Cross-Drilling Thin Wire!

[@Jon651]

There is a very old story involving Henry Ford and Swiss watchmakers. As the story goes, Henry Ford once sent a 1/64" drill bit to a Swiss watchmaking company and asked if they liked the quality and precision of the piece. The Swiss, in a notorious fit of humor, sent a letter back to Mr. Ford saying how much they appreciated the workmanship of the drill bit, and sent it back - with a hold drilled through it. Now that's where the story usually ends (at least from the Swiss point of view...), but reportedly Mr. Ford sent ANOTHER letter to the Swiss with the offer: "If you liked the drill bit so much, we can provide you a million more by next Tuesday!"

[@garrydaniels7767]

Quinn, I'm absolutely sure you're not immune to life's vicissitudes, but your constant upbeat attitude and dry humour makes it an absolute joy to viit your page every time. Thanks so much for all of it.

[@RonCovell]

Very well done, Quinn. It was good to have a refresher on the importance of being fastidious with every step when making close-tolerance fixtures!

[@splinky99]

In my experience with birch wood Casey, and many other blackening agents, you’ll get much better results if you do the final rinse of the work piece with denatured alcohol……acetone is not water soluble, and actually leaves a slight petroleum residue, which leads to the blotchiness….alcohol is water soluble, and works much better with the bluing!

[@kindabluejazz]

I'd like to see Quinn prove this out in a future video.

[@trevorlarson3984]

Good advice. I also found multiple applications using steel wool between them and rinsing in distilled water led to fairly uniform results, but also meant rebluing my Zastava M57 took forever.

[@seanalexander9531]

I can't comment on blueing, but acetone is very water soluble. The residue is probably from impurities rather than the acetone itself.

[@keirfarnum6811]

@@seanalexander9531 Nail acetone is probably purer than the industrial acetone found at hardware stores.

[@johnhall8455]

Acetone is definitely the way to go…and as already mentioned…very water soluble

[@AlecMacarthur]

Watchmaker enjoying this monstrously sized fabrication.

[@Rusty_Shackleford1]

The super blue likes lots of coats with a light rub of fine steel wool between them.

[@davidstansbury3204]

So I’ve been watching your videos for about twenty or so years or maybe more who knows. I know this you are so smart and skilled. I love your videos and sense of humor. And just wanted to say thank you for your time and knowledge. And hope you had a Merry Christmas and hope you have a great next year.

[@CreaseysWorkshop]

Another way to do v grooves is to clamp a grinding vise at 45 then you can easily flip the part and approach from either side to the middle.

[@johnapel2856]

These tiny parts are starting to make my head hurt. Mostly because I am a hamfisted machinist. BUT I LOVE IT! Sorry, didn't mean to shout. Very nicely done. This praw-jekt (HA! AMERICAN!) is really neat. Thanks, and Meow to Sprocket. And Happy New Year to you both!

[@IQof2]

Are you AvE

[@frobmachinemarine4876]

oh woman. there are so many hard lessons in this video, I really appreciate it.

[@susan_beaver]

Terrific video! I always enjoy your explanations and demonstrations. Another youtuber that I've been watching for a while, Alec Steele, who has a channel vibe about 180 degrees away from yours (he goes for high energy! Music! Sponsors!) has started getting into machining. He's a blacksmith by training so his usual method is to heat up steel and whack at it until it's the right shape, then fix any resulting error in measurement with grinding - so it's been fun to see him on his journey of learning how to make precision parts. I mention him because a few people in his comments (including me) have been pointing him at your channel for some pointers on his newest model kit build, a tiny steam power hammer. I don't know if he'll make it around your way for some tips, but I've been really enjoying the contrast. Just goes to show, the joys of precision machine work can be for everyone! Thank you again, and looking forward to seeing this tiny fixture in action!

[@Blondihacks]

Thanks for mentioning my channel! 😄😄

[@utidjian]

Excellent technique and presentation! This is a simple and foolproof way of doing what may seem to be almost impossible. The correct mechnical engineering term for this technique is 'elegant' (no other single word sums it up as well.)

[@firebird8600]

Yay!! It's Blondihacks time!!!

[@miked4327]

I probably would have "foolproofed" the alignment pins by offsetting one of them. That way, the top clamp can only go on one way. So if they're ever separated, they go back together the same way every time.

[@dangerrangerlstc]

A simple single filed notch on one side will do the same thing.

[@miked4327]

@dangerrangerlstc No it won't. A filed notch can still go on either way if you're not paying attention. Foolproofing the pins will only allow it to go on one way.

