Little CNC job for someone

[Screwdriver]

Could somebody please knock up a little bracket for me please?

Needs to be circa 2 - 2.5mm ideally something like Zintec but mild steel would be fine. It's for a motorcycle instrument cluster bracket and will be welded to a headlight mounting frame.

Currently it's a Sketchup model but I may be able to adapt it to your CNC format of choice. Sketchup is not great at curves so again, ideally, you would be able to import from a raster or illustrator graphic.

I was going to do this by hand but hole position is crucial and it needs to look OEM so I really ought to get this part made properly.

 

[Woody.v8]

It would only take a couple of hours to fab that by hand and we all have time to kill just now , it's a perfect opportunity.

 

[Screwdriver]

It would only take a couple of hours to fab that by hand and we all have time to kill just now , it's a perfect opportunity.

I have a number of other jobs to do for this same project and if I did it, it would take me hours. I have already spent a vast amount of time on just this simple looking shape! Plus I don't have any suitable material. I would imagine it's a ten second job on a CNC.

It might come to that anyway, I've literally just finished the model but yes, I could print it out and get busy with the bandsaw.

 

[julianf]

It's not so applicable for your shape, but, remember, when doing stuff in CAD, you've probably already got the internal radius in there.

It's normally a real simple thing to add a center point (ie external to the shape, if you're cutting an internal radius) and then, providing you've got more or less the right diameter of drill, you can print out the job on a sheet of paper, stick it in, and give got all the marks to center punch for running the drill through.

Again, your part is mainly other stuff, so it wouldn't save you much time, and I know you want someone else to do it anyway.

My CNC work is all non ferrous, so no good for you on this one.

 

[Screwdriver]

Thanks @julianf yes I could use my standard knife making techniques and make a really decent job of it too. But I have orders for two more Burke bars (still looking for spring steel), a motorcycle fuel tank cut/shut, small fence and some guttering. I need to crack on with the jobs that make me money and not just the ones that make me happy.

I think we're all in the same boat here, things are going to get tight, especially for the self-employed. Due to my rather unusual set of personal circumstances, I am not expecting any sort of hand out, bail out or benefit. I simply don't qualify.

 

[henry Kadzielski]

I would imagine it's a ten second job on a CNC.

That is once you have the dxf file, you need to post process the dxf for the material that you will be using, load the material and let the machine zero itself. Once that is all done then I think that it would take about 15 seconds

If you like send me the dxf and I can get it done for you, I even have some 2mm S/S. Postage could be a problem, only time wise

 

[Screwdriver]

All I am asking for here is for somebody to quote for this job.

 

[pressbrake1]

Just call your local laser cutters, you’ve done the cad file so they can’t sting you for that.
My cutters would charge sub £2 for that though some may have min charge

 

[Screwdriver]

Just call your local laser cutters, you’ve done the cad file so they can’t sting you for that.
My cutters would charge sub £2 for that though some may have min charge

Yes I am doing the rounds now but I thought I'd start here because I won't be having any sort of discussion with an external company. They will just expect me to provide a working CAD file at my own peril. Here I would expect to have a brief flurry of communication which might mean I can get the job done with a relatively speedy turnaround.

 

[cheb]

<Clears throat> I'll declare an interest in this. The bracket is for my TDR250 clocks. My metalworking skills and attention to detail are terrible. Screwdriver, who I consider a very good friend (NB, not just a mate. There's a real distinction between the two) is, IMO, a master of sketchup. I know anything I make will look home made and that's not what I want , I want the bracket to look like it came out of a factory. I could have asked S to do the CAD drawing, send it to me and I ask about getting it cut. The problem is then if I'm asked any questions about the file I'll have to ask S, and then I go back to the cutter to explain. Asking him to design and supply cuts out one set of possible miscommunications and saves a bit of time.

Yes, it might only take him a couple of hours, allowing he has the right material. What if he hasn't? The bracket needs to be 2mm thick, as that's what the factory used and that's what the rubber bushes and screwed fixings are designed round. Any more and it won't fit, any less and it might rattle. How much time does he spend ordering a piece of steel about 150mm square? There could also be any number of reasons why he doesn't want to do it by hand that we aren't privy to.

He could just have searched for a laser cutter on line and send the job to them. Then there's the risk of using a company that produces a piece of scrap rather than something usable. Asking on here possibly keeps money flowing amongst us or to people we know and trust.

HTF has a simple request for a bracket turned into this? Man ask simple question, give man simple answer. Don't suck your teeth and tell him he's wrong.


I'm off for a cuppa.

 

[slim_boy_fat]

I'm off for a cuppa.

Better have a dram instead [although it's a bit early for that]

 

[cheb]

I'm not on the ferry yet. 0930 and they announce the malt of the month offer. Just after what to do if the boat sinks.

