Projects In Metal, LLC Free Metalworking Projects, Plans, Tips, and Tricks for the Amateur Machinist

This is part 2 in 3-part series on grinding high speed steel lathe tools. Last week in part 1 Barry Young walked us through the process of grinding a right hand tool from a HSS tool blank. In this video, Barry will cover part 2 of the series as he shows us how to grind a left hand lathe tool from a HSS tool blank. The pace of this video is a bit faster since the process of grinding a LH tool is virtually identical to grinding a RH tool, except for the mirrored grinding angles. Coming next week in part 3 Barry will show us how to grind a threading tool. Enjoy! Read More »

This is part one of a 3-part video series in which Barry Young shows us how to grind high speed steel tool blanks by hand. In this video Barry shows us how to grind the most common tool form, a right hand lathe tool. In upcoming videos Barry will show us how to make a left hand tool and a threading tool. Barry also mentions using EZE-Lap hones during the final phase of grinding a HSS tool for burr removal and touch up. I provide a description, image, and a link to where to find them on Amazon. EZE-Lap hones are inexpensive and great for putting a fresh edge on a dull tool and are a highly recommended addition to your toolbox. There is also a complete transcript of the video for foreign viewers (so they can paste it into Google Translate) and for any viewer who might have trouble hearing Barry's wonderful commentary. Enjoy! Read More »

Jim walks us though the process of choosing the right paint, the right brand, and the right application techniques and equipment for both woodworking and metalworking projects. He even links to a video on how to set up a spray gun correctly. So if you are like me and find the world of painting a bit mystifying, it might behoove you to read on. Read More »

by Alexander M. We have all read Blame’s post about cleaning out the dust and old grease, to reduce wear and improve concentricity.  But what about drill chucks, they certainly can benefit from disassembly and cleaning, however the lack of screws make it seem impossible to disassemble. It turns out that by pressing out the sleeve, the whole thing unravels. Here ... Read More »

Just a quick post to let everyone know that I’ve put up a video on YouTube showing the DIY punch and die process that I mentioned last week using twist drills and scrap. I had a couple of members who had some questions about the process so I thought a video would be the easiest solution. Let me know what ... Read More »