Re: [CAD_CAM_EDM_DRO] internal contouring with cnc

caerbr wrote:

> Hello - I am an amateur flutemaker, working in wood and delrin(a
> polymer), and I have been wondering about the possibilities which a
> CNC lathe might offer for creating the bore of the instruments. The
> bore profile of wooden flutes is rarely a simple cylinder, and varies
> from flute to flