Phenolic material information?

[ian maybury]

I've been making up some sliding T nuts to go in the slider on my Hammer K3 to mount clamps - and cannibalised some Woodpeckers phenolic clamping squares for material.

Very impressive - strong, routs nicely, but equally taps and takes a very strong thread.

Does anybody know exactly what type of phenolic it is? I'd like to source some locally, but there's a gazillion options.

Thanks

[Erik Loza]

Is it the reddish-brown stuff with the cloth weave layers? If so, that is "Garolite", which I have also seen in a pale green color. There is also a black phenolic called "Arboron" which dose not appear to have any weave or grain substrate and is harder than the garolite. Those are just the two I have worked with. I have gotten good deals from industrial suppliers on Ebay; cutoffs and such, small pieces that would be ideal for your project.

Hope this helps.

Erik Loza
Minimax USA

[ian maybury]

Thanks Erik. The 'Arboron' material sounds like a decent candidate - I'd only seen glass or fabric filled varieties in brown before. I'll cross check that with the UK made varieties we tend to get here.

The stuff i have is black right through, although there seems to be a thin impregnated fabric layer a little under the surface on one side which is a little brown in colour. It machines well, but seems pretty hard - produces a 'clinking' sound when pieces are rattled together or dropped on a hard surface.

I just got the DIY slider clamps finished tonight, they seem to work well - good grip with moderate pressure, and no moving about of the wood as they tighten. Here's some pics since the vibe is good and it might inspire another to go the slider route - including one of a stepped T nut in the black phenolic which isn't very clear.

The clamps are cut down from deep reach (to reach over the fence if needed) German made Ideal F clamps (branded Black and Decker) from the local hardware, with M20 bolts MIG welded to the bars for mounting. The threaded section screws into the upper phenolic block which is tapped to suit - loosening the nut allows the clamp to swivel to position the foot. The upper block is then attached to the sliding T nuts (made on the router table) after fitting them inside the slot on the slider using 2x M8 socket head screws - the open slot in the slider is only a bit over 10mm wide.

Hopefully the phenolic will hold up. It is tough - a heavy test in a sample before before making the nuts with about 15mm of thread engagement couldn't be stripped with normal hand force on a short Allen key. It's at least as hard to tap as aluminium.

ian

235403235404