Granite Surface Plate Care & Maintenance
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 20 ต.ค. 2023
- In this video I will discuss ways to help care for your surface granite plate. Surface plates are expensive tools to invest in and with proper care and use they will be reliable for years to come. I'll cover some basic maintenance procedures to consider before and during use of your granite plate, and other tips on how to avoid abuse and damage. Granite surface plates are extremely accurate tools and they should be treated with care and respect.
For more info on @lsstarretttools granite surface plates please visit their website. www.starrett.com/products/sur...
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A video about Adam & his pet rock.
Roflmfao.
To be fair his pet rock would kick the sh!t out of my pet rock. Though my wife doesn't like to be referred to as a pet rock
A $75,000 pet rock
😂
😂😂😂
This video is seen all over the world. Many people are doing there best to learn how to machine in difficult environments, that is in places where the work needs to be done but where they do not have access to generations of knowledge. Adam is filling that gap. Thank you Adam.
The choir of angels when the cover came off was a nice touch. 👍
If Granit Surface Plate was a drinking game I would have died half way through this video
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Thanks for the video, I never knew water could have an impact on the dimensional stability of granite. Anyway, I like it how you mix things up, jobs are sure interesting to watch, but since there are enough hobbyists or people unfamiliar to the trade watching the videos, going over some basics every now and then is definitely nice. Being a hobbyist myself I noticed that you can teach yourself a lot, but you can never be sure if you missed some important info, so getting insight from professionals like you is really appreciated. I think you're an excellent shop teacher, I never had myself wondering what you mean during any of your explanations.
Title of video should be A MAN AND HIS ROCK…..A LOVE STORY
I really enjoyed this! I've seen lots of videos on care & maintenance of surface plates, but this was one of the best yet. The best advice, keep wiping always wiping and wipe again. That's what we learned at GE also. You can never wipe it too much. Even on AAA cast iron plates, wiping is the key to everything. Never be afraid that you're wiping too much or ruining the finish because if you think you're wiping too much, wipe it one more time to be sure.
😂 top comment, felt the same
...this Plate is so ridiculus big! 😅But, you earned it! ....thank you for almost a decade of great machining, entertaining and teaching! 👍
This is my granite surface plate There are many like it, but this one is mine. My granite surface plate is my best friend. It is my life
When I was a pattern inspector for a forge shop, our pink pearl AA surface plate had a plywood cover to protect the surface from inadvertent damage. You never know when someone walking by might accidentally drop something onto the surface plate because their arms were too full. Perhaps not likely at your shop, but why take the risk?
I am the king of using any available flat surface but my 36" surface plate is kept covered at all times by a wood case and cover and a sign that says, "TOUCHING THIS MAY CAUSE IRREPARABLE BODILY HARM"
Cut a piece of plywood to cover the top and band it with 1 x 4" clear pine. Eventually something will fall on it and chip it and then you will throw yourself into a thrashing machine. That cover they give you is more for dust. Now's a good time for some electronic height gauges and even some laser tools. Ultrasound is another thing for inspection and you can be an area inspection business. People get investment castings and then want them ultrasound or xray inspected so they don't spend time machining a casting w/ gas pockets... Laser equipment can also help the process of inspection and give you more information.
Awesome investment. Like so many other things in your shop, this is built to last generations. Gramps would be jealous.
Lovin' the passion, and insistence on proper treatment this absolutely badass *epic* precision instrument.
The technical know-how goes without saying. Looking forward to some vids using that massive slab. It is a thing of beauty.
Adam, thanks for the instructional video. I don't have room in my small shop for a nice large plate like yours but I did buy a 24" by 18" grade A plate a few months ago, and I can already see the improvement in my work as I learn how to do precision metrology. Seeing how to correctly care for my plate and keeping it accurate is a real win. Please continue with these instructional videos as I always learn something from them.
I just got my first surface plate Adam (24"x18"), and your video hit the spot. Don't have a dedicated cover yet, but I'll procure one next. Thanks a lot for the advice. Ciao, Marco.
Great videos Adam, they are very educational calming. Keep up the good work.
People don't realize a fingerprint can stop your surface gage, height gage, etc. from sliding freely. I'm OCD about a clean piece of granite and ILMMFM when I see a drink spot, oil spot, or skid mark on the most important tool in a QC Dept. Nice video. I thought I was alone. lol Congrats on the new Rock.
Your delivery is so much improved from your earlier videos. Practice makes perfect!
Truth! He's like that local reporter that was hungry for the big stories, and always breaking big news. They finally make it to the big network, and suddenly every story is about unicorns and rainbows. Gotta keep that money machine going!
Very good info,Adam.Thank you.
Lot of haters here, but I, for one, love metrology content. As for the, "I can't possibly afford a Starret surface plate" comments, in my experience, second-hand surface plates are available quite inexpensively at auction, provided, of course, that you have the wherewithal to move them. The biggest I can manage in my home shop is a Starret pink granite 18x24x4, but that's because of size and weight, not cost.
Yes, in the uk they are dirt cheap at auction, the depreciation on them things is huge. Every shop or hobbyshop needs a surface plate, and maybe a 2 ft square one is plenty sufficient. I wonder if the cost ( to the 2nd user) goes down per square footage for the larger ones as the need vs wherewithal to handle them ratio diminishes.
Just the right thing I need after a long day of work, an Abom video to relax to and enjoy! keep these videos coming Adam, you are one awesome youtuber and machinist!
I was taught to slide parts onto the surface plate, from the edge. It helps making gentle contact and reduces debris that might be trapped if you set your part down. Probably more important for heavy work.
I did the same. Also, the only thing of metal that was ever left on my plate was my Trimos height gage unless I was cleaning the plate. I did make an exception for my ceramic standards as they do not rust.
Not a machinist but i still found this interesting. If dust is a concern it seems like a soft mirofiber car detailing cloth would be a good choice rather than a hand or regular rag. Woofgangs "chinchilla" microfiber is extremely extremely soft and will pull dirt away from the surface and trap it to avoid scratching. I use those chinchilla ones to clean camera lenses they are so soft. They are also lint free after you wash them once with microfiber cleaner. Almost any kind of paper towel will leave a little bit of lint. If you need something more disposable Griots makes some nice semi-disposable ones.
Very impressed with how you treat your tools; as that old saying goes: "take good care of your tools and they will take care of you"
Awesome demonstration and explanation. I don't have one now... one day ... :)
Is the oil from your hands not harmful to to plate?
Always a good day, when there is a new abom79 video. Thank you
Great tutorial.
Comes at a perfect time! Just drove 5hr to pick up a surface plate
You might be interested in some older videos on resurfacing and grading old granite, two or three years ago? Search should find them.
Thanks, Adam. Good to know.
I just explained to my wife how i now need a granite plate. I'm not a machinist, so it didn't go over well.
Get your doctor to write you a prescription for your lower back. Get a memory foam cover for it. Double your pleasure, double the fun! :D
@@utidjian I do have a physical soon. And the wife does like to mix things up so....
The darn thing is just beautiful in its own right! I don’t need one, but I want one!
A repeatometer is a form of spherometer. Apart from local defects it measures variations in curvature. An autocollimator doesnt measure flatness directly. It measures variations in slope which are combined (integrated) to provide flatness estimates.
Hi , love your videos.. one suggestion if i can say is ti keep the cover away from dust and everything that is floating in the air ❤ just to make it easier to clean after every use
Love the video I'm naming it Stoney
I've spent a good deal of years in factories and I have always been gravely disappointed to see the condition and treatment of most surface plates. I think, maybe, I've seen one or two that could have been partially cared for. Most are at least desks and *many* are outright work benches. 😔
I can't wait to see you level it and use it. This video was ok but just a tease. Thanks
He's already done that. snooze........
Has he? I must have blinked @@mongoose388
Dynamic air systems offers quality air purification products, something to consider.
When sweeping the plate with your hand, what about the oil in your skin or other contaminants?
Yup. You should just encase the whole thing in plexiglass and use your imagination when doing measurements.
We had a 18'X18"surface stone in the shop.
The boss made a felt lined wood box to cover it when not in use.
They'd make a great coffee table...! Used one of course 😉
Greetings from Germany. Such plates we have in our inspection room.
Such a beautiful measuring instrument. When I see a big granite plate, I think of complex laser setups. Do ordinary machine shops use very many laser-based measuring instruments for precision inspections?
Please always allow 30-45 minutes after cleaning for the block to re-stabilize, the amount of wiping with clothe to remove the cleaner will cause differentials in surface temperature, I only use 90+% ISO on my surface plate as the "waterless" is not really waterless, and the spray cleaner is a lot of water, also the pastes have been shown to build up over time if not completely removed using additional spirits, this can lead to excessive dust as well as "sticky" spots which will lead to wear, of note if using Spirits/ISO to clean a block additional time may be required for re-stabilization as Spirits/ISO can cause what they are calling surface super cooling due to its quick vaporizations. The reason I was always told to keep water away from blocks was that water will cause oxidation of the material itself which will alter the block over time while spirits/ISO evaporates quickly enough that little to no oxidation can occur. I don't know about the towels you are using but Kimtech lint free wipes work great and keep the dust in the air down as the you aren't introducing more into you room, This may all be beyond what you are accomplishing with the block as I am using my block in the 3-5 millionths range so take it as you will.
BIG NOTE: please make sure any computer exhaust fans or really any exhaust fans are filtered and pointed away from the block, localized temperature swings will throw the whole block out of specification and filtering exhausts will cut down on the amount of particles in the air
Are you serious? The exhaust fan from a computer on a 2 ton rock?
If you want to keep millionth level accuracy, temperature is one of the most important factors @@mudnducs
It is best to keep the sun off it as well. The sun will heat it up unevenly causing expansion throwing off measurements keeping it in a cool dark room is the best, with stabile temperature and humidity..
Would be interesting to see the difference in a typical measurement on a machined item at the higher end of the precision at which he measures, done one day on a 'sun drenched for hours' table and then repeated on another day on the table having had it covered overnight beforehand.
Don’t breathe on it either, especially if you’ve been eating garlic. Bad breath will get into pores of your surface plate and you’ll never get it out. Gives the plate a terrible oder and may even affect the accuracy. A
N-95 mask will help.
Adam, Maybe invest in a HEPA filter for the office to help with the airborne particulate problem. As for all the naysayers.. 25min yapping about a rock, no machining, etc. Bah.. I'll keep watching.
A standard air filter doesn't really do anything because the volume of air moved is far too low. Air handling is something that has to be considered at the onset and in rooms like this you'd want a laminar drown draft through the floor or baseboards. Something like that could have been done above the office but not in it.
Starret advert..
Would a hepa air filter be a good idea in your inspection room? At least running when the cover is on to keep the total dust content in the room as low as possible.
You should use dust free rags. We use Crit-clean cloths. It’s a woven cloth that doesn’t leave lint behind. Our other choice is Kim-wipes but even they leave lint.
Wow that is superb, I hate to think how much that cost. Like most machines, the cost of the support/tools is more that the machine itself
I love how meticulous you are about precision tools; we're cut from the same cloth. If I was you, I would spring the $150 for a nice air purifier to pull out all the PM10 and PM2.5 particulate in the room's air. That's the shop office, right? I have a Winix model 5300-2 for my bedroom and I love it. The activated carbon filter will also remove the solvent and cutting fluid smell in the air (which I like cuz mechanic, but other people get a headache and complain). Levoit also makes wonderful models which will do the job well. If you oversize the purifier for the room's volume, you can run the purifier on a slower speed setting and it'll be very quiet. I'd also invest in sealing that office very well with caulking, expanding foam, weatherstripping, and mains receptacle box gaskets to keep the dust from entering from outside and from the shop. Metal fallout from the shop will embed in the plate. Sand from outside is abrasive.
Sounds to me a good air filter with H13/H14 grade can help with dust settling down specially with an ionizer function as it removes a lot of small particles. The filter I have handles particles of 1um size and above. Granted not a clean room per se, it just helps. worth checking I think.
Any difference if your plate is quartz instead of granite?
Play a drinking game while watching this: take a shot everytime he says "Granite Surface Plate" 😂
24 shots later 😂💀
I would put a memory foam topper on it and sleep there, a nice comfy flat surface
❤❤Great suffice plate
I dont have much interest in a new surface, but the video or two on resurfacing and grading old surfaces was very interesting.
All I can imagine with that plate is how awesome it would be to make bread, roll pizza dough and best of all, make chocolate on. You may see I'm not a machinist and I know it would be a wasted surface plate. It's just so frikkin' beautiful.
Take a shot every time he says “wipe”
1/10 th the size I used in marine industry.
Health is important & I took the fitter career darbling with big industry & big city utilities. But it's those day I remember of learning, comments by a senior man about rag in pocket, within 2 yrs touching machining discussing work procedures.
Very helpful and informative video, as usual. Thanks.
Oh, you use Granite surface plates?
Someone in the comments recommended Topper Machine as a good choice. I checked it out and couldn't agree more.
This is the best granite plate on youtube after seeing Don Bailey's plate at Suburban Tool.
What about lapping? I had a small service plate used mostly for lapping. I used 1200 wet and dry paper with water, the water did not seem to hurt the plate.
Lint-free towels may be helpful.
