Thanks all, again.
In answer to a couple of questions;
Jason, yep, just drilled them bigger. First drilled 7mm to remove tube all the way down. Then drilled 9.5mm, about 80% down. Then plugged the ends in the middle, re-drilled the plug to 7mm, put in new tube.
Fair bit of effort, but removed loads of wieght.
Rob, angled metal is easy peasy. Make up the blank like you would any other with angles. ( theres a pic of mine in the ' holding small bits' thread.) Turn down the plastic or wood with your chosen chisel till it is flush with the metal. Now the easy bit !! While it's spinning in the lathe, shape it with some good CLEAN metal files. I have done a couple with chisels, but I'm too scared it will snag.
I don't think I would even attempt a metal blank unless it was round to start with.
Tommy, the locks are something I use fairly often in my real life. We buy the locks with extra long shafts and cut them to suit our different needs. I grab all the offcuts, in true Skiprat tradition[
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Just remembered, the blade is not standard. Please don't cut metal with ablade for wood!!It is called 'RAGE' and cuts just about anything cleanly. Non-ferrus metal, brittle plastic etc. It has kerf of only 1.7mm. I love it[
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