From: null@void.com   
      
   "Jim Wilkins"  writes:   
      
   > "Richard Smith"  wrote in message news:m1ecyqje7q.fsf@void.com...   
   >   
   > I am not sure a lathe is necessary at all if welded together   
   > (end-plates, etc.).   
   > Well, making rollers for the "barrel" to roll on would benefit from a   
   > lathe.   
   > The idea of a rope drive, from which the name "lathe" comes from  - a   
   > lath, rope and plank for the foot-pedal - is hopefully also very   
   > achievable.   
   >   
   > ---------------------------   
   >   
   > Before I bought a house with shop space I used my father's wood lathe   
   > to make machine parts such as pulleys and rollers. Rings sawed from   
   > scrap water pipe reinforced the hubs. Unfortunately the dimensions of   
   > water pipe don't match available bearing sizes. Fitting them to a   
   > removable press fit is necessarily a metal lathe task. Wood was   
   > adequate for hand crank, wind and water power but doesn't last long on   
   > motorized equipment.   
   >   
   > I found that multiple turns of cotton string made a pretty reliable   
   > outdoor rope drive. I boiled the wooden pulleys in molten canning wax   
   > to weatherproof them. The wax shrinks as it solidifies and pulls in   
   > from the surface, which then isn't slippery. The knot tends to ride   
   > smoothly on the outside of the strings. A taut-line hitch adjusts the   
   > tension without needing an idler or other means.   
   > https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taut-line_hitch   
   >   
   > When I built custom industrial equipment I bought components that fit   
   > together and never needed lathe work. The parts were expensive but the   
   > competing bidders had to pay the same prices so it didn't matter. Now   
   > I pay much less for remnants and second hand and usually have to   
   > modify the sizes to fit. Today I turned a replacement plus a spare for   
   > a stainless steel cap screw with an oversized shank that's missing   
   > from my car's roof rack.   
   > jsw   
      
   Comment about wooden pulleys appreciated.   
   This is considering rigs which will likely be run for a few hours only.   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)