Chapter XV: Part IV: Tools and Appliances (6)

=425.= =General Observations.= When cutters are used with steel they must be driven at a less velocity than when cutting brass, and, as M. A. Phillippe has observed, it is best to make the cutters for steel of small diameter (about half an inch). They are more easily made and are less distorted in the hardening. The velocity should diminish as the diameter increases; for too great a velocity, especially when the diameter is great, will dull the cutter and soften it, owing to the heat produced.

Cutters must be turned very true: it is advisable to give them a last stroke with the graver after they are fitted to the cutter-arbor that will subsequently carry them.

When operating on steel it is best that the cutter frame of the wheel-cutting engine be advanced by a screw so as to give it a slow and easy motion; the results obtained are more satisfactory than when it is advanced by hand or with a lever.

The following practice is not uncommon in factories when it is desired to reproduce the exact form of a cutter. A notch is made with the cutter in the edge of a piece of steel, X, Fig. 211, or a series of notches _o o′_, etc., can be made by several cutters in the circumference of a disc Z (same figure). After being hardened and sharpened at the cutting edge, this disc is fixed at the center of the division-plate of a wheel-cutting engine, and can then be used to complete the grooving of any cutter that is set in position on the cutter-arbor before hardening. The positions opposite to which the notches were cut should be marked on the chuck, so that they may always be set-square to the cutter.

=426.= Besides the forms of cutter above described for operating on steel, we may mention that circular cutters may be used in which all the notches around the circumference have been polished, thus removing the burr, and preventing them from acting in the manner of a file. But while, with the former kind, a somewhat rapid rotation is necessary (although not so rapid as when cutting brass), with this latter class the movement must be comparatively slow, and produced by means of a hand-wheel; otherwise they will not cut, since the action depends rather on the application of pressure, and resembles that of a slide-rest cutter. The distance apart and width of the teeth of the cutter, as well as their inclination, are of importance; if too far apart they occasion a waste of time; if too large the machine will act in a jerky manner, and when too narrow, an excessive pressure will be needed in order to make the cutter bite the steel, which, it is to be observed, must always be thoroughly annealed. The edge must be well supplied with oil or soapy water when in action.

It is generally found best to advance the cutter against the edge of the steel rather than across it.

TOOL FOR MAKING CUTTERS.

=427.= The instruments usually employed for making cutters for the teeth of wheels and pinions are complicated and expensive, but the author has designed one for his own use that is comparatively simple, and can be made by any watchmaker. When the reader has grasped the principle on which it acts he will be able, without difficulty, to modify it so as to suit his requirements.

The frame B B _b_, Figs. 212 and 213, consists of the body of the tool, B B, and a bar _b b_, which is attached to it by screws. Between the two the division-plate P rotates on an axis E R. The end E of this axis is formed as a chuck to receive the cutter _f_, which is clamped by a screw _t_.

The support S _s_ J is held with friction in the lower part of this frame, to carry the cutter-holder A L M. This cutter-holder is hinged at _n_, so that it can receive a double motion, revolving about a horizontal axis J, and about an inclined axis _n_.

The portion A L of the cutter-holder carries a perforated arbor _a c_, with a ferrule _c_ that receives the tail of the small rose-cutter, which will presently be described.

The end M rests against a guide G, held by a vane _o z_, which is pivoted on a pillar _z_, and can be clamped in either of the directions _z y_, _z x_, or by one of the screws _o_, _o_.

=428.= We will now consider the mode of action of the machine. Having set the little arbor _c a_ in rotation, rest the end M of the arm against the guide, and gradually advance the rose-cutter towards _f_; the edge of _d_ will form the first notch in the grooved rim of the cutter, and then will be raised from contact with it, owing to the influence of the guide G. After moving the tool-holder back to its initial position, advance the wheel P by a tooth, repeat the operation, and so on.

=429.= If the cutter _f_ has to be notched on both sides, it must be reversed on the chuck; turn the guide so as to point in the direction _z x_, corresponding exactly to _z y_; then having set the cutter-holder in the line _z h_, recommence operations. The two grooves of the cutter will then necessarily be of similar form.

