anyone made their own spining tool?

[twofast2s]

i was getting ready to get a spine finding tool off of ebay, but i saw one w/ couple of ball bearings and a PVC pipes.

does anyone know how to make one?

thanks,

[clint]

I plan on making one too. Just like you said, two bearings pressed into a piece of pipe. Don't forget the third bearing for the tip of the shaft. Also, I'd use steel pipe rather than pvc just to eliminate any flex. I also plan on trueing up the inside of the pipe on a lathe.

[LyleG]

I made mine. I will dig up the parts list and post it.

[clemsonhacker]

thanks lyle

[indacup]

I built ours too...got it from the following report I found somewhere many years ago...

MATERIALS
1 1" PVC sched. 40 "tee" (.79)
2 "radial bearings" o.d.=1 3/8", i.d.=3/4" (3.10 ea)
1 "radial bearing" o.d.=1 1/8", i.d.=3/8" (3.10)
1 #12 hose clamp, (the metal band you tighten with a screwdriver) (.49)
12" light chain link (10#-15#)(.35)
1 screw eye
1 "s" hook
(the radial bearings were in the hardware section with all those pull out
trays with every type of nut, washer, and screw ever made that those stores
always have)
ASSEMBLY
The 2 (3/4" i.d.) bearings go in both ends of the PVC "tee". They are just a
"hair" to big to fit so you have to sand down the openings in the PVC "tee"
just a bit (I did it with a dremel tool with a round sanding band in about
30 seconds). Don't sand too much - you want a tight friction fit. With a
good friction fit they'll stay but I epoxyed them in for good measure.
That's it for the spine finder. Set it up in your vise at a 20-30 degree
angle.
The other bearing is put around the tip of the shaft and used to apply
downward pressure to the shaft while finding the spine. To do this wrap the
hose clamp around the 3/8"i.d. bearing and tighten it. I used 3/8" because
it's a snug fit on a .370 iron shaft, you can use other sizes if you want.
Then attach the chain to the hose clamp (I used some wire).
Put a test shaft into the finder, put the 3/8" bearing on the end of the
shaft and attach the screw eye to your workbench where the chain dangles
down. Pull down on the chain to apply some pressure to the shaft and attach
it to the screw eye with the "s" hook. Now you can rotate the shaft near the
finder and find the spine. Oh, you need to put an O ring or a backwards
ferrule on the tip end of the shaft to keep the bearing from coming off when
you apply pressure.

[twofast2s]

thanks guys,

if not too much of a hassel, can you post a picture or some illustration?
thanks!

[twofast2s]

so i went to local ACE hardware store and LOWES, and they do not have the materials that i need.

Lyle: can you list the parts for me? and also the place you got those from?
i found the bearings at lowes and they were 11bucks a peice. no 3.35 on the list up here.

thanks!