[@bobhudson6659]

Please give Quinn credit for knowing what she is doing. All holes were drilled and reamed using a DRO. At tenths of a thou tolerance do you not think that Quinn would notice if the pins were 180 degrees out and she had to put extra force to mate top and bottom halves of the jig. Come on. Others maybe - Quinn no.

[@paulmeynell8866]

@@miked4327pay attention then! How do these people manage to do engineering!

[@paulmeynell8866]

@@bobhudson6659so you don’t think the top can be spun round? If it’s that accurate it should be reversable?

[@NitFlickwick]

“Squeeze every ounce of precision…” I wasn’t aware that precision was measured in imperial. Are there SI units for that? Maybe that’s why we stick with imperial in the US. 😂

[@cerealport2726]

Metric ounces, obviously! trust me, I'm a random youtube commenter, so I'd never lie to you. Seriously though, there is a decimal foot, with 10 inches per (normal) foot, and 10 divisions per inch... I've used one in the oil industry to measure the length of pipe, but supposedly it's used by surveyors too.

[@george-b3i-d2d]

a wee dram

[@gazmk1golf]

Metric is expensive when someone puts the decimal point in the wrong place 😂 im British and wish they would use imperial instead 🤦‍♂️

[@blipman17]

@@gazmk1golf They’re just scales where one is mildly more convenient and for the other you need to whip out your phone for basic operations. Every decimal point mistake is expensive regardless of scale. What are you talking about.

[@btodoroff]

There needs to be an "it just went over your head" emoji.😂

[@martinforrest3441]

Happy New Year Quinn, from wet and windy UK. Another fabulous and interesting video. Just one small point, as this holds the workpiece AND guides the drill, it’s actually a jig and not a fixture. 😎😎

[@alankeith7866]

Happy New Year Quinn!!! Thank you for your awesome videos in 2023!!! Looking forward to your wonderful shenanigans in 2024!!!

[@445supermag]

Nice fixture. When I only have one to do, I put a piece of square scrap stock in the lathe toolholder and put the drill in the lathe chuck, then drill a hole that is clearance for the wire through the end of the stock. Then I rotate the toolholder 90, slide the wire through the hole I just drilled, and change the drill in the chuck to whatever I want.

[@donkey76]

@blondihacks Thankyou for an amazing 2023. Here's to 2024 look forward to more goodness.

[@aaronpeterson385]

Just found your channel. Wow just wow, I have never seen a more comprehensive explanation for beginners. Thanks.

[@seanalexander9531]

Quinn, thank you for another fantastic year of videos - I've learnt so much from them 👌

[@george-b3i-d2d]

Happy New Year to you and Sprocket !!! we lost our kitty a few months back so give Sprocket an extra hug from us!!

[@Blondihacks]

🤗🤗🤗

[@daviddunbar5754]

On the subject of cold bluing of parts (in my case replacement screws for a Myford lathe) I use Phillips Professional Cold Blue. Used by many gun repairers. The secret is deionised water but also brake cleaner. works a treat and no patchy bits. Happy New Year to you and all on the channel.

[@CinkSVideo]

You regularly remind me that I don’t have the inclination or desire for precision machining. I honor those who do. It’s such a high level skill. That being said, the techniques you demonstrate are incredibly helpful and can be applied in so many different situations. Great video.

[@scottb8175]

I once worked with another machinist at a large electronics manufacturing company. He worked for a different part of the company, mostly on big fixturing pieces used for the environmental testing department and the like, while I was the engineering department's fixture, tool, and die and machinery designer and maker. He often argued with me that in his expert opinion, +/- 0.025" is all the accuracy and precision anyone should ever need. It really got heated when he'd ruin hours of my time, after I'd have trammed in the sloppy worn out milling machine and vise to 0.0001", by needlessly tilting the head for some silly 5 minute job that could have been done just as well and fast with angle blocks or some rudimentary angled work holding. Then he'd just re-set the head by the marks on the "horse shoes and hand grenades" stamped scales, insisting if it was good enough for him, it should be good enough for me. He went on to say I should just tell the engineering and management departments I worked for that our shop just couldn't be expected to do any better than that. I then asked him if he thought the company would be OK with me using his half assed effort in precision and accuracy and thereby providing them with forming tools and dies that would completely miss my often

[@davidsabbagh6815]

Thanks!

[@curtisroberts9137]

I've used just about every cold blue out there. While different materials seem to prefer different prudocts, overal the oxpho blue and the T-4, both from Browenells are the best. I like the cream version rather than the liquid. The birchwood casey super blue is one of the most unreliable i have ever used. Looks dark when its first on but then almost immediately wipes completely off. Never had it make a quality color or finish.

[@johnvaluk1401]

Never had luck with the birchwood Casey Love the brownells Thanks for the video.

[@EngineerRaisedInKingston]

Brilliant content as usual, Quinn. Side note on the cold blue - I actually very recently bought a bottle of the super blue that you used in this video, and I had the exact same conclusion as you did. It works, but it's just not as good. I'm glad you confirmed my thoughts 😁 Happy new year, can't wait to see what you do in 2024!

[@shawnp25]

I’ve found when using that super blue, if you scrub with 00 steel wool after the first application then do a second you do get a more consistent finish.

[@EngineerRaisedInKingston]

@@shawnp25 Interesting! As I've still got the bottle basically unused, I might give it a try next time I have a part that needs it. Thanks!

[@kindabluejazz]

A comment above says it works much better with the part being alcohol cleaned vs acetone cleaned. I'd like to see someone verify that claim.

[@leswheeler2023]

Thank you young lady for your video's. very much appreciated. I am not a metal worker but give me a block of wood, glue and screws I'm a happy camper. Between you, Joe. and this old Tony, you keep me informed in the world of hard chips and oil!! Thank you again and all the best new year wishes from New Zealand.

[@clivesymons853]

Hi Quinn, I really enjoy your vids. Another quick way of edge finding; you can use a piece of cigarette paper, as the tool starts picking up the paper, you're just about spot-on. Keep up the great work.

[@3433245]

I recently used the birchwood casey blueing for a grip frame. It came out spotty and inconsistent at first. It says to use 0000 steel wool to even out the color between coats. This didn't work either, so I tried using the steel wool to apply the blueing. I rubbed it in vigorously with the steel wool and that really evened out the finish. I applied four or five coats and each time it got darker. Turned out very nice in the end.

[@michaelclark7536]

Thank you Quinn I will use this today love all your videos I didn’t think you were yelling. Happy new year keep up the amazing work.

[@Andre8s]

I primarily work as a jewellery artist but do some hobby machining on the side. A tool like this would be incredible for jewellery applications! Amazing video

[@patricklozito7042]

Great video! Regarding Super Blue: Rather than wiping it on, use a cotton swab and "roll" the solution on like using a paint roller. Using a wiping motion actually blues and then removes the bluing. wait for it to dry and then continue to coat it until you think it is satisfactory then, use acetone to neutralize the chemical action. if you think it needs to be darker, first rub the surface with a clean paper towel , some color may come off, and repeat.

[@daverichardson5861]

Great vlog Quinn. All the best for 2024 and many successes.

[@aoeuable]

There's this one story floating about about an American tool company sending tiny sample drills to a Swiss fine mechanics company, bragging about how their drills are the slimmest and finest in the world, surpassed by none, and if the Swiss company would be interested. The Swiss sent the drills back with a note, apologising for their bad English but saying that they were quite sure that they were asked to demonstrate that they could put holes into those drills, which they did.

[@Blondihacks]

😂🤣😂

[@lydiahanke]

This is really impressive! The end result speaks of the quality in your work. Great video

[@kBIT01]

I use super blue with the following process. It gives me pretty good results. 1. Clean parts in acetone and let dry 2. Dip parts in super blue or apply with a rag if too large 3. Rub off excess 4. Clean in acetone 5. Wipe off white crust 6. Repeat 2-5 7. Leave in a jar of oil for several hours. Hope this helps.

[@shanebergeron747]

You sneaky machinist you! I sit down to watch some quality videos with my soup and some Mill Skills gets snuck in there too! Bonus Mill Skills with soup makes a great Saturday 😁

[@DrPsychlops]

Not sure how the algorithm got me here, but I'm glad it happened now and I've subscribed 💕

[@calmlytech]

Simple and elegant solution. Very cool!

[@CatPalace-d2m]

Not shouty at all. Your dulcet tones are always calming.

[@arcticgunguy5382]

I use the Birchwood Casey Super Blue and find after degreasing if you warm the part first you get a way better finish.

[@oleukeman]

I’ve had better luck with cold blueing if I warm the part up first. It doesn’t need to be hot, just a few minutes on a space heater or under a heat gun works for me.

