Alternatives to an Optical Breadboard?

[Deanimator]

While I'd like to get an optical breadboard onto which I can mount my Wemacro, subject stand and lights, reasonable priced ones are still pretty expensive.

As I'd rather invest the money in enlarger lenses and microscope objectives (and possibly a new table), can anyone recommend an alternative? Perhaps a thick wooden cutting board?

In theory, I could make something from a bare metal plate, but while I have a cheap tap and die set, I don't have a drill press.

Any suggestions would be appreciated.

[mawyatt]

Harbor Freight has a cheap drill press for about $70. I've used it for some semi-precision work like drilling holes to mount THK KR20 onto a Thor sliding clamp, and modifying a ARCA rail to bolt to the THK KR20. It's certainly not a precision tool, but with care and time can do a decent job for these kind of uses.

One property you want in a bench is mass, the more the better. Stiffness is another to help with common mode vibration attenuation.

A large metal plate should serve well, you could drill lots of 1/4 by 20 tapped holes for mounting various things. My bench has these on 1" squares, but it's 1/2" thick aluminum, so still pretty heavy.

A 1/4" thick steel plate ~1' by ~3' would be a good base to start from, and probably not that expensive if you can find a local machine shop, they may have some scrap Aluminum or Steel plates. If you get them to drill and tap the holes this will drive the cost up, thus DIY might be a good option for the tapped holes.

Best,

Mike

[Deanimator]

Harbor Freight has a cheap drill press for about $70. I've used it for some semi-precision work like drilling holes to mount THK KR20 onto a Thor sliding clamp, and modifying a ARCA rail to bolt to the THK KR20. It's certainly not a precision tool, but with care and time can do a decent job for these kind of uses.

One property you want in a bench is mass, the more the better. Stiffness is another to help with common mode vibration attenuation.

A large metal plate should serve well, you could drill lots of 1/4 by 20 tapped holes for mounting various things. My bench has these on 1" squares, but it's 1/2" thick aluminum, so still pretty heavy.

A 1/4" thick steel plate ~1' by ~3' would be a good base to start from, and probably not that expensive if you can find a local machine shop, they may have some scrap Aluminum or Steel plates. If you get them to drill and tap the holes this will drive the cost up, thus DIY might be a good option for the tapped holes.

Best,

Mike

Well, I can certainly afford a cheap drill press now. I had thought about getting one of the Harbor Freight ones, but questioned whether I was better off buying a mini-mill. It's much more expensive, but much more versatile and far better quality.

My problem is that I live in a two bedroom apartment and I've only got so much room for tools before I run out of room for photographic gear.

I'm going to put out on the local firearms forum if anybody knows a good place in this area to pick up scrap steel or aluminum plates.

I have a couple of friends with drill presses, one of whom who actually knows how to use one. Unfortunately, his garage is so full of junk that he literally can't get to it. The other friend probably has access to his, but knows way less about machining and metal working.

[mawyatt]

I'm certainly no machinist!! With a little care and lots of time you can do decent work with this cheap drill press. Make sure it's set for vertical in all directions, don't believe the indicator use a right angle. Make the adjustments and use shims as necessary to get the drill travel as close to vertical as possible.

Use a center punch to mark the spot for the holes. In soft aluminum a nail works OK....just file the end to a point. I'll get a proper center punch next time I'm at HF though. Get the proper drill bit and tap for 1/4-20, or get the HB drill kit and tap kit (what I did).

If you use an aluminum base, just drill slow and take your time. If steel then you might need some drilling oil to help the drill and keep drill tip temperature down. You can get a deburring tool or just use a much larger drill (what I did) to remove the burs and make the holes look good and be somewhat smooth.

For the tap take your time and clean the threads often, oil may be required if steel.

It's not hard to do, just be patient. Now I have the ability to make or modify things as I need, where before I fumbled with a hand drill and the results were not very good!!

I know the proper machinist here are going to cringe at this, but I don't have access to a local machinist, so made do with what I had available..namely myself!!

Best,

Mike

[Chris S.]

Deanimator,

The fabricator I use is 67 minutes away from Rocky River, according to Google Maps. His charges are modest and his work is excellent. He'll work with the metal of your choice, and in many cases has something in his scrap box that can be used for your project. If so, he'll charge you what he'd get if selling it as scrap, rather than the rate for new material.

His name is Don Wilson, and his contact info--and examples of his work--are in my Bratcam post.

If you go with steel (which I prefer), and want to have it powder coated, I can give you contact info for getting that done locally, though I'd have to do a bit of digging. This process is also not particularly expensive.

This said, using your friend's drill press isn't a bad option, either. Watch a few Youtube videos and practice on some scrap pieces, and you'll find that drilling/tapping aluminum is pretty easy. A couple of years ago, I needed a trailer to carry a 10-foot-long tricycle. Could have asked Don to make it, but decided to have a go myself. I initially found drilling steel to be very frustrating, but after I got the knack, found it enjoyable. (I wasn't pushing hard enough, at first--was effectively grinding through the steel, instead of cutting it.) Tapping steel is, as in the case of aluminum, pretty easy.

--Chris S.

