Making a Micro Annular Cutter

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[@Ujeb08]

Nice job Stefan! That Torlon material reminds me of machining Rulon back in the 80's. It was a brand new material and extremely expensive at the time. I was a newbie and the "foreman" that got the Rulon out of the safe handed it to me and said "Don't screw up, you're looking at a Rolls Royce cost there!" It machined beautifully but I was sweating until I handed him the completed parts.

[@camillosteuss]

Its quite sickening to see such nonsense... A material that can be cooked up in a pot essentially(which i know is practically the description of anything apart from wood and such stuff that grows) should never be so expensive... Plastics least of all... I can have understanding for materials that are immensely hard to make, demanding of absolute conditions which can not oscillate during production and so on, but autoclave cooked synth material just has no excuse being as pricey as some are... Even the powder steel tech is way too expensive, as its essentially sintered metal tech, but a bit fancier... Its literally easier to make a powder high grade ``alloy`` when compared to regular melting alloying process, as one allows you to sputter metal powders as you want and bake them and manipulate them into a solid piece that doesnt have the tendency to segregate into specific elements during making and boil your blood by resulting in shit rather than an alloy slab, where the other has its own strict dictates where each element messes with one of the others and demands certain conditions to alloy the steel properly... Just because its a new tech doesnt justify the price, especially if its just a new material made by existing tech from generally abundant resources... The ethylene gas comes to mind... As a refrigerant its mad expensive, and its literally made by boiling ethanol(drinking alcohol) and filtering the fumes through a 500 celsius aluminum oxide catalyst(pipe with silica and two fine mesh filters at each end)... The process, the ingredients and everything is as common and abundant as possible, yet the gas which is as easily made as farts are is vastly more expensive than gold(stupid example, but gold has its price for other reasons other than abundance) at equal mass... Of course i didnt mention a few other parts of the process, but all of it is peasant grade techniques like drying, bubbling purification, filtration and so on... There is chemical purification and concentration thereof too, but its all basic processes with common tools and resources... I get that rulon/turcite and such are teflon based, but teflon is also not a hard thing to make, as fluorine is the most reactive element there is, and apparently, by divine giggle, i was motivated to mention ethylene, as teflon is exactly the combination of ethylene gas and fluorine... One is literally fart grade gas and the other is definitely abundant enough not to justify the price... Sure, there is bronze flakes and other specks of shit in rulon/turcite, but again, absolutely nothing in the composition or the production process doesnt justify the price... Its just pure bullshit... Almost like nitrogen being expensive, and its the most abundant gas in the atmosphere, whereform it can be extracted by methods older than car technology almost... But this rant makes no sense... Whats next, i will start pointing out the rest of problems with mankind and society? No, ill go roll one up and turn the lathe on and let her warm up... Might as well make some annular cutters from that remaining rod of hss-co that i have sitting in the chuck... All the best mate and kindest regards!

[@ansgaryeysymontt7155]

​@@camillosteuss If it is that easy do it in your garage. New materials are more expensive to quicken ROI on R&D and since materials are new and not widely known/used in industry makes large batch production unjustifiable. Also if client is willing to pay extra and make profit why should producer decrease price? Ethylene example is wrong - you can make it from ethanol but is is very expensive method. Mainly it is made from oil industry byproducts and costs less than 2$ by KG. It is just hard to obtain by people out of industry.

[@camillosteuss]

@@ansgaryeysymontt7155 i know, many such products are much more simple and cheaper to make to the industry, but the price a consumer has to pay, if one can even find a seller of smaller quantities is astronomical for a lot of these things... Speaking of make it in your garage... Brother, i bought over 10 tonnes of industrial grade machinery and made my own furnace and a few other industry grade systems and implements, exactly because its easy to do it yourself... Sure, melting metals, iron especially is hellish work, but i prefer sweat over exorbitant prices... It costs me pennies a pound to get good grade cast iron to melt down, or other good metals/alloys, and sure, while the diesel is a bit pricey, on the other hand, i know what im using, i know how much im using, and the total cost is the material cost... If i want, i can use argon to shield things, i can make my own moulds, without the need for any explanations and what not just to get the part right... And when its done, its gets ground, bathed in petrol+atf mix and is ready to be gently laid on adequate machine table or chuck and to be worked to spec... No outside consultations, no waiting, no rude shitheads, no markups and no tax on an already high price... Just whatever little it costs to get stuff, and whatever little tax is paid for scrap prices and fuel... There is one thing i despise, and its being robbed without being at gunpoint... If im gonna be robbed, i prefer to give my money to an honest criminal... They at least put the effort in, while being honest about the situation... And i appreciate honest efforts above any deceit...

[@1crazypj]

@@camillosteuss I read this and gave a 'thumbs up' almost a year ago. Re-read it today and felt compelled to comment as I totally agree with you about massively inflated costs on multiple 'things' When did pick-up trucks become such a status symbol they now cost almost as much as a 'super-car? (I saw ad for pick up costing $109,000 recently) Ford and Chevy will never have status of Porsche, Ferrari or Rolls Royce

[@camillosteuss]

@@1crazypj yeah, i don`t even understand how things manage to be as insane as they are... it`s like watching a fantasy movie about a mad civilization, but it`s just waking up and opening your eyes every day to the world around you... Don`t even get me started on the vehicles, the auto industry is just a sewer-slide at the moment, but so are so many aspects of almost every field in the West... But somehow it appears that there are more and more sane people starting to buoy up on the sea of madness, a slight hint of return to sensibility and sanity of old... We definitely live in an era that is both the best and the most infuriating in so many ways... Omnissiah save us... Deus nobiscum... Ave Gloria - Ave Viktoria!

[@JonPMeyer]

You certainly get some interesting jobs! It's almost as much fun to speculate about what the parts are used for as to watch you come up with clever ways to make the parts. Thank you.

[@iQKyyR3K]

I love the pure joy when the cutter just works as intended.

[@JanBinnendijk]

Making your own tools is part of the fun.. Why buy them if you can make them? I've been machining Titanium with "shop made Tools" like boring bars i Wire-EDMed and ground from broken or dull endmills..ø4 mm Carbide shafts are great "rough Stock" to make Boring Bars

[@joegibes]

"Keep my sanity by not discussing about something like this" Excellent quote about "negotiating" with engineers! This mindset goes both ways, too - as an engineer, always listen to the people who make your parts. But, you gotta know when it's a matter of convenience vs. actual difficulty/cost - depending on the use, it can go both ways! Sometimes a part MUST look like this, and sometimes it doesn't matter. It's usually worth asking a quick question - the level of discussion is proportional to how much you care about that specific aspect, ha!

[@Jbomb-ep4jr]

The laugh at 35:43 tells the whole story! What a cool project - the tool, the material, the process. Love it! Ty for sharing, friend!!

[@BruceBoschek]

I cannot add much to the good comments made here, except that as a retired electron microscopist it warms my heart to see small parts getting their due. I especially appreciate using a hypodermic syringe with cannula to apply cutting oil! Your videos are priceless for their educational value. Thanks for sharing your amazing expertise. Viele Grüße aus dem hessischen Vogelsberg!

[@lohikarhu734]

Hello Stefan! just wanted to say, as a "native English speaker", i loved your use of "infernally" ... a very nice choice of words.

[@davidnelson1578]

Hi Stefan. Great job, I really enjoyed the video. I am a retired Marine Technician and spent 31 years going to sea on research ships keeping stuff running for the science efforts of many research groups. I noticed your remarks on the color variation of the Torlon parts. I received some replacement parts with Torlon threaded inserts a part of a linear actuator. This was back when Torlon was a very new material on the scene. The parts failed after a week of use being installed on the towwed package. We were advised by the equipment manufacturer that Torlon parts need to be baked after machining to reharden the outer surface. This would explain the color change in the Yellow Torlon. If the parts you made do not last you may consider this fact. I am not sure if Torlon formulations have changed since its release. Hope this information helps you if issues develop with your parts. Dave Nelson

[@magnusklahr8190]

This is gold! You dont understand how much i have been learning from whatching your channel! Thanks for uploading!

[@ianjefferson9518]

Lots of nice detail on that Rose cutter. I'm quite impressed with the surface finish also.

[@ROBRENZ]

Nicely done Stefan as always. As you know it's a real joy being able to make your own cutters. ATB, Robin

[@jobkneppers]

Zilverstaal in Dutch 👌And a amazingly educational video. Never thought of such a tool. Now its in my mental library too. Thank you Stephan, love your giggle when your plan works. About a part being "over designed" Yes you're right that you don't know all of the design decisions when you're asked to make a part according to a drawing. But, and I figured you found out too, al lot of parts are over complicated because of a lack of certainty on the designers part. I'm an engineer, a designer and a machinist too. When, in my opinion, over complicated parts are asked for fabrication I question the client about the function of the part and by doing so I'm in 90% of the questions able to lower the mentioned spec's (it get's cheaper for them too) or change the overall design they're after (and cheaper and most of the times a lot more profits for them too). For some I'm a nuisance and they leave after session 1. But for the better part of my clientele I'm a contribution to their development and they never left since. (27 years now) I hate to fabricate or build stuff that I don't believe in and I even reject these requests by now because I'm to old to spend time on BS. Maybe an idea? To enjoy working for clients and serve them better than just following their drawings and plans? It's added value and when they recognize this they will never leave. Stay safe and be happy! Best, Job

[@JamesChurchill3]

I always wondered how plumbuses got made. You're right, long shafts are always tricky, good work!

[@holgerlauer]

Thanks for sharing - really satisfying! 1,5mm drill for roughing 😄 By the way, your micro centering drill works also perfect with bigger dimensions.

[@paulpipitone8357]

The best part is your having fun

[@taranson3057]

I rather enjoy watching your channel because you take things to the extreme when it comes to crazy accuracy, not to mention the tools that you create. You are a master problem solver as well as a master machinist. Bottle some of that and sell it.

[@DUIofPhysics]

"The engineer has probably has done his research and has a reason to make it this way" - said no machine shop ever. 🤣

[@mdwdirect]

Fascinating process. Machinists think in a different way than carpenters.

[@RickRolling-tc7vb]

Lovely work Stefan, very interesting. Woodworkers use a similar tool to cut plugs of wood across the grain to fill screw holes, where the direction of the wood grain can be matched. Called a plug cutter, for obvious reasons. As a novice watchmaker, I am enjoying very much these micro machining series, thank you.

[@glennstasse5698]

The amount of knowledge about materials is quite remarkable. That plus the vast array of machining techniques makes this channel a cut above the rest. As for over engineered, these people aren’t stupid. This is expensive work and they aren’t going waste it.

[@ls2005019227]

....On today's episode of incredible micro machining...... Outstanding job on the project, & the video! I have several larger diameter (1/2” - 2") annular cutters that I use on the mill when needed; but making your own when needed is very clever- Thanks for another great video!

[@pirminkogleck4056]

Thx for the nice Setup here ! realy Creative , i already said it once, it is always a joy to see your setup ideas Stefan ! but now enjoy your Vaccation !

[@davidsnyder2000]

I’m not a machinist so I find every aspect of your work fascinating. Especially how you problem solve and how to approach each operation, and fabricating your own tooling. It’s awesome to see. Thank you for all that you teach me🙂👍

[@GenericAnimeBoy]

That tip about the paper cup catching fire is a real pro tip. 🤣

[@broheim23]

"Things are not even, flat plates with holes. The world is a little more complicated, to be honest." This should be on a t-shirt.

[@624Dudley]

That was quite enjoyable, Stefan. Thanks for another information-rich presentation. 👍

[@1crazypj]

I watched this when it came out and thought I would never need anything like that. Last week, I actually had to make one to remove a flange on a 2.7mm brass tube that is fixed in position. (overflow tube on a motorcycle carburettor) Mine isn't as 'pretty' but works and did the job

[@JB-ol4vz]

Why that long stringy chip didn't got count in the pin and snapped it of is now one of man's great mysteries. Great and inspiring as always. Thanks

[@heinrichhemker8123]

Another excellent and entertaining lesson! Thank you!

[@greppurtorfason4216]

Always a pleasure. Thank you for your videos.

[@MH-GoL]

Ich liebe diesen "ignoriert seit" Sticker xD Mal wieder ein schönes Projekt!

[@joseywales3789]

Brilliant Tom, when I was learning how to Tig, my teacher had me patting my head and rubbing my tummy in a circular motion... Everyone laughed but it allowed me to understand that one part of my brain was thinking about keeping the tungsten staying the right distance from the metal and moving at a reasonable speed and another part of my brain was thinking about dipping the filler rod into the arc and not touching the tungsten.... but most of all relaxing, getting into the rhythm and it becoming "muscle memory!" When I see a Tig weld today, I can usually tell by looking at it, if it has good penetration and strength, even if it's not the prettiest weld, it may be the strongest. Thanks Tom👍

[@warrenjones744]

Good stuff as always Stefan, I really like the process or order of operations you decided to go with.Very clever! Cheers

[@wktodd]

Marvelous job Stefan , good photography and entertainment 8⁠-⁠)

[@davidforsdike4343]

No one values Toolmakers in the uk. Have given up on finding a job in UK. 35 years experience. Mostly using Siemens Shopmill and Shopturn. Still have my home workshop. Going to set up a gardening business. Just had it with the lack of understanding of what we do. You are very lucky to be in Germany. Our engineering has gone to the dogs

[@rexmundi8154]

I admire your professional attitude towards engineers. Not something I easily muster myself. If an engineer brought me drawings for a flat plate with some holes, most days I’d argue that we don’t need to make it in the first place. Nice work on the cutter. I desperately need a D-bit grinder.

[@HylaTube]

Great tipp with the paper cup 😊

[@garyc5483]

Excellent. Micro machining at its best. regards from the UK

[@merc7105]

Excellent at explaining your thought process. It’s always a joy. Thank you.

[@einars899]

I was holding my breath when you did the parting op. First I was afraid of the chips falling into my keyboard here. 🙂Then I was afraid they would rip off the flimsy protruding "rod".

[@jrkorman]

I was wondering the same as I saw that "string" come off the part.

[@HM-Projects]

I can't even mill a 5mm bevel properly without destroying the part and this guy makes 1.6mm features with a rotary broach. Gee what a show off 😝 Amazed at the level of precision you can accomplish with right tools and the little grey cells.

[@MattLitkeRacing]

This was helpful. I was trying to think of a way to complete a project and an annular cutter was the easiest solution. I was able to use an off the shelf tool and get the project done.

[@mosfet500]

Thanks for video, very clever making the cutter. I'm wondering if I would have used a larger diameter mill to get a better finish and faster making time and then cut the hole and grove in another operation but what you did was very efficient.

[@crabmansteve6844]

Torlon is crazy plastic. It can be continously exposed to like 500f, and is still stronger than some room temp plastics at like 400f. Crazy to even think about. That part could be injection molded extremely easily, torlon can be melt processed, but I bet having you machine these was almost certainly cheaper than getting a custom mold made, I don't think small scale injection molding is even a thing.

[@MattOGormanSmith]

You can do injection moulding with a small hand pumped machine (see Vince Gingery) but you'd probably have to modify it to work at the higher temps of these fancy plastics. You wouldn't need to make many parts to justify the cost of making the die, given the cost of making swarf.

[@namibjDerEchte]

You can do compression molding, essentially die forging, with many/most plastics, even those that resist injection milding. You just measured out (if closed die, with no design flaring) an accurate amount of the material, put it into the heated mold, sqeeze it, and cool it down. If you're fast enough, you can heat the blob and keep the mold cold, but that sounds hard for such tiny parts.

[@stevendephillips2490]

I love it when you make parts like that, always very interesting and educational. Thank you.

[@TomChame]

Very very neat, thanks!

[@chriss1914]

the last thing I ever thought you would mention is a Plumbus. 👍

[@thedodger7030]

Nice tip regarding the paper cup for quenching. For heavier parts, if I can't get one of those big KFC chicken buckets, a plastic waste paper bin will have to suffice.

[@aserta]

31:37 the brand escapes me at the moment (i wanna say it was Starrett, but i might be mistaken), but there's an even smaller edge finder on the market. I saw one used by a work relation to catch upon the internals of a gearbox's oil passages to machine a bypass. The reduced feature was very small, i'd like say almost a mm diameter. Very cute little tool.

[@HexenzirkelZuluhed]

Thanks for showing these processes. Inspiring as usual.

[@Joe___R]

Have you considered setting the piece offset in the lathe when parting off. If you have the center turning point, the hole in the part it would likely eliminate the small piece you have to remove afterward. I would use a 4 jaw chuck with a collet block to offset it repeatedly. A pin or drill bit in the tailstock would help you clock the rod in the collet.

[@mfx1]

You could also us some piano wire in the tailstock poking through the hole as a part catcher.

[@williammills5111]

Stefan- thank you!

[@georgem6651]

And of course I'm sure you have your bottle of IPA close at hand to extinguish the burning paper cup. Benefit is the clean burning, even less clean up!

[@JorgTheElder]

Every time you show the end of the plastic rod, my brain says you are milling smoked Guda. 🤣

[@93Martin]

I'd like to see more detail about the plastic bags you use for shipping sometime. Maybe not an interesting video for everyone, but I'm curious. Always cool stuff on your channel!

[@bertblankenstein3738]

Looks like a small lollipop. I like how the part was attached to the stock when the shaft was formed. Thank you.

[@matthiaspenzlin6465]

with this color: more like a tank turret

[@joell439]

👍👍😎👍👍 ….. very interesting solution. Thanks Stefan for all the details on how to create the custom angular cutter. The pure joy from positive results is just so satisfying 😁

[@stevespra1]

Amazing Stefan! You are a very creative tool maker, indeed. I really enjoy learning from your channel. Thank you, Sir.

[@AlejandroHernandez-Matrix]

Nice work and explanation

[@BernardSandler]

As always, much with the clever. This seems like a really straightforward way to form annular cutters of a range of diameters. Is there any reason this would not scale up? Would you lose much by using a simple bench grinder to form these teeth on a cylinder? I just love the fact that the relief and cutting edge is being formed by one grinding operation.

[@ElectricGears]

Larger annular cutters in nominal dimensions are already commercially available, but there is no reason you can't make you own custom sizes like this. The problem with forming the teeth by hand is that it would be very difficult to get the cutting edges in the same plane so they all cut equally. The mechanical stops on the specialized cutter grinders allow you to get consistent results on all the teeth. If all you have is a bench grinder you can still do it. I would rough grind each tooth a little beyond the intersection point (trying to get them as close as possible). Then put the tool in the mill and let it rest on a diamond plate and turn it by hand until I get a flat spot on each tooth. This will ensure they are all on the same plane. Then I would use a fine diamond file and a magnifying glass to form a secondary bevel on each tooth, filing just up to the intersection point.

[@BernardSandler]

@@ElectricGears Thank you so much for this comprehensive reply. This just seems like such a nice way to form consistent pins and such. I appreciate you taking the time to respond.

[@artmckay6704]

What a clever approach! I like it! :)

[@vfxsoup]

For alignment of the vertices drill, could you have left a tab on the side of the material during the cnc milling that would have allowed you to align the part slightly easier?

[@jimsvideos7201]

They're ping pong paddles for lego minifigs, aren't they? 😄

[@garywemmer9342]

Imagine a German with a voice like regular folks! Often, they are a higher pitch!

[@BasementEngineer]

In North America these are known as 'hollow endmills'. Typically used to turn small bolt and screw shanks. They can also be used to quickly reduce the diameter of small rods. I made one to trepan tube bosses on a stainless steel cap for a Stirling engine hot end. These bosses were used to butt weld stainless tubes to the hot cap for a tubular heat exchanger. The process worked very well, using an electric butt welder, similar to an electric band saw blade welder. Golly, this was 30 years ago! I now use the welder to weld band saw blades.

[@BasementEngineer]

In fact that was 40 years ago, the early 1980's! My mental arithmetic is not what it used to be. Still use the butt welder, though. Right now it is set up in my shop for welding 1mm aluminum sheet.

[@heighRick]

Thanks for the video Stefan, helps a lot!

[@iteerrex8166]

Thanks Stefan, that was fun and educational 😁👍

[@unpopular_mechanics]

Torlon is the champagne of thermoplastics.