What temperature and humidity are the plates certified for? I wonder how slight temperature and/or humidity changes impact the measurements. At those 5-digit certification numbers, I cant help but think that even 2-3F degrees would make a measurable difference.
Plates will be certified (upon manufacture) at 68 degrees F (20 degrees C ) ± 1 degree and below 55% RH for a a proper ISO 17025 master lab grade certification. Now, when you have it re-certified on location that all depends on your environmental controls. My lab in the automotive industry ( R.I.P. TRW ) was speced at 68 F ±2 degrees F and
Hi Adam,
I enjoy your videos, thank you!
Better to fold your plate's cover with only inside surfaces touching? The current way catches airborne dust and dust off the work table where you set it down.
Hand wiping transfers moisture and particles to the table?
Operating theatre sterile protocols seem applicable to your room and plate! Filtered laminar airflow over the table and positive room pressure comes to mind.
Beste
Yeah, I was thinking the same thing. Baseboard downdraft and an overall room rating of whatever class is highest and still practical. Alcohol also has at least 5% water in it too and your skin has oils, Most fabrics shed link and you still has dead skin slothing off you and your cloths. The only true waterless solutions I know of are highly toxic and "hot" with explosive vapors.
I appreciate the amount of money that thing likely set him back & the appreciation he has for that fact but at the same time this seems a little extreme. I mean sure stone and concrete may absorb water but you never see it except from cracks just like I may win the lottery but I'm not holding my breath.
The Starrett granite surface plate cleaner safety data sheet shows 96% water, alcohol, propanol... The paste cleaner msds shows 40-60% water, 20-40% mineral spirits, acid, glycol, gum, fragrance, etc. The waterless one is 25-50% white spirit, cleaners, fragrance, no indication for the other 25-50% of the product. Don't eat snacks before using your plate and the associated tools and accessories...
I was going to say, unless that liquid cleaner was anhydrous alcohol, it was sure to be mostly water.
Very interesting! Love this channel!
Every time you wiped your hand over the plate I winced seeing your metal watch strap buckle almost touching the surface. What’s the advice on wearing rings, bangles etc ?
Scenario: UPS guy comes in and throws a package on the "table". Stuff of nightmares. 🙂
Thats when we will see Adam transform into Megatron or worse 🤣🤣
Thanks, what is the hole for that is about 18X24 in on the left?
A threaded insert, I think.
Parabéns por mais está conquista te sigo aqui do Brasil também sou torneiro mecânico industrial
Way Cool ! Would an air purifier help?
I love that some comments describe how everyone disrespects their plate - my story would be no different. Thank you for showing us how to actually treat them,.
18:25 looks like some kind of anomaly in the center diagonal direction towards the window? It seems to me 'hand wiping' is an opportunity to induce natural skin oils to the surface!
I see two circular holes. Not sure what the purpose is. Probably threaded inserts there for fixturing?
NEVER forget to wipe your surface plate
Rock on
@12:00 to @19:30 is wiping the surface place
riveting stuff
@18:35 can still feel dust on it after wiping it for ~7 minutes
did I miss it? Did you mention the 2 mounting holes?
Mine get stored under a bench in the garage and every winter I throw them in the back my mustang for traction. They sit behind the wheel wells and lock into each other so I know they won't move. I've used them to check a few things like motorcycle heads but traction is their main job.
Adam most big box stores sell HEPA room air filters for people with allergies. You should get one for your office. A good one will cost under $200, and keep your office dust free.
Thanks Adam, love the detail of this type of tool. As a home hack machinist, I can only pretend! Thank you and say hey to Ms Abbey!
What are the advantages of a granite surface plate over a cast iron surface plate as I have both
Dings on cast iron will displace the surface and it won’t be flat anymore. Granite will chip, but maintain flatness. Heavy and precision industries learned this advantage when metals were in short supply in WWII… and they’ve been using this ever since.
Cast iron surface plates are better in my opinion they are more stable than granite only because of granite absorbing moisture and intern changing the flatness cast iron will rust but it wont affect the flatness also they give a better bearing surface than granite also cast iron is more easily can change to the temperature of the room while granite takes longer to be affected by temperature aka absorb it which can be a good or a bad thing but because of ww2 they started looking for a different material “cheaper” to make them from and now they hardly make them anymore but they both have advantages and disadvantages but all in all are for 99 percent of uses and people it’s the same only really if you were blueing a part up for bearing for scraping the cast iron would be better
@@wreckingball518 the fact that granite takes longer to stabilize has to do with the large thermal inertia. This stability is intentional and a huge benefit.