 

[Woody.v8]

@cheb I would save you the bother of making the bracket and buy the bike off you very cheaply

Joking apart my mate had a tdr250 and he one day said "here go for a blast" and WOW what a tool they are, very capable little bike!

 

[mtt.tr]

Im happy to redraw as a dxf and send to the guys i use.

As long as dims are correct in the dxf it will be cut to the proper size.

 

[cheb]

@cheb I would save you the bother of making the bracket and buy the bike off you very cheaply

Joking apart my mate had a tdr250 and he one day said "here go for a blast" and WOW what a tool they are, very capable little bike!

The TDR is not going anywhere. I've an R1z I'm getting round to selling, it's the same engine and basically a TZR250 without the fairing.

 

[sg66]

Hope you get this apparently simple bracket sorted, I'm confused as to why it's a big deal for some, I often have things I can do but choose not too.

It keeps others occupied and usually means I can get on with something I would rather be doing, in fact I'm finding I do it more now than I used to up until Mr virus came along, things may change drastically in the diydept

Good luck stick a pic up when you get it done, I would love a small cnc plasma.

 

[Matchless]

I can or would probably be able to do most everything vehicle restoration wise but I chose not to do or learn how to do certain things, I don't build my own wheels, I don't make my own bolts unless a very few special purpose, I don't do my own paintwork as I always had a painter at work, don't want to get back into it now, that may change, I do not do home plating, just too time consuming, I would rather do what I can do happily and enjoy doing, in a jam I can get out of trouble, I have often needed to move a rim across 5mm on a hub to centre it in a frame etc. just because I can does not mean I want to,

 

[Screwdriver]

Thanks for the positive messages, @cheb you're a brave man.

I'll try to keep this on track but I should probably explain a couple of issues. I am self-employed not by choice but due to poor health which means I cannot sign on for unemployment benefit. I have previously been very successful in a number of areas, my expertise is digital video production and Apple Macs generally. Then some "anomalies" were detected growing in my brain when I had an MRI to try and find out why I suddenly lost a quadrant of vision. It also might explain why I am slowly losing the use of my left arm. None of these things qualify me for disability benefit and even if they did, that to me sounds like "giving up". I'm not quite ready to give up yet but I decided not to pursue my career in technology, I went through a stage where I could barely read. I have also lost the ability to ride a motorcycle like a lunatic which I why I have so many bikes rotting in the garage.

It would take most of the guys on here 30-45mins to markout and cut. It will take him longer to go out and pick it up or wait for it. Sat in front of a keyboard talking **Language** on here for hours at a time and complaining they haven’t enough time on their hands Yes it was

One of the reasons I sit here is because I may need to visit a bathroom with something like a 30 second warning. It could be related to demyelination (my immune system is attacking the lining which protects my nerve system), it could be early onset Multiple Sclerosis or just the stress of trying to deal with these issues and an intransigent NHS that wants to see "three confirmed attacks" before they will consider treatment. I don't know if my Christmas heart attack qualifies, they certainly haven't been in any rush. I have been waiting for an MRI for about a year. I am not looking forwards to finding out what those "anomalies" have been up to in the meantime.

I have always been quite "clever" (there, I said it, sorry if that offends) and things which are difficult to some just come naturally to me. I am not saying this to big myself up but sometimes I will say something I think is relatively ordinary yet interesting and be criticised for wanting to show off. Well there are two sides to that story. It might just be something I happen to be interested in which is simple to me or I might happen to be testing my knowledge of difficult scientific issues because I am absolutely terrified my brain is rotting away from the inside.

Anyway, here you go bud, knock it up out of this:

That's what I have to go on. While I could have traced around it onto a sheet of metal, it is a bracket right up at the front of a project where you really want it to look "factory". That was the brief from the "client" so my ambition is to aim for perfect. As for my metalworking ability, this is the first knife I made:

It's from a Sketchup model, printed out, cut from O1 tool steel, all done by hand, angle grinder, hacksaw and file. That is the sort of quality bracket I would aim for and it would take me several hours. Since I have nothing better to do, I am more than happy to spend the time it takes to make up for the skills I lack.

Clearly a CNC would bang out a perfect bracket in a fraction of the time it would take me to even produce a gross outline. While I need the work I also need to do the best thing for the "client" (I'm gonna keep calling you that @cheb ! ) and since I "have to" sit here, I always knock up a Sketchup/.dxf just for fun.

I will be happy to go through the process I use to copy a thing into Sketchup if anyone is interested, meanwhile I would really be interested in hearing from someone in this forum who can just cut this out for me.

 

[mtt.tr]

Is your sketchup to scale I'll use that with the dims given to calibrate the drawing?

 

[Brad93]

If you ping it over as a DWG or DXF I can take a look but I doubt I’ve got any sheet under 3mm thick.