[@bclare2544]

Nice work Stefan.

[@curtra8288]

Maybe someone has covered this already, but another tool that could possibly work for this is a small counter bore tool. Finding one that's meant to hold a drill close to the diameter your looking to cut is the hard part.

[@bobweiram6321]

Oh yeah! Gotteswinter time!

[@TrPrecisionMachining]

very good job stefan..thanks for your time

[@NitroRC]

"Ignoriert seit" best machine inspection sticker ever 😂

[@ramonching7772]

FWIW. I think there is no need to make special annular cutter. Just change the machining sequence and it might be easier. #1 With the bar on lathe. Drill the small hole. #2 Pressure turn the pin. #3 Put into milling machine and flatten one side. etc. Bottom line. Completely make the small delicate feature first.

[@htral]

I'm always amazed at your videos - ty

[@chrisosowski8531]

Very nice!

[@JanBinnendijk]

Nice Video, and i noticed you also use Insert Boxes to ship your parts.. I made some watch hand hubs a while ago, ø2.7 x 0.9 mm brass, and i also put them in an Insert Box..

[@googleuser859]

Beautiful work as always. Also, 35:50

[@christoph72761]

And another fluxcapacitor part done. Thank you Stefan. That was quite unique!

[@mcnultyfp]

Comically good work

[@hardwareful]

35:00 there's always "one more thing", like grinding down the OD of the cutter for relief so it doesn't rub on the plastic.. but yeah :)

[@andreasthuerkow3144]

Just a regular old plumbus as everybody should have at home. I always wondered how they were made.

[@roippi3985]

Did an honest-to-god spit take at “plumbus.” 😂

[@HylaTube]

And also: „Diamond goes a long way“. My wife might be telling me that 😊

[@AnEmptyspacefullofstuff]

ich finde ja auch den Aufkleber auf der Deckel Schleifmaschine grandios, ignoriert seit 2021 😂

[@scorpion2nz]

No idea what the part is for but with 2 part circle grooves on the back of the disc it would look like a reversing valve for a Cranko or David Auld steam engine . Apart from that a interesting video showing the what and explaining the why

[@lohikarhu734]

i had to hold my breath when you were "parting-off"!

[@johnb6763]

Thanks!!

[@VanillahGarillah]

I fully expected Stefan to use a 1.6mm reamer.

[@alexdehotot2712]

Super neat, what a nifty tool! I think that when some people go "uhhhh this part is over engineered" it's actually how some people express genuine curiosity about the working constraints - but in a blunt and impolite way. I find their phrasing irritating too.

[@stefankrimbacher7917]

Danke. Probiere ich bei meiner S2 auch einmal.

[@Rustinox]

All this just to make some plasic lollies for playmobil figures. I absolutely love it :)

[@drevil4454]

You are talented. That's a fact!!!

[@udowillkomm1173]

Bei der Gelegenheit: es gibt so eine Art Feuerzeug mit Piezo zündung. Da ist die Brennerduese mittels Schwanenhals recht weit von der Hand entfernt . So ist die Verbrennungsgefahr gering. Die Dinger sind wohl als Gasanzünder der für Gasgrille, Grillanzünde, etc. Gedacht. Die funktioniere aber bei Brennern auch prima, und kosten nicht viel .

[@udowillkomm1173]

P.S.: Einen schönen :Urlaub wünsche ich Dir.

[@ВалерийП-щ8м]

прекрасная работа 👍👍👍

[@therealme613]

Definitely stick with the “I’ll be back” outró but give it a little bit more Arnold

[@bot42]

I low-key want to see the completed plumbises...

[@troyam6607]

did you add the schleem? did you rub the fleeb?

[@subuser9627]

Nice work. I was making 0.6mm rode 8mm long on de 5mm base in brass in one piece of course. Could this also made by this method ? Is it also possible to put a propper thread on it ?

[@philallen9650]

Torlon is very hygroscopic so the discolouration on the OD is probably from the drying process after extruding. I have known large diameter(400mm) part made from Torlon to grow 15 -20 mm on diameter if they are not stored correctly in a humid part of the world.