MrBrendan
Member
Well today all my gear came and i finally had a chance to hook it all up and get things running. I've been waiting for a few weeks for this day, so naturally i was quite excited. I'm very fortunate in that i was able to get a Powerhone W/Dual Angle, GMachAT, and a 901 handpiece.
I thought i'd share a few things i've observed from a beginners standpoint with the hopes that maybe it could spark a discussion that could benefit other new folks.
1. I regret buying several gravers such as the QC round shank ones. They are a ***** to sharpen because there is no index groove or something along those lines that i've noticed that will get me lined up when sharpening. (Am i missing something here? This item: http://www.grstools.com/gravers-burs-and-more/glensteel/glensteel-rff-point-graver.html) Or do i just have to eyeball it? I keep getting an uneven facets on the heel and i know it's because i can't zero out the round shank graver.
2. After watching Sam's sharpening video, i feel i just should have bought a bunch of square gravers and grinded them down to the angles i needed. Do most people just end up using square gravers and shape them to their liking?
3. Positioning Vise. I immediately saw the benefit in buying a positioning vise. I know people have done amazing works for years on a standard vise and oftentimes even less than that. But when looking through a microscope it's fairly frustrating and the interruption is driving me nuts. (And i've just started. ) Are there alternatives to a positioning vise that are cheaper than switching out vises?
4. AM Scopes vs. Leica - I've used a few scopes in my time mostly Leica, the AM Scope SM-4TZ is fairly decent. The optics are good, however there is some Chromatic Aberration, but it's not something that would get in the way of your work. And Leica's have better vertical adjust-ability, but for the price, in my opinion and now after using a bit, seems like a good deal. (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004UBNIMC/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o04_s02?ie=UTF8&psc=1 )
5. Air Compressors - I tried to save money where i could, and the air compressor, while important was somewhere i decided to save a few bucks. (For now.) I ended up with this: http://www.amazon.com/California-Ai...sr=1-1-catcorr&keywords=california+tools+6310 I'm used to using huge 100-200 gallon air compressors and i suspected "ultra-quiet" wasn't actually that. After using it a bit, my suspicions were confirmed, this thing is not quiet. At all. It's still quieter than compressors in a mechanics shop sure, but not the "quiet" i had in mind. Luckily i'll be doing all my work in the basement so it's not a big deal for me. Not sure how it measures up to the Val-Air in terms of noise, but i also suspect they are similar in noise level.
Anyhow, i'd appreciate any feedback and maybe if i'm doing things or thinking about things in the wrong way, i'd love to hear it to benefit others as well as myself.
I thought i'd share a few things i've observed from a beginners standpoint with the hopes that maybe it could spark a discussion that could benefit other new folks.
1. I regret buying several gravers such as the QC round shank ones. They are a ***** to sharpen because there is no index groove or something along those lines that i've noticed that will get me lined up when sharpening. (Am i missing something here? This item: http://www.grstools.com/gravers-burs-and-more/glensteel/glensteel-rff-point-graver.html) Or do i just have to eyeball it? I keep getting an uneven facets on the heel and i know it's because i can't zero out the round shank graver.
2. After watching Sam's sharpening video, i feel i just should have bought a bunch of square gravers and grinded them down to the angles i needed. Do most people just end up using square gravers and shape them to their liking?
3. Positioning Vise. I immediately saw the benefit in buying a positioning vise. I know people have done amazing works for years on a standard vise and oftentimes even less than that. But when looking through a microscope it's fairly frustrating and the interruption is driving me nuts. (And i've just started. ) Are there alternatives to a positioning vise that are cheaper than switching out vises?
4. AM Scopes vs. Leica - I've used a few scopes in my time mostly Leica, the AM Scope SM-4TZ is fairly decent. The optics are good, however there is some Chromatic Aberration, but it's not something that would get in the way of your work. And Leica's have better vertical adjust-ability, but for the price, in my opinion and now after using a bit, seems like a good deal. (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004UBNIMC/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o04_s02?ie=UTF8&psc=1 )
5. Air Compressors - I tried to save money where i could, and the air compressor, while important was somewhere i decided to save a few bucks. (For now.) I ended up with this: http://www.amazon.com/California-Ai...sr=1-1-catcorr&keywords=california+tools+6310 I'm used to using huge 100-200 gallon air compressors and i suspected "ultra-quiet" wasn't actually that. After using it a bit, my suspicions were confirmed, this thing is not quiet. At all. It's still quieter than compressors in a mechanics shop sure, but not the "quiet" i had in mind. Luckily i'll be doing all my work in the basement so it's not a big deal for me. Not sure how it measures up to the Val-Air in terms of noise, but i also suspect they are similar in noise level.
Anyhow, i'd appreciate any feedback and maybe if i'm doing things or thinking about things in the wrong way, i'd love to hear it to benefit others as well as myself.