[Deanimator]

Deanimator,

The fabricator I use is 67 minutes away from Rocky River, according to Google Maps. His charges are modest and his work is excellent. He'll work with the metal of your choice, and in many cases has something in his scrap box that can be used for your project. If so, he'll charge you what he'd get if selling it as scrap, rather than the rate for new material.

His name is Don Wilson, and his contact info--and examples of his work--are in my Bratcam post.

Thanks for the lead.

How much do you think a 12" x 36" plate with some 1/4"-20 tapped holes would run?

[mawyatt]

Chris,

Mr Wilson has certainly done some beautiful work on your Bratcam! What a great asset to have locally!! Even with shipping cost he might be worth using remotely.

Best,

Mike

[Smokedaddy]

I jumped in here because someone just asked me the cost of a 3/4" thick, 12" wide by 24" long piece of 6061 aluminum. Ordering on-line will be super expensive along with shipping (actually unacceptable from my perspective). If you are lucky you might have a supplier locally like I do, Industrial Metals, incredible place. They sell by the pound and charge by the cut. They also sell remnants. Anyway, even IF you have the proper equipment and tools, accurately drilling, tapping, countersinking, chamfering, machining, cleaning up the mess etc., is super time consuming. If you have some basic layout and mechanical skills you should give it a shot yourself and you will totally appreciate what a machinist must go through. You should be able to do it if you have those skills, take your time and ask questions if you are not sure about something. Probably the biggest concern would be snapping off your tap on the last hole you are tapping.

Oh, the last couple of pic(s) are of an Optical Center Punch. A really handy little tool. Most haven't a clue how difficult it is to accurately center punch a layout mark. You just put the dot (as shown in the last pic) on the intersection of your layout hole mark, remove the magnifier and insert the center punch and whack it. This puppy is right on the money.

[enricosavazzi]

If the stage is going to be mounted horizontally (i.e. the lens axis is vertical), most equipment can simply rest on the stage by its own weight. For example, a medium-sized XYZ micrometric stage may weigh between 0.5 and 1 kg, which makes it quite steady even when turning the micrometers, and the weight can be increased if necessary, by attaching it to a solid brass or iron base.

For this use, instead of a breadboard, a flat aluminium slab can be suitable. If you still have pieces of equipment that require attachment to the slab, one or two rows of 1/4-20 threaded sockets around the perimeter of the slab may be enough, rather than the dozens or hundreds of holes necessary to make a true breadboard.

One of the stage platforms in a new vertical setup I am still building is just a plain 200 by 300 by 20 mm slab, with about half a dozen 1/4-20 sockets along parallel sides, and no holes in the central portion. Another is a slotted series 40 aluminium profile 40 mm thick, 200 mm long by 160 mm wide. It has four T-slots across its surface (plus two slots on ends and four more slots on the bottom side) that are at least as versatile, and probably more so, than threaded holes.

[elf]

A piece of granite 3"x12"x18" makes an excellent base for an optical bench. Machinist's surface plates are best because they are guaranteed to be flat within a certain specification. Cabinet shops and tombstone makers are also a good source for relatively flat pieces. The granite bench can be made even better by attaching a thin sheet of steel to the top which allows you to use magnets to secure all the little bits that need to be adjustable like lights. Mounting holes for the rail(s) can be made using a masonry bit, thread inserts, and epoxy. It's really quite easy to fabricate an optical bench like this.

p.s. Aluminum plate isn't particularly flat unless you get Mic6 which is cast instead of extruded.

[Smokedaddy]

You can often find 3"x12"x18" granite surface plates on Craigslist for around $50 in excellent condition. I have a friend that lives around Rochester NY and I found exactly that just a few days ago on Craigslist. Shipping is always a killer so that's why you should look locally (if you go that route). Mine weighs about 80 pounds.

You also have this option OR something like it if it's long enough for you (which I think it should be). It could be mounted on a surface plate too.

http://www.hightechsystemsllc.com/pt_plate_18.html

Edited:

I also purchased some Sorbothane sheet to go in between my camera rig baseplate setup and the top of the surface plate (not that I am some sort of expert).

https://www.edmundoptics.com/lab-produc ... ane-sheet/

-JW:

[RobertOToole]

.....

As I'd rather invest the money in enlarger lenses and microscope objectives (and possibly a new table), can anyone recommend an alternative? Perhaps a thick wooden cutting board?.....Any suggestions would be appreciated.

From a value standpoint its going to be tough to beat what $11 buys at Ikea.

[RobertOToole]

Looks like the price went up to $14.

When flipped over the anti-spill groves make nice carrying handles.

[Deanimator]

.....

As I'd rather invest the money in enlarger lenses and microscope objectives (and possibly a new table), can anyone recommend an alternative? Perhaps a thick wooden cutting board?.....Any suggestions would be appreciated.

From a value standpoint its going to be tough to beat what $11 buys at Ikea.

Thanks. I suspected that would be an alternative.

[Smokedaddy]

Hey, you asked for alternatives. <g> Grizzly has a cutting board too. Northern Hard Maple, yes and more expensive but then again it's 1 3/4" thick and weighs 11 pounds.



-JW: