acme rod plans for bandsaw mill

[ladylake]

Type in Roton acme nuts, $28 each for 3/4  6 tpi  bronze nuts.  Bronze nuts last at least 10 times longer than steel and the rods don't wear.  Steve

[Kbeitz]

Brass on this page.

http://www.mcmaster.com/#brass-acme-nuts/=121iion

[Larry]

what is a delrin nut? Can that take the strain/weight of a sawmill head assembly?

Plastic.  I don't know how a nut made out of it would work on a sawmill.  A lot of folks are buying/making them for lead screw applications and they seem to work good but I don't know of anybody using them in production.

I've been making delrin acme nuts for one off stuff.  Takes me about 5 minutes to make one on the lathe with maybe a $1 worth of material.  The fit is impressive.  To make the same nut out of bearing bronze it would take me 30 - 45 minutes.  I would also have nearly the same cost in material as a store bought nut.

[ladylake]

I don't know about a delrin nut but do know a bronze nut holds up excellent lifting my diesel up and down.  Not a place where I would try to save a few dollars .  Steve

[revid]

Thanks guys for the info.McMaster Carr wont ship to a person ,only to businesses. Ladylake all I could find was the sleeve nuts if thats what you were referring to @ 29.55 unless I totally missed something. So Iam still looking,kinda hoping to find something like Linn Lumber uses ,a threaded block that I can bolt on to the carriage. If not I can just braze the nuts to a plate and bolt on.

[ladylake]

Right below that sleeve nut is one with threads on it and below that is a mounting plate, If building a mill I'd go with the sleeve one which has a little more threads and mount it in a little oversized pipe to make it self aligning with a bolt coming in from the side to keep it from turning . Drill a little oversized hole in the nut so it has some wiggle room and don't bottom out the bolt on the nut.  Steve

[Ox]

The nuts that runs on the threaded rods for head up/down on my mill aren't attached in any way.  They sit under a shelf made from heavy angle iron and "boxed" in with steel cutoffs that resemble 1/4" keys for shafts.  This boxing in gives a little wiggle room and keeps the nuts from turning.  If you picked up the saw head with a loader it would slide all the way up to the max height.

I sometimes wish I had shelled out the extra money for true Acme rods and brass nuts but so far so good with the 1" B7 threaded rod and stacked and tacked nuts.  Good and frequent lubing is key, I believe, to prevent galling.  This wouldn't be as crucial with brass nuts.  I cable tied some old wire brushes that are in constant contact with the threads over and under the nuts to keep the threads from collecting sawdust.  It looks hokey but works well.

[PC-Urban-Sawyer]

... McMaster Carr wont ship to a person ,only to businesses. ...

Sorry to contradict you but I have purchased from McMaster Carr several times as an individual and just called their customer support line and confirmed they DO sell to individuals.  Their not cheap but they have an excellent range of products and very quick service.

Herb

[Rougespear]

I machined delrin nuts for my sawmill (1"-5 thread).  They work well enough, but I can't comment on their durability... time will tell.  Lube does help: I use ATF now.

[revid]

here is my email from McMaster-Carr

Hi Yve,

Due to the complexity of U.S. export regulations, McMaster-Carr accepts international orders only from businesses. This decision also applies to orders shipping within the United States, because it is based on the final destination of the items. If you are ordering for your business, we would be happy to look further into your request.

[PC-Urban-Sawyer]

revid,

Well, I have to admit I missed the fact you don't live in the U.S.A.  I know they will sell/ship to private individuals in U.S.A. because I have purchased from them several times and I called them today to check before my earlier post.

With that said, I understand their desire to avoid the hassles of international sales on small orders.

BTW, where do you live in Newfoundland? My wife's a Newfie girl from St. John's and we try to visit her family ever couple of years...

Take care.

Herb

[mainewoodsguy]

OX would love to see pictures of your rig's setup. I am building a similar setup and was worrying about how to make the acme nut stay or lock. without adding a bunch of "pinch" bolts. I have the 1" acme rods, nuts, hand wheels and pillow block bearings.

[Ox]

Just use your imagination - anything can be used.  All that needs to be done is keeping the acme nut from turning when you turn the rod.  Your pinch bolts will work.  I just tack welded some square stock real close to the flats on the nut.  The rod runs through a hole drilled in angle iron (which is welded to the mill head, both sides of course, for both rods).  I'm not even close to doing any pictures yet, I'm sorry.  Remember, it doesn't have to be pretty or professional looking, just rugged and functional.  You're not going into production, right?  ;) :D