Figure 1
|
|
Below is an article of mine that was published in Modeltec magazine. I'm posting it here with the permission of Modeltec for your use.
Modeltec has a Web Site that can be reached by clicking on the blue highlighted link above.
My Asian 4" X 6" metal cutting bandsaw has wheels at one end so you can move it around the shop. The wheel setup, as it came, left much to be desired. The wheels were mounted on a "U" shaped sheet metal bracket. The base of the "U" was bolted to the saw legs. The sheetmetal legs and bracket flexed all over the place when moving the saw, and the plastic wheels squeaked. As I store the saw in a corner and wheel it out for use, this got to be annoying after a while, and I decided to stiffen the setup by tying the wheels together with an axle. This is a change that the newer saws come with. Figure 1 shows the wheels and stub axles separated from the bracket, as well as the new parts, ready for assembly. In the photo the bronze bearing have already been installed.
After removing the wheel assembly I used the saw to cut the short riveted on axles close to the bracket. A little work then freed the remaining axle stub from the bracket. The wheel hub had a 15 mm opening and I wished to use a standard US bolt for a new axle stub. Because of this, to increase the life of the plastic wheels and reduce the rolling drag, I bored out the wheel hubs to 5/8 inch and pressed in 5/8 OD X ½ ID bronze bearings, using a nut and bolt as a press.
For the portion of the new axle to span between the legs of the "U" and accept the new stub axles, I cut and faced a piece of 3/4 HRS to length. Then on the lathe I drilled and tapped each end to accept the ½" bolts used as the new stub axles (Figure 2). After opening out the holes in the bracket for the bolts, I assembled everything using a thread locking compound (Figure 3).
The job did not take long. The saw now rolls with
little wobbling, and with no squeaking.
Return to Metalworking Projects
Return to Home