Maching a Cylinder Head on the Metal Shaper

[@Abom79]

Good use of the shaper Steve. Nice job. 👍🏻

[@SteveSummers]

Thanks Adam, it worked out real well. I think with some refinement I could get some very good results.

[@melwilson514]

Hi Adam. I watch your content religiously. Your vids on the G & E shaper are fascinating. Keep up all the good work and great projects. I ran a gear hobbing machine at a part time job in Milwaukee while going to Tech school 1969 was a long time ago. Lots of good memories of HS metal shop. Mel

[@CH-pt8fz]

I remember having a argument with my dad , when I was about 20, I said you can't do a cylinder head with the shaper you had to use a Miller or grinder . he smiled bet me a £10 that he could do a better job than I could with the Miller , I lost £10 . lol he used a HSS round nose tool he ground, I used a large fly cutter . he used to say to me you use what is available to you at the time you need it. And yes cost and time are important in the machine shop, but you can't have every machine you need to hand so you have to make do and over come. Its rare to work in a shop that has every size of machine and type you might need so you need know what you want to achieve and work out a plane to achieve it. He worked till he was 75 and always said every day is a school day , and their always another way of doing what you do so always be open minded. it just might be quicker or give better results. And one off jobs are always a different mind set to a production job. :) . keep up the great video's.

[@SteveSummers]

Thank You Good story :-)

[@bcbloc02]

Most heads call for a particular required roughness value. Many engines are fairly rough to help bite into the gasket and keep the paper type material from pushing out. The newer engines with the multi layer steel gaskets tend to call for a smoother finish since it is a steel on steel seal on them. You could take the head to the surface plate to see if your clamping caused any distortion. It is always interesting to see the effects and it can be a surprising how little clamping can cause some movement.

[@SteveSummers]

That is a good idea. I may try that. I tried to make sure I did not over do it with the vise pressure knowing that I was just skimming the head and the cutting pressure was going to be low. But you are very correct about distortion. things move more than most people think. Surprising how much things people think are solid can move/bend with just the smallest amount of pressure. Thanks for watching Brian.

[@tommasofossati5123]

bcbloc02 yeah It would be very interesting!

[@speedbuggy16v]

Thanks for sharing even the small mistakes. I prefer videos, instruction, and training that does that, we are all human, showing our mistakes can help others!

[@theshed8802]

Hi Steve, nice video, but a couple of hints for future reference that will have a large impact on the job when machining overhead cam cylinder heads and soft materials. Before starting machining, make sure that the cam spins freely in the cam tunnel. One of the problems is that if the head is too far out of shape the cam will bind. if you bolt the head back down, unmachined, it pulls the head straight again and the cam comes free. If the cam binds when the head is off, you need to press the head straight prior to machining it. if you machine it when the cam is biding, the journals can seize and gall, ruining the head. when mapping the head, pick up the 4 corners as initial reference points, a precision level is a good tool if your table has been leveled first because it gives a good 'average' reading. On the big shaper, because the clapper is so heavy, I often hold onto the clapper by hand and 'manually' lift the tool up on the return stroke to stop it marking the job. Slowing the stroke speed down and a small radius on the back of the tool along with minimal clearance rake on the bottom edge can also help reduce marking the job. As you said, this was a learning experience for you. Job well done

[@SteveSummers]

The Shed Thanks Greg. I have in the past lifted the clapper myself on return and you are correct it helps. Thanks for all the tips, I have never heard of a cam binding but that makes very good sense. Thanks for watching Greg. I appreciate it.

[@notsofresh8563]

Depending on the cylinder head just the act of clamping it to the table can induce warp, if done unevenly or something. Careful where and how hard you clamp the head. If i were to guess, in your setup the back corner closest to you was just a touch high in the setup. If the head was twisted, you would see high spots on opposite corners. If it is warped, either the center or the ends would have been cut in the first pass. If it was cupped, the shaper would have cut on the edges and not the center. The fact that it cut hardest in one corner gradually fading off in both directions says to me that corner was high in the setup. Like you said, Since you never mapped it we will never know. Thanks for the vids, Keep on learning and posting it for our benefit.. We appreciate it..

