Great News, New MHM Forum


  • So glad to see this.  We've been waiting quite a while.  Looks great so far.  Nice that there are some subforums.  Looking forward to getting started seriously with making rods using, and in particular with my MHM.  Nice looking interface too.  Very clean and crisp looking. 

    Rick



  • Agree completely, Rick.

    After making 45 rods on planing forms, I inherited a MHM last spring.  One of the early ones.

    Have updated a lot of it, including locating a recent model plane body.  I'm severely handicapperd in the area of spatial relations, but am improving.  I have hordes of questions, many of which have been answered by Matt and Ric and Rick K and the Norlings and Scott Grady. BUT . . .

    I still generate significant gluelines, even after using new scraper blades.  I split, file nodes, soak, press (displace) nodes, straighten, rough, soak, bind into M-D forms and cook.  PID convection oven, 320 F. 2-1/2 hrs, kill the heat and leave the cane in 'til the oven is back at ambient, or nearly so (4-5 hrs total).  I then soak again and plane final.  Most of the gluelines (98-99%) are invisible/nonexistant.  But any is too many.  I have used the MHM on probably 2 culms' worth of unacceptable results (mostly swelled butts), and have definitely made some progress.  Okay, a lot of progress.  I'd like to check out an observation with you experienced users, and that is this:

    When I was using a planing form, the spline I was cutting was indexing off one of the cut sides, either right or left, but not the enamel side.  Given that the MHM design has rotated everything 90 degrees and that the enamel side is "down," i.e., resting on the anvil, it seems to me that enamel side has to be dead flat on the anvil.  I'd be interested to hear whether anyone thinks this is correct, irrelevant, helpful, whatever.

    I have begun to take a lot of additional care with straightening/flattening, even before I rough, and I sight down the apex over the nodes to make sure that apex is straight.  If it isn't, I pull the spline and straighten it before I finish whatever stage of planing I'm at.  Otherwise, I should expect to see one side of the node "dished out," with a correspondingly huge gap at the glueline.  It's made a lot of difference, but the swelled butt still presents glueline problems.  One approach I'm evaluating is to remove a minimal amount of cane (.001-2") during the final planing.  Again, thoughts on this would be most welcome.  I'm a total greenhorn at using this tool, so don't make any assumptions about my knowledge base.

     

    TIA, y'all!

     

    Yaz


  • The MHM has been instrumental in the success of Zia~Rods.  I have clients attending my rod making class just because they will be using the MHM.  This new Forum will be a good avenue for sharing information on the use of the MHM.


  • A couple of replies for Yaz.  This is just based on my experience.

    The enamel side needs to be flat on the anvil in the lengthwise direction over short distances (a broad sweep upwards is normal).  If not, a strip a bit above the anvil will make it thinner there (a coke-bottle effect).  Nodes are the usual source of this problem and it is a "good" way to have a short glue line.

    I plane the final 0.006" in increments of 0.001" - 0.002".  I plane each strip to 0.001" - 0.002" over final and then set the final dimension of the plane and plane all strips to that size without making further adjustments.

    Using a Garrison-like binder, I run the blank twice through (criss-cross binding), roll with straightening boards, and bind the same way over the top of the former binding.  Yes, the result is a lot of binding thread on the blank, but even the tiniest glue lines close up.  I bind at quite low tension, with less tension for tips than for butts.

    Tim


  • @Tim Anderson Thanks, Tim, as always!  Hadn't really considered the double bind, but I'll do it. 

    That aside, I do pretty much what you're describing. I don't see much of a need to knock down the apex, as the geometry of handmill has automatically accounted for that. I am paying more attention to bearing down on the plane, as part of my latest kiss-the-anvil campaign!

     

    Thanks, again, Tim!


  • Well, my strips have no apex because of hollow fluting the entire length.  However, I strongly recommend knocking down the apex.  I do that to measure the height of the strips while planing and have had misleading measurements where I have forgotten to remove the apex or not remeoved it adequately.  I use a small bullnosed plane to take off the "chimney" because it leaves the strip clean and gives a uniform result.

    Tim


  • Can anyone tell me how to create a new topic? I can reply to a post but I don't see any way to start anything new.


  • @Mike Falduto 

    At the main forum page, there does not seem to be a way to create a topic. 

    Main Forum Page

    It appears one must be in a topic subforum in order to start a new topic. 

    Topic Sub Forum Page


  • Thanks Rick. But I don't have that blue "Create topic" link. I've tried to see it on 3 devices and it's just blank there. Nothing but white space. I've tried multiple subforums also. I'm logged in and my name shows at the top of the screen indicating I'm logged in and I can reply as I'm doing here but there is no link to create a topic. I have not tried a non-Apple device. Only iPhone, IPad, and MacBook. Anyone else have this issue? I'm sorry if this isn't the subforum to discuss this but since I can't start a new topic I figured this was best for the question to be seen. I did send an email to TMR asking how to start a new topic too but I haven't heard back yet.

    Mike


  • Screen shot:


  • That is very curious.  I've only accessed the forum on a non-Apple deviceI, so no clue on if it is an Apple related quirk.  I think its an issue for the forum moderator/administrator.  Wait, there doesn't seem to be one.  I think this is a time for a call to Matt Barber at TMR.

    Rick


  • Thanks. I've already emailed Matt. I'll try from my son's PC to test whether it's my devices or my account.


  • I am on an Apple machine and see the Create Topic button when in the "Morgan Hand Mill" subtopic.  So at least it might not be an Apple problem.

    Tim


  • Thanks for confirming that Apple devices work Tim. I'm thinking there's something wrong with my account privileges. I'm still curious if others have the same issue. I'll wait to hear back from Matt.

    Mike


  • Thanks for setting up the forum.

    Don


  • Agreed & thank you ! Great to see the forum up and running strong.

    FWIW- my account & also apple mac computer, does not show the create a new topic button either.

     

    Looking forward to some great content and connectins!


  • I saw a couple of tips at the beginning of this thread and want to add something, although I'm wondering if anyone is really reading anything from here as all the posts look older than 6 months. The last few rods, over the last few years, I've noticed that I need to go back and readjust the sides of my plane to get it a closer to centered, in relation to the cutters. This solves a scooping problem that tend to get at the nodes when the sides are centered with respect to the cutters. I had one of the older planes until two years ago and that one did not have adjustable sides and I never had that problem with that plane, but did have a problem with the head slipping down the adjustment screw and that's why I bought a new one. Also, the hardstop on the new one doesn't work as well as I thought it would.


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