Ye Olde Rocket Forum

Go Back   Ye Olde Rocket Forum > Swap Shoppe > Wanted: Dead or Alive!
User Name
Password
Auctions Register FAQ Members List Calendar Today's Posts Search Mark Forums Read


Reply
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread Display Modes
  #1  
Old 10-28-2011, 09:05 AM
mojo1986's Avatar
mojo1986 mojo1986 is offline
Old Canuck Modeller
 
Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: Kingston, CANADA
Posts: 2,160
Default Tool for reducing diameter of dowels

Some time ago I saw a post describing a steel tool that had a bunch of holes in it. This tool could be used to gradually reduce dowel diameter by pulling the dowel through successively smaller holes, each time shaving off a bit of the wood. This came up in connection with the dowels used to construct the escape towers of the Mercury Redstone, Little Joe II and Saturn 1-B. The post included a link to a company who sold this thing for about 25 bucks. Does any of this ring a bell? Can anyone help me out here?

Joe
Reply With Quote
  #2  
Old 10-28-2011, 09:43 AM
Ltvscout Ltvscout is offline
Ye Olde Rocket Shoppe
 
Join Date: Jun 2004
Location: Milwaukee, WI
Posts: 6,472
Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by mojo1986
Some time ago I saw a post describing a steel tool that had a bunch of holes in it. This tool could be used to gradually reduce dowel diameter by pulling the dowel through successively smaller holes, each time shaving off a bit of the wood. This came up in connection with the dowels used to construct the escape towers of the Mercury Redstone, Little Joe II and Saturn 1-B. The post included a link to a company who sold this thing for about 25 bucks. Does any of this ring a bell? Can anyone help me out here?

Joe

I believe McMaster-Carr sells this.
__________________
Scott D. Hansen
Ye Olde Rocket Shoppe - Your One Stop BAR Shoppe!
Ye Olde Rocket Plans - OOP Rocket Plans From 38 Companies!
Ye Olde Rocket Forum
WOOSH NAR Section #558
Reply With Quote
  #3  
Old 10-28-2011, 09:57 AM
kurtschachner's Avatar
kurtschachner kurtschachner is offline
Master Modeler
 
Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: Southeastern Wisconsin
Posts: 1,243
Default

They are generally called draw plates, I got mine from Micro-Mark. To be honest it was one of the more useless expenditures of $25 I ever made. I mean it works sort of, but you can buy the packages of wood dowels (and other shapes, and plastic too) at the hobby store that come in all sorts of sizes. I think I used it once and that was it.

I’ll sell you mine if you really, really want one.

Quote:
Originally Posted by mojo1986
Some time ago I saw a post describing a steel tool that had a bunch of holes in it. This tool could be used to gradually reduce dowel diameter by pulling the dowel through successively smaller holes, each time shaving off a bit of the wood. This came up in connection with the dowels used to construct the escape towers of the Mercury Redstone, Little Joe II and Saturn 1-B. The post included a link to a company who sold this thing for about 25 bucks. Does any of this ring a bell? Can anyone help me out here?

Joe
Reply With Quote
  #4  
Old 10-28-2011, 11:06 AM
luke strawwalker's Avatar
luke strawwalker luke strawwalker is offline
BAR
 
Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: Needville and Shiner, TX
Posts: 6,134
Default

Seems like wood would get very VERY weak VERY rapidly being drawn down to very small diameters...

I've just "roll sanded" toothpics and bits of small doweling down to size for the builds I've done, or better yet, just get some plastruct or evergreen plastic rods and call it a day...

Later! OL JR
__________________
The X-87B Cruise Basselope-- THE Ultimate Weapon in the arsenal of Homeland Security and only $52 million per round!
Reply With Quote
  #5  
Old 10-28-2011, 11:18 AM
jharding58's Avatar
jharding58 jharding58 is offline
Master Modeler
 
Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: Kennesaw, GA
Posts: 1,936
Default

Unless your feet are held to the fire of historical vernacular I would replace with plastic rod. Either that or should you want to build small scale models I have a photo etch tower set for 1/100th Apollo launches.
__________________
Gravity is a harsh mistress
SAM 002
NAR 91005
"The complexity of living is eminently favored to the simplicity of not."
Reply With Quote
  #6  
Old 10-28-2011, 08:28 PM
chanstevens's Avatar
chanstevens chanstevens is offline
Rocket buildin' machine
 
Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: Cincinnati OH
Posts: 543
Default

They are called draw plates (for jewelers?) and I'd picked up a couple sizes/styles for trying to work down small diameter wood dowels into smaller diameter for building Semroc/Estes-style 1/100 Saturn escape towers. They really don't work very well for that purpose--they don't shave off any wood, just sort of mash it smaller and smaller, which makes it denser and denser, making it even harder to work it down more. About the only thing I decided they were helpful on was after I'd sanded into a bit of a wobbly mess they worked fine for cleaning up and making the dowels more of a consistent diameter.
Reply With Quote
  #7  
Old 10-29-2011, 09:06 AM
kurtschachner's Avatar
kurtschachner kurtschachner is offline
Master Modeler
 
Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: Southeastern Wisconsin
Posts: 1,243
Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by chanstevens
They are called draw plates (for jewelers?) and I'd picked up a couple sizes/styles for trying to work down small diameter wood dowels into smaller diameter for building Semroc/Estes-style 1/100 Saturn escape towers. They really don't work very well for that purpose--they don't shave off any wood, just sort of mash it smaller and smaller, which makes it denser and denser, making it even harder to work it down more. About the only thing I decided they were helpful on was after I'd sanded into a bit of a wobbly mess they worked fine for cleaning up and making the dowels more of a consistent diameter.


Were you drawing it the right way? Through the flat side first? Mine did shave off wood but it was rough and grainy and nowhere near the surface of the commercially available dowels.
Reply With Quote
  #8  
Old 11-20-2011, 02:17 PM
VonMises VonMises is offline
The Yen to Evils' Malevolent Yang
 
Join Date: Nov 2011
Location: Bainbridge IN
Posts: 73
Default

interesting.

Last edited by VonMises : 04-21-2013 at 12:03 PM.
Reply With Quote
Reply


Thread Tools Search this Thread
Search this Thread:

Advanced Search
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

vB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Forum Jump



All times are GMT -5. The time now is 04:11 PM.


Powered by: vBulletin Version 3.0.7
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
Ye Olde Rocket Shoppe © 1998-2024