and with the Silver Bullet the two rear wheels would still go out to the heads when rolling forward and reverse, they just wouldn't be across from one another. The height of the hole from the bottom of the body is set by the fence..... the angle and direction the drill goes into the body is set by the Silver Bullet.... once the fence is nailed down the only thing the operator is choosing is where the hole is drilled in the back to front direction on the body..... and even if this measurement is off the body will still be good, the wheels just won't be directly across from one another.

The orientation of the drill to the table matters (whether you have to do anything about it is a different story). For purposes of the hole, not the location of the hole, the orientation of the silver bullet to the table or drill does not matter. When you start talking about a fence and hole location it now matters. If your drill press has a fence awesome, but what if it doesn't? How much room for error is there in trying to make your own fence that is just about perfectly square? Is the edge of your fence a perfect edge? What about the piece you are using to get that 1/8th from the bottm of tbe block, does it have two perfect edges? There are so many variables that I would recommend A) buy a press with a fence, or B) just measure and mark the spot for the holes. With so much room for error I can't imagine it is worth the trouble. Am I wrong?

Yes...

I think we are 180 degrees from each other/images/boards/smilies/smile.gif

 

[Guest]

Here's my 2 cents and take it with a grain of salt since I have no speed badges and haven't raced here yet.

I'd rather have a perfectly flat table that is mounted firmly to the press rather than perfectly square to the spindle. Some cast iron tables that were cast in clay dish inward and need resurfaced. Some tables when pressed by hand on either side will have slight play no matter how tight the bolt is. I use a Wilton metal press for the rears and a Proxxon for the front so I don't have to move my fence. Before every drill I mic. the Wilton table and use oak boards to shim under the table to remove any play, then remic. I found that I can't leave the oak boards in place due to expansion/shrinkage. I still strive to square it up to the best of my ability even though it's not critical.

So with that said, Johns pre-drilled are hands down the way to go. Full combat mode nuts like me prefer doing things the hard way/images/boards/smilies/wink.gif

 

[Guest]

Here's my 2 cents and take it with a grain of salt since I have no speed badges and haven't raced here yet.

I'd rather have a perfectly flat table that is mounted firmly to the press rather than perfectly square to the spindle. Some cast iron tables that were cast in clay dish inward and need resurfaced. Some tables when pressed by hand on either side will have slight play no matter how tight the bolt is. I use a Wilton metal press for the rears and a Proxxon for the front so I don't have to move my fence. Before every drill I mic. the Wilton table and use oak boards to shim under the table to remove any play, then remic. I found that I can't leave the oak boards in place due to expansion/shrinkage. I still strive to square it up to the best of my ability even though it's not critical.

So with that said, Johns pre-drilled are hands down the way to go. Full combat mode nuts like me prefer doing things the hard way/images/boards/smilies/wink.gif

Hahahaha! Yes Hatchatack, Join us. We could use a guy like you around here, but be careful...

The rabbit hole goes deep. I will let you know when I hit the bottom. There is probably a trap door down there after I find it.

 

[bracketracer]

Does anyone know what type of clamp John uses in the YouTube as a stop?

Joe, it's been a while since I reviewed DD4H's DVD, was it like this?
http://www.rockler.com/magswitch-t-handle-magnetic-workholding-square

 

[resullivan]

He doesn't use it in the DVD, but yes I believe that is what he is talking about.

 

[Guest]

Does anyone know what type of clamp John uses in the YouTube as a stop?

Joe, it's been a while since I reviewed DD4H's DVD, was it like this?
http://www.rockler.com/magswitch-t-handle-magnetic-workholding-square

I knew you would know the answer Bracket.

Thanks so much. I gotta get one of those things.

 

[resullivan]

Does anyone know what type of clamp John uses in the YouTube as a stop?

Joe, it's been a while since I reviewed DD4H's DVD, was it like this?
http://www.rockler.com/magswitch-t-handle-magnetic-workholding-square

I knew you would know the answer Bracket.

Thanks so much. I gotta get one of those things.

It is crazy how much that thing cost considering it is just a magnet with a device to pull the magnet off.

 

[Guest]

So true. I found one on Amazon that is half the price so I think I might go that way.

 

[bracketracer]

It's just a magnet with a device to pull the magnet off that has been precisely machined square. /images/boards/smilies/smile.gif

It might be available cheaper somewhere else, I just remembered seeing it there. Rockler sends out coupons sometimes also.

EDIT: Doh! Joe beat me to it!

Be sure to compare the size of those things. They make big ones and little ones. The little ones are cheaper but the big ones are bigger. /images/boards/smilies/smile.gif

 

[Guest]

It's just a magnet with a device to pull the magnet off that has been precisely machined square. /images/boards/smilies/smile.gif

It might be available cheaper somewhere else, I just remembered seeing it there. Rockler sends out coupons sometimes also.

