learning about insert cutters

[brent stanley]

Ok Brent,where would you take it to get it bored ? Machine shop ?

It should be quite straightforward for any decent machine shop. I would look to see if that exact same head is also available in 1 1/4" bore from the manufacturer. If so then you can assume the engineers have decided that the larger bore is acceptable. Make sure they reproduce the little chamfer on the edges of the bore and protect the outside from the chuck jaws, especially if it's aluminium.

[Joe Calhoon]

Mike, I don’t think it would be worth it to re size a $100 cutter. It’s not that straight forward and if you do it best to find a shop experienced at that and understands the ISO clearances for cutter and shaft.

[Erik Loza]

Mike, I don’t think it would be worth it to re size a $100 cutter. It’s not that straight forward and if you do it best to find a shop experienced at that and understands the ISO clearances for cutter and shaft.

Agreed^^^

I've had conversations with well-respected blade manufacturers about having the arbors on customers' existing sawblades re-bored to 30mm and almost invariably, they don't want to touch it for liability reasons and for the fact that you can get a perfectly sized new blade for <$150. And that's just a flat piece of steel, not a cutterhead. Just my experience,

Erik

[brent stanley]

Ok Brent,where would you take it to get it bored ? Machine shop ?

Mike, I assume you got the cutter used and it's replacement value is much more than $100 but I may be wrong. I've seen quotes in the range of 40-50 dollars to have it done. The machine shop I work with builds shafting for industrial machines running at 25 000RPM, heavily loaded and running all day. They find tolerances required for low speed, lightly loaded woodworking machines easy to hit. If they aren't familiar with the standards then you'll have to educate them, but if they're competent they should be able to do it.

B

[Mark Bolton]

The cost to have a head accurately setup and precision bored and then rebalance would be a joke. Throw it on Ebay and buy what you need.

[Mark Bolton]

There isnt a machine shop in the world that's doing precision profitable work (read 200/hr per man) that would bore a head in 15 minutes for 50 bucks. Forget about balancing. You couldn't walk the part from the office to the shop floor in 15 minutes (50 bucks) forget about setup, indicating it in, and so on.

I had a small 15 spline sheave bored, sleeved, and a key broached. The sheave was probably 3" diameter, 2.5" deep bore. It cost 400 bucks.

[brent stanley]

There isnt a machine shop in the world that's doing precision profitable work (read 200/hr per man) that would bore a head in 15 minutes for 50 bucks. Forget about balancing. You couldn't walk the part from the office to the shop floor in 15 minutes (50 bucks) forget about setup, indicating it in, and so on.

I had a small 15 spline sheave bored, sleeved, and a key broached. The sheave was probably 3" diameter, 2.5" deep bore. It cost 400 bucks.

$100/hr up here and it probably wouldn't need to be rebalanced with such a small amount taken perfectly symmetrically from the middle. I just had a steel head modified last week for $85 range taxes in. Depends where you are I guess. A guy I know works for Felder says he takes saw blades and tooling in to be rebored all the time.

By the sounds of things your $400 job is many orders of magnitude bigger and more complicated than a simple shaper head rebore. Prices vary around the world I guess, but I'm an hour from Toronto so we pay hefty rates compared to the Canadian average.

If it's only $100 to get a new-from-factory head with the proper bore then I'd say it's a no brainer.

B

[Rod Sheridan]

I use FS Tools in Markham to bore shaper cutters.

About $30 each and they're perfect............Regards, Rod.

[Joe Calhoon]

I’ll stress again, if you do this best to find a company with experience or else the fit might be too loose or tight.
shafts and cutters are not target size of 1.25 for example. Shafts are a hair under and cutters a hair over. Probably not measurable by tools we woodworkers have. This has nothing to do with load or rpm on standard woodworking machines. It is about getting the cutters on and off the machine. There are ISO standards for this.

Cost is not terrible. I had some expensive large 2 piece insert heads done a few years back to fit my tenoner and it was about $70 per hole. This included rebalancing which is necessary on larger heads. This was done by a machine shop that does reboring for Weinig. Have also had a few shafts made and again would go to a experienced company for this.

[brent stanley]

I use FS Tools in Markham to bore shaper cutters.

About $30 each and they're perfect............Regards, Rod.

I've heard good things about their work. Most machine shops with a good resume have the ISO standards on their shelf or have paid subscriptions for quick online access. I took a number of Italian and German heads in to have modified for a friend and they could tell that none of them were manufactured initially to standards that the shop found very hard to maintain. A good machine shop that does a variety of work will routinely work to levels of refinement more than sufficient for standard woodworking machines.

[Rod Sheridan]

I've heard good things about their work. Most machine shops with a good resume have the ISO standards on their shelf or have paid subscriptions for quick online access. I took a number of Italian and German heads in to have modified for a friend and they could tell that none of them were manufactured initially to standards that the shop found very hard to maintain. A good machine shop that does a variety of work will routinely work to levels of refinement more than sufficient for standard woodworking machines.

As you're aware, FS Tools is a tooling manufacturer. Their work is great and prices are very reasonable, and they're a 10 minute drive from me.

It doesn't get any better than that for me.............Rod.

[Mike Kees]

I probably will just buy a complete new head. It is just a euro block for the 40mm two pin knives. I think that I will buy an Amana one this time (steel). I might check at a machine shop here locally to see what they figure. Pretty sure that it will cost me as much or more to get this bored out. Makes more sense to me to buy another one and have two,one for each shaper.

[brent stanley]

I probably will just buy a complete new head. It is just a euro block for the 40mm two pin knives. I think that I will buy an Amana one this time (steel). I might check at a machine shop here locally to see what they figure. Pretty sure that it will cost me as much or more to get this bored out. Makes more sense to me to buy another one and have two,one for each shaper.

Sent you a PM. I got stuck with an extra one if you want it.