[ Editor's Note:
 [    Larry Smith mentioned in a recent message posted to our mailing
 [ list that he'd started a "thread" on the topic in the Newsgroup
 [ rec.crafts.metalworking.  I've captured as much of that discussion
 [ as I could and have reposted it here in a special digest (its easier
 [ to delete this way if you don't want it).
 [
 [    I find it interesting that sometimes when a thread gets started
 [ it will diverge and/or "fade out".  Its appearant from some of the
 [ "quoted text" that I didn't capture all of the articles, but there's
 [ enough here to be interesting.  I will keep an eye on this Newsgroup
 [ for a while and see if anything else "relevant" comes by.
 [
 [ Jody
 [
 [ P.S.  Larry:  Please forward anything to us that looks good to you.
 [       Many of our subscribers do not have access to Usenet News.

Hi, gang.

I've been noodling around a few ideas for projects recently,
and a lot of them come up with metal-working requirements.
I count myself a so-so cabinet-maker, but I've done very
little real metal working.  I've perused the backscroll,
but I've not seen the FAQ there, nor can I find it in news.
answers, or even on rtfm.mit.edu FAQ archive.  I have a few
questions to ask, and if any of them _are_ FAQs, and you
have a copy or can point me to one, please feel free to
mail it.

If you have any input on this stuff you can email me, but if
it's of general interest then please feel free to post - if
I'm going to ask questions in a newsgroup then I'll stick
around to read the answers, that's just manners.  =)

For my first questions, I am interested in musical boxes.
rec.antiques talks about them a lot, but only from a
collecting or restoring point of view.  I'd like to try
my hand at building a new one, and there are a lot of
issues that need to be worked out - arrangements of music,
cabinet making and so on, but let's face it: the heart of
a music box is in it's mechanical metal guts, and that's
where the glory is.

Best selection of tools?¶
Now, musical boxes aren't full of large complex parts -
this isn't a locomotive I'm trying to build =) [though
that sounds like a pile of fun], so I don't expect to
need a large or fantastically well-equipped machine shop,
but I'm going to need a few good tools, and I'd like some
recommendations on what would be a good but small selec-
tion of tools that would be versatile.  I'm guess a small
milling machine would be needed, possibly a lathe, but
does anyone make a machine that can do both jobs?  My
workspace is very limited.  One of the biggest jobs this
tool will need to handle is machine the base plate, which
is usually brass or iron.

What grade steel for the comb?¶
The comb is the musical part of the music box.  I under-
stand the metal needs to be harder to be louder, but that
harder metal is going to be more difficult to work.  I
don't need really loud sound, in fact, a more mellow tone
would be better.  Does anyone here have a clue what would
be a good grade of steel to use for a project like this,
and where could I find some?  I realize this is probably
a weird question for this newsgroup - probably no one
really worries about how their project sounds =) but it's
fairly important here, and I don't know who else knows about
_metal_.

How to attach the lead?¶
Some of the teeth on the steel comb are equipped with lead
weights to lower the tone.  Where can I get lead, and how
do I attach it to the teeth?  I've done soldering, but I
know (or think I do) that is a problem with certain grades
of steel, and I don't think you can weld lead =) but I'm
fuzzy on other types of methods that might do better.

How to machine a pinned cylinder?¶
The music box program is usually stored in the form of a
pinned cylinder.  The automatic music list has provided a
connection with someone who has a program that can con-
vert a midi music file into a template for marking a cyl-
inder.  Most cylinders are brass, I think.  What is the
best way to drill and pin these things?  I know most an-
tique boxes were done by hand - which is probably why they
aren't done any more.  Do we have a better way now?

What to make the pins from?¶
The pins on the cylinder are typically very short, but they
are _very_ hard, there is no flex in these things, which is
why they can give a good clean pluck.  What kind of metal
or what grade of steel is recommended and where can I get
it?

How to machine gears?¶
As I said, I've done cabinet-making and other carpentry,
and a small smattering of metal work, but one job that
looms is making the gearwork.  I don't know much about
it.  What machine and/or attachment will let me machine
a gear to a desired size and number of teeth?  What do
I make them out of (they look like steel or iron in the
old boxes)?  And where can I find references to help
learn how to do it?

How to build or procure spring motors?¶
Musical boxes were, of course, powered by springs.  What
do these things look like inside, what are the springs
made of and where can I get the metal?  Lots of power
is the byword here, a good musical box can play five or
six minutes of music without rewinding, and some could
go for a lot longer than that.

Well, that's about it for now.

I have lots of followup questions on related topics which
I hope are of interest, but I'd like to see how the above
is recieved.  I gather it isn't standard fare for this
newsgroup.  Most of them relate to mechanical devices,
like clocks, musical boxes or various types, animitrons,
orreries, and various other mechanically arcane ideas
which don't really seem to relate directly to metalworking,
which I'd guess to be restricted to building the pieces
to make these.  But I notice a number of posts about steam
and stirling engines and locomotives, so obviously this
group is hosting some of these discussions.  So, what do
you folks think about a newsgroup for talking about the
_devices_, construction and design rather than machining?
Something like rec.crafts.mechanical?  If this is a pop-
ular idea, I could propose it in news.groups, I've gone
through that ringer before. =)  Any ideas along that line?
Or am I misinterpreting the charter?

--¶
Larry Smith --- My opinions only.           larrys@zk3.dec.com/larrys@io.com.¶
Government is not reason, it is not eloquence - it is force! Like fire, it is
a dangerous servant and a fearful master; never for a moment should it be left
to irresponsible action." -- George Washington