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Is Timesaver lapping compound really non-imbedding?

Terry Keeley

Titanium
Joined
Oct 18, 2005
Location
Toronto, Canada eh!
I made a new 660 bronze nut for my mill and it's a little tight on one end, was thinking about using some Timesaver to loosen it up.

Is it really non-imbedding as advertised? Will I ruin the nut?

Timesaver Lapping Compounds - Micro Surface Corporation


full
 
Unless it’s real tight, I would think it would wear itself in pretty quickly



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I made a new 660 bronze nut for my mill and it's a little tight on one end, was thinking about using some Timesaver to loosen it up.

Is it really non-imbedding as advertised? Will I ruin the nut?

Tight on one end suggests a thread problem and not a nut problem - if you lap the nut is going to get looser on the other end. Do you have a sacrificial nut that you could use to lap with? That might correct the problem on the tight end but leave the current nut ok all the way across.

And yes, the timesaver compounds break down in oil. I lap in steam engines including my locomotive without seeing wear later.
 
before you spend money on timesaver try lapping the nut with "bon amie".
 
Tight on one end suggests a thread problem and not a nut problem - if you lap the nut is going to get looser on the other end. Do you have a sacrificial nut that you could use to lap with? That might correct the problem on the tight end but leave the current nut ok all the way across.

And yes, the timesaver compounds break down in oil. I lap in steam engines including my locomotive without seeing wear later.

before you spend money on timesaver try lapping the nut with "bon amie".

Ya, the lead screw is the original so it's worn slightly more on one end, I realize it'll be looser there but as it is now it's way too tight on the other end. I shudda cut the thread slightly deeper when I was making it but I screwed up and didn't try the full length.

Already got the Timesaver, wanted it for lapping aluminum (pistons) for another project anyway.

I think I'll give it a try...
 
What might help is tapping on eighter nut or screw lenghtwise both ways as soon as you feel resistance That will deform the softer nut slightly
Turn the screw a bit deeper after it turns freely in that spot
Work your way through the entire spindle
Peter
 
One thought if you're feeling a little adventurous - make a new nut out of delrin or similar, split it in two such that you have two half-nuts, then use those to lap down the lesser-worn parts of the leadscrew.

It'll take some care to prevent going out of local pitch, or going too far, but with precautions should give you a fit that works on the real nut over the full length, without sacrificing the close mate.
 
The nut is bronze (very cool) and the screw is steel. Lapping with a softer nut on a harder surface, would the nut wear down faster than the screw?

I think the advise about just letting things set in is good advise.
 
The nut is bronze (very cool) and the screw is steel. Lapping with a softer nut on a harder surface, would the nut wear down faster than the screw?

I think the advise about just letting things set in is good advise.

The idea I suggested of using a hard plastic for the lapping nut is based on using a conventional lapping agent, not the "disappearing" stuff. With lapping, it's usually the soft material the abrasives embed in, therefore it's the harder part that's cut.
 
Thanks for all the suggestions.

It's weird stuff, in the container it feels like very fine powder with no hint of grit at all, mix it up with oil and the "grittyness" comes out.

I ran the nut up and down a couple times with the medium (60 grit) yellow stuff (non ferrous) and got the fit I was looking for.

I cleaned both parts well and don't see any more black coming off it so I'm hoping it didn't imbed in the nut as advertised...
 
with timesaver your supposed to lap the soft part with a hard lap, at least how i understand it.
 








 
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