Franken-Hammond: Changing the ruler

nektai · Post by **nektai** » Wed Apr 26, 2006 1:27 pm

Pete, you have inspired me to take some baby franken steps. I want to start by replacing the ruler and the only one that i can find that reads from right to left is a mylar adhesive backed ruler. If anyone can come up with a better suggestion for a ruler i am all ears.

Here is a link to the MSC website that has a picture of a left right to version of the ruler with a nice trout for scale

http://www1.mscdirect.com/CGI/NNSRIT?PM ... NO=7026521

Mike Henry · Post by **Mike Henry** » Wed Apr 26, 2006 8:44 pm

Could you create your own scale with a suitable graphics program and have Kinkos or a similar outfit print it out onto film media?

Another thought would be to see if a local engraver could transfer the scale to a strip of brass.

Both options would probably be pretty expensive, though.

Mike

crzypete · Post by **crzypete** » Wed Apr 26, 2006 10:16 pm

And here I was dreaming this afternoon about calling Starrett to find out what a custom rule would cost.....

My progress continues on the new lead screw. I have the new piece of leadscrew from mcmaster, and also bought the piece of bronze to make the nut. I am excited about this project and think I have a handle on pulling it off. I will post pics as I progress. All I need is some of that time stuff.

Pete

nektai · Post by **nektai** » Thu Apr 27, 2006 6:13 am

I think i will order the ruler from MSC, the price is negligible and I have other things to order. I have been pleasantly surprised in the past by items turning out to be nicer than I had been expecting so I will cross my fingers. I do not feel like going down the custom ruler road at this time due to time and financial constraints. If I were going to tread that path I am intrigued by the idea of having Kinkos "print" the ruler the other solutions seem like they would be a bit expensive

Nico

crzypete · Post by **crzypete** » Fri Apr 28, 2006 8:58 am

There is an interesting thread at pratical machinist about creating graduated round dials.

http://www.practicalmachinist.com/ubb/u ... 21848.html

This could inspire hope about a DIY solution for the new hammond rule.

Pete

nektai · Post by **nektai** » Sat Apr 29, 2006 11:49 am

OK.. I have started. I replaced the ruler on my goto Hammond today. I took the unnecessary step of sanding down the original ruler so that there would be no going back and then I tapped on the new ruler. Here is what i have learned-

I am much happier now that I have ditched the useless pica scale

I would like to find a black peel and stick ruler

Next time I will make a new piece for the ruler to mount on because I think it would look better without the Hammond rulers dips on the right and left side.

crzypete · Post by **crzypete** » Sat Apr 29, 2006 8:05 pm

Nico, the new rule looks great, although I am not quite sure why you had to butcher the old hammond scale

I am curious as to the material of the ruler?

My franken-hammonding is on hold due to the arrival of my new gang drillpress- see the thread in the general forum- pics just posted.

Pete

nektai · Post by **nektai** » Sun Apr 30, 2006 7:23 am

Pete,

I destroyed the Hammond rule because the new tape is just a bit narrower than the hammond ruler. The result would have been an unsightly black line at the bottom edge of the ruler. I mentioned that I would not do this again- I would replace the whole aluminum ruler strip.

The ruler is made of a sandwich of layers but the one that gives it its look is the mylar layer. It has the look of brushed aluminum and can pass for satin chrome at a glance.

The packaging of the ruler invites you to visit the website of The Oregon Rule CO. It is not the best website in the world as most of the content is PDF based but they have more of a selection than either McMasterr or MSC and they make it clear that they produce custom peel and stick rulers with gradations and logos. I think I will make contact and find out how to present a design to them for a quote.

Nico

crzypete · Post by **crzypete** » Tue May 02, 2006 9:14 am

I am getting inspired by the rule project. I have begun formulating a plan. I will be doing some research with the sign place that I have been working with recently as to materials they can print on.

My plan? To scan the original hammond logo and possibly even patents, and create an inch rule that looks entirely authentic. Sick? yes I know, but this could be the best way to get a visually pleasing alternative without spending a ton of $$. I don't think this will be that expensive, and since it does not have to be an exact rule this might be an excellent alternative.

The question becomes, in an ideal world, what is the best material to print on? It might be some plastic which gets glued to a piece of aluminum and becomes the bar. If I can pull this off, I can probably order multiples at very little cost.

Pete

nektai · Post by **nektai** » Thu May 04, 2006 7:07 am

I have mounted another of those peel and stick rulers on my second Hammond. I modified my technique this time and no Hammond parts were destroyed in the process (Crzypete, I am taking suggestions- What do I do with the Hammond rule that I removed?)

This time I seem to have improved on my technique and my results. If anyone is interested I could post my procedure but I will not bore you now. You will see the big difference- I left the ends of the ruler square. I like it much better.

I have talked with the people at Oregon Rule Co and they can make a ruler that is the reverse of the one that I have installed on my saws. It would be black with mylar grads and numbers. The only catch is that I would have to order 20. This is not the end of the world as the rulers are cheap to start with. For a few dollars more per ruler they will ad a logo to the ruler and they would even give a quote for a ground up, re-designed, original ruler.

