The HIDDEN Screws of PRECISION

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website
machinethinking.co
Screws - The Early Years
• Where DO screws come f...
Perfect Timing (with the Marble Machine X)
• Perfect Timing (with t...
World's Oldest Micrometer - 1776! Who made this thing??
• World's Oldest Microme...
Textured Watt Micrometer 3D model (JuanG3d)
sketchfab.com/juang3d
Some blender background footage is from "The Great Drawing Room" courtesy of the The Hallwyl Museum in Sweden
sketchfab.com/3d-models/the-g...
Palmer Micrometer photos (black background) Courtesy of the Wm. R. Robertson collection
www.robertsonminiatures.com/
How to read a micrometer
• The Micrometer
Tom at oxtoolco
/ oxtoolco
My viewers and I owe a debt to all of my supporters on Patreon, including the generous people at the top two tiers:
Adrian Van Allen
Cam
Cy 'kkm' K'Nelson
Elliott Wade
H Peter Doble
HereThereRainbows
History4Real
Jared Jeanotte
John & Becki Johnston
anonymous
NB
Nevin Spoljaric
Paul C Whalen
Paul Cleary
Scott Roland
Steve Crognale

[@smartereveryday]

Thanks for the shout out!

[@bill4639]

Machine thinking is so much cooler

[@c63amgblack]

Destin! You guys are both awesome

[@Jdowling357]

I found this channel because of you. Thank you Destin

[@christianbartholemue5480]

Same here, Destin brought me here

[@SodiumInteresting]

both are great channels

[@sailingmaster]

My dad was a gear metrology engineer and superintendent at GM for a few decades. I showed him this video and the accuracy of the 1800's micrometers astounded him.

[@zachaliles]

As important as whitworth is to modern machinery and accuracy he was the cause of a major headache that lasted over a week where I work. I was a mechanic in a factory. I still work there, but I'm a supervisor now. Anyway, his odd thread pitch is what caused me a weeks worth of headaches. Most of the machines I worked on were either all standard or all metric, pretty common right? Well, one machine in particular had one thread that I couldn't figure out. I measured, re measured, checked my numbers, cross referenced them to my machinery's handbook and kept coming up empty handed. That is until I came to the pages about whitworth threads and my numbers started making sense. What I had on my hands was just that, a whitworth thread used because the component that went into it was sourced from somewhere that still uses it.

[@garethfuller2700]

Wait, what still uses Whitworth threads?!

[@toolmike100]

@@garethfuller2700 Old BSA motorcycles for one.

[@codefeenix]

oof

[@VioletGiraffe]

I would be very curious to know what prompted the change away from Whitworth threads, how is the modern standard thread better?

[@annarboriter]

It's still relatively easy to buy Whitworth tap & die sets

[@skenzyme81]

Immediate watch. This channel almost justifies KZbin on its own. 👍

[@ismaelabufon1696]

Or maybe the whole internet 🙃

[@vedantmanjarekar8983]

Oh yes 👏

[@brianpendleton2674]

Not going to lie, my wife stared at me like I was crazy when I told her I watched your first screw vid Screws, the early years. I have been waiting eagerly for each subsequent video since and I cannot wait to finish typing this and hit play! Thank you for the time and dedication you put into these videos!

[@justindunlap1235]

it takes a special kind of person to get excited about videos like these.

[@EscapeMCP]

@@justindunlap1235 We're all "special" here :)

[@christopherevans195]

Same here!

[@benbonsall7305]

Indeed. These videos are riveting.

[@perceive8159]

How many Donald Trumps does it take to screw in a light bulb? We will never know because after he screws something he pays it $130,000 not to tell anyone.😉

[@johnmcclain3887]

I've been a "mechanic" for some sixty years, Joseph Whitworth was a hero of mine almost immediately, as I ran across "Whitworth threads" pretty much immediately in "british machines". Maudsley was an incredible mechanic, teacher, and our machines today, largely came out of their efforts. I still enjoy the never ending learning from those men. Thanks!

[@Kenionatus]

About temperature influencing measurements: If you have one or two gauge blocks, you can theoretically correct for an unknown temperature. The catches are that you need trustworthy gauge blocks, they need to be made of the same material as you're measuring (or you need to know expansion coefficients and do some maths) and the temperature needs to stay constant throughout the measuring session.

[@epistte]

As a BSME There were weeks of lectures on these subjects, plus classes in hands on machine tools and geometric dimensioning and tolerance. I have a textbook just on various screws, bolts plus various hardware.

