The rolling mill at school lost a few teeth last semester. It turns out the handle gear has been wearing for quite some time. Check out the twist in that spur gear! I couple teeth just finally wore down and then cracked. I've been trying to get a reply from Durston for quite a while and they finally came back with an answer of "no replacement parts for this model". I decided I would press the gear out of the handle. There was originally a set screw that held the threaded gear into the handle. This set screw had sheared sometime during the life of the rolling mill and there was no way to unscrew the gear. I turned a mandrel on the lathe to press the gear and started heating up the handle so I could throw the whole thing on the hydraulic press. It pressed out easy regardless if the threads and then I was able to clean things up. I'm going to try and order a new gear which I will have to modify. The Durston is just too nice to not repair, so I hope I can nurse this tool back to life.
6 comments:
Looks like a really good time to get some gear cutters and dividing head and make a new one. Or if you have a metal shaper you could have some real fun. What pitch is the gear? Chances are you can just order something close and machine to suit.
Why not 3D print a replica and cast it yourself? Would that not be durable enough?
Well I actually 3d printed a gear already and had thought about that. I think the bronze would wear quickly though and be a bit too soft. I thought about doing it regardless, just to get it back up and running.
Yes, I know I should probably try to get some gear cutters. That said, I started shopping for an aftermarket gear that's close.
What was the outcome to this problem. I have similar issues with my Mill. In my case I am missing handle , gear and handle shaft.
I flipped the gear over and welded it to the handle since the other end was in good condition. It will need a replacement though in a few years. I'll machine a new gear though in the future.
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