Careful man, yer gonna wring that indicator to the plate and never be able to get 'er off 😂
As long as he doesn't turn it a full 90 degrees it should be okay. xD
I'm supposed to wipe the granite surface plate, got it. 😉
Instead of using the light plastic cover why don’t you use a light wooden cover with edging to stop it being pushed of that has a baze cloth on the underside to protect the surface?
I made the cover for my AA grade pink granite out of 1/2” MDF
Great video thanks for sharing
Nice buy Adam. Surface plates deserve a lot of respect. I would suggest when you fold the cover, do so such that the face that contacts the plate is not exposed. It could pick up debris from the table where you placed it. The soft fluffy stuff on the underside attracts debris like nobody’s business. You may want to consider tacky mats at the doors into the office, especially the exterior door.
I was really looking forward to some great content coming out of the new shop with all of the new equipment. Never really expected a dusting tutorial though. I was hoping to follow along your journey on learning the new CNC equipment but haven't really seen those since they were installed. I even messaged trying to throw some CNC mill work your way and never received a response. You are far too skilled a machinist to be doing dusting videos. I know you have to pay your bills and you have obligations to all these companies that provided equipment, but most of us came here to learn from you. I hope this doesn't become yet another channel destroyed by sponsorships and free stuff although it appears to be heading that direction. You seem like a great guy and are definitely a very skilled machinist. You need to take back your channel.
Too late it's not heading that direction it's already there!
Can't really blame him. This same issue catches all the bigger YT channels. They start making that YT money, and forget everything that got 'em there. I think I am unsubbing. I have tried to give him the benefit of the doubt but... Where are the videos of him learning CNC? Ok then.
He makes machining videos too to balance these promo performances
Dont watch these videos just watch the machining ones, i see where this channel has gone as a long time subscriber. I also cant say i wouldnt have gone the same route if it were me. No way i could say no to some of these tools/machines. And the $ that comes with it. But i dont watch as often as i used to. Part of the game i guess, cant knock a man for trying to better his situation.
🤣@@belatoth3763
I have thought about making a surface plate. Using concrete, on a steel stand starting on a level surface, after about 12" of concrete is set for about 30 days, use a self leveling compound. Before the 36" x 36". Or 48" x 48" 1" thick glass, using vacuum to pull epoxy resin under the glass, to seal if in place, then polish the
Same type glass the real PYREX is made from, polish it flat, it's not going to be professional grade, but it will be flat and smooth, glass is a bit on the soft side, and will show wear after time. I don't know if I will ever get around to building it, I would probably spend less, just buying a used plate,
Sounds like a fascinating and personally rewarding project.
Concrete has many different and uncontrolled hardness levels in the various materials used so it's difficult to lap level. It's like hand sanding pine: the soft summer wood wears down more than the hard winter wood so sanding it leaves ridges and valleys. More importantly, the chemical reaction that makes concrete set continues for a very long time, making the surface continually change shape. I found this out the hard (spelled expensive) way.
There are several videos about the University of Arizona, Richard F. Caris Mirror Lab. They show what goes into making giant mirror lenses.
But see that's the kind of project that would make interesting TH-cam content
Better to do it with hardened dry cow dung, you will have better results in measurements
Perhaps an extractor could be installed above it, may help with keeping dust at bay
Extractor alone will be worse than no extractor, because it will just kick mote air out. You also need hepa filtered air to replace the extracted air.
It's not actually that hard to achieve level 8 clean room status. At work, we have converted a normal office roo to a clean room by installing an air purifying system and painting the inside of the room with a good low dust paint. It's certified and all. 😊
Did you say that the rock should be clean and wiped? I just wanted to be sure.
I would have to cut a sheet of plywood to cover it up so I could set my coffee cup down.
Yes as soon as I get around to spending $10k+ on a granite surface or have one given to me like you did, I’ll refer back to this video (Ad for Starret)
Doesn't matter if it is a $50 chinese POS plate a $1k workshop grade plate or this one the method and care should be the same!
Bad habits are the worst enemy of surface plates. Carefully wipe the tools, wash your hands, and be careful not to overuse any 1 place on it. Another bad habit is lapping tools in more than necessary. It takes a single short, light drag to lap them in.
Can we weight difference between dry granite and one having "absorbed" water ?
Possibly, but I doubt you would be able to get a scale sensitive enough in the shop.
It's a bunch of hogwash. Granite can't really absorb any meaningful amounts of water.
Would running a HEPA air filter in the tool room reduce the amount of dust that gets onto the granite?
Mean ping-pong surface!
Hey, what do you about dust? 🙃