[@lloydgush]

That's a cool hack! "Nobody breathes for a few minutes, I'm going to measure a gauge block!"

[@mtpruden]

There’s a great book about this and other original precision measurements called ‘The Perfectionists’

[@AsbestosMuffins]

its a good book, but its a bit british-centric

[@Tango_November]

Read it a few years ago, awesome book!

[@Chainsaw-ASMR]

Thanks I’m looking for some good books to read in between these amazing videos.

[@MadMax-bq6pg]

Also published under the title “Exactly”. It’s a fascinating read

[@ATomRileyA]

thanks for this going to give it a read.

[@spikejohnson4477]

That's my Whitworth Planer! Well, technically the still shot was of the Planer at Underfall Yard in Bristol, which is part owned by Bristol City Council and part by the Charity that is restoring all if the machines in the Councils City Dock Workshops. I used to be the Head Docks Engineer there until 2019, and I helped the charity's vlolunteer engineers & tinkerers get the Planer running again, still powered by the overhead drive belt. It still works well, and in fact was last used commercially to make the curved roller tracks for Junction Swing Bridge in Bristol, back in the late '70s! If you or anyone else gets the chance, definitely go & see it running - its amazing! Well done on another great video, keep them coming 🙂

[@machinethinking]

That's an amazing connection! I'd love to know more. Can you reach out to me at machinethinking.co/contact ?

[@alexmaxwell4210]

"Machine Thinking, your dinner's getting cold! What are you doing up there?" "Mum, you have got to see these screws!"

[@russelldold4827]

I had the joy of seeing the lathes of both Maudslay and Whitworth on public display at the Science Museum in South Kensington, London in 1984. I spent my entire afternoon on their tools exhibit. The workmanship evident in these masterpieces that laid the principles by which machine tools were developed fascinated me. Thanks for this series.

[@TheShred89]

12:44 - Whitworth form is still used for BSP (British Standard Pipe) threads - very much still commonplace in the UK at least for many applications.

[@russgarrett1664]

Not just in the UK but I believe BSP threads are still used in much of Asia, Australia, NZ, and South Africa as well. The 7/16" Whitworth hex head size is also still universally used in scaffolding in the UK.

[@fowletm1992]

I never knew that and I deal with a bit of witwprth on old farm machinery Bsp is common world wide in hydraulics and other pipe fittings But mostly as European exports I personally hate bsp straight fittings Theyre a real nuisance and prone to leaking compared to the American oring boss that does the same job Bsp taper works OK and is offern transferable to NPT in a pinch Australian btw so no bias either way I rekon JIC is te best hydraulic fitting

[@PierreVapeur]

@@fowletm1992 Whitworth thread is still the standard for photo tripods, which is quite annoying for camera makers...

[@Rosscoff2000]

Brilliant video thanks. Did you notice that early newspaper item about spiders said they are insects!

[@davidchavez657]

BSP (tapered and parallel) still got em in USA and yep, still Whitworth.

[@the_millwright]

Love the fact that an instrument I use daily to measure has its roots in the golden age of engineering. Great video as always

[@justinchampion5468]

I'm so glad you made another video. For quite a long time I worried you'd disappeared into the KZbin Ether never to be seen again :) Thanks for an informative and well-illustrated addition.

[@dio52]

Always an instant watch for me. This series is one of the best things I've seen on youtube. It really makes me think about all the different ways that culture and civilization has built itself up iteratively.

[@erikliljenwall8185]

What? A new Machine Thinking video? [loud crashing as I drop everything and dive for the "play" button] I've never been moved to supported another channel, but when your mentioned "additional content" for your Patreon subscribers, I jumped at the chance, I was signed up before you finished your pitch. Machine Thinking is, hands down the best channel on KZbin. Not only is your content truly historically significant, meticulously researched, and fascinating, you're somehow able to present it in away that is accessible to regular people yet no less interesting and informative for people who know a little something about this stuff. But for me, the real magic is happens when you discuss your own sense of awe and reverence when in the presence of these machines. It reminds me of how Carl Sagan used to discuss his feelings about the Universe. Thank you so much for everything you do to share these videos with the world.

[@prodigy750]

I love these videos, it’s fascinating to me as a machinist where the industry came from and there’s not enough informative videos out there like these, I really enjoy yours and always look forward to your next ones, thank you for the great videos

[@NilsKlowait]

Demonstrating engagement! But seriously, so fascinating, it's almost like a hidden history of how our world came about. Thank you for imbuing such a ubiquitous thing with a sense of magic.

[@fastinradfordable]

Almost?

