Sanding washers
Guys is there any trick or technique to successfully sanding down washers for the top hat?
I’ve been using wet and dry paper with mixed success. The main problem is keeping them flat across the face so they have a uniform size when finished.
Mine are coming out uneven. Any tips on how to hold them?
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Nice Jethro ….. the way to go.
Often times we need to use what we have on hand, be our own MacGyver.
~ Greg
Well gents I’m here to thank you. Using a mixture of your ideas and a few of my own I’ve been able to turn out a nice selection of shims. I did it using a pillar drill, a miniature wheel from a rotary tool and a rotary grind stone with a flat face on the end, its similar to those used to port heads.
I put a piece of coarse wet and dry on a flat piece of tile and put it in the vice. I placed the small wheel flat side down on top of the paper and the shim on top. I placed the larger wheel in the chuck of the drill and ran it at slow speed. It was easy to control and very effective.
Initially I put the shim directly on the wet and dry but the paper was wearing far to quickly to be useful. So I came up with the idea of using the wheel from a rotary tool. The paper provided enough of a key to stop the small stone from spinning. In use it reminded me of how flour used to ground
Any how, many thanks, all very much appreciated
Some good quality double stick tape works great if you have a good clean surface to stick too. I used to machine aluminum tapered shims this way. Stick tape to table. Stick part to tape. Tilt the head of the mill.
The principles the same with your orbital sander, 80 grit sandpaper and double sided tape.
Thanks Rrdstarr, I’ll add some tape to the shopping list
Jethro,
Some good quality double stick tape works great if you have a good clean surface to stick too. I used to machine aluminum tapered shims this way. Stick tape to table. Stick part to tape. Tilt the head of the mill.
The principles the same with your orbital sander, 80 grit sandpaper and double sided tape.
Thanks guys, some great info here. You’ve inspired me, I’ve found the sander and some neoprene, picked up gasket card and punches and a new selection of fibre washers to go with my nylons. So I’ll be back at it tomorrow
No I don’t
onebaddj has been using them with great success for some time
They won’t ship to me at all. I used to have to get things sent to a friend in Florida who then posted them on
I have a Morini 162 ei ….. and a Izh 46m.
– Aloha – Greg
Every Wednesday at 1800 for two years now.
Love it!
I see you own a Pardini K10 ….. u ever competed in 10 meter air pistol ?
I have a Morini 162 ei ….. and a Izh 46m.
– Aloha – Greg
~ Greg
Same with Canada! I usually use Ackland-Grainger. They have one 20 minutes away from me in Victoria, BC.
Love Hawaii! Used to go there on hops(9-10) from Fort Ord, CA when I could get a furlough. Great surf and the friendliest people! Love the history too!! They always consider themselves Hawaiians when you ask them! Not aMeriKans! No offence! I am a dual citizen.
Cool Rrdstarr …… just personally don’t like Mcmaster Carr, they always rape me on the shipping to Hawaii. lol
Actually use nylon washers I found at my local hardware, an easier sand down but IDK if it will give as good constancy as metal in the crony division ?
~ Greg
https://www.mcmaster.com/#standard-washer-shims/=18ecr9t
Didn’t think of Mcmaster Carr. they also have aluminum and brass, laminated.
Going to order a few with 3/8″ ID and .06 thickness.
Don’t think OP has a machine lathe or he wouldn’t be posting his question.
~ Greg
When I worked at Boeing Seattle we had laminated shims. .003″ per lamination. The solid part was .187 then built up to .312 total thickness. I have no idea where you’d find something like that outside aviation?
I have thinned washers using my collet setup on my lathe. Chuck them up, dial them zero flat and start cutting.
Haven’t made any for the AF rifles, Yet! LOL!
Okay ……. I don’t have pictures, I’ll try and explain it in words.
There is more then one-way to skin a cat …………
One way you’d need a drill press.
Find a bolt with a head size larger then the washer and chuck it into the press really well.
You need to true up the underside of this bolt.
Place metal grade sand paper onto the deck of the press and with the drill on press down the bolt onto the sand paper to flatten it’s head.
When sanding keep an even pressure downwards and keep the sand paper moving to a new location.
Leave this bolt in the chuck, don’t remove it until you competed the job, if not you might need to true up the bolt face again after re-chucking.
Use CA (crazy glue) to glue the washer in question to this bolt head, center it the best you can but not needed to be perfectly centered.
Use the same procedures to sand down the washer to the thickness you want.
To remove, heat up the washer with a torch and wipe off excess CA with a wet rag.
Another way is to find shim stock the thickness you need to begin with and make/cut the washer yourself.
Drill the center first and the outside can be cut out square and round out after.
But the outside doesn’t need to be perfectly round …… in fact it could be left squarish.
~ Greg
GKU the board sent me a notification that you’d posted on this but it never came through. Any chance you could try again? Thanks
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Very inventive!
Yup just like an old mill grist.