Another finished eMachineShop blank (Mouthpiece Work Yahoo Group)

FROM: kwbradbury (Keith Bradbury)

SUBJECT: Another finished eMachineShop blank

I posted 4 more pics in the Photos - CAD section.  I did this one (I 
call it "Beta" design) with a medium high step baffle, a straight 
baffle near the tip that looks like a "lake", and I scooped the 
sidewalls some.   

I used an XY vise gizmo on my drill press with an end mill to machine 
down the baffle about 1/8".  Saved a lot of hand filing but finding a 
good way to clamp tand angle the blanks can be difficult.

I had plating problems this time around.  I tried to leave some of 
the surface with a "brushed" finish.  I left the body sanded with 400 
grit lines in it.  Did some steel wool and a Flitz polish.  I left 
the shank buffed.  Looked cool 2-tone brass before plating.  But 
after plating, the fine detail was lost and this highlighted some of 
the deeper scratches from vice clamping.  I would skip the steel wool 
and polish next time and may even uuse 320 grit or some light wire 
brush strokes.

Nickle is hard and brittle.  When I tried to scratch in my "MOJO" 
markings one the first one I did (Alpha), the plating came off in 
flakes.  On the Beta one I marked it before plating and the results 
were much better.

The other plating problem I had was that the plating process would 
not get started for me (no bubbles indicating it is working).  You 
need to touch steel to copper alloys for a minute to get them going.  
The steel was bubbling some, but the brass was not sustaining it like 
last time.  This turned out to be a temperature problem.  I needed to 
insulate my container by wrapping some rags around it.  After another 
30 minutes of heat-up I tried again and the bubbling was much more 
vigorus on the steel and it kept going after I pulled the steel 
away.  I must of had beginners luck on the first one I did or the 
heaters I got with my kit have already lost some of their 
efficiency.  I'm glad I had a lab thermometer (not included in the 
kit).

FROM: stevefowler1176 (Steve Fowler)

SUBJECT: Re: Another finished eMachineShop blank

Plating can be a total pain in the ... well you know where.
 
As to your first problem of your hard work not showing up, Electroless
Nickel is known for it's ability to "level" out small areas while accenting
larger defects. Using a Watts bath Nickel or plating with Silver would have
kept more of your handy work visible. Next time you need to bead blast it!
 
You found out correctly that you do all engraving on the base metal.
 
Temperature, temperature, temperature! It is the one thing that will keep EN
from working properly. Caswell sells very nice ceramic heaters for a very
reasonable price. (like $13.20 for a 300W heater!) It sounds like you need
to add at least one more heater to your tank. The other thing is
cleanliness! Steel wool leaves a lot of oil behind that can be hard to get
rid of. You might want to consider setting up an Electrocleaner tank. You
can use a hotplate (or ceramic heaters) a steel container, very easily
obtained cleaners, and a battery charger to clean metal like you've never
seen! I can also turn you onto an activator that will increase your chance
of success greatly.
 
All the best, Keith.
 
Steve
===================
 
Steve Fowler
 
                 Fowler Music Service
-------- Custom Band Instrument Repairs --------
        ------ Plating in Silver and Gold ------
 
                     602 Kent Avenue
                  Pasadena, MD 21122
                        410-647-9537
 
                 www.fowlermusic.com <http://www.fowlermusic.com/> 
 
 

  _____  

From: Keith Bradbury [mailto:kwbradbury@...] 
Sent: Sunday, January 23, 2005 11:11 AM
To: MouthpieceWork@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [MouthpieceWork] Another finished eMachineShop blank



I posted 4 more pics in the Photos - CAD section.  I did this one (I 
call it "Beta" design) with a medium high step baffle, a straight 
baffle near the tip that looks like a "lake", and I scooped the 
sidewalls some.   

I used an XY vise gizmo on my drill press with an end mill to machine 
down the baffle about 1/8".  Saved a lot of hand filing but finding a 
good way to clamp tand angle the blanks can be difficult.

I had plating problems this time around.  I tried to leave some of 
the surface with a "brushed" finish.  I left the body sanded with 400 
grit lines in it.  Did some steel wool and a Flitz polish.  I left 
the shank buffed.  Looked cool 2-tone brass before plating.  But 
after plating, the fine detail was lost and this highlighted some of 
the deeper scratches from vice clamping.  I would skip the steel wool 
and polish next time and may even uuse 320 grit or some light wire 
brush strokes.

Nickle is hard and brittle.  When I tried to scratch in my "MOJO" 
markings one the first one I did (Alpha), the plating came off in 
flakes.  On the Beta one I marked it before plating and the results 
were much better.

The other plating problem I had was that the plating process would 
not get started for me (no bubbles indicating it is working).  You 
need to touch steel to copper alloys for a minute to get them going.  
The steel was bubbling some, but the brass was not sustaining it like 
last time.  This turned out to be a temperature problem.  I needed to 
insulate my container by wrapping some rags around it.  After another 
30 minutes of heat-up I tried again and the bubbling was much more 
vigorus on the steel and it kept going after I pulled the steel 
away.  I must of had beginners luck on the first one I did or the 
heaters I got with my kit have already lost some of their 
efficiency.  I'm glad I had a lab thermometer (not included in the 
kit).





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FROM: kwbradbury (Keith Bradbury)

SUBJECT: Re: Another finished eMachineShop blank

Thanks for relaying your experiances Steve.

I use an Ultra sonic cleaner that seems to work quite well.

Caswell sub-ed (2) 75 watt heaters since they ran out of 300W heaters for
the kit.  I'm going to write them about my experiance since they barely do
the job with a 2 pint bath.


		
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FROM: kymarto (Toby)

SUBJECT: Re: Another finished eMachineShop blank

Hi Keith,

I'd just like to point out to you that some people have an allergy to nickel, which usually shows up as a contact dermatitis with folks who play nickel-plated flutes. I guess the overall percentage is fairly small, but it is worth thinking about. Silver seems to be better, although there are folks with silver allergies as well.

Toby

----- Original Message -----
From: Keith Bradbury
To: MouthpieceWork@yahoogroups.com
Sent: Monday, January 24, 2005 1:11 AM
Subject: [MouthpieceWork] Another finished eMachineShop blank

I posted 4 more pics in the Photos - CAD section. I did this one (I
call it "Beta" design) with a medium high step baffle, a straight
baffle near the tip that looks like a "lake", and I scooped the
sidewalls some.

I used an XY vise gizmo on my drill press with an end mill to machine
down the baffle about 1/8". Saved a lot of hand filing but finding a
good way to clamp tand angle the blanks can be difficult.

I had plating problems this time around. I tried to leave some of
the surface with a "brushed" finish. I left the body sanded with 400
grit lines in it. Did some steel wool and a Flitz polish. I left
the shank buffed. Looked cool 2-tone brass before plating. But
after plating, the fine detail was lost and this highlighted some of
the deeper scratches from vice clamping. I would skip the steel wool
and polish next time and may even uuse 320 grit or some light wire
brush strokes.

Nickle is hard and brittle. When I tried to scratch in my "MOJO"
markings one the first one I did (Alpha), the plating came off in
flakes. On the Beta one I marked it before plating and the results
were much better.

The other plating problem I had was that the plating process would
not get started for me (no bubbles indicating it is working). You
need to touch steel to copper alloys for a minute to get them going.
The steel was bubbling some, but the brass was not sustaining it like
last time. This turned out to be a temperature problem. I needed to
insulate my container by wrapping some rags around it. After another
30 minutes of heat-up I tried again and the bubbling was much more
vigorus on the steel and it kept going after I pulled the steel
away. I must of had beginners luck on the first one I did or the
heaters I got with my kit have already lost some of their
efficiency. I'm glad I had a lab thermometer (not included in the
kit).

Got a Mouthpiece Work question? Send it to MouthpieceWork@yahoogroups.com

Visit the site at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/MouthpieceWork to see the Files, Photos and Bookmarks relating to Mouthpiece Work.

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FROM: kwbradbury (Keith Bradbury)

SUBJECT: Niclke alergies

Good point Toby!  I think Nickle alergy is more common than Brass alergy. 
I've never met a sax player with either, but I have met several flute
players with Nickle alergy.  Still, all student flutes are made with Nickle plating.


		
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