[@newt2010]

Great video and thank you for the time you put into them. Would love to see some of these machines in person. It always amazes me how things were built back in the day, when they were the first. Also, how people came up with the idea of what to do, when there was nothing to reference and no KZbin to watch. I saw your video with Dustin when he posted it. Amazing

[@draco_2727]

These precision, screws and history videos always amaze me 🤯 Thanks for the effort and great content.

[@Sam-qn4ly]

Me: babe come over Her: no Me: a new machine thinking just dropped Her:🏃‍♀️💨💨💨

[@fltchr4449]

Surely she could use her words to tell you what she thinks. Might I suggest some beano in the household? /s

[@karlhrdylicka]

Sam . Maybe she isn't interested in screwing .

[@fltchr4449]

@@karlhrdylicka I think she'd rather watch.

[@tomsimon5592]

Incredible series, a much deeper dive into the origins of precision than I ever received in school. BTW, I've actually used a Moore jig bore grinder, and Moore inspection machine, state of the art back when they were made.

[@keithyinger3326]

This kind of history I find absolutely fascinating. I've watched all your videos and can't wait for the next one. Thanks for the work you put into making these.

[@xFlow150]

Absolutely amazing video! The history you present so well is fascinating. Thank you for making such high quality videos!

[@greenatom]

This is fascinating, beautiful stuff, and I appreciate the work you put into them to make them lucid and entertaining.

[@gresvig2507]

Wonderful vid. I build portable desktop CMM's, and I've made a bunch of r&d and occasional production parts when we have supplier issues (tiny company blues) with the help of some good ol' eighty year old lead screws in our great WWII Monarch lathe. Accurate as all heck.

[@callmebarlow6681]

I was way over excited to see another video uploaded! Thank you!

[@davidtaylor6124]

Wonderful! It is beyond reason anyone would dislike one of your videos - so interesting, with so much effort put into them.

[@cedrickropp]

He is still alive, Thank you for making great content.

[@LaTigerGenesis]

when life gives you lemons, watch this series about screws

[@backpages1]

I am truly impressed. I'm also 67, not that those two things are in any way connected. Great video! I am not a machinest, but my dad was and I inherited his tool chest. At least once or twice a month I find myself using one or more of those tools, and regretting I didn't spend more time soaking in his knowledge as well as begging him to explain how they worked. Sure, I've got that green book sitting there in that center drawer, mocking me, laughing at me while I read the strange, almost foreign words explaining complex theories and intricate drawings. In the end, it goes back in the drawer and I have to spend the rest of the day listening to the muffled laughter echoing off my shop walls. God bless the man that invented ear plugs.

[@jonnyhifi]

Simply superb . Thank you so much for making the videos you make. They are so special. I get very excited whenever i see one pop up!

[@emanwe01]

Something I've kept wondering through this entire series of videos is: how did people go from handmade, eyeball-precision screws to more precise screws? The screw-cutting machines you've shown so far each rely on the precision of a master screw to function, so how do you increase the precision of that master screw?

[@parad0xheart]

So I thought about this, and here is the approach that I would take. First, have a master carver make, as precisely as possibly, a segment of a screw. Then you use a screw copying machine to copy this segment onto a new screw multiple times. The flaws in the shape would be copied, but would all be copied more or less identically, so you now have a longer screw that is very consistent. Now you combine this with gearing to condense the motion of your long screw into something that will carve a new master. The flaws are still copied, but now they're copied multiple times into your new master, at much smaller sizes. By repeating the process multiple times, you gradually shrink and smooth out the flaws of the original hand made master.

[@Kevin-jb2pv]

