Surface Plate Reconditioning Moore Pattern Scraping

Hi Tom was the plate Blanchard Ground or Surface Ground? Which is correct?

it’s a beauty!

I didn't know what you just did or why. But i noticed you didn't give it the chop hands treatment during it's spa day. I don't think that's actually relevant. This is all for the algorithm.

WHY...!...!.!..? why would leveling stoning knicks give you better results... your granite table is probably fucked too if you resort to these stupid methods......................

Thank you! Great job!!

So you start with an old large plate and then end up with the little one on top when you're done? ha. That took a large surface grinder to refinish. The scraping you did was really cool.

so how many times did you have to scrape this plate? i thought that you would need to scrape once then use dye to find the high and scrap again.

Very neat job 👍

This would be a cool kitchen knife finish

What is the reason you hand scraped the surface plate after it was surface ground? I know if done accurately surface grinding can achieve a flatness of a mere 1-2 micrometers, which is excellent flatness for a precision surface plate. And on top of that surface grinding will yield a much more even surface, while it seems hand scraping produces thousands of little gouges so that isn't as nicely flat. Is there a reason why hand scraping is preferred for cast iron surface plates, over precision surface grinding?

Can someone tell me where I can buy scraper blades? I can monster garage a scraper, but the blades obviously contain the magic that I need.... I cant spend $100.... Please help

I'm also a manufacturer of Cast iron surface plate, anvil, sine bar, straight edge, hammer, tong, v block, angle plate and other items related to cast iron

But, why?

that is just insane o.O but beautiful .... damn it look so time consuming :/

I've looked for these scrapers with the removable attachment and can't find any, can you recommend a source?

It looks very nice. But what's the purpose of this scrapping if the grinding is OK in first place?

yeah....I still don't get it ;/

Hi Tom, greetings from Oswaldtwistle in Lancashire England, whilst serving my time in the tool room at a Royal Ordnance Factory in the 60s my mentor on the fitting benches decided it was time to learn how to scrape “swallowtails” on a surface plate but first of all I had to make a scraper out of an old 10” bastard file. The end had to be hammered into a flange shape, hardened and tempered then ground and sharpened on an oil stone, it took me quite a while to get the hang of it but like sharpening twist drills you never ever forget how to do it. It was a pleasure to watch a craftsman make it look so easy. People have asked why scrape patterns? My old mentor said it was to stop instruments like scribing blocks “ringing” to the plate, there may be an element of truth in it but personally I think it looks professional and aesthetically pleasing.

Nice-looking curl scraping. Used to be quite common back when, but hard to find today.

I have that wilton vise! Found it at a yard sale for 5 dollars

Great show, as usual, Tom.

Work of art and so cool to watch!

so it was just for the look ... and oil pockets i guess?

It's a beautiful pattern, somewhere between leather and...

It's embarassing to admit, but I've a real nice scraper in my mechanic's tool box since the '80's, when I bought it at a grage sale for a couple of bucks, cause it looked like a good gasket scraper.

It wasn't a very good gasket tool, too easy for the carbide to gouge the cast iron deck, or head surface, so it went unused for the last 30+ years.

I just learned what it was, this Winter, watching This Old Tony work on his surface grinder.

Thanks, Tom...

God I hated scraping when I was doing my trade

Mr Lipton, Have you seen an electric scraper that does the hook pattern? Or the natural frequency of steel causes chatter and does not permit it? Because besides going in and out the blade has to go up and down and side to side. I guess one could make it to move slow to prevent chatter. Would be nice.. to set up a cnc table and have it go in a grid pattern. That is after grinding the surface, so it is flat to begin with.

A little shiatsu massage for your surface plate never hurts!

When I started my apprenticeship in 1966, scraping was a part of it. What has been shown here seems to be the final operation of cutting frost marks or flaking used for oil retention on a bearing surface. The main reason for cutting these on a surface plate is eye candy.

That pattern looks real close the one shown in 'Foundations Of Mechanical Accuracy' Tom. Well done mate! :)

Ive just got a TFY Bridgepost copy and the ways are scraped like this but very wide spacings. I thought is was just a quick Taiwan job, but now im quite pleased with it

Takes a while to get those curls and avoid the wrist locking up ! Nicely done Tom' loved the short sequence where you adjusted lighting / contrast - it made the pattern pop out. Its interesting to see your approach to laying down the regular pattern of curls / marks - Ive been trying to reproduce smaller curls (say 1/4" tail to tail) while maintaining the scoop and width - tighter if you will. That creates a much more dense PPI and scrape depth - its murder on the hands until you get it right .. by which time the carbide is blunt and you start again :-) All the best Mat

Great pattern, thanks for sharing!

Nice work Tom. Can you tell me what brand your aprons are?

BigT
I’m ready to be a pig and eat loaf meat

How do I purchase one of the little surface plates that you sell??

You make it look easy

Wait, that is art !!! I think I drooled. Thanks for sharing

Your scraping has a nice rhythm.

Nice job Tom. I generally find scraping will improve even a well ground surface due to the inherent limitations of grinding (heat/fixturing distortion/etc), especially on something like this. You don't mention spotting it after scraping, but it would be interesting to see how it compared to what you thought was "flat" to begin with.

I think some of the comments here reflect that some may not appreciate that ground surfaces don't spot well, nor do they make good surface plates.

Really, really super nice Tom! Really a work of art, I'm sure she'll cherish it :) Also, great work on the camera angles. I slowed it down to 0.25 speed in the close-up stroke shots to really study the stroke and immediately went out into the garage to give it another try. Sure enough, I'm starting to make crescent-like marks now. Thanks very much for that; it's really hard to pick up the stroke from descriptions, but seeing it in slow-mo like that (along with the cool sound at that speed) really helped me improve :)

I thought scraping was used to develop a flat or true surface and frosting was for a decorative pattern after scraping. I would have considered this frosting?

THIS is the reason why Robots will NOT replace a Skilled Craftsman!! Absolutely brilliant video on how precision machinery is made!! STILL Dumbfounded!! I think you enjoyed playing in the "shmoo" a bit too much, however, my friend!! Good stuffs!!

Just watched Screwballs Jackass eating onions Video. Was wondering I read somewhere that back when these were new people used pure tungsten. Can these Synchrowaves run the newer lanthanotid and thoriated electrodes?

I did not see it compared to a certified granite plate for flatness. I wonder what Keith Rucker has to say about this scraping?

Awesome video as usual. Random question: Do you know where Tom's Techniques went? I headed over there from your recommended channels, and love the channel just like yours. Seems he dropped off the map a year ago? Just wondering if you new what happened. Keep up the great work, I appreciate all you do. I have learned so much from you and a few others on here, I can not thank you guys enough.

In the UK, or where I served my time, this is called "Frosting", it is normally performed after scraping flat, to hide the scraping marks, yes, it is also provides pockets for lubrication, and a depression for contaminants to reside. I would be most surprised that a large ground surface would pass as being flat, but, it may well be fit for purpose depending on its intended use.
Still a good example of the art.

He scrapes at the rythm of "Lion Jungle" A wimba way-a wimba way-a wimba way...

I thing Carla got her surface plate, framed it, and hung it on the wall....

I think once you get into the "zone", scraping can be very theraputic and good for the soul.
Great camera work. At college in the UK we learned scraping on our own surface plates. But they were 6x8".....
Regards from NE Thailand