svpmx83

Thank you Jerry,
This is so interesting to watch I've almost forgotten what it is you intended to make.

Hilton

Bit late to put this forward - but the RHD consoles are a mirror image of the LHD ones.

Will it be possible to unbolt and swap sides of the template to make a RHD one?

Not a big deal if not, as I suspect the number of RHD customers would be somewhere around 5, so not worth catering to

Jerry Feather

Thanks, Steve. Actually that's one of the reasons that I put the trim piece in a couple of the photos--both to show perspective and to help keep us focused.

Jerry Feather

Hi Hilton. From time to time I have seen pictures of the center console in the 928 which tend to show that the center console is not symetrical. However, I have concluded that that is either from poor photography or from some warpage or damage in the car.

My basic assumption is the the center of the center console is in fact symetrical, left to right, so there is no need to try to make a left and right version of this trim piece I am developing. At least I am making the piece symetrical because that is the shape of the one I am using as a pattern.

Am I missing something here, or are you just pulling my chain?

Jerry

Landseer

Jerry, which piece(s) are you making.

The insert that is in your first set of pictures is symetrical.

The console itself, part of which forms the lower dashboard between pod and glove box, plus covers the shifter and holds all the radio and heater gizmos, is not. I would think that large piece would need to be a mirror image for a RHD car.

Are you making the whole console or just the insert piece for 5 spd cars?

Jerry Feather

I am just making the small trim piece that goes around the shifter and the ashtray and has the clock panel in it and which, for the cars with rear AC, has the two AC cointrols. NOT MAKING THE WHOLE CONSOLE!!!! I think I had better start putting the trim piece in more of the pictures because I can see now that the lack of perspective might lead someone to think the form pieces are for the whole thing, since I suppose they look a little like that without perspective. Hope that will help. Jerry

Jerry Feather

I got out to the shop a little earlier today than usual for Sunday and got the handles done that I had hoped to get to yesterday. The first set of pictures shows me cutting the round aluminum bar stock for the handles, then I am turning them to length and drilling them in my lathe. I am also tapping them in the lathe, but just doing that by hand since I am aftraid to try it with the lathe running. I would probably break the tap off and then be screwed.

In fact, yesterday I broke one tap off in one of the stiffeners, but there was enough of it left sticking up that I could put a wrench on it and twist it out. Otherwise I would have had to make another whole piece. I lucked out.

After I fabricated the handles I put them in place and bolted them in. (Those pictures in the next post). I will probably be taking them in and out a few times, but it is kind of nice to see this progress.

You might be able to see that developing this kind of machine the way I am doing it is similar to an organic process. If I had spend the time to draw complete plans, I could probably show that to you, but since most of this is in my head you are going to be able to see it only as it grows.

The first picture simply shows the basic machine as I left it last night, but with the trim piece I am trying to replicate on top of it for perspective. The others show some handle development, except the last two pictures are out of order. The last one shows me turning the end of the bar down and the next to last one showes me drilling the bolt hole.

Jerry Feather

I took this break so I could post these pictures and so I could have a little lunch.

This first picture shows me tapping the threads in the end of the large handle.

Next I have the completed handle instqalled.

Then, I have done essentially the same thing with the little handles which are really not handles but anchor points for latching down the sequence of forming levers that will be developed last.

Finally, I have put the mill vise back on the mill table and trued it up and am cutting the end off of the form side plates because they are about and eighth of an inch too long.

A fifth picture didn't load, so I will do it and the last one, which I think you will like next in another post. Stand by.

Jerry Feather

Here are the last two pictures from this morning.

The first of these two pictures showes me drilling the holes for the upper mounting bolts for the form side plates. Then I had to tap them.

Next shows that I have the side plates bolted by one bolt each and tightened down so I can carefully locate the lower ends for drilling. I think you can see the marker lines I have made which I'll use to locate those holes.

In this last picture I have mocked up what I have made so far with the trim piece pressed onto it sort of. Again, this is to help with perspective so no one else gets the idea the I am going to make a whole new console.

