Hi, Want to start TBC. Where is everyone getting their bushings from? Apparently Johnnycnc's bushings are no longer available.
- Thread starter boatemp
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PatrickR
Member
egnald
Member
Since I already have standard kit bushings I use TBC adapter bushings. I am pretty sure they are available from TBC Bushings as well as from PTownSubbie and others. I have also heard that some folks have been successful simply chucking the standard kit bushings between a 60-degree live and dead/drive center while others skip the bushings all together and just use calipers and the kit parts to measure their way to perfect fits. - Good Luck in your new TBC venture! - Dave
Are there any particular kit bushing that you are looking for? Let me know. I may have extras.
leehljp
Member Liaison
Bushings are generally not used to get to size in TBC, but to keep the tube from slipping and expanding from the centers' metal cones.
Thanks for the offer. I'm just looking into TBC right now. I'll be purchasing supplies in a few weeks. Will know better then.
Thank you
Thank you
I was thinking maybe I had to start slow and slowly go up. I guess I jump in feet first.
Reading the posts I see people doing it several ways and calling it the same thing. No bushings, bushings, live center and calipers, PSI bushing adapters . Since I already have live center and calipers, I'll start there. I appreciate the input. Thank you,
PatrickR
Member
For me no bushings = flared, thin edged tubes. Some get good results though. You will have to try it and see what works for you.I was thinking maybe I had to start slow and slowly go up. I guess I jump in feet first.
its_virgil
Member
None compare to the ones made by Brian Nikitas. He makes them himself on a CNC...
Tbcbushings.com
Do a good turn daily!
Don
Tbcbushings.com
Do a good turn daily!
Don
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crokett
Member
If I have TBC bushings for a particular kit I use those. If I have mandrel bushings I TBC but use those without any adapter bushings. I do finishing on a mandrel because I can finish 2 kits at once on the mandrel.
Thanks for all of the help guys. Many useful bits of info to think about.
Thanks for all of the grand suggestions. I have reservations using the centers directly on the blank. As someone mentioned, the tube may get deformed. I'm going to try the TBC bushings first. I have a bunch of delrin to turn into non-stick bushings for finishing. I don't know how thin I can turn delrin but I'm going to try to make a tube insertion rod.
Again, thanks for the help.
Thanks for all of the grand suggestions. I have reservations using the centers directly on the blank. As someone mentioned, the tube may get deformed. I'm going to try the TBC bushings first. I have a bunch of delrin to turn into non-stick bushings for finishing. I don't know how thin I can turn delrin but I'm going to try to make a tube insertion rod.
Again, thanks for the help.
Alchemist
Member
I will third TBCbushings.com Brian's bushings are top notch. The bushing adapters are excellent to have in case you are starting out with a new kit and don't want to order them. He makes them on demand, if I recall, so don't expect them to be arriving next day.
Also, I third a digital caliper no matter what!
Also, I third a digital caliper no matter what!
sschering
Member
Is it cheating the chuck up the bushing in the lathe and ream a countersink in the end for the centers to seat in?
leehljp
Member Liaison
Not at all! Go for it! But make sure everything is precise!
Several years ago, one of the big companies had a batch of bushings that were drilled off center by something like .01mm. I had one in a set that was visually off.
RichAldrich
Member
Not a fan of digital calipers. I use a dial caliper that has two hands. One for metric and one for Imperial. I like to see both numbers. It helps me get more familiar with metric and someday think and visualize in metric. Kitless pens are probably next for you. They are pretty much all metric.
The dial caliper is pretty accurate. For example: 3.1416 inches........the 3.1 is on the slide bar and 41 is on the dial. 2cents
The dial caliper is pretty accurate. For example: 3.1416 inches........the 3.1 is on the slide bar and 41 is on the dial. 2cents
penicillin
Member
- Joined
- Feb 27, 2019
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- 1,036
It is funny, but woodworkers I know seem to fall on one side or the other. My spouse used to work for a company that manufactured door locks, with micron-level precision. When I married her, her dowry included a tool chest full of high precision measuring tools - calipers, micrometers, feeler gauges, radius gauges, etc. That was a long time ago.
My spouse and I often work together in the "shop" on our own respective woodworking projects, helping each other as needed. She ALWAYS reaches for the dial caliper, and won't use the digital one. I don't blame her - she used it her entire career.
I always reach for the digital caliper, which works so well for me - I like the instant read, the quick conversion between inch fractions, decimal inches, and metric, and its precision. The drawback of the digital calipers is that the fractions read to the nearest 1/128th inch - you can't set it up to round to the nearest 1/32, for example. I made a visual reference table for fractions, see below.
The selection of dial vs. digital caliper is a very personal and individual choice, apparently.
Digital Caliper Fraction Table
In case it helps someone, I made a special visual aid table for fractions. I keep it posted inside a cabinet door in my shop for easy reference. Not everyone seems to like it, but it works so well for me in conjunction with the digital calipers. What it does is let me see "nearby", more "round" fractions. (No arguments about how dial calipers work better in this use, okay?)
Example Uses:
* If you look at 79/128 on the right hand table, you will see that it is only 1/128 away from 5/8, which may be the "rounded fraction" that you you wanted.
* If you look at 85/128 on the right hand table, you will see that it is not close to any "rounded" fraction. The closest fractions are 21/32 and 43/64. The closest "rounded" fractions might be 11/16 or 5/8, but they are not that close.
If this PDF chart works for you, great! If it doesn't, please ignore it.
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leehljp
Member Liaison
Yesterday, I would have given anything for a set of dial calipers. I haven't changed my digital calipers batteries in 8 months to a year, maybe more. The COLD front came through a couple of days ago and not a single one of my calipers worked! I pulled out my outside micrometer and the same thing. I started looking for my batteries. I had ONE new one. I put it into my Mitutoyo digital calipers and it worked.
When it comes to wood (without stabilization), achieving anything less than .005 inch is pointless as the wood expands and contracts that much or more with daily humidity swings.
Woodchipper
Member
If someone wants to really get precise, try a micrometer. Used one in precision metal parts.