just a thought about air

[Bryant]

there are many that have done some DIY engraving set up's of many different types and styles and I would like to think that I have seen most of them if they are posted online either with a video or pictures. what I have not seen is a DIY air controller/pneumatic oscillator. has anyone done this? instead of buying the Chinese knockoff or breaking the bank with one of the admittedly wonderful products from major company's. yes I agree, everyone should have the industry standard, however, I don't believe that one should have to pay in excess of $900.00 for something that can be roughly built and effective for a much lower price.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v90yD_W9kbY

if he can do it, I can. and if I cant I will save the money up and stop being so cheap, but I know that it is possible to build one for yourself if the parts can be sourced.

 

[jerrywh]

Personally I wouldn't build that for $900.00.

 

[DKanger]

Any goober can cobble a device together from cheap parts sourced on ebay and then break his arm trying to pat himself on the back while crowing about his success. That ain't why a commercial unit costs $900. It's also why cheap people are seldom successful in business. Their product usually mirrors their mindset.

 

[Roger Bleile]

In the over ten years that I have been a member of this forum and others, I have read the posts of many folks who spent countless time building their own engraving tools. Their every post was about tool building and which tool to use for each aspect of engraving. Usually these were very clever people with a high mechanical aptitude and I was somewhat impressed with the equipment they created. In most all cases, the missing element was the art and engraving. By the time they were done tinkering with their tool building they had burned out on the whole idea of becoming an accomplished engraver and moved on to their next hobby where they could build more tools. The long time members of this forum can probably recall some of the long forgotten tool builders to whom I refer.

 

[dogcatcher]

Follow Shaun Hughes on YouTube, his method is easier to cobble together and it works good. $30 for the compressor, $15 for a converter, $8 for a Rolson multi use screw driver and some machine work with a drill press, add some miscellaneous hoses and extra parts. Less than a $100, it also makes a pretty neat powered woodcarving chisel set up.

 

[Bryant]

yall are awfully hard on someone just having a thought... I kind of expected something different. I was asking if someone had done it and maybe what their experience was, as far as cobbling something together. sir I will have you know that I don't build cheap or ill-conceived plans, I was having a thought and wanted to go to the place where a community of people get together to do just that, have thoughts. and you are correct that "ain't why commercial units cost $900" they cost $900 dolors because between parts, labor, and profit, that is their bottom line. but if I can understand my equipment to the point to where I can build it around my customized parameters with an added benefit of possibly saving me one or two dolors, however knowing how small technical projects like this can go, I am sure that it will cost more. so how about yall take all that judgment somewhere else while someone tries to get input on a thought. and if this is not a welcome remark to the situation in which no hostility was saught or encouraged, then I will remove myself from the situation gladly, however, I will not be disrespected or called cheep, not when you don't even have a clue as to who I am. To be clear when said "I will stop being so cheap" I was joking of course.

all my best

 

[Jerry K]

Hello Bryant
I can't speak for the membership but only myself. I too love to 'tinker' with our engraving tools. The time spent is mine to spend.
I will say however that the commercial tools that are available to the engraving community have been constructed to allow the engraver the greatest flexibility to accomplish a variety of tasks with the least amount of tinkering therefor allowing us a greater amount of our time for engraving. If however anyone is so inclined to build a better mouse trap than go for it. You may come up with the next great tool.

 

[jerrywh]

I use to make a lot of tools and did a lot of casting for years. Then one day I asked myself this question. Do I want to be a engraver and a gun maker or do I want to be a foundry worker and who is the most famous foundry worker in history. Well, There are no famous foundry workers and I want to be an engraver because of the love of art. If you spend your life making machines you will never achieve success at engraving. You won't have the time to do both in my opinion. Building stuff is fun. Engraving is more fun. I am just recovering from a very serious illness and am back to engraving again. I love it. Thank God.

 

[dogcatcher]

I am retired, I have no plans on turning this into a new career. I am here for the fun of it. Any dollars I save on this trip is welcome, I have absolutely no use for a $900 machine. My $100 cobbled together piece of work is good enough for me, as is my sharpening jig, and my homemade power hone. If I wanted to become a professional engraver, I might save my pennies, and buy better equipment, I might even take a few classes. But I am not, and I like to tinker with making stuff. So why spend the money when my tinkering and creations will get the job done to my satisfaction.

 

[Big-Un]

I didn't go that route, but I did adapt my airbrush compressor to my air tank and it will reach 90 psi in the tank. Works okay, but the time spent fiddling with it, chasing down parts not on hand and throwing the oily refrigerator compressor away from the first adaptation was not worth the effort. I'm saving for a California Air Compressor to sit under my bench. The airbrush adapted contraption will stay under my modeling bench where it belongs. (I'm getting too old for this fiddling business!!!)

Bill

 

[Roger Bleile]

...you don't even have a clue as to who I am.

That is true because you have decided to be mysterious by having nothing about yourself in your profile, including your location.

I don't feel that anything I wrote was disrespectful. It was my comment on my observations over a long period of time on this forum. I stand behind my comments with my full name, location, and reputation in the trade.

 

[Roger Bleile]

duplicate, disregard

 

[Bryant]

hey there Big-un I completely understand, I have a California air compressor and it is completely worth the money. quiet does not cover it, I live in an apartment with thin walls and noisy neighbors, nobody can hear the compressor working. Heck you cant hear the compressor in the next room (not really lol)

I am a fan of understanding my equipment, good to see that others aren't above doing the same.

yall have a great day.

 

[Bryant]

oh, i didn't realize that I was being mysterious. How is my personal information relevant to the conversation, and as far as reputation yes sir I am sure you do have a reputation. I am sure that you do stand beside your comment, not very surprising really. I asked an honest question sir, and you made a choice to delegitimize that question, unnecessarily I might add.

have an absolutely blessed day sir, I know I will.

If you would like to know more about my personal information including name, Phone number and boot size please send a private message of interest and I will tell you all you need to know.

 

[Ragnarok]

There are quiet a few youtube videos on how to adapt a 12V air compressor into a working unit for use with an engraver. you basically seal the ports/reed valves on top of the piston, and remove(if any) reed valves in the piston head. This makes it a simple push-pull affair on the air in the air line to blow and suck the piston back and forth against the spring in the handpiece. Making your own hand piece is very simple if you have a lathe, and there's many youtube videos for that as well, if not, you can purchase those from chinese sites/ebay. I love to tinker, and save money, but even the hand pieces I built on my lathe were not near as smooth operating as my Lindsay Airgraver.

 

[Memorymaker]

Hey Bryant ........... don’t let these guys intimidate you. I had the same impression when I started here but I have come to realize that they don’t mean any disrespect .......... they have learned from experience from many people that have tried and came to the conclusion that they just had to bite the bullet and buy the quality products ........ I know I did.

That said, try it and let us know what you find out. I know that someone came up with the idea of using scuba tanks and paint ball tanks with the Lindsay Engraver’s and that was a good thing that many use today.

I don’t think there are many if any here that have DIY that they use often. There are a few that have tried and decided that the quality products were more valuable for their purposes.

You may be the one that comes up with something great that we all could use ............ or you may come up with the same conclusions as many others have and bite the bullet.

That said, I know both GRS and Lindsay and Enset create and machine their parts from scratch to exacting specs that are built to last a lifetime and more to allow you to consistently produce to the best your skills and allow you to improve the fastest.

I have learned a lot from these guys over the past year or so. Many of these guys are masters and legends that freely share but sometimes they unintentionally seem a little gruff. Unintentionally is the key word here.

Soooo ........ please try it if you want to and let us know what you find out. Sorry most can’t help with DIY but can tell you that many have tried the Chinese and DIY stuff and learned bad habits trying to compensate for the equipment. Most ended buying the good stuff or like me, bought a bunch of used stuff.

Jus sayin

 

[Brian Marshall]

Yep, I am the one who came up with the idea for the paintball tanks as a portable reserve.

That was shortly after the one and only FEGA show that I attended with Steve Lindsay... at that show we were using the little 4" CO2 cartridges to walk around with...

Later we went to a commercial/industrial CO2 restaurant tank to power the Airgravers in the shop that didn't need to be portable.

Jeeze, that musta been close to 20 years ago?


B.

 

[Bryant]

i would love to see your design for educational purposes. I do not intend to use this type of system but it would be to see your take on it.

 

[Southern Custom]

My wife always points out that I engrave for a living. At the rate I charge, my time is better spent at the bench than repairing the washing machine. From my point of view there are 3 manufacturers of engraving systems that will do anything you want and more. I can't imagine needing to build something to suit your parameters unless you are already an accomplished engraver who has some special technique that none of the current offerings will help you with. Other than saving money, I can't think of a reason to do this. If I was only doing this as a hobby, I would use hammer, chisel and burin. I quite enjoy that. I can work much faster with pneumatic with no loss of quality and in many cases improved quality. So that leaves one reason that I can think of to mess about with air. Just for the joy or building your own tools. That in itself is a worthwhile endeavor. What I don't like seeing is the cases that Roger has mentioned. People who's sole focus is the tools. Given that art is the most important part of engraving, I'd prefer to see a beginner work on artwork for a year while saving money for tools. In that way when he finally starts cutting he'll be one step ahead of the game.

 

[dogcatcher]

It is the curious person that creates new designs, he/she is the one that looks for the better mouse trap. Is it a waste of time? That depends on your perspective, but if Edison had not been curious, where would the world be today? If the people that started GRS and Lindsay weren't curious, everyone would still be using the push gravers or hammer and chisel.

Then there are some people that are too busy with their lives too dream of that better mouse trap, but when they see it, they send their money to the person that they thought was wasting his/her time creating the better mouse trap.