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Current projects - upgrade mill with DRO, plus making Kant Twist clamps

B

Brian26

Well-Known Member
Premium Member
Greetings from Edmonton. I am planning on making a few - maybe a dozen, Kant Twist clamps and am looking for someone - probably in Edmonton - to fabricate some of the parts for this. Mostly the flat steel frame components that are fairly easy to make in decent quantities if you have some sort of CNC capability. (I don't). I am thinking there might be someone close by who could either laser cut these or somehow fabricate them. If I am looking at a dozen clamps (I know this is a lot, but they look like really nice gifts), then each one has 4 plates. This seems a decent number to get started with. I think there are shops that can do such work, but are there any members who might be induced to give this a shot? I am quite happy to pay a fair price. I have a set of plans on the way to give precise dimensions.

Also - anyone out there who does repetitive lathe work? This project needs perhaps 60 or 70 steel pins of precise length with a shoulder cut on each end. I know this is easy enough for me to do, but does someone have an automated setup that could create these for me? Again - very happy to make it worth your while.
 
Quinn made these from a supplier in Winnipeg. Not sure if this gets you where you are going or not. Links to the Winnipeg supplier are provided in the comments section. But it would be a lot of lathework for the quantities you are talking about. The guy that bought my Craftex lathe bought it to convert it to a CNC lathe. That would be a perfect job for it, I think....

 
Brian do you have a bandsaw that cuts metal and a sander?

--the arms can easily be fabricated using these tools and a paper pattern. For the drilling you can superglue each type together and gang drill the lot. Because of drill wander, when you separate them, mark the pairs in order, and they will be well within tolerance for a clamp.

After all, we do this hobby because we actually like to 'work the metal' don't we?
 
Dabbler said:
Brian do you have a bandsaw that cuts metal and a sander?

--the arms can easily be fabricated using these tools and a paper pattern. For the drilling you can superglue each type together and gang drill the lot. Because of drill wander, when you separate them, mark the pairs in order, and they will be well within tolerance for a clamp.

After all, we do this hobby because we actually like to 'work the metal' don't we?
Click to expand...

I don't have a bandsaw, but I do have a decent sander (underpowered). One of my upcoming projects is to build a new 2 x 72 sander - but that's another story.

One of the mind-sets I inherited from many years as an accountant is trying to be efficient with my time. In addition to that, I have been curious about what work can be done in various shops, and some tasks - while possible to do without a lot of assistance - are just too repetitive to be done enjoyably - and safely... So, I am exploring possibilities as to how I can be efficient, recognizing that not everybody can have the same equipment. Two parts of the Kant Twist clamp project are good candidates for some external help:

First - the flat steel parts. Someone with CNC capability would find this easy to do I am thinking. If I only wanted a couple of clamps, I would certainly go the way you are suggesting - but for a dozen or more, I thought I might at least ask... Or, get a quote from a metal fabrication shop.

Second - the steel "pins" that hold the flat sides apart. These are easy to do - and I do have a half-interest in a lathe, so - very possible for me to do this manually on this lathe. But, turning several dozen pins to an exact shoulder on each end gets pretty boring and cries out for some automation I think - and I do not have that. Perhaps nobody does close to me here in Edmonton, but I thought I would ask.

Appreciate your thoughts and suggestions.
 
ShawnR said:
Quinn made these from a supplier in Winnipeg. Not sure if this gets you where you are going or not. Links to the Winnipeg supplier are provided in the comments section. But it would be a lot of lathework for the quantities you are talking about. The guy that bought my Craftex lathe bought it to convert it to a CNC lathe. That would be a perfect job for it, I think....

Click to expand...

Funny you should post this just as my doorbell rang for the delivery of my set of parts from this same supplier in Winnipeg! I also watched the Blondihacks videos on this and found them helpful. Not certain that her idea of using reamers on the various holes is actually essential - but it cannot hurt - apart from the time involved.

Your idea of using a CNC lathe is exactly what I had in mind for the pins. So far, though, no interest. But, it's early yet...
 
Just back from a visit to a metal fabrication business here in Edmonton. After seeing their laser-cutting machine in action, there is absolutely no way I am cutting the sides for the Kant Twist clamps myself. Their machine cuts at a rate of 135 inches per minute through 12 ga steel, and the owner mentioned that new machines cut about 4 to 5 times quicker than that. That would probably compute to perhaps 2 complete set per minute (including the holes, ready to ream). Each clamp needs two longer and two shorter pieces. The owner is getting back to me with a price on a dozen sets. The big cost here is likely the time involved in converting my hand-drawn plans into something their computer can use. So, any future orders will be less costly I would think.
 
Apparently, my projects to do list is growing faster than my completed projects list.....:rolleyes:

This looks like a great little project for practicing lathe skills. Mainly because, as @Dabbler points out, the main plates are not too difficult to replicate so the lathe work and repeatability becomes paramount.

I found a couple of links to other machining forums in which someone built them.

Here is one where an innovative individual winged it from photos.

https://www.hobby-machinist.com/threads/kant-twist-clamp-build.44235/

I have never used them but they look good. A worthwhile project.

And will make great gifts!....(maybe not for my wife...but for other machining types....:D )
 
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