[@Sketch1994]

That's something I've seen both car mechanics and even engine machine shops miss when inspecting heads.

[@garybrown5500]

Great point about cam binding. Been caught out by this myself. Very frustrating. Overcome luckily by line boring just enough to get cam free again.

[@patrickroeill8746]

hi steve love your shaper and that head is fine i'm a mechanic for 35 years and that head is is good Nice job allways a pleasure to watch your shaper videos

[@SteveSummers]

patrick roeill Thanks, I'm glad you enjoy them👍

[@billsmith5166]

I don't know why, but I love shaper videos. Great job setting up the cut.

[@terrycannon570]

I really did like the demonstration Steve. I was much more concerned about the interrupted cuts than the back slap of the clapper. The aluminum was a good example of what the clapper is doing. It would be interesting to see what it would look like if it was blued ahead of the back stroke but that would be really hard to do . Great presentation as always. Thanks as always for creating the education on the shaper. I am in the process of restoring a pre WW II Clausing 100 and the truth is that old machine saw more machining before I was born than I will ever see in my lifetime. Just stop for a minute and realize the people (Old Timers) that used these machines before our life even began to exist.

[@SteveSummers]

Thanks Terry. I need to build a clapper lift bad, dragging the cutter back over the work just don't work well for soft metals. Love the idea of 1900 - 1950 machining, those guys were true manual machinists and skilled craftsman. that is something you don't see much of these days. its sad if you ask me.

[@kejay74]

Very interesting application. One item I "think" I saw, or noticed, that may have also contributed to the surface roughness between chambers. It appears that the chambers were not cleared of all combustion byproducts. Some of those deposits can approach grinding grit hardness. Dragging those deposits back across, added to the clapper hop, might explain some of the surface as well.

[@douglasmeek9774]

Thank you ! Very few people are using shapers now. There aren't even in basic machine shop books. I bought 1 years ago and am going to hook it up now that I'm retired.

[@kaibroeking9968]

That shaper looks very well cared for and in excellent condition. Hats off to whoever scraped the ram dovetail and the oscillating lever - looks pretty good! (Apart from that: good video, too!)

[@SteveSummers]

Thank you

[@thomvogan3397]

We had a shaper in the machine shop I retired from. Mostly it gathered dust other than cutting the odd keyway. For cylinder heads we used a rotary broach that only required one pass per cut. A shaper can do a good job, they're just to slow for a production shop

[@saschaoswald480]

Don't think I'll ever tire of watching that shaper do its thing...

[@SteveSummers]

Thanks

[@German_MDS]

Nice one Steve. Enjoyed the different shots of the machine running. Thanks for sharing!

[@SteveSummers]

chevy250ss Thanks Chevy.

[@bearbait2221]

Real nice finish on that head I used to work in a engine shop and that is better than the head surfacing machine we used.

[@houseofbrokendobbsthings5537]

Well your crazy idea inspired me to grind my Volvo (aluminum) head on my Boyer Schultz Surface Grinder. Lots of WD40 and a thousandth at a time - we got her flat again. Surface finish was good, not slick as glass. As Brian Bloc noted - you need something to bite the old school composite gasket. I barely had enough travel to get it all done. It's going back together and we will see. I used a few of Robin R. (Robrenz) grinder mag plate tricks to hold the head. There wasn't any downward load on the head except from the grinder wheel. My fixtures were essentially parallels and magnetism. _Dan_

[@SteveSummers]

House of Broken Dobbs Things _ with Dan Dobbs Very Nice👍I am sure it will work just fine.

[@malcolmtill]

Hi, thanks for an graphic demonstration of a warped cylinder head. I have many times measured for twist on heads, If you find it you send it for skimming. This really shows how you can see the shape of the distortion. Excellent.

