PCC
Flashlight Enthusiast
Most of the raw materials needed to make this light
From the upper left to bottom, left to right - wquiles Joule Thief driver, XP-E, 17mm reflector, V10 glow powder, assorted O-rings, 5/8" brass rod, 3/4" clear acrylic rod, 7/8" clear acrylic rod, 3/4" 7075 T6 aluminum rod, 1" 6061 T6 aluminum rod
I decided to start with the tailcap since this is easier to make than the head and the body should be done last.
First, chuck the 3/4" 7075 in the lathe
Face the end
Lightly turn down the outside
Turn down the threaded portion
Cut it down to the target diameter of 16mm
Using the threading cutter, debur the sharp edges
Cut a groove where the threads are going to end
At this point I didn't like the amount of threads that I was going to end up with so I decided to cut the shoulder back and give it more threads
Cut a new groove for where the threads are going to end
Using the parting tool, cut a groove for the O-ring
O-ring installed
Cut threads
The setup for drilling out the tailcap
Starting the drilling with a centering drill bit
Moving onto a 1/8" drill bit then a 1/4" bit and eventually the 3/8" bit
Chucked a 3/8" end mill in the drill chuck and squared off the corners inside the hole
The next three operations uses three M10X1 taps, the first being a standard tap, the second being a modified one that is almost bottoming, followed by a bottoming tap. Only about three threads are cut
Using the parting tool, start parting, but,stop after a few millimeters so that I can bevel the edge then part it
Reinstall the turning cutter and rotate it 15 degrees to put the cutting edge at a 45 degree angle
Cut a 45 degree bevel then finish parting the tailcap
Remove the 3/4" aluminum and chuck the 5/8" brass then center it
After a quick facing operation turn it down to 10mm then cut half of it to 3/8", about 9.4mm
The tailcap slides onto the narrower part, but, not the wider part
Cut a groove to differentiate the two parts I'm making
Using the center drill again, start a hole, followed by a 1/8" drill then a 7/32" drill
Using a 1/4"X20TPI tap, tap the hole
Part off the internally threaded retaining ring
Using the centering drill, clean up the edge so that the drill bit goes in centered
Using the threading cutter, bevel the hard shoulder for clearance before threading
The tailcap threads onto it
Part it off
Reposition the brass about 7/8" further out, face it then turn it down
The left-most part is cut to 14.5mm. The right part will be cut down to 1/4"
The externally threaded retaining ring slides right on
Mark where I want the threads to end and thread it to 1/4"X20TPI
The internally threaded retaining ring screws on
Taking advantage of the handy retaining ring holder, I cleaned up the excess brass left from parting
The relationship of the three brass parts and how the tailcap attaches
Bevel the sharp edge
Next, cut a groove for the O-ring using the parting tool and install it
Using the turning cutter, cut a bevel
Part it off
The plunger assembly assembled. The internally threaded retaining ring is locked down using Loktite
Reposition the mill head assemby at 60 degrees, install the tailcap in the four jaw chuck, then center it on the Y axis
One notch every 60 degrees
Reposition the mill head assembly at 30 degrees, rotate the tailcap 30 degrees and cut another series of notches 60 degrees apart
Remove the chuck from the mill and attach it on the lathe
Face the tailcap. Shiny finish
Cut grooves into the face of the tailcap
Ready to assemble, but, the spring is too long
Tailcap assembled showing the fully extended length and the compressed length
After the last picture was taken I adjusted the spring length and that allowed the plunger assembly to have a longer travel, about 1/8" total.
Tomorrow, the head...
From the upper left to bottom, left to right - wquiles Joule Thief driver, XP-E, 17mm reflector, V10 glow powder, assorted O-rings, 5/8" brass rod, 3/4" clear acrylic rod, 7/8" clear acrylic rod, 3/4" 7075 T6 aluminum rod, 1" 6061 T6 aluminum rod
I decided to start with the tailcap since this is easier to make than the head and the body should be done last.
First, chuck the 3/4" 7075 in the lathe
Face the end
Lightly turn down the outside
Turn down the threaded portion
Cut it down to the target diameter of 16mm
Using the threading cutter, debur the sharp edges
Cut a groove where the threads are going to end
At this point I didn't like the amount of threads that I was going to end up with so I decided to cut the shoulder back and give it more threads
Cut a new groove for where the threads are going to end
Using the parting tool, cut a groove for the O-ring
O-ring installed
Cut threads
The setup for drilling out the tailcap
Starting the drilling with a centering drill bit
Moving onto a 1/8" drill bit then a 1/4" bit and eventually the 3/8" bit
Chucked a 3/8" end mill in the drill chuck and squared off the corners inside the hole
The next three operations uses three M10X1 taps, the first being a standard tap, the second being a modified one that is almost bottoming, followed by a bottoming tap. Only about three threads are cut
Using the parting tool, start parting, but,stop after a few millimeters so that I can bevel the edge then part it
Reinstall the turning cutter and rotate it 15 degrees to put the cutting edge at a 45 degree angle
Cut a 45 degree bevel then finish parting the tailcap
Remove the 3/4" aluminum and chuck the 5/8" brass then center it
After a quick facing operation turn it down to 10mm then cut half of it to 3/8", about 9.4mm
The tailcap slides onto the narrower part, but, not the wider part
Cut a groove to differentiate the two parts I'm making
Using the center drill again, start a hole, followed by a 1/8" drill then a 7/32" drill
Using a 1/4"X20TPI tap, tap the hole
Part off the internally threaded retaining ring
Using the centering drill, clean up the edge so that the drill bit goes in centered
Using the threading cutter, bevel the hard shoulder for clearance before threading
The tailcap threads onto it
Part it off
Reposition the brass about 7/8" further out, face it then turn it down
The left-most part is cut to 14.5mm. The right part will be cut down to 1/4"
The externally threaded retaining ring slides right on
Mark where I want the threads to end and thread it to 1/4"X20TPI
The internally threaded retaining ring screws on
Taking advantage of the handy retaining ring holder, I cleaned up the excess brass left from parting
The relationship of the three brass parts and how the tailcap attaches
Bevel the sharp edge
Next, cut a groove for the O-ring using the parting tool and install it
Using the turning cutter, cut a bevel
Part it off
The plunger assembly assembled. The internally threaded retaining ring is locked down using Loktite
Reposition the mill head assemby at 60 degrees, install the tailcap in the four jaw chuck, then center it on the Y axis
One notch every 60 degrees
Reposition the mill head assembly at 30 degrees, rotate the tailcap 30 degrees and cut another series of notches 60 degrees apart
Remove the chuck from the mill and attach it on the lathe
Face the tailcap. Shiny finish
Cut grooves into the face of the tailcap
Ready to assemble, but, the spring is too long
Tailcap assembled showing the fully extended length and the compressed length
After the last picture was taken I adjusted the spring length and that allowed the plunger assembly to have a longer travel, about 1/8" total.
Tomorrow, the head...