Rotary tool

[Neverenoughwatches]

2 minutes ago, AndyGSi said:

I like that idea but the only concern I have with drill stands like these are how easy are they to get back to vertical @Neverenoughwatches?

They a solid unit Andy the angle adjustment is quite a chunky affair. But one way to check,would be to fit a 4" rod in the collet and square it up from the base. I'd demonstrate...but I'm in the middle of..........never mind.

[AndyGSi]

So there's no notch or stop to relocate back at the vertical?

[mikepilk]

7 minutes ago, AndyGSi said:

So there's no notch or stop to relocate back at the vertical?

There's a scale ring available, according to their website

[AndyGSi]

3 minutes ago, mikepilk said:

There's a scale ring available, according to their website

The ones I've seen before are just 2 flat surfaces where it rotates but it sounds like this is keyed on both surfaces to secure at pre-set angles.

[Neverenoughwatches]

21 minutes ago, AndyGSi said:

So there's no notch or stop to relocate back at the vertical?

Yes there is a stop pin Andy that sets it to 90% 

[SwissSeiko]

I use a Foredom flextool which has a range of 0-18,000 RPMs, has foot control, and can also be run through a voltage regulator to set the speed. I got rid of my dremel style rotary tool as it was too fast, too loud, and too much runout. The flextool motors are very quiet as they are DC, plus the motor is not in the handpiece, which reduces vibration and runout. Plus there are a ton of attachments for then, like belt sanders, hammer handpieces, ect. Very versatile tool that gets a ton of use in my shop.

[LittleWatchShop]

20 hours ago, mikepilk said:

Not according to their website https://www.proxxon.com/en/micromot/28481.php

It doesn't list the runout on other models.

Implicit

On further research, the 220V version of the IBS/E appears to be different than the 115V version. My comments have been in the context of the 115V version.

Proxxon has a US website and and EN website.  The page for the IBS/E are different.

 

 

Edited March 29 by LittleWatchShop

[mikepilk]

41 minutes ago, LittleWatchShop said:

On further research, the 220V version of the IBS/E appears to be different than the 115V version. My comments have been in the context of the 115V version.

Actually the numbers do tally - I didn't notice one is metric and one imperial. 

I've ordered the 230/E and universal holder from Chronos.

[LittleWatchShop]

There is at least this difference.

The max motor speeds are different

 

 

Edited March 29 by LittleWatchShop

[Neverenoughwatches]

19 hours ago, SwissSeiko said:

I use a Foredom flextool which has a range of 0-18,000 RPMs, has foot control, and can also be run through a voltage regulator to set the speed. I got rid of my dremel style rotary tool as it was too fast, too loud, and too much runout. The flextool motors are very quiet as they are DC, plus the motor is not in the handpiece, which reduces vibration and runout. Plus there are a ton of attachments for then, like belt sanders, hammer handpieces, ect. Very versatile tool that gets a ton of use in my shop.

I was thinking about one before I bought the Proxon.  Discussed it here, there is a Chinese copy of the Foredom for about a quarter of the price. I like the smallness of the drilling unit of a flexishaft, but I compromised and bought some Minicraft gear, its about half the size of a dremmel tool, very light, very quiet,and very controllable, the power and speed adjustment cost me two quid in total. If anyone sees a secondhand one on the bay going cheap for a tenner or so...honestly give them a try.

25 minutes ago, mikepilk said:

Actually the numbers do tally - I didn't notice one is metric and one imperial. 

I've ordered the 230/E and universal holder from Chronos.

What was the price of the bench clamp holder mike? I quite like the look of those. You wont be disappointed if you bought the IBS model, i can't detect any runout with mine. What I really liked about it and the press was the use of those cheap carbide drills with it. If you remember a while back when we were making setting levers, drilling the holes in hardened steel was difficult....the carbide bits pop them out easily . With the press there is a milling base available for about 70 pound, and that model should have enough beef to handle it...now you have a mini milling machine as well.

[mikepilk]

22 minutes ago, Neverenoughwatches said:

What was the price of the bench clamp holder mike?

I bought them from ebay, as I'd browsed the 230/E, I was sent an offer with £3 off, so I paid £69, and the bench clamp was £33

[RichardHarris123]

Gone for it, didn't buy the clamp as I have a bench polisher. 

Proxxon owes this site some discount.  Hehe. 

[RichardHarris123]

[AndyGSi]

On 3/29/2025 at 5:59 PM, RichardHarris123 said:

Gone for it, didn't buy the clamp as I have a bench polisher. 

Proxxon owes this site some discount.  Hehe. 

What bench polisher have you got and what discs/pads do you use?

I've been looking at these from Cousins.

https://www.cousinsuk.com/product/050-to-0150mm-felt-wheels?code=P63199

[RichardHarris123]

Cheap bench grinder and these. Extra wheels/ pads and compound as required. 

Ps, we don't have funky wallpaper, that's the cellar.

[Jon]

I've just this bad boy!

It just arrived this morning 0 to 30000 RPM

[Neverenoughwatches]

13 minutes ago, Jon said:

I've just this bad boy!

It just arrived this morning 0 to 30000 RPM

That's an F1 Mclaren Jon 

20 minutes ago, Jon said:

I've just this bad boy!

  " Bad boy " tools for a bad boy or  "Bad boy" tools for a bad boy ? What've you been up to Jon ?

[mikepilk]

On 3/29/2025 at 5:59 PM, RichardHarris123 said:

Gone for it, didn't buy the clamp as I have a bench polisher. 

Proxxon owes this site some discount.  Hehe. 

Got mine on Tuesday, but they were out of clamps (has everyone been ordering them from here?), so will have to wait for that.

I'm very happy with it : much more compact and smoother running than my cheapo version. 

Edited yesterday at 03:00 PM by mikepilk

[SwissSeiko]

3 hours ago, Jon said:

I've just this bad boy!

It just arrived this morning 0 to 30000 RPM

 

Ive thought about getting a micromotor, but they are so expensive! what are your plans for it?

[Jon]

2 hours ago, SwissSeiko said:

Ive thought about getting a micromotor, but they are so expensive! what are your plans for it?

I'm going to use it with some felt bobs and micro mops for polishing scratches out of acrylic crystals. A FBHI friend of mine said he grinds down a 0.2mm carbide burr with a diamond wheel and uses it to grind a small slot in the shank of a broken screw to be able to remove the offending screw, but also it would be great for removing the best part of material (tool steel sheet) when making keyless work before I start to hand file to a precise size/shape. I might even perform a bit of home dentistry. If Bob Mortimer does it, I can't see why not... Only joking! But, Bob Mortimer does his own dentistry!!

[mikepilk]

4 hours ago, Jon said:

I'm going to use it with some felt bobs and micro mops for polishing scratches out of acrylic crystals.

It only takes me a minute or two using wet and dry then Polywatch to polish a crystal, I don't see the need to use a rotary tool.

Indeed, the only time I tried to use a rotary tool to polish an acrylic crystal, it was far too aggressive and burnt the acrylic - but that was my old tool with a minimum speed of 10,000 rpm

[HectorLooi]

If you wish to use a polishing mop on a micromotor, you'll need a motor with a good torque output. I'm not sure if the Foredom is capable of such torque.

I miss my lab micromotor. I gave it away to my dental lab guy when I retired. It came with an integrated dust extraction system. The moment the motor is activated, the vacuum starts and continues for awhile more to clear away any dust in the air.

A good micromotor has torque feedback, meaning that when a load is applied to it, it increases power to the motor to maintain a constant speed. It should also have current overload protection and thermal protection.

It don't like using rotary tools for polishing acrylic crystals, it tends to leave striations which are visible when light hits it at an angle. I prefer wet sanding and a final buff with a wool mop and polishing compound on my bench polishing machine.

I have a Foredom hanging motor, an Osada micromotor, a homemade micromotor and a cordless nail spa motor.

The cordless motor has very poor torque but it's really handy when working under a microscope. I didn't buy it, I just found it in my letterbox, without a name but with my address. It didn't have a return address either.

[Jon]

11 hours ago, mikepilk said:

It only takes me a minute or two using wet and dry then Polywatch to polish a crystal, I don't see the need to use a rotary tool.

That's the way I do it as well. It wasn't primarily for polishing crystals. I thought I would try it to see how it worked. The results are OK, but it better to use wet and dry and Polywatch.

I wish I knew what they put in Polywatch, because a 5g tube for a fiver, someone is making a shed load of money! I tried some T-Cut headlight polishing compound which doesn't work half as good as Polywatch

[RichardHarris123]

I switched to Autosol acrylic polish, I  can't tell the difference. 

[Jon]

3 minutes ago, RichardHarris123 said:

I switched to Autosol acrylic polish, I  can't tell the difference. 

I'll try that. Thanks Richard!