[@pebrede]

In my experience with bluing solutions from various manufacturers and different batches from each, I’ve had to boil some pieces in distilled water and then apply/dip the solution, others can be used with minimal cleaning. The material can also absorb lubricants/oil, hence boiling, or adjacent materials eg copper from the wire used in the squaring process or lead in free machining steels which leads to a patchy or lined finish on the parts. Sometimes it appears the solution itself has a greasy feel or appearance and it leaves a patchy finish. There is no rhyme or reason to what happens except it happens when you don’t want it to. It is one of the truly frustrating parts of the vision you have for a project. This project is becoming a must watch series. Take care.

[@hersch_tool]

Nice job on those alignment pins! Fits like that take patience, and plenty of skill. :)

[@stevenschmelling5597]

I love how at the 0:55 mark the angle of the camera, the angles of the V groove, and the hole make a perfect heart.

[@johnmoorefilm]

happy New Year Quinn from Dublin , thanks so much for your wonderful and generous, zen-inducing world on 2023❤

[@DavidR8]

Fantastic work Quinn. Many thanks for the refresher on stock squaring :)

[@HaloWolf102]

I like the hand bellows you have to clear chips. I might take use of that myself.

[@graveneyshipright]

Thanks for the video. I am coming up to some drilling of very small holes in wire for handrails so I think this kind of jig will be better than the one I had in mind.

[@wolfy9005]

6:25 The trick is trickonometry of course

[@kenchilton]

Excellent presentation! Lots of great tips, as usual. Why not interference fit the pins to install in a hot hole? Why not fix the pins in the bottom piece instead of the top? Are there accuracy advantages to these choices?

[@terrybailey2769]

Brilliant Quinn, that solves a problem I have. So I am going to make one myself. Happy New Year to you.

[@richardlincoln8438]

Well presented Quinn. Thank You. Best Wishes. See You next Year.

[@frankandstuff]

Your videos are great! Even the old ones haha. It always stinks that looking at anything someone made awhile ago has great potential to make that someone cringe at their own work

[@charleswelch249]

Awesome tool thanks for sharing your knowledge and skills.

[@Oberkaptain]

I use a fixture like this to make high tolerance gas tubes for AR-15s. Also Brownells cold blue is the best cold blue.

[@georgedennison3338]

Glad you test drove the cold blue was just about to buy some Birchwood; guess I'll be ordering some Brownell. Nice fixture....

[@andyfreeman660]

Happy new year Quinn. Thank you for all the videos, humour and of course Sprocket! I what turned outvto be a prity crapy year they have cheered me up no end 😀

[@murrayblack4371]

Thanks Quin. I always learn something from your vids.

[@TrippLilley]

I like the old font. It had impact.

[@donaldsutherland244]

Happy New Year Quinn!! Happy New Year Sprocket!!! Your voice is perfect! Your vocabulary is perfect! -and this video is timely! (I was just setting up to make one for myself! Thank you!

[@kevinmartin7760]

At 8:11 touching off on a corner is also inaccurate because the corner has been chamfered by some indeterminate amount.

[@SUNEELKANDA]

I also made this attachment but with the surface grinder it's very accurate.... 2nd I made with a wirecut machine it's really very very precise I drill 0.60mm drill in 1.25mm tube

[@jameswilliams2415]

heating the parts helps in the bluing process with submersion

[@notsonominal]

Metric thumbs up! All of them! Thanks Quinn!

[@SuperHaptics]

Awesome work and videos👍. I have a little suggestion that could help guarantee that you wouldn't loose any accuracy when you edge find... i would make the top clamp slightly smaller at a final operation so that your edge finder touches the bottom part edges since those are your actual accurate references for the wire position. When tightening the part any small clearance of those pins or torque difference could loose you a few microns. Just to make a slight increase to the accuracy paranoia levels 😊.

[@BetweenTheBorders]

The shop I was at exclusively used Brownell's 44/40 for cold blue. My Birchwood Casey experiences were similar to yours. The important thing is to keep using the known quantity you have a working process for, at least if you can get it. :D

[@Festivejelly]

I really need to make a table and mount for my portable band saw. Ive got lots of off cuts I could use to make these little fixtures.

[@heighRick]

Thanks Quinn, helps a lot.

[@ranjaykumarmit]

super idea!!

[@JKTCGMV13]

14:30 How do you specify the GD&T in drawings to say that the hole locations aren’t important as long as the assembly fits?

[@sayethwe8683]

academically, you can use a secondary feature frame. So if you need a 1 thou tolerance for the holes relative to each other, but only ten thou relative to the side, you could do | ⌖ | ⌀ 0.0100 (M) | A | B | C |, and below that | ⌖ | ⌀ 0.0010 (M) | A assuming the A datum is the top surface and B and C are your sides if you meant that they need to fit together with another part, then you be careful about picking your datums and use projected tolerance zones, or specify "drill on assembly".

[@JKTCGMV13]

@@sayethwe8683 thank you!

[@billjohnson5793]

Very cool project, thanks

[@joz_tec]

Wow! Very nice. Thank you.

[@peterpowell4821]

Not much to say except that you're awesome, and Happy New Year ❤😂🎉. Looking forward to my Saturday routine for 2024.

[@OtherWorldExplorers]

That was totally super cool. I can actually see myself using something like this for my scale modeling that I do. Like HO scale. Not as cool as what you're making but it still checks out. 😁

[@daniellewis1789]

If you can get an HO scale live steam loco running, you win for cool factor.

[@scottb8175]

Just build a 3.5mm = 1' scale live steam A-3 locomotive you can ride on down the track, and the top machinist's bragging rights would clearly be yours. You lose points if you don't cross drill the hand rails dead center, though.

[@Blondihacks]

Live steam can be pulled off at O scale. I’ve seen a few of those at clubs. I’ve heard rumours of people managing it smaller than O, but never seen it.

[@jimsvideos7201]

Happy new year Quinn! Happy new year Sprocket!

[@garychaiken808]

Great job. Thank you 😊

[@neiltheplayer]

thanks for posting Quinn

[@iain3411]

Very nice fixture. Can't wait for some hand rails maybe.

[@Lyonfeather]

I always enjoy your videos. Thank you for this content.

[@charlesbrewer6552]

At 12 :25 you show a shot of the collet chuck. There is a yellow cable tie in the shot. What is it's purpose? Is it screw on fitting or indexing marker?

[@stephenjohnson6841]

Another great project/video Quinn! Happy New Year Quinn and everyone!

[@mateuszdobrowolski2315]

If you want to increase your precision and speed up the process of indicating on an angled block. There is a tiny piece that you could make to help you with that. All you need is a precision ground rod. Then you have to remove exacly 1/4 of it with an end mill. (Its like a pac-man). Add some clearance in a centre and ure all done. The way it works: you place that piece on an edge that you want to indicate and you touch of that rod with an edge finder. The radius of that rod will be ur distance in X and Z to the edge.

[@paulberkuta4965]

For a better surface protective finish try Mark Lee's Express Rust Blue. It's easy to apply and does a great job - my two cents worth.

[@2xKTfc]

My grandpa worked in the university's laser lab. Once they were given a sample part from a Swiss university, something like a microscopic screw I believe. It was the smallest they could possibly make and the Swiss were mighty proud of it. My grandpa's team took it to their regular tooling and, with no particular effort, used an electron microscope to write the dimensions of the screw on the side of the screw's thread and sent it back to Switzerland. 😅

[@ambsquared]

Oooh, I knew what was ominously being foreshadowed at 8:19.

[@belatoth3763]

Actually I always learn something from you and as I see you are quite widely referenced

[@raystevens687]

Good job Quinn. I like what you did thanks Ray 😊

[@ADBBuild]

Such a tiny little fixture! Why did you decide to "glue" the pins in instead of just leaving the holes undersize and pressing them in?

[@randallcleaver6990]

I use to repair clocks and that would have been a handy jig to have. Thanks!

[@jacsmith-u7f]

Hi Quinn - I got a PM728 sent to me in Australia because of your videos, thank you very much for the suggestion - I love the machine. Would you be able to tell me where abouts you got the box accordion style Z axis way cover from?

[@willemgoudsmits5805]

Nice tool again. Have good new year.

[@aceseights1739]

Happy New Year from Australia Quinn. Great project for me thank you off to a great start. Merv🎉

[@potatopobobot4231]

With this fixture it is finally possible for me to get the prince albert ive always wanted 😊 🎉

[@keithklassen5320]

Would the Loctite hold better if you applied it before oiling the part?

[@JasonDoege]

Does deburring the corner contribute to the off-center error? You lose the precise, square corner that you want to reference from when you do.

[@Ranger_Kevin]

Hi, question: What is the advantage of milling the V-groove at a 45° angle with a conventional milling cutter, rather than leaving the part flat and using a 90° pointed milling cutter? In my mind (as a fellow hobby machinist with less experience) that would mean that I can center the groove perfectly on the part from the beginning and also eliminate a possible source of error with the angled setup. I suppose one is more likely to have a conventional cutter at hand?

[@Ranger_Kevin]

@@brocktechnology Uuh. that is true, I did not think about surface speed.