Endless. Iteration. You make something that can make something else that's roughly precise to an inch. Then you iterate and make it more and more repeatable. The closer to that "perfect" inch you can get, then what you're actually doing is getting closer and closer by fractions of an inch. Once you have that down, you build a machine that's precise to fractions of an inch. Which, of course, means that you're _actually_ dialing it in by fractions of a fraction of an inch. You keep going, getting more and more precise, making tools that can measure and verify your manufacturing precision to tighter and more replicable tolerances. You start out with something like pottery, which is largely done by "eyeballing it". Then you might move onto something more precise like stone masonry, which requires more precision (unless you like crooked buildings). Then maybe onto very simple wooden machines, like windmills and watermills which _do_ have gears but also have a lot of slop due to wood's inherent dimensional instability (it shrinks and expands with humidity and wetness, and warps over time, etc...). You can also start to experiment with things like early brass gears (antikythera mechanism, clocks, etc...) which could be made by geometrically dividing circles and using ratios of an arbitrary starting measurement to make work and then slowly and painstakingly removing material until the tolerances are tight enough to function. But then you need more precise and repeatable measurements for something like arming an entire battalion with muskets, because now you need hundreds or thousands of muskets that are all within tolerance to one another to be able to have standard ammunition that won't have too much of a gap in the barrel to not fire correctly or too tight of a fit which could cause the barrel to jam and explode (if it fits at all!). Then you step things up to an entirely new level when you get into interchangeable parts. People, I think, assume that the accomplishment of "interchangeable parts" was just thinking of the concept of being able to have, well, _interchangeable parts._ But that's not _at all_ what the accomplishment was. The real technological breakthrough was being able to have measurement standards and manufacturing techniques be precise and repeatable enough that it was _possible_ to be able to sit down and just make something as simple as _a screw_ over and over again to fit into the hole in another part that _might not even be made in the same building, city, or country that you're in_ and have it be _guaranteed_ to fit. These innovations happened _because_ of these precision breakthroughs, and similarly, these precision breakthroughs were pushed forward because of the demands of technological innovation in an effort to make products more affordable to a mass market and/ or to undercut the competition. They feed on one another. To put this into context, most machine parts require levels of precision so tiny that a human being _cannot_ determine these measurements without precision instruments. It is not possible, in most cases, to be able to tell a part that's within tolerance from one that is not. The extent of mass-manufactured precision that we're at right now is in _nanometers,_ and you see it in semiconductors. We're in the 7nm - 5nm range, right now, and we're approaching the limits of what of our current technology can _physically_ be shrunk down to. These are tolerances that are so tiny that you cannot measure them with any _physical_ instrument (like a micrometer), because we are now measuring these things at _atomic_ scales. We have to use things like electron microscopes and highly-specialized wafer probes (that use some sort of laser to check the refractive index or something like that of the chips by some mind-melting process I don't really understand) to actually validate them. But we didn't get to 7nm by just waking up one day in the 70's and saying, "you know what, why are we bothering with all of this _10µm_ scale crap? We should be, like, making them way smaller; we should just jump a couple orders of magnitude and make them _smaller!"_ No, we started with making transistors that were 10µm, then moved to 6µm, then 3µm, and so on and so forth over the last few _decades._ Tirelessly iterating to make these things smaller and smaller, and rearranging them so we could fit more of them in an area, and inventing new processes to layer them more efficiently, and etc... The exact same thing has been happening pretty much since the beginning of the industrial revolution. Early steam engines were sloppy as hell, with a lot of inefficiency from gaps around the pistons, friction from these loose fits causing steel to rub on steel, etc... You _could_ make extremely precise, clockwork machines with tight tolerances, but this was impractically expensive for machines that needed to be reliably run in less-than-ideal conditions and be somewhat repairable in the field. This is also the real reason why guns took so long to take off after the discovery of gunpowder. We in the west understood the concept and knew _how_ to make a tube go boom pretty quickly after we found out about gunpowder. The _first_ problem was figuring out a simple and reliable firing mechanism, but the second, _bigger_ problem was then figuring out how to make _fifty thousand of them._ We _had_ wheel-lock muskets before flint-locks, but they basically required a watch-maker's expertise to craft a one-of-a-kind gun, it was horribly expensive, they were finicky in the best of conditions and just generally not suited for the mass production capabilities of the time. And then to get a simple flint-lock gun required that a standard pattern be designed so that hundreds of different craftsmen gunsmiths could build _the same gun_ over and over again in many different workshops. The problem wasn't the _concept,_ it was figuring out a relatively cheap design and then how to make the same thing over and over and over with some degree of precision. Want a more common and recent example? Go actually stand next to a classic muscle car from the 60's or 70's while it's running. Notice how it _reeks_ of gasoline? While part of this is from gas not being leaded anymore and many of these cars not having emissions control and catalytic converters, a lot of it is also just because the tolerances were so much looser that gasoline vapor _just fucking leaks out of the engine._ The same is somewhat true of the sound. That's the sound of inefficiency (and pollution). It's a cool-ass sound, but there's a reason cars don't sound like that anymore (except diesels, but that's a different thing lol). A lot of the reason these older cars run the way they do is because they're less efficient and turn a lot more of that energy into noise and vibration. Improvements in manufacturing gradually lead to much tighter tolerances which lead to more efficient and reliable engines, until we get to today where a fairly average commuter, 4-banger hatchback has more horsepower, is lighter, more efficient, safer, less-polluting, longer-lasting, and more reliable than some _supercars_ from 50 years ago. And many newer gasoline cars _are almost silent while doing all that._ So that's how it happened. From _a lot of work_ over _hundreds of years_ by people who were constantly toiling away just to improve precision by fractions of a fraction of an inch to make _something_ a tiny bit better, cheaper, or easier to make.

[@Glenrok]

@@Kevin-jb2pv wow! That was quite the long winded reply- & yet I enjoyed reading it…..?!🤷‍♂️

[@glennschemitsch8341]

sometimes the screws are hand lapped for greater accuracy. The real trick is having the equipment to measure them.

[@ODGColornChrome]

Wow this was an awesome presentation, than,s for making it! I just took measurements for granted until this. I will never look at measurements the same again !

[@iteerrex8166]

Great video. The fact that one invention was so influential, reminds of the 1000s upon 1000s of ingenious discoveries and inventions that made the cellphone possible. What an unreal marvel it is.

[@cschuh4695]

These videos are AMAZING!!! You were absolutely correct when you said "...most people don't think about the screws that hold..." their entire lives together... And to be able to trace the origins of screws all the way back to the 13th/14th centuries (?) is even more amazing, to me... Thank you so much for your time... 6 out of 5 stars...

[@ATomRileyA]

Loved this, always fascinating content.

[@ianandersen8491]

Thank you for the link! Because of videos like your we started a shop with kids and are tinkering with Chinese machines. Thank you for the history and inspiration!

[@justindunlap1235]

that's awesome, it always makes me happy to hear about kids getting interested in machining and engineering. I hope you guys have allot of fun and make some cool projects.

[@haha-yq6fh]

You make such good quality content that goes deeper than most in this feild. Keep up the amazing work

[@ihspan6892]

I am super happy that you keep making your videos. They are fascinating! Thank you!

[@linkdude64]

The machinist KZbin circle is so cool... keep on keeping on!

[@kyledominguez6960]

Hi. I really like your videos. I have a suggestion on how you present some of this information. A key issue that is not discussed is screw pitch variation, and the relationship between a screw's pitch and its relating rotational with linear motion. If you could add a segment on pitch variability and why that's such a big deal for accurate screws. If you get time, you should also look into early pitch-correction devices - they had intricate systems of cams that followed the screw and adjusted the cutting operation in-situ to create more accurate threads. If you give me some time I can dig up the details on that mechanism.

[@centerededgedesignusa7957]

Thank you! Obviously a labor of love, and you graciously share that work to enlighten others. :) Excellent production value!

[@theflyingfool]

Hooray! Glad to see a superb video of yours. It's always too long a wait, but it's worth it :D

[@DoesNotGiveAF]

I greatly appreciate the time and effort you've put into making such amazing content, thank you!

[@acoow]

I love the way you explain things in a way that I can pretend to understand. Too bad I can't keep the details in my head long enough to explain to someone else why I know that someone works the way it does.

[@dennisklomp2361]

Don't feel bad about "forgetting" the details. Every time we learn something new, a bit gets stored where we can access it easily, the rest goes deeper down. It can feel like you forgot and the time is wasted. Then a year later you learn something new and you can link it to that previous knowledge in the back of your head. Those beautifull "ahah" moments. From that point on, you truly acquired the knowledge and can explain it to others. Its the background to the famous quote about truly understanding something when you can explain it to your grandmother. The fact that you cannot explain it yet means that you are on the frontier of your knowledge, busy day learning new stuff, and I respect that immensely.

[@brucewilliams6292]

I love seeing these videos. It is so great to hear about the history of mechanical precision.

[@avoirdupois1]

I have immensely enjoyed your series on the origins of precision.

[@almostanengineer]

This is one of those channels that doesn’t release content often, but when it does, it’s quality content 😄

[@TheWizardGamez]

Holy shit, he posted. Ayyy maaaa, MT posted

[@VeraTR909]

Your videos exactly describe my fascination about the intersection of history and machining, awesome vid!

[@65gtotrips]

I officially LOVE this channel…so informative yet whimsical❗️

[@SwitchAndLever]

Brilliant video, I enjoyed it immensely! Though, the Swede in me I missed the Swedish connection with precision measurement of CE Johansson. If you want to do a followup video looking at him, his gauge blocks, collaboration with Henry Ford and the high precision CEJ invention the mikrokator, hit me up and we can collab! 😊

[@machinethinking]

The first video I ever made, Origins of Precision, has a bunch on CEJ (including footage of him!) and Ford starting around 10:50.

[@SwitchAndLever]

@@machinethinking so what I'm hearing is that you're due for another one? 😉

[@misterdudemanguy9771]

@@SwitchAndLever LOL. Or, maybe you're not hearing at all... ^_< You should perhaps review MT's prior video - he covers Johansen quite well.

[@SwitchAndLever]

@@misterdudemanguy9771 I've watched it, long ago. It was a joke, so chill 🙂

[@honestotter7632]

@@machinethinking The music is annoying bro.

[@FaceFaceMan]

Another amazing video. As soon as I wondered about temperature impacting the results, sure enough, you brought it up. Curious if we might see a video studying lathes that use air bearings in temp controlled environments? Thanks again.

[@Chainsaw-ASMR]

Noob here, how are air bearings used in lathes?

[@jamesboulton2722]

@@Chainsaw-ASMR kzbin.info/www/bejne/qXfVh5elhM2oZ7M

[@Chainsaw-ASMR]

@@jamesboulton2722 Dan Gelbart...another KZbin GOAT! Thanks

[@DirtyApronBoy]

I always enjoy how in-depth your videos are. A great way to learn a little something, thank you.

[@markmalasics3413]

16:40 I stumbled across this video completely by accident. Imagine my surprise when, at the time stamp shown, up pops an image from Moore Special Tool Company in Bridgeport, Connecticut. My father worked as a machinist for many years there, and I had the pleasure of meeting Richard "Dick" Moore himself. My dad was still working for them when he suddenly passed away back in 1975. He had just come home from work about 15 minutes before. He always spoke so highly of MST and he loved his job. Thanks for posting this and bringing back so many good memories.

[@rallymax2]

Great video as usual! How amazing to have the Palmer and B&S in your hand. Another video on how those hyper precise screws are actually made (beyond the intuitive knowledge that your can gear down masters with clever backlash control) would be great to see. Definitely do one on Whitworth. I grew up fixing Land Rovers made in the 60’s and it’s all AF or Whit.

[@edfederoff2679]

I love the extremely rough, last-minute clearance cut-outs at the ends of the rear triangular way on Maudslay's screw cutting lathe. THAT'S prototype engineering and manufacturing - at it's most basic level! Also love your videos.

[@kw2519]

I noticed that too haha I was like, yep, that’s definitely a prototype

[@lillypenumbra8724]

Thank you for another amazing video! As a machinist by trade and someone fascinated by metrology; (i'm learning CMM programming) this is amazing! Keep up the good work!

[@davidlampe4153]

Great job on the research! I was a machinist many years ago but never had any lessons like this about the history of the micrometer.

[@XXCoder]

You doing ok? Been quiet

[@XXCoder]

@@astebbin yep already watched that, and thanks

[@AddictedtoProjects]

From personal experience, Whitworth threads were still being used on some products in the UK in the 1980's. Most likely to use up old stock! I owned a 1983 Landrover Series 3, Stage-1 V8, that had both Whitworth and Imperial Standard threads. Had to buy a set of Whitworth spanners from eBay just to work on the thing!

[@zniloserkrf5790]

MT, interesting video, I'm a home hobby machinist, I'd known most of what you've presented, but it's useful to have the information presented in an organized and coherent manner. Thanks for your efforts.

[@VastCNC]

Always the highlight of my day when one of your videos comes out

[@Strothy2]

During my apprenticeship, I had this moment where I suddenly realised how much more precise we can measure, that was when I first got to play around with a 0.001mm micrometre and I measured my own hair... realising it's way thicker than I ever thought... after that, I went into the insane world of sub-micron machining with lapping and it again blew my mind how precise we can machine things if you just take the time and have to will to do it... hitting 0.1mm tolerances now feels like sloppy work :D

[@ucdwino]

I like how you say you won’t go into how to read a micrometer, while showing footage that explains it completely….

[@ucdwino]

@David Lewis Stop being right all the time. its annoying :P

[@Kenionatus]

@David Lewis The graduation of the rough scale? While it's not explained perfectly it's pretty obvious for people who can read a ruler.

[@TrapperAaron]

Far from a complete explanation. But enough to get point across. You would be surprised at how much u don't know about using a mic and associated devices ( snap gauges, gauge blocks, just to start) there are volumes of books on the subject of prescion measure. In fact science still isn't sure what forces allow you to wring gauge blocks together. Allegedly. Lol

[@KnockoutNorway]

I don't usually comment on anything here. But your videos are absolutely fantastic, I'm learning a lot, and I'm using what I learn from you to teach my novice tech students. You have great insight, and way more skill than I can dream of. Please make more videos, you both inspire and teach me to make more interesting material for my students. You're a very good commuticator.

[@marshalltucker9690]

The only channel I've seen every video for. Keep up the interesting work

[@paulhagerty2773]

The thumbscrew on the thimble has a smaller knurled part, that is the spring loaded ratchet. It should be used when taking a measurement. Using the thimble to achieve measurement and not the ratchet would give inconsistent readings.

[@thepsychobilly88]

Could you explain this further? Sorry, I'm not a native english speaker but I used to use micrometers daily in my former job so I am very curious in what you mean :)

[@hunger993]

having used ratcheted and still mics, ive always gotten more accurate results by using the locked part and using "feel". the ratchets put too much pressure and read small imo

[@Kineth1]

@@thepsychobilly88 When you measure a part with a micrometer, you squeeze the part between the jaws of the micrometer. Using the spring-loaded/ratchet mechanism to turn the micrometer always applies the same torque to the micrometer, and will cause the same amount of compression on the part being measured; if you turn the micrometer directly by the dial, you may end up applying more torque, or less torque, and the measurements will be inconsistent.

[@thepsychobilly88]

@@Kineth1 Aah, yes! I understand what you mean now 👍👍 I was aware of the spring loaded mechanism but I wasn't sure if you were talking about that or something else that I might have missed. Sorry for the confusion! Your explanation is very good and very helpful thou so I hope more people see it, it's well written and easy to understand, Kudos! :)

[@Beregorn88]

The screw cutting lathe can replicate the precision of the lead screw, but how do you improve on it?

[@glennschemitsch8341]

Read Moore's book , Holes, Contours and Surfaces. You can purchase it and also find it PDF on line. The Moore jig grinder was feature here in the video.

[@Beregorn88]

@@glennschemitsch8341 besides the fact that I don't see how you could manufacture a lead screw using a grinder, the problem is the same: with this machines you can't produce a precision higher than the precision of their lead screw, since every defect in the lead screws is transfered 1:1 to your piece...

[@glennschemitsch8341]

@@Beregorn88 The Moore lead screw is hand lapped to final tolerances.

[@glennschemitsch8341]

@patrick evans I have read about it,but I do not know exactly how they measure it. Sorry.

[@yokobono3324]

I've been waiting for this. Great video!

[@MrDhandley]

Wow! It may be a long time between drinks but your videos are well worth the wait! Cheers!

[@tonysheerness2427]

The end product is one thing, the brain power to make them is another, these people are Goliath's of world, Titans using only primitive tools. What could these people produce if they were alive today?

[@JavSusLar]

11:17 As a reference, a row of just 89 atoms of iron can fit in 1 millionth of an inch

[@misterdudemanguy9771]

It's always a good day when I start it with a new vid from Machine Thinking. Keep up the good work.

[@billstrahan4791]

These are my favorite type of videos! I've shared your Origins of Precision with so many people!

[@mrraimundo130]

I left Squid Game immediately to watch your new video. Quality content, glad you make them!

[@erikziak1249]

It has been decades ago since I last time used a mechanical micrometer. I know that I managed to get very good precision using my vernier caliper, although I needed to to do more readings. Of course using a proper micrometer gave more consistent results, but for all the practical purposes, I was able to measure to one thousandth of a millimeter and was wrong only withing plus or minus 2 thousands when compared to multiple micrometer readings. I never needed that much precision tough. EDIT: Now I am not sure if I was not bragging too much, because what I wrote calls for some proof and I do not have a micrometer at hand to test my claims. I apologize if anyone felt mislead or offended.

[@laszu7137]

I vaguely remember learning mathematical methods to getting accurate results from ordinary instruments by taking 10 measurements, moving the measuring instrument (whether a caliper or a micrometer) back and forth between each measurement. I ultimately went into a different career, but I think that's how high end digital calipers and micrometers work these days, with a cable connecting to a ordinary laptop computer.

[@CausticLemons7]

Who knew such a simple device could be so important. This is great stuff!!