EDIT: Doh! Joe beat me to it!

Be sure to compare the size of those things. They make big ones and little ones. The little ones are cheaper but the big ones are bigger. /images/boards/smilies/smile.gif

LOL! Does that mean that the little ones are also littler?

 

[92hatchattack]

Wow, lots of great info here. I'm facing the facts that I am going to deal with a stock BSA block this year. Its just the way its going to be. Luckily though, as I stated before my pack isnt super competitive, and Ive won before twice running the car backwards aparently, with absolutly no wheel work done at all. Im hoping that just by adding these wheels, doing a better axle polish job, and having the car facing the right way so I can move the COM back another 5/8" I will have at least better results than last years.

But dont let that all stop you from talking. I am soaking this stuff up for next year and will start practicing these things in advance. Maybe I can get good at it and when my son ages out of cub scouts I can come back and run some Derby workshops. (I'm not giving any of my tricks away while were still competing.... lol!)

Funny thing did happen to our car last year though, and I'm wondering if anyone can shed some light on it. Heres what happened. We were the first heat of the day. Ran our car and set the fastest times of the entire pack all day, by a good amount too. No car all day ran faster than our cars slowest run in the monring. But come the finals, the car ran like a dog. Times were WAY slower and we didnt even place? What happened? I cant believe that between run 4 and run 5, just by sitting idle for 5 hours that we could have gone so dry on graphite that we had such a dramatic drop off. We didnt even place in the finals. Couple weeks later we slopped the graphite back on and went to districs and placed 2nd. Car was running great. Doesnt make any sence to me. Any ideas?

Also, just because I dont own a drill press and dont know a whole ton about them, how to you check for how square the table is?

 

[Kinser Racing]

Wow, lots of great info here. I'm facing the facts that I am going to deal with a stock BSA block this year. Its just the way its going to be. Luckily though, as I stated before my pack isnt super competitive, and Ive won before twice running the car backwards aparently, with absolutly no wheel work done at all. Im hoping that just by adding these wheels, doing a better axle polish job, and having the car facing the right way so I can move the COM back another 5/8" I will have at least better results than last years.

But dont let that all stop you from talking. I am soaking this stuff up for next year and will start practicing these things in advance. Maybe I can get good at it and when my son ages out of cub scouts I can come back and run some Derby workshops. (I'm not giving any of my tricks away while were still competing.... lol!)

Funny thing did happen to our car last year though, and I'm wondering if anyone can shed some light on it. Heres what happened. We were the first heat of the day. Ran our car and set the fastest times of the entire pack all day, by a good amount too. No car all day ran faster than our cars slowest run in the monring. But come the finals, the car ran like a dog. Times were WAY slower and we didnt even place? What happened? I cant believe that between run 4 and run 5, just by sitting idle for 5 hours that we could have gone so dry on graphite that we had such a dramatic drop off. We didnt even place in the finals. Couple weeks later we slopped the graphite back on and went to districs and placed 2nd. Car was running great. Doesnt make any sence to me. Any ideas?

Also, just because I dont own a drill press and dont know a whole ton about them, how to you check for how square the table is?

Who's tricks?/images/boards/smilies/biggrin.gif

You're graphite started to give out. You needed a relube of graphite to pick times back up.

 

[92hatchattack]

^^^ Haha, I at least had some concept of things to do to make my car faster that others.. so I guess I can call those tricks.. Haha, point being, as nice of a guy as I am, I will by no means help anyone be competative while we are trying to win. Haha.

 

[92hatchattack]

So, we can not relube. Once we pass inpection we dont get to touch the car again for the rest of the day. Will the polish used in the wheel bore treatment help the graphite cling to it longer than just stock untreated bores?

 

[Guest]

Several ways to skin a cat, same goes for squaring the drill press. If your table's dished you're screwed. If it's flat then chuck up a straight drill bit or gauge pin and slide the silver bullet up to it and adjust table so the gap is the same. Do this on both sides and also rotate the chuck to account for run out. Some guys chuck up a micrometer and rotate 360*. Either way is close enough for horseshoes and hand grenades. Some presses have an alignment mark but don't trust it, mine is off a degree and I've heard of others being off too. Here's a pic of blocks next to a pin.

 

[Kinser Racing]

So, we can not relube. Once we pass inpection we dont get to touch the car again for the rest of the day. Will the polish used in the wheel bore treatment help the graphite cling to it longer than just stock untreated bores?

Burnish really well and groove your axles. At least every one has to deal with it too. /images/boards/smilies/smile.gif