Attaching two gears to each other STRAIGHT!

[dmarlen]

I tried to glue two gears to each other with a spacer between them.  See pics.  Even though I had a dowel through them when I glued, they did not end up perfectly straight.  As a consequence when the gears turn on the shaft they wobble.  Has anyone come up with a better method of gluing?

David.

[John T]

I've had lots of challenges with wobble and here's my solution.

I put the shaft (dowel) into my drill press and then mount the gears on the shaft for gluing.  The chuck and the drill press table are square an so I use them as a gluing guide.  In my case the drill press table height is adjustable by a gear and so I can use it to apply some pressure as well.  I don't need a lot of pressure just two perpendicular surfaces and a bit of pressure.

If you have a drill press I recommend using it for squaring up gears and shafts.

[ArtF]

As John says , a guide can really help.

Also, experiment a bit with your lasers level. I found mine surprisingly out of level and it made a difference. The kerf on the laser will always have a bit of a tilt to it
as it does angle outwards, but making it as level as you can really helps keep them level on a dowl when their laser cut.

Art

[JustinO]

A metal working machinist would put the shaft "between centers", and rotate the assembly while it is being fastened to check for run out.

Using a longer shaft than you need, and then cutting it off could help.

Some glue shrinks as it dries, try using an absolute minimum amount of glue, tacking the parts, then slowly add small amounts until it is strong, checking the alignment as you go.

Add parts and features in the design, such as bushings and flanges, to help with assembly. Some of these could be removed after assembly.

Use a large hammer to smash parts that don't cooperate.

Try using a threaded rod and a couple nuts and washers. Get everything in position and square, then glue it.

Some plastic will glue with a drop of acetone. Assemble and align the parts, and touch a hypo with a drop of acetone to the joint. It will suck in and make a good joint, depending on the materials.

[BobL]

Hi;

Thanks for all your input on attaching two gears together, I'm learning a trick or two to acheive better results..

Thanks to all


Cheers
Bob
:)