[@n8loux]

Genuinely can't wait for the next video about more measurement. I love precision and machining but I'm an electrical engineer so precise electronic measurement is more my style 👌🏼 always find myself dabbling with machining parts when I need them for projects so I don't have a ton of tools. Found some real creative ways to make a shape with entirely the wrong tools 😂

[@adh615]

I have a question regarding Maudslay and I'd be thankful if someone would try to answer my it. :D How exactly does one get the first lead screw, which you can put into the screw cutting lathe ? Do you have to make it by hand ? And wouldn't that make it imprecise and thus all other screws manufactured with this lead screw too ? Where would you start here ? (If I wrote this question to complicated, then I'm very sorry, it basically boils down to: Where does the first precision screw come from, without a screw cutting lathe to manufacture it with)

[@cleon_teunissen]

I don't know how the first lead screws were made, but I think I can present a good guess. One thing that can be made to high precision from scratch is a set of extremely flat stone surfaces. You need to start with more than two. If you have just two stone slabs, and you grind them against each other, you may end up with one concave and the other convex. If you have a set of at least three, and you keep swapping them out then over the course of a lot of grinding you end up with stone slabs that are flat to very high precision. The slabs have made each other perfectly flat. The perfectly flat stone surfaces allow you to manufacture sets of gage blocks, because the flat surface enable making blocks with surfaces that are *parallel* to high precision. Being able to verify surfaces being parallel moves the whole process forward. Let's say you have a single 1 inch gage block that you will be using as your reference. You make half inch gage blocks as follows: you make two gage blocks that satisfy the following two demands: - They are exactly the same size *as each other*. - Stacked together they stack up to exactly the height of the reference 1 inch. The micrometer that you use to compare the gage blocks only needs to *repeat* at very high reliability. Even if the micrometer cannot *measure* accurately yet, being able to verify that two gage blocks are exactly the *same* size is sufficient to move the whole process forward The set of gage blocks will allow you to calibrate instruments/machines you manufactured. Thread can also be cut with a mill. It takes a specialized milling machine, (or auxillary tool), that allows you to maintain a precise ratio of axial rotation of the workpiece and advancing the workpiece. Thread has an integer number of windings per unit of length. So a special thread milling machine setup can be built with worm gears, such that the axial rotation and advancing is mechanically coupled in the desired ratio. If that worm gear setup has some slop the resulting lead screw will have local imperfections, but slop or no slop, the worm gear *mechanical coupling* of axial rotation and advancing ensures that the thread pitch will be overall consistent. So even if the worm gear setup has slop the process as a whole can still be moved forward.

[@machinethinking]

I've done a lot of research on this and there are several methods. I wanted to talk about it i this one but I chose to keep it focused but I DID briefly show Maudslay's Screw Originating Machine that uses the inclined knife method to make uniform threads soft material. Look it up!

[@adh615]

@@machinethinking Will do. :D And thank you very much, for taking the time to answer ! This question has been bugging me for quite some time.

[@worldtraveler930]

Thank you for not polluting your videos with ads!!! 🤠👍

[@fredrikfarkas]

You absolutely learned me more about screws! I actually have a screw lathe after my father, but never used it for that. But now i will!

[@spikeymikey563]

Great stuff! Looking forward to the next one!

[@gregvanzant8275]

Thank you for the video,I always take time to watch,and it has a bearing on my day with something to study on. Thanks

[@noimagination99]

Great video and storytelling! I recently read an article about some of these early precision developments in "Home Shop Machinist" magazine, and I wanted to see more! This video is it! Thanks. At 17:40, the edge / rim of the dial plate sure looks like it has worm-gear-like grooves. I wonder if Watt had the main screw engage the rim of that disc in an earlier version, but then reused it as the dial face? But looking closer, I think I see the outer edge of a similar disc parallel to this disc, is actually what moves the sliding block, which is not how it appears to work in the earlier animation. Guess I need to watch your other video 🙂

[@tysenp8193]

Hour long real engineering video and a machine thinking video on the same day. Life is good.

[@HEATRACER24]

New subscriber and this is one of my favorite channels right now! I have always been a mechanical person from early childhood to now.

[@davidrussell8689]

Fantastic video . Great information and presentation.

[@asharma9345]

Excellent video bro. Keep it coming.

[@oryfoxer]

Very good video, love the new series. Keep up the good work!!

[@360AlaskanLife]

Thanks, as always an amazing video. You dive in to amazing details that gives a true appreciation for these machines. 👍👍

[@stxrynn]

Exquisite. The animations are wonderful, as are the historic devices. Thanks for showing the first generation micrometers. B&S are favorites of mine.

[@williampeck6881]

Yet another superb episode. Please keep making them.

[@SethKotta]

Your videos are always worth the wait, and never fail to make my day better.

[@ekim000]

Outstanding material. Thank you!

[@jeffreyjeffrey007]

I long for the vids, and am bummed they don't happen more often, but I appreciate every upload.

[@jamesbarisitz4794]

Early watch making would be an interesting series. Well done man!

[@patrickspringer6534]

Glad you put out another video. I was worried.

[@Artichoke4Head]

another great video which im going to watch multiple times and engoy again and again! thanks for great work.