Travis Johnson
Member
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- 2,369
Well today I got jiggy. I have been working on a custom wooden model of a tractor, and because this tractor must be four wheel drive, I got four times the problems in making the treaded tires. Its a real pain.
It also consists of 4 axis machining. So this morning I set out making a jig to get this PITA done as quickly as possible. I made a bearing and bolt fixture to hold each wheel. I made a 15 tooth gear and ratchet system to index the wheel in the same spot, and then fabricated an extensive system to control a router in the right profile. It took about 4 hours to make.
And in the end?
Well it did not work so I had dinner, retought my plan and went back out to my shop. This time I fabricated a super simple jig, adjusted my radial arm saw and produced my treaded tractor tires in no time flat. You would think that after making custom wooden models for ten years or more, I would have learned to just keep thing simple!!
It also consists of 4 axis machining. So this morning I set out making a jig to get this PITA done as quickly as possible. I made a bearing and bolt fixture to hold each wheel. I made a 15 tooth gear and ratchet system to index the wheel in the same spot, and then fabricated an extensive system to control a router in the right profile. It took about 4 hours to make.
And in the end?
Well it did not work so I had dinner, retought my plan and went back out to my shop. This time I fabricated a super simple jig, adjusted my radial arm saw and produced my treaded tractor tires in no time flat. You would think that after making custom wooden models for ten years or more, I would have learned to just keep thing simple!!