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Tuesday, December 12, 2006

Lost units

This post is to ask you, the RepRap community what parts are readily avalable:

In 1824 we, the Brits, came up with the Imperial measurement system and in keeping with the times, spread it around a bit. In 1995 we officially became an SI nation and now I, fully metricated, have no clue what the imperial spread is...

Thanks to Vik's suggestion I'm trying to make my corner block (see previous post) fully compatible with both units. The closest bits I've found to my ø8 rods and M5 nut/bolts are: ø5/16" bar and ø3/16" whitworth (?) nut and bolt combo... so how easy are these for you guys to get hold of?
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6 comments:

  1. Forrest HiggsDecember 12, 2006 3:56 PM

    I don't know what you mean when you talk about Witworth, but those sizes are fairly easy to come by. It would be easier, however, if you went for 1/4 inch and 3/8ths inch. Those are far more common.

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  2. Yvan RoyDecember 12, 2006 8:44 PM

    I suppose 5/16 is quite a bit stiffer than 1/4 inch...

    Here in Canada, I don't think I'd have any problems finding either size of rods or bolts.

    Now for the Whitworth thread profile, if the thread per inch that you are using is a common one there will be no problems. The plastic parts are so soft, and just not accurate enough to cause problems if the thread profile is not a perfect match.

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  3. Yvan RoyDecember 13, 2006 4:04 AM

    BTW, not sure I remember the details here, will people thread these parts themselves with a tap? (Simple to do)

    In anycase, just don't say Whitworth near Canadians or Americans, they usually just call it UTS or SAE instead. It's almost the same as far as RepRap and plastic parts go.

    Did I ever mention why I prefer metric? ;)

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  4. eDDecember 13, 2006 10:27 AM

    That's good news. Cheers guys...

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  5. Yvan RoyDecember 14, 2006 9:40 PM

    LOL, I've heard that's the classic, old UK car or bikes in the US. I almost bought a old V12 Jaguar years ago to restore it. I should have.

    In North America SAE was the one for the longest time, but now it's UTS. They are very close and interchangable.

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  6. Felice LuftscheinDecember 24, 2006 6:08 PM

    3/16" is pretty close to #10 screw, preferably 10-32 tpi so that's what I would say to use.

    Then again, metric screws, nuts, taps and dies are readily available from most industrial suppliers here in the US.

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