Teeth can be cut on the rim of _f_ by using a cutter of the form F, Fig. 214, and holding M against a straight vertical guide.

With a given divided wheel, P, the teeth can be brought nearer together by reducing the diameter of the cutter, and _vice versa_. It is well to have some change wheels, but a better plan is to advance the division plate by the aid of a tangent screw.

=430.= =To Make the Several Accessories.= _Form of the rose or star-cutter._ The rose-cutter is formed of a mushroom-headed piece of steel. Such a conical cutter is shown at C and R, Fig. 215, and at F, Fig. 214. F and C are cut in the same way that conical cutters are always made, and R is a small triangular prism that only cuts by its three corners, _a_, _a_, _a_. As it is necessarily very small when employed in making the cutters for watch pinions, it must, in such a case, be supported at the neck by a little fork. Moreover, it must be brought gradually against the steel to be operated upon, so as only to engage a very little at a time. With a view to this, it is advisable that the cutter-holder be advanced by a screw.

The star-cutter, shown at E, Fig. 216, is at times substituted for the rose-cutter. It cuts with the corners _e_, _e_, etc., whether it be going to the right or left indifferently. Or a triangular cutter like T, Fig. 216, can be used in its place; but its angles are fewer and less acute, so that they become dull more rapidly.

A few trials will be needed in order to determine the most convenient rate of movement of the several parts; and the edge of the cutter _f_ must always be liberally supplied with oil. A little can may be so arranged as to allow oil to fall drop by drop on to the cutter _d_, Fig. 213.

=431.= _To make the guide._ Having mounted a plate, G, on the vane _o z_, trace out the approximate form of the cutter with the point of M; then cut off the superfluous metal, leaving a slight margin. This excess is necessary because the curvature of the guide is not the same as that of the cutter, for the indentations as they spread out from the center (_t_) become gradually deeper. The guide should be tested from time to time by operating on a blank brass disc fixed in place of the cutter _f_ and the guide must be modified as experience shows to be requisite. Its edge must be saddle-shaped so that the middle may correspond exactly with the two dotted lines _z x_, _z y_, Fig. 213.

The position of the disc on the chuck _t_ must be brought to correspond with the guide by carefully turned washers placed behind it.

=432.= _Driving attachment._ Fig. 217 shows one system that may be adopted for connecting the ferrule C with a driving wheel. All that is required is that the instrument be set in such a position that this ferrule is placed as indicated in the figure with reference to the distributor.

=433.= _Cutters of uneven thickness at the circumference._ It is well-known that the edges of the cutters of rounding-up tools (=435=) are made to taper off around the periphery. In order to indent such a cutter, the guide must be mounted on a slide, so that it may be gradually displaced while the operation is in progress, by an amount previously determined upon.

The desired result can be obtained with sufficient accuracy by moving the guide backwards by successive stages with a screw. The end _k_ of the arm M, Fig. 213, is slightly tapered, so that a gradual depression of M occurs, and each cut is deeper than that which preceded it.

=434.= _Modification in the construction._ This instrument may be modified as follows: The disc to be operated upon is fitted to the chuck of the division-plate D, Fig. 218, which is vertical, and the entire system is capable of a movement of rotation round the axis of the base P. Having set the disc in the plane _a b_, as shown in the figure, clamp P; then, by traversing the cutter-holder, the teeth on the side of the cutter towards _a b_ are made. This cutter frame having now been removed, the base P is turned until the cutter is in the plane _c n_, such that it is equally inclined on the opposite side of the axis of the cutter frame; the teeth on that side may then be made, the star-cutter being rotated in an opposite direction.

It is unnecessary to prolong our explanations of the instrument, as the details already given will suffice for any intelligent workman.

TOOLS FOR CORRECTING THE FORM OF TEETH.

=435.= =Rounding-up Tools.= In Europe it is the practice, in making watch wheels, to first notch the circumference by means of a flat circular cutter in a wheel cutting engine, thus forming a number of square teeth. They are subsequently rounded off to the usual form, after the wheels are riveted to their pinions, in a special tool.

The apparatus employed for this purpose is termed a rounding up tool, and its principal feature is a mill cutter F, Fig. 219, the portion _a b_ of whose circumference is cut away and replaced by a guide _g f_ made of steel spring, and so fixed as to coincide with the edge of the cutter at _f_, and incline at _g_ in order to compel the cutter to pass, at each rotation, into consecutive spaces of the wheel. Two screws are provided, the one _f_ for setting the guide opposite the edge of the cutter, and _g_ for placing the free end of the guide opposite to a space.

This tool acts with great rapidity, a fact which has led to its being very extensively used in the factories of France and Switzerland, although the ordinary system of wheel cutting is preferred in England for all the better class of work. For it should be noted that the rounding up tool does not correct any errors that are due to bad dividing; for example, if a wheel is found to have some of its teeth larger than others, the tool can not be relied upon to correct them; on the other hand, if a wheel is exactly divided it is improbable that the employment of this tool will occasion irregularity.

The instrument we are discussing is, however, not much used by watch repairers, although they are frequently called upon to touch up the teeth of wheels, or to slightly reduce the diameters of their pitch circles, operations which cannot be done by hand with much chance of success. The limited use to which rounding-up tools have been put is owing, in great part, to their high price, but cheaper tools on this principle are now coming into use.

=436.= One of these is shown in Fig. 220. The wheel to be operated upon is held against a small table at D between two vertical runners with guard-pivot centers, and a cutter of the form shown at Fig. 219, is fixed at C to a suitable chuck of a small lathe-head B; this is caused to revolve by the hand-wheel A, a supplementary pulley K taking all strain off the axis. The three milled-headed nuts seen at E, F, and G are for adjusting the instrument; E for moving the lathe-head, so that the cutter is in the same plane as the axis of the runners, a position which is determined by the pointer I; F for advancing the wheel against this cutter; and G for setting the plane of the wheel to pass through the axis of the lathe-head as indicated by the index H. The instrument is accompanied by a number of cutters to suit the various sizes of teeth ordinarily met with, as well as of tables to support wheels of different dimensions.

=437.= =Ingold Fraise or Cutter.= =Rounding-up Cones.= Either the cutters devised by M. Ingold, or the rounding-up cones of M. Berlioz, may be used for correcting the form of wheel teeth.

The Ingold fraise is a small steel cylinder perforated through the axis so as to be mounted on an arbor, and having a number of longitudinal notches on its circumference which makes it resemble a pinion, the points of whose leaves have been ground off. The spaces of the fraise are of the exact form required to be given to the teeth of the wheel, and their surfaces are covered with fine file cuts so as to enable them to remove metal from the wheel operated on.

Having mounted the arbor that carries it between two centers of a depthing tool (made especially strong for the purpose), the wheel is supported by its axis between the second pair of centers (with guard-pivot points). If now the fraise be advanced by the screw until its teeth engage with those of the wheel, and either be caused to rotate, it will drive the other, and the fraise will thus shape the teeth to a pre-determined form, the faces of each notch acting the part of a minute file introduced between the teeth.

It will be observed that such an instrument is preferable to the ordinary rounding-up tool, in that it may be relied upon to bring all the teeth to the same shape, but, on the other hand, the latter tool has an advantage in being available for slightly reducing the diameter of a wheel when a depth is found to be too strong.

=438.= An objection has been urged against the Ingold fraises on the ground of expense, as each dimension of tooth evidently requires a cylinder specially adapted to it. This fact has led to the introduction of “rounding-up cones” the invention of M. Berlioz, which act on precisely the same principle, but are conical instead of cylindrical, so that each fraise evidently takes the place of a number of Ingold fraises. The total number being proportionately reduced. But great dexterity is required in their use, so that they cannot be successfully employed until after numerous trials.

=439.= =Exact Rounding-up Tool.= The author has devised an instrument for giving to the teeth of wheels the exact form determined upon by theory, but as it is of too elaborate a nature to come into general use, we shall not do more than here refer to it. It is rather of a nature to be used for scientific work, but might be found of considerable value for accurately forming the blades of cutters that are used in grooving the circular cutters employed for cutting the teeth of wheels.

=440.= =To Round Up Teeth By Hand.= We have seen a country watchmaker proceed somewhat as follows: His method was only effective, however, for ensuring the verticality of the file, and did not maintain it straight, nor could the curvature of all the teeth be relied upon to be the same; these two conditions are satisfied by the system here explained.

Formerly watchmakers possessed very considerable skill in this kind of work, as the teeth were always formed by hand; but at the present day, for want of practice, there is not one to be found in a hundred competent to round up a wheel properly by hand alone. Recourse may be had to the following expedient in an emergency; it necessitates the construction of a small special tool, but this is so simple that it can be made in a few hours by an apprentice.

=441.= Take a bar of metal or hard wood, made smooth on its faces and square at the corners (R, Fig. 221), and adapt to it a slide, _c c_, through the center of which a slot is cut to receive a clamping screw; it slides between the four pins indicated in the figure. An arbor _a_ is supported by _c c_, parallel to R, having a plate at its end on which a wheel to be operated on can be fixed by three screws and a loose plate. It is centered by the circumference before clamping these screws, rotating _a_ with a bow, and it may be well to place a piece of tissue paper under and over the wheel in order to avoid scratches. V is a tongue that can be introduced into the space between two teeth in order to prevent the wheel from moving.

Two arms, _p p_, screwed to the bar R R, support the handle of the rounding-up file _l_, which consists of a large cylinder _t_, _t_, that slides in the arms _p_, _p_. The cylinder T must be exactly parallel to the arbor _a_, and the longer it is the better. The file-holder _s_, also shown detached at Y, Fig. 222, is merely driven onto the rod _t_. The distance between the center of the axis _t_ and the face of the file (_b b′_, Fig. 222) is equal to the radius of the circle that embraces the external curves of two or more teeth, as will be explained.

The several parts being arranged as shown in Fig. 221, and the bar clamped in a vise at E, it will be obvious that, if the wheel is held in two fingers of the left-hand so as to prevent it from being displaced, while the rod T is moved up and down, at the same time rotating it with the right-hand, the curves of two teeth will be adjusted to correspond with the arc _o o o_ (Z, Fig. 223), and, by transferring the tongue V to the next succeeding space, the curve _i i i_ can be struck.

=442.= _Observations._ The curvature of the point of a tooth coincides very closely with a circular arc described from a certain definite center, and comprising either two or three teeth. In order to realize these conditions in practice, the slide _c c_ is so adjusted that the axis of T passes just within the circle that passes through _o_, _o_, _o_, etc. (Z, Fig. 223), at which the points of the teeth commence; by making trials with two or three file-holders that differ in regard to the distance _b b′_ (Y, Fig. 223), it will be easy to select the most suitable for producing the required curve. After operating on all the teeth in succession, advance the wheel by means of the screw D, and again work around the circumference, and so on. The progress of the work should be frequently examined with the glass.

It is possible to dispense with the tongue V, and to merely steady the wheel by hand; the work is thus done more rapidly, but must be examined with very great care.

We would insist that the lengths of the two axes are an element of success. In operating on watch wheels T should not be less than six inches long.

By suppressing the tongue the motion of the two axes may be co-ordinated so as to form any theoretical curve; This is the case in the exact rounding-up tool already referred to, but it of course renders the instrument more complicated.

=443.= =To Ease a Train of Wheels.= In very many of the cheaper watches and timepieces now met with in commerce the teeth are rough and badly cut, and the pinions but little polished, so that watchmakers are constantly complaining of the difficulty of securing even a moderately good depth. In such cases they have a simple method to adopt in addition to those already referred to, namely, to polish the teeth with a piece of charcoal.

A piece of smooth, even charcoal, with regular fibre, is moistened with oil or water, and passed across the teeth individually; first with the fibres lying in the direction of motion, and afterwards with them at right angles to that direction.

If the charcoal is carefully selected and lightly applied for a sufficient length of time and no more, the ogives will be found to be nicely smoothed, and the depth will run far more easily than it did previously. It is dangerous to use quick-cutting charcoal, as it is apt to deform the teeth.

Smoothing with a brush charged with charcoal powder cannot be regarded as anything more than cleaning; if the action is too much prolonged the form of the teeth will be spoilt.

TO TEST THE ACCURACY OF CERTAIN TOOLS.

=444.= =Drilling Tool.= First center the runner in the lathe, and ascertain that it is straight, cylindrical, and exactly centered; then fit a ring to it so as to slide with friction to (temporarily) limit the descent of this runner in the vertical stock of the tool.

After placing it in position, adapt to its lower end a collar, provided with a long index of soft brass, which is bent so as almost to touch the plate at its circumference. Rotate the runner and it will be shown to be perpendicular to the plate if the point of the index remains at the same distance from the plate.

As a confirmatory test the runner may be drawn up in the stock, and the trial repeated after bending the index nearly to touch the plate.

=445.= =Uprighting Tool.= If the two stocks or tubes that receive the runners are exactly in line, a runner should move easily through the two at once.

Setting the points in contact in various positions in a vertical line, observe whether they coincide, both when at rest and when rotated together or independently.

First ascertain that the table is at right angles to the axis in the manner already explained for the drilling tool, making the necessary tests with the two runners independently. Then support between their points a short arbor carrying a soft brass index. The position of the lower runner being maintained constant by means of a collar as above explained, rotate the upper one by hand; its friction will carry the index and arbor around, the point of this latter being set close to the plate. Repeat the operation by raising the pair of runners and bending the index down to the same amount.

If in these various positions the point remains at the same distance from the table, it affords evidence that the tool is accurate.

An uprighting tool consists of two parts: the table carrying the lower stock, and the bridge that forms the upper stock. The base of this latter is a ring turned flat and co-axial with the stock, and is fitted accurately into a square groove surrounding the table, where it is fixed by screws.

Any watchmaker understanding this mode of construction will easily perceive when he has tested the tool in the manner above indicated, both what are its faults and how far he can correct them.

=446.= The English uprighting and drilling tools, and some of foreign construction, are combined on the same stand, and a good arrangement, made by Boley, is shown in Fig. 224. It will be seen that the drill can be set in motion by a hand or foot-wheel; the table is fixed in a vise and provided with two dogs for clamping the object. The drilling spindle is perforated throughout its length so that the drill can be held by an American split chuck.

=447.= =Depthing Tool.= As the value of a depth depends essentially on the overlapping of the teeth being the exact amount required by theory, it is specially important that the tool used for determining the distance between the centers of the wheels and pinions should be of the utmost attainable accuracy.

First ascertain that the spindle which serves as an axis for the two halves of the tool does not change position when they have been several times separated and brought together. For, if this were to happen, and a runner were uneven or the hinge not smoothed within, the parallelism of the two pairs of runners would be impaired.

The runners must be of equal thickness throughout, and should pass with ease from one head to that opposite. Their points and center holes must be seen to be in good condition, and, on placing them in their turns, they must be found to be both true and cylindrical. Having restored them to their places with the points together, move the pair lengthwise from one head to the other, examining the points in successive positions to ascertain that they coincide accurately, both when the runners are loose and when clamped. When the adjustment has been carelessly done the runners will be found to bend under pressure, causing the points to be displaced.

Having set two runners side by side and level, describe with them circular arcs on a smooth piece of brass from centers previously marked, first with the points just projecting from the heads and then projecting more and more. These tests may be made both within and without the tool; so that there will be four sets of tests in all.

It is very important in making the last-named trials, that the tool be maintained at right angles to the plate on which the circular arcs are traced; this condition can easily be satisfied by a special device, or by merely causing the compass to slide along a set-square. It may be added that the series of arcs should be drawn end to end, in order that it may be easier to observe their agreement or difference when examining with the glass.

=448.= When this series of tests has been gone through, and the points have been examined so as to make sure that there is no burr which bends over while tracing the arcs, it is possible to determine the value of the tool; we know whether it is perfect or not, and what corrections are required. As a rule there are two points mainly at fault; the holes in the heads are not exactly continuations the one of the other, so that they need to be broached out afresh and new runners have to be made. A careful and intelligent workman who is provided with suitable tools will be able, from the information given in this work, to correct, or at least improve, a defective depthing tool; but, as a rule, it will be better done by the maker.