Optical Comparator + Gridfinity = Awesome

I bought a new tool! But naturally the first thing the tool unlocked, was a need for some side projects 😅. The gridfinity system wasn't designed for metrology, but turns out with some minor modifications, it does pretty well!
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[@LonnonFoster]

Very cool Gridfinity application! And the Gridfinity optical comparator song is a real banger; totally rocking out and giggling my fool head off.

[@AudacityMicro]

😁

[@gillisdebilio7086]

superb Idea, modular workpiece holding and locating for inspection. Very interesting.

[@AudacityMicro]

Thanks!

[@SarsfaceRA21]

shoutout to @ZackFreedman for Gridfinity!

[@AudacityMicro]

YES! I meant to specifically mention him in the video, but accidently omitted the portion where I went through the CAD 🤦‍♂️

[@roguelitedev]

He will be proud! Nicely done!

[@misupercooner]

Glad to see a video up! Gleaning alot from your channel!

[@AudacityMicro]

thanks! I know my publication schedule is a little...sporadic, but I'm working on it!

[@yelims20]

as a tool and die maker, I used to use a 50" J&L comparator... good deal!

[@AudacityMicro]

thats massive compared to this one!

[@alexkern9134]

J&L comparators are awesome. I havent seen a 50" one but all of the ones have used have been awesome

[@joshuahuman1]

great video little tip you can use a gauge block/ other item of known dimension to extend the machined surface under the top hat. If you can probe with the door open on you machine you can just hold it on otherwise you can use a rubber band. Just make sure you subtract/add the block to you work offset I forget this more often than I'd like to admit.

[@AudacityMicro]

good tip! I do do that sometimes, but I don't like how you have to do it for every piece (unless you setup a workstop, and if I did that, I would just probe my workstop)

[@tobiaslinde84]

Cool video, you could stick the gridfinity down with magnets so you can still remove it but it stays more in place

[@AudacityMicro]

true! I debated removing the magnet slots from the original model, but decided to leave them, in case I wanted them in the future.

[@rykkuuu]

for that tool change if you have setting 36 enabled for program restart you can still use same tool number just dont push cycle start on the tool number scroll down one and itll still start at the same tool number withoutt the tool change.

[@AudacityMicro]

my mistake was not stopping and restarting the program. i just hit feed-hold while it was in the cut. If I had waited to a travel move it would have been fine

[@harlymeyer1073]

What is that Song?

[@lawmate]

Pretty sure that 0 to 60 division will be a vernier for arc minutes. Each degree gets broken into 60 arc minutes and each arc minute gets broken into 60 arc seconds

[@AudacityMicro]

that is what I'm thinking too....Unfortunately I think it's a moot point. I tried, and couldn't get the reticule to line up with the center of rotation. I might be missing something, but there doesn't seam to be enough adjustment in the system. I think that means accurate angle measurements are out of the cards for me

[@tdg911]

Nice find on the optical comparator. You got rid of your tormach?

[@AudacityMicro]

yeah, It moved on a few months ago. I just wasn't using it much, and it was taking up space, and the payments were more than the haas. It might get replaced soon though 🙂

[@davidrahn9903]

I have thought about doing this on the Datron M8 at work so many times. The project turned out really nice imo. The Ai music was really distracting for me, had to fast forward through all of that.

[@AudacityMicro]

oooh, I would love an M8. I bet it would just eat through a big gridfinity base. and thanks for the feedback on the music

[@davidrahn9903]

@@AudacityMicro Don't get too enamored with Datron machines, haha. I talked about some of the good and bad on an episode of Within Tolerance about a year and a half ago. Episode 157. Be happy to give more nitty gritty details if you ever considered one for Audacity Micro or just wanted to shoot the breeze.

[@AudacityMicro]

Thanks! I'm re-listening through all of the WT episodes, I should get to you again soon! Help me understand your view on the AI music. I knew at some point, the novelty of the AI music would wear off. Is it the principle of being AI? do you not like the style of the music? is it the lyrics? or the execution of the music?

[@davidrahn9903]

While I do have a dislike of the Ai enpoopification of most digital products recently. My biggest dislike in this video is that it generally really doesn't fit the feeling of your videos to me. The style and lyrics end up being very jarring. It's kind of an uncanny valley effect. Like "why is there a pop rock song about this specific video? And why does it sound familiar but so foreign?".

[@AudacityMicro]

understood! so it's more of a AJ problem than an AI problem. I think I agree with all of that. I'll take note for future videos

[@PeregrineBF]

You could probably get an L, T, disc, or star stylus to be able to measure into gaps like that. Not worth it for this project, but they do exist and can be better (and often cheaper) than a huge ball.

[@BretHall]

Completely off topic, but dude. My wife and I both have pairs of sony wh-1000xm4 and they both literally broke in the same place as yours :D

[@AudacityMicro]

yeah, I was disappointed with the durability on these. I had a $50 pair of headphones before I upgraded to these. Those were really comparable to these in terms of sound and bluetooth, maybe slightly less comfortable, but they lasted about the same amount of time. I know I'm somewhat hard on headphones, but I certainly expected the sony headphones to last longer, at 5x the price.

[@MF175mp]

I would say the indicators were obviously made in the same factory. Just look at them, the only difference in appearance is the logo.

[@AudacityMicro]

that seams right, the battery trays are even interchangeable

[@jbrownson]

Good video, nice use of AI music not as a focal point but for montages

[@AudacityMicro]

Thanks! I am glad I didn't overdo it, because that is always a temptation 🤣

[@randystaggs524]

The 60 is minutes of a degree…

[@IDLER223]

MicroVu 500HP

[@AudacityMicro]

awesome! thanks!

[@gorak9000]

it's not that hard - got-is-vinter (I think??) - also the AI generated music is equally funny, and creepy at the same time

[@AudacityMicro]

thanks for the pronunciation, but i'm lucky if I can pronounce English words 😅

[@RSPFactory]

Yeah, not a fan of the AI music, either here or on the podcast. For a pattern you can sit a fixture on, how about a triangle of three ball bearing? Drill three holes smaller than the balls for the base, then on the fixture have one hole, one V groove, and one flat. If done correctly (which should be easy in CAD) it will be constrained in all directions with zero wiggle.

[@AudacityMicro]

I knew at somepoint, the novelty of the AI music would wear off. Help me understand, what don't you like about it? is it the principle of being AI? do you not like the style of the music? is it the lyrics? or the execution of the music?

[@RSPFactory]

@@AudacityMicro it's like the uncanny valley in faces. It's not just noise, but it's not real music either, and somehow that's worse.