Now I have to get back to work. I am going to try to locate and drill these next two holes to hold the side plates, and I am going to file the upper holes out a little because the upper ends of the side plates are about a sixteenth of an inch too close to each other.

Then I am going to work on the frame for holding the plastic in place for forming.

Jerry Feather

Well, I got a little more done on the forming machine--enough to begin to call it a machine because it now has part of the plastic holding frame which will articulate up and down to pull the plastic over the form and hold it while it is being formed with two other opposing forms. Opposing, in the sense that they will be opposite of the male form that is starting to grow now on the base plate.

The plastic frame, I'll call it, will need some material for clamp-down bars on top of what I have now, and at the foreward end it is going to have a seperate section that will articulate upward as the plastic is pulled down so that the foreward end of the plastic will not stretch too thin in the final forming. The development of this will be fun to watch.

The first of these pictures shows a group of 6 pieces of bar stock that I cut for the handles or frame rails of the three levering devise that this machine is going to have. I cut them all together in the hacksaw which you have seen already and then clamped them together to finish as a group in the mill, at least on the ends and with holes through each end so they are common.

I have decided tentatively to make all of these frame handles the same length, at least until a reason to do otherwise turns up. Also shown is the one piece of cross member that will connect the two sides of the plastic frame.

The second picture has me drilling a multitude of holes in two of the frame rails which will be used for the hold-down bars that will be put on each time the machine is loaded with plastic.

In the third, I have to hand tap threads in each of the holes. Takes quite a bit of time, but the threads sure look nice inside of the holes.

The fourth picture shows the starting assembly of the plastic frame; and the last one shows the frame with the round bar handle that I made in the lathe just like the one on the base plate handle.

OOPS! I forgot to put the trim piece in one of these pictures. Sorry. I'll try to get it back in in the next round.

By the way, I have been anguishing over how I was going to figure and mill the complex angle for the central piece of the male form where the clock is going to be located. That is going to be the next project as soon as I finish with the plastic frame. What I figured out was to cut the side plates of the male form at the top area with a basically flat recess and then bolt the plate for the panel from the top rather than from the sides. Boy, is that going to make things a lot easier. I'll be showing you what I mean by that shortly.

You are also going to be excited to see how I form the plate for the clock panel. That is going to be fun. Begin thinking "fly-cutter."

OH, In case yoiu didn't notice (or actually you can't see) that I have now bolted the male form side plates to the base at both ends. I also filed out the holes at the upper end so they are now at about the correct width. A lot of adjustment can be done with a file and other means. Reminds me of a saying--"Don't force it! Get a bigger hammer!"

Jerry Feather

In case you are wondering about the bar stock I am using on this project, you will notice that it has a funny kind of finish on the edges. What it is is some stock that I found at the salvage place that has apparently been cut off of plate in 3/4 inch strips. It appears to have been cut with some kind of table saw or such. I buy it for $1.50 a pound and it comes in 4 ft lengths. Every time I go buy some salvage I pick up a little of it and now have a pretty good stock. I'll probably keep doing that until I have it all, but, boy, is it handy for these projects and others. It is half inch be 3/4 inch and is just about the right size for a lot of things.

Jerry Feather

P.S. The bar stock is 6061 alloy so it has pretty good strength and is very machinable. JF

Hilton

Nope, I'm just not reading the thread, my bad.

For some reason I read the title as making a new centre console - I skipped the "trim piece" bit

Jerry Feather

No Problem, Hilton.
Actually it gave me notice to post the trim piece more often in the sequence to help those who might be tuning in late to have some better focus without having to read to whole damn thread. I can see how without the trim piece for perspective the forming die I am developing kind of looks like the whole console. Thanks for your interest. Jerry

Jerry Feather

Then too, Hilton, I can see that perhaps I should have been taking into consideration the reverse coreolis effect for those of you in the Southern Hemisphere. I have to wonder now how the plastic might form under that circumstance. Jerry