[@SteveSummers]

Malcolm Till Thank you for watching, This head looked to be out a few thou. I am not at all surprised. Aluminum heads seem to warp easy.

[@christophernewton2579]

Malcolm Till they warp like crazy if the engine has been over heated

[@malcolmtill]

I used to work on Triumph Stag V8s ;-)

[@HotRodPackard]

Oh my I love that machine. The vise is absolutely elegant

[@RGSABloke]

Awesome Steve, thanks for sharing. kindest regards joe.

[@SteveSummers]

Thank you Joe

[@mohabatkhanmalak1161]

Good experiment, machining is all about straight lines and perfect circles.

[@eiserntorsphantomoftheoper2154]

I went to Vo-Teck Machine shop in 1975. Almost everyone learning to use the shaper, pushed their project out of the vice, onto the floor. It was quite interesting.

[@SteveSummers]

Its a shame kids don't even have shop class around here anymore. I am sure lots of kids would have interest if given the chance. These days getting your hands dirty is considered something the lower class does.

[@eiserntorsphantomoftheoper2154]

Steve Summers I hear ya. My high school shop taught ox-acetylene & stick welding, green sand casting, rudimentary lathe, sheet metal soldering/rolling, blacksmith/forging. It's all been abolished due to insurance liability. Same with wood shop.

[@peterhaan9068]

Well that must have been awkward!

[@justinpatterson7700]

Peter Haan in shop in my engineering class the first time I used the belt sander I pushed the work against the belt too hard and man that thing flew. Luckily it fell towards the wall but that was awkward to say the least standing there at the time not knowing what I did.

[@MatthewHolevinski]

@@eiserntorsphantomoftheoper2154 I would never expect my children to reach adulthood with all fingers and toes intact. If they did, they weren't living right.

[@johnstrange6799]

I like watching shapers. Usually everything is a high energy critical million RPM death trap flinging bits of anything in it's path, whereas the shaper on the other hand lets you witness a nice even precision operation take place in due time. It's kind of relaxing really.

[@lookcreations]

fully agree with that. I have ducking for cover when the mill fires up !

[@rickcaposell]

I was told when I was in school 20 years ago when I learned the shaper use kerosene as cutting fluid and a tool with a good size radius will leave a great finish on aluminum

[@SteveSummers]

rickcaposell I use both from time to time and agree they work in a lot of situations. Thanks for watching and taking the time to comment. I enjoy it.

[@melwilson514]

I was just going to comment that ABOM79 got a shaper. I read down the comment and discovered He is already here. Good vid. Mel

[@JPanyon]

Nice video Steve. Abom79 was watching, and I know he's been getting into using a shaper. It'd be a shame to let shapers just fade into obscurity, so thanks for helping to keep them alive.

[@SteveSummers]

Thank you for watching.

[@JourneymanRandy]

What a nice job that shaper is capable of.

[@ls2005019227]

Steve, excellent video as always! A couple of things to consider trying; a shear (45°) bit with a very large (nearly flat) radius, and increasing stepover to .030"-.050". Surface finish will improve, & clapper marks go away as the tool rides on work that will be removed. Thanks again!

[@SteveSummers]

Robert Ross I am planing on giving that a try. I just need to grind another tool. Thanks for stopping by

[@terjeoseberg990]

So this is how they resurface cylinder heads? I've sent several in to be resurfaced before, but never knew how it was done. Thanks for posting this. Great channel!!

[@JRBUISEXCAVATING]

Terje Oseberg no this is not how most engine machinists deck a head. They typically use a very large, specially designed fly cutter. I’ve never seen anyone use a shaper to deck a head, but it appears as though it’s possible and this gentleman did a very nice job for his first attemp.

[@EgressMan2006]

Enjoyed that, ran a shaper in high school. Cut a dovetail block I still have.

[@casual257]

great video, i remember seeing a youtube video, some guy had a large thick piece of glass and had some large sandpaper glued to it, and was machining the head to repair car for resale!