Here are some pics

crzypete · Post by **crzypete** » Thu May 04, 2006 12:08 pm

Nice work Nico, I will have to think of a use for the old rule.

One thing of note that Nico and I discovered independently and simultaneously is that 6 pica do not exactly equal one inch. Pica seems to be totally independent from inches, this sucks in terms of using the existing leadscrew, but I guess it justifies my franken-hammond leadscrew project just a bit more- see the other franken-hammond thread.

My photoshop work on a ruler is almost complete, I will post pics and details as they materialize.

Pete

crzypete · Post by **crzypete** » Mon May 08, 2006 3:59 pm

My photoshop work is complete, and I have printed out a full length rule and marked the screw holes. The screw holes overlap the number 17. I see two options both very workable, and perhaps both doable at the same time..

option 1 the arrows are replaced with lines that push the number down to the bottom of the rule. The screws all are in the top area, so the number won't be lost.

option two, the rule is applied without screws.

here is a little section of the rule that I have laid out.

pete

nektai · Post by **nektai** » Mon May 08, 2006 7:02 pm

Pete,

I like the idea of life without screws. What are you talking about? Bondo comes to my mind so the screw heads disappear without a "shadow coming through the ruler.

Nico

crzypete · Post by **crzypete** » Tue May 09, 2006 9:34 am

My thought was flush mounting some flat head socket screws into a fresh piece of aluminum. The ruler would simply have to span the allen head.

I am wary of using bondo in that area as in order to access the taper pins which align the fence You need to remove the ruler.

I am curious. What material are the custom rules from Oregon Rule Co. being printed on? are they the same as the peel and stick, or are they able to print us some rules on thicker metal?

Pete

nektai · Post by **nektai** » Tue May 09, 2006 9:59 am

The quote I have received is based on the Mylar ruler as it will give the most Hammond like results (picture black paint with mylar everything else). I think it is thick enough to span the heads but I am also sure that there would be some telegraph. I saved a little scrap so I can try a test and I will post my results.

There are other choices but the default colors for metal rulers are white and yellow so I did not pursue them.

crzypete · Post by **crzypete** » Fri Jun 02, 2006 9:27 am

We have let this project slip a bit. I have been busy with too many other things.

Anyway, I was leafing through my mcmaster catalog yesterday and they actually have a black on silver aluminum rule that reads right to left. It is a bit wide, but looks trim-able.

see www.mcmaster.com

page 2088

pete

crzypete · Post by **crzypete** » Tue Jul 04, 2006 5:42 pm

I ordered the mcmaster rule from my previous post and installed it this morning. I am very happy with the results.

- The rule is almost exactly the same thickness as the hammond rule- About .003 thicker.

- It is black with silver letters showing through- same as the hammond.

- My mounting process removed the ugly makers logo.

Here are some pics:

In the first shot we see the new unaltered rule. 1" wide and an ugly logo.

Picture 2 I have cut the rule down. This required ripping 1/32" off the graduated area, before ripping the bottom part off.

In the final pic, the rule has been drilled and countersunk and is in place. I drilled the holes from behind the finger scale using the existing threaded holes as a guide. Then enlarged them on the drill press to allow the screw to fit through.

I'm debating putting in the little hammond step for perhaps 3/4" for durability- It think it is there to help prevent it from getting bumped.

So, whaddaya think?

nektai · Post by **nektai** » Tue Jul 04, 2006 6:06 pm

Wow Pete that looks really good. Now for my questions.

How did you align the ruler?

What kind of blade did you use to get such a clean edge on the ruler?

Can you devise a means of mounting it without all of the screws as I really liked the clean look in the middle picture.

Could you post a McMaster number for those of us without the most recent catalog.

thanks Pete

crzypete · Post by **crzypete** » Tue Jul 04, 2006 7:06 pm

"How did you align the ruler?"

I simply drilled it from behind while it was in place with a drill bit which cleared the 4-40 threads- using the existing holes in the main chunk of steel as guides.

"What kind of blade did you use to get such a clean edge on the ruler?"

I cut it on the T-saw with my aluminum cutting blade- It's an aluminum rule

"Can you devise a means of mounting it without all of the screws as I really liked the clean look in the middle picture."

Not off the top of my head.... we'll have to work on it.... Glue?

"Could you post a McMaster number for those of us without the most recent catalog."

You can search "page 2088" on the website and it will bring the page up.

The pertinent numbers are as follows:

24" long rule: 1970A321 $15.95
36" long rule: 1970A331 $23.77 (for extended finger scale machines)

Funny, they have Pica rules on the same page in the catalog.

Pete

nektai · Post by **nektai** » Tue Jul 04, 2006 11:07 pm

Pete,

Thanks for all of the responses. My only follow up question has to do with aligning the ruler. I understand that what you did allowed for accurate drilling of the holes but did you then have to adjust the finger to produce an accurate cut? If this is the case then the ruler is not calibrated without the finger on the saw. I am sure that it would be close but it is the kind of thing that messes with my universe.