More lathe work

Our lathe is finally getting some good use! This time, a small partHose adapter - work in progress was made from aluminium, a coupling for connecting two pieces of tubing for the water cooling system in the upcoming CNC router project. It will replace the existing temporary hose-and-clamps hack.

A piece of bar stock was clamped in a 4 jaw chuck, made into a
cylinder and turned down to about 16mm diameter. Next we turned half of it down to about 6mm and drilled a 4.5mm hole through it, using a drill chuck. Lastly we smoothed the edges slightly and parted the whole thing off.

The end result is more fIt fits!unctional and looks a lot better!

The whole operation went smoothly in overall retrospection. However, we had few small issues to deal with on the way. Firstly, it wasn’t obvious how to set gearing for the power feed, as the manual wasn’t very clear. Another problem was that the  square shape of stock, required the use of a 4 jaw chuck, which is not self-centring.  That adds a couple of extra steps to set up, as centring of the stock has to be done manually in such a case.

New Gates

IMG_20160709_202133We have a lovey new electric gate installed in out space over the last week. It will make it easier for our members to come and go from the space. Check out all the photos from the install in our gallery.

 

New Internet In The Space

One of the big stumbling blocks of our new space has been the slow internet speed. We have been hit delays in getting a suppler into the space. For the last few months we have been living on 4G mobile broadband only. We are happy to say, we now have proper internet in the space. Ask any member for the key the next time you are in the space. Speed_Test_On_Wired_ConnectionIMG_20160617_202943

Blackpitts Makeover

spruce upThe front of our building is getting a bit of a makeover. Pics here. New cement render on the outside, painting, new bike racks, steps and ramp cleaned up. Inside we’re getting a spruced up entrance lobby, a new entrance door and other works. Drop in and have a look.

Building Works Update

We have been transforming our new space over the last 6 weeks. We now have walls \o/ . Our plan is split over a number of phases, to start off with we are building rooms 1, 2, 3 and a kitchen as outlined in the drawing below.  Room 1 will be our new common room. This will be the most used room in the whole space and the centre of everything. Room 2 will be our new classroom. It will be bookable for special events and courses. Room 3 will be our fabrication room. It will hold things like our laser cutter , 3D printers and so on. Our kitchen will be at the front of the building getting natural light for enjoying a cup of tea.

We have now reopened to the public with our regular group nights, so drop by and check out our new space.

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Photos

Building Our New Common Room

wallsOn Friday, a big pile of timber arrived on our loading bay. On Saturday we turned it into our common room. Well we are a maker space after all!

We built sections on the floor and lifted them into position. If you remember our common room from Chancery Lane…….. well this room will be bigger and warmer too. We’ll be finishing it off over the next week or two and building some other rooms. Pics here.