[@jameswhite9237]

Nice job Steve and love the shaper it a very nice piece of equipment 👍👍

[@SteveSummers]

James White Thank you. It's a neat machine to run.

[@anthonyarnold906]

Love the video man. Looked like you had at it within an .03 setting up. Still amazes me that the tool doesn’t catch on the holes on the surface of the head

[@SteveSummers]

Thanks. The ram on this machine is very stiff and has no trouble skipping over holes. Thanks for watching

[@davidhamilton7628]

I agree about the material that's why it won't hold a spark plug. good job

[@ROBRENZ]

Nicely done Steve. That slight twist of the original surface might have been from your grip in the vise. ATB, Robin

[@SteveSummers]

ROBRENZ Yeah it very well could have. I did my best to not over clamp this head in the vise and tried to only apply slightly more than needed pressure for the operation. I'm not sure how I could avoid it. LOL. One thing that I have learned about machining is that everything matters and even the smallest amount of pressure changes things. Funny how things people think are ridged can be affected by as little as the weight of a hand. I have found over the years that nothing is as simple as it seems. Thanks for watching Robin I really appreciate it.

[@markl2761]

Just amazing what you are accomplishing with your shaper. Great video

[@SteveSummers]

Thank you Mark. I am no different than anyone else, Lots of talented guys and girls (Emma ) out there doing cool stuff with shapers. I just film it. :-) Thank you for watching.

[@MrUbiquitousTech]

Nicely done, very interesting. Nice shaper you have there!

[@osirodo6853]

it's a job well done that machine was ready for a few starts I congratulate you blessings

[@marknewsome9563]

Great video, keep them coming!

[@SteveSummers]

Mark Newsome Thanks👍

[@skeeter50001]

I think this is a very good job. Years ago in my other life, I had to have several heads resurfaced. I think the shops used a "table type grinder", Its been a few years back. I think you have a good handle on this.

[@SteveSummers]

Skeeter Holeman Thank you. I do my best. I an always learning.

[@ruperthartop7202]

Great video Steve

[@seraphim1833]

Nice work and beautiful machine. Subscribed. Keep up the good work!

[@jimzivny1554]

Nice experiment. I wouldn't stone the surface, most modern multilayer gaskets need to bite into the surface to seal properly, also for an aluminum cylinder head it was pretty flat. You mentioned a heli-coil for the spark plug hole repair, I stopped using them for bad plug holes years ago and use Time-sert brand or style inserts, its a solid piece instead of a coil of wire and I believe it's a much better repair, I know there's a million guys who swear by helicoils but they aren't the best for every application. If you look for Bruce Whitham's KZbin channel he's got some very good videos on them.

[@SteveSummers]

I have used those 1 piece inserts in plastic before and I agree they are better in a lot of ways. I will check out Bruce's channel and see what he has to say. Thanks James

[@garymucher9590]

I watched because I was interested to see how the interrupted cut would happen across the combustion chambers. Looks pretty good though and I am sure it would bolt up and run very well again. Nice project.

[@SteveSummers]

Gary Mucher Thanks for watching

[@deemstyle]

Always enjoy your videos, Steve. Cool stuff; I would have never thought about flattening a cylinder head on a shaper. I suppose in a way, flattening material is exactly the main job of the shaper. Really neat!

[@SteveSummers]

Yeah, Flat surfaces is the game of the shaper :-) Thanks for stopping by

[@meyoucajun1139]

Steve, great video, I use a round nose tool on mine and it give a great finish, could not that one real good, I love my shapers, don't three of them is enough, they are fun to watch, thanks for sharing

[@SteveSummers]

Three is a good start :-)

[@meyoucajun1139]

that is not what my wife says, not counting all the lathes, mills and drill presses, someday there is going to be one big yard sale she says when I am going ????????

[@richardgalli7262]

nice work

[@torque350hp]

Great video. I was wondering the same sort of thing, if you could shape a nice usable flat surface for something like this. Interesting results. Thank you very much.

[@SteveSummers]

I checked the final surface on the plate and it feels great. Big surfaces are tough to get flat and even finish on. Thanks for watching

[@triphonikstudio]

So satisfying to watch 🤘🏼

[@bryans5150]

Steve.. thanx much for taking the time to make the videos. You simplify a dying art that most of us took for granted in our high school years. I'm not a kid anymore and you lit the fire of knowledge not only in myself but now my kids. You are providing a priceless service to the next generations with their limited exposure and I hope everyone realizes the importance of your contributions...Please keep em coming and Thank You again and again....My boy is saving money for a rotary table...good stuff!

[@SteveSummers]

bryans5150 Thank you for watching. I do it for folks like you👍

[@bryans5150]

Steve Summers we'll send u some pics of the blossoming shop when we leave the hospital..thanx again

[@robertkutz]

Steve nice work.

[@SteveSummers]

Thank you :-)

[@elcuhhh8761]

That's a really nice shaper

[@LittleshopofFredrik]

Great video Steve! I need to go find an old cylinder head in my toolshed now ;)

[@SteveSummers]

Little shop of Fredrik Go do it, very good experience if nothing else. The only reason I done it was to learn.👍

[@ChirpysTinkerings]

Cast aluminum is defenitely another beast to machine and to get a good finish on, I mainly do A356 cast, but rarely, Ive done A413, and the silicon in it is about as abrasive to the cutting tool as cast iron is alot of the time. A413 has double the silicon content, so it just acts like machining sand paper sometimes. The best thing Ive found was to use my homemade cutting fluid and an extremely sharp tool.

[@SteveSummers]

Thanks Chirpy, I thought you would chime in on the cast :-) It really started to degrade the cutting edge after two passes. This was a T15 grade piece of HSS and is good at abrasive material, but I did have the edge ground weak and sharp. if I had to do over I would have chosen a different grind. I don't have a lot of experience machining cast aluminum Thanks for stopping by.

[@davidlostumbo6845]

On a head broche .005 is normal for the rotary fly cutting head . So your setup was correct.

[@AnOriginalYouTuber]

Hand scraped ways. Nice!

[@jfbeam]

Nicely done. Not exactly the speediest way to deck a block/head, but "if all you have is a hammer..." Perhaps an air hose (cool mist, etc.) to help keep chips from getting caught on the return?

[@juanrivero8]

There is a channel -- *shaper andi* -- which has a lot of useful stuff. One of the things is using a rubber band to retract the clapper. Something like that might help the drag problem.

[@NathanOkun]

Paint the two -- up/down and in/out -- controls different colors. Maybe do that with all such controls in every equipment in your shop to make sure that you automatically select the right one at all times, no matter what machine you are using. Just an idea...

[@ofujuncky]

Nice job think it very usable!

[@nakternal]

Now that was cool.

[@Malice11029]

very nicely done, a good thing to remember is that there will ALWAYS be a little bit of sand in a sand-castings'* surface, i'm sure you'd improve the finish a little by removing chips a little better( light compressed air maybe?)

[@SteveSummers]

Malice min Thanks Make sure to watch the update video so you can see what I ended up with after several more trys.

[@lookcreations]

Interesting Steve - certainly doable as you say - I think you could put a 'clapper lift' assembly together pretty simply with your skills ! I was thinking of a kids bike brake cable and then cam to push it on the machine body - some sort of small addition to the box to attach it to. You are only talking about a lift of a .125" I dont see why it would need to be more. Take a look at the Klopp shaper of Adrian Straub - he shows a few details of the assembly on his machine. All the best my friend. Mat

[@SteveSummers]

lookcreations That is a good idea Matt, I like the bike cable setup. It would need to move very freely in order for the clapper to seat property tho. I know that Cincinnati used a friction system that was neat and supposedly worked well. I have seen the Kopp drawings and there was a lot of good info in those pictures. Thanks for watching Matt it's good to see you

[@chuirios365]

The surface finish is way better than the specified finish!

[@dws_damiansworkshop]

As it is common use to vari the thickness of the cylinder head gasket in development of gasoline engines to change the compression ratio on a prototype, it might lead to increased knocking in high-powered engines if you remove too much material without compensating with thicker sealing material. Nonetheless a nice video and good practice. Well done.

[@rustymachineshop9456]

Thanks for the video i like shaper work but a old machinest said u can make anything on a shaper but money

[@SteveSummers]

These days they are for 1 off work not production. I have also heard people say the same thing :-) For special work the shaper is still a great machine.

[@MakinSumthinFromNuthin]

I would rather not make money and have a shaper to play with given a choice :)

[@cosprint]

rusty machine shop I had an old guy tell me not to waste my time learning TIG welding. Everything has its place. glad I learnt how to Tig.

[@whidbeyman]

Danylo66 Some old guys are full of negativity. Thank goodness for the many who aren’t.

[@Baard2000]

@@SteveSummers I have a friend who worked at tools making shop of the Fokker production plant near Amsterdam airport. The still had a shaper for machining very long tool dies needed for bending . How much the management wanted to get rid of it as with milling it could be done much quicker....... The distortion if the long dies was incredible..... So long parts , needed yo be straight, were always done on the " slow" shaper.... One guy working with the shaper was approached by manager to make THICKER chips.. Ok he said , and removed 4 mm depth making THICK chips. Manager gave him compliment for working so fast. After the last stroke the operator threw the long die in the scrap bin. Manager asked him : what do you do now???!!! Answer: YOU WANTED THICK CHIPS.......NOW THE DIE IS TOO THIN....SOO IT IS SCRAP.... Manager never spoke again to people working on the shaper to work faster...HAHAHA

[@bulletproofpepper2]

The head could be heat warped? Good work. Thanks for sharing.

[@ThAtGuY-u9d]

I like the Ram Cam, you should hook it up for cutting action to.

[@SteveSummers]

I may try it in the future, and see if I can get good footage. Thanks for watching

[@houseofbrokendobbsthings5537]

Good stuff Steve - I wondered how it would work. Thanks for being out front and trying it. Maybe blue it before you take some cuts to spot and craters before you fixture it up ? Curious how it stacks up compared to a fly cut on a mill. - Dan-

[@SteveSummers]

House of Broken Dobbs Things _ It was fly cut from the factory and was not really smooth if you ask me. I could easily feel the lines with the finger nail. After I machined it on the shaper the surface felt to improve. I am still working on it trying different cutters to seee what works best. I may do a follow up video and show my results. Thanks for watching and good to see you again😀

[@CompEdgeX2013]

That was cool...Think I might enjoy this channel.. ;-)

[@SteveSummers]

CompEdgeX Thanks man👍

[@alexandersmith7583]

You could probably do a engine head and easily put a head gasket on that and it would work because when skimming the head there taking the warp out it so head is straight and no gap between the head and block

[@ecrusch]

That came out great Steve. I think you're being hard on yourself. I've watched you from the beginning and you have made steady progress since you started. I remember when you got that machine and brought her home. You got that thing cleaned up real nice, and working great. I think if you can pick up an automatic return lift, you'll be in business. This is one of my favorite channels and I always tell my friends to check you out and subscribe. Hey, 6, 400 subscribers ain't nothing to sneeze at! Keep it up Steve and we'll all be waiting for the next video. Thanks Eric

[@SteveSummers]

Thanks Man, I just seen your comment and really appreciate it. KZbin has been tough. It takes a lot of late nights. LOL Thanks for the support I would not do it without people like you, I know guys like you are out there and that's the main reason I do it. Thanks again Eric

[@BillyLapTop]

Great video! Up until now I did not know what a shaper did or how it did what it does. You have answered a thousand questions for me. Thanks.

[@michaeleaston547]

Great videos. Thank you. Could the vise be off a wee bit?

[@SteveSummers]

This is a older video. Check out my channel by clicking on my profile picture and watch the video posted after this one. I find out the answer. I was very surprised at the cause.

[@drbrono]

I was wondering - do they make carbide tooling for shapers? I know shapers are typically not used today as milling machines have replaced them in what they do and HSS cutters are traditionally used with shapers, but could you successfully use carbide tooling on them such as brazed carbide cutter or carbide insert tooling? Also, what coolant do you use when machining aluminum? I know we used to just use kerosene.

[@SteveSummers]

drbrono Carbide is not great on the shaper due to the interrupted cut. The clapper also drags the cutter in reverse over the work and breaks the cutting edge. I have tried it a few times without success. I use wd40 for aluminum . Thanks for watching 👍

[@BolderBats]

smooth surface!

[@javiersaulino1531]

Excelente !!

[@jeffryblackmon4846]

It's good seeing shapers at work. Weren't they once considered old-fashioned?

[@SteveSummers]

Yeah and to most they still are :-)

[@cavemansmancave9025]

KZbinr Challenge -- Fix the spark plug hole and make it a good head again. it would be a great learning experience. including the valve seat. :-) Great video. I have rarely seen a cylinder head that didn't warp slightly once it was heated up even under normal conditions. 3 thou is usable as is. Of course, you probably already know that since you've had a couple of engines apart.

[@SteveSummers]

Caveman's Mancave I have done more than my share of motor rebuilds and repairs, that what I did for a living about 10 years ago. I dont like it as much as I used to. As far as the head repair goes the time invested in repairing this head was way way to much for me. I opted for a junkyard head that was good. It would be neat to show the repairs though.

[@cavemansmancave9025]

Yes, not as much fun for me, either. Junkyards are a man's playground. I've gotten a few spare parts out of them myself. I'm just thinking in terms of the challenge, not actually making any money off it. but then again, raw material for a future aluminum cast part? The wheels are turning. Probably just spinning in the mud but fun to watch. :-)

[@zeke1eod]

Great video, I would like to see if it would handle like a Detroit 60 series head size wise, and they aren't aluminium. Thanks for sharing, God bless

[@doylesmith754]

Try some olive oil or I have used dark heavy cutting oil with high sulphur. the heavy cutting oil makes it too slick to the point it will blow the head gasket . That was on a surfacer with cbn cutter @ normal feed speed.The oil makes a big difference.

[@Jeremy-iv9bc]

Do you have the setup to cut on the back stroke instead of the forward stroke? That way any pecker tracks from the tool dragging would be taken off.

[@bertwacaser6719]

Hi Steve got an idea that might eliminate the return marks, why not hang a small piece of leather off the back of the cutter that way when the cutter returns it has something soft to hit on instead of metal to metal.

[@SteveSummers]

Bert Wacaser That is a very good idea.;-)

[@SteveSummers]

Lots of good info. Thanks.

[@infoanorexic]

That's an idea worth investigating. I've got a least one old leather belt needing 're-purposed.' If I can find it.......

[@twistedupright8697]

An air foil should help lift the tool on the return?

[@SteveSummers]

SWIMASAP The clapper box is very heavy and the ram moves no where near fast enough for that to work. Very different idea I must say. Thanks for watching

[@Johnditit]

Could you bore and tap that spark plug hole and make a threaded insert with a properly tapped hole for a spark plug, using jb weld or tig welding the threaded insert into place? I think you could save that head.

[@jacobpoucher]

lol jb weld delete your comment.

[@scotts439]

why is the clapper box not clapping? rigid mounted tool? Great video

[@MichaelRadelet]

I work in an engine shop and that warp doesn't look like it's anything uncommon from an aluminum head that was overheated.

[@carlquib]

I wonder how a 45° shear bit would preform on that material? I have never tried to machine cast aluminum on a shaper, might have to give it a whirl some time.

[@SteveSummers]

I may test that, never tried it on cast aluminum.

[@barrygerbracht5077]

Do you ever use braze on carbide for shaper tools? Would it handle the junk (silicon/sand and aluminum oxide particles) in aluminum castings better without loosing the edge? I don't imagine your tools dull very quickly cutting billet.

[@SteveSummers]

I do use them from time to time and the brazed works really well in some situations. I bet they would work good for this. Thanks for stopping by

[@mitchyelvington4776]

I was wondering if you could do this ? On a shaper!

[@somebodyelse6673]

Somebody went thumbs down on a 'lets see if we can do this' experiment? Heartless... I wouldn't have thought the finish on cast aluminum would be noticeable different, learned something there.

[@SteveSummers]

somebody else Can't please everyone all the time, some people will 👎 if they hate the color shirt I wear. I stopped worrying about those a long time ago. Some people get their feelings hurt easy and follow you forever giving 👎on every video good or not. It's part of the deal I guess ☺.

[@robmallory]

Can the timing be set on the ram return so that the clapper returns after the .010 bed travel occurs, so that the clapper drags across the uncut material?

[@Siporax1]

Damn, yesterday me and a friend talked about head on the shaper. Now, watching you, a crazy idea comes to my head. What if you mount a tool post grinder, or something like that, instead of the clapper. Put the shaper on slow speed, and let it rip? Would make some cool video. ;)

[@SteveSummers]

The tool post grinder on the shaper is a cool idea but I think in reality the finish would suck. I just don't think the ram moves smooth enough to get a good finish running a grinding wheel. I could be wrong . I must admit that it is a cool thought and image though:-)

[@Siporax1]

You never know. It may come out perfect, or the grinding wheel might explode. As I said- just a crazy idea. :) www.dapcom.com/hamfriends/ko7r09.htm

[@Siporax1]

www.dapcom.com/hamfriends/ko7r09.htm

[@robmckennie4203]

I have seen people setting up their shaper as a surface grinder, but I think it's better suited to roughing hard materials rather than getting a nice surface, but I could be wrong.

[@notsofresh8563]

Probably dont want grinding abrasive in the ways either. Grinders generally have better guards and seals on the ways.

[@ront8270]

Maybe you can check the milling machine out to see if it does any better

[@jackrichter6400]

I have done this many times and in lathes, you just have to clock on the 4 corners of the head. The newer alu heads warp very bad.

[@mauromauro9149]

Is better the lathe machine for this job , and you ve got one ... good vídeo!!

[@MikeBaxterABC]

A Shaper or Planer was THE way to skim heads since for ever . there was simply no other way to do it ... in fact you still hear the term "Plane the Heads" used in hot rod circles to this day.

[@jkneathery]

How difficult was it setting up the head in whatever fixture you have for it to sit. Engine shops with rotary milling machines typically have separate fixtures for head and engine blocks. In your case did you set it in the vise and use a bubble level to get it level with the shaper?

[@SteveSummers]

Jim Newberry1978 What I did was just set the head in the vise on some parallels 1st using the valve cover gasket surface as a reference. Then I took a tenths indicator and ran over the surface to make sure I was close in X and Y. I had never done this before and it was a real learning experience. I should have mapped the surface 1st all over, that way it would have shown how warped it was then I would have not been surprised when the surface didn't clean up in one pass. On this head the valve cover gasket surface is parallel with the head gasket surface. And the base/bed of the vise is parallel with the ram of the shaper. Hello Jim!👍

[@aussiman77181]

try a shear cut tool you might find you wont need to make a automatic tool lifter i have gotten a really good finish on aluminum with one of those tools

[@Guds777]

Can't you weld up the plug hole and drill and tap new one.

[@superrodder2002]

If the head was only out by .003 tir then it would be considered serviceable as is and most surfaces aren't machined perfectly smooth so the gasket has something to hang on to.

[@trevorparnell3735]

That carbon is pretty abrasive stuff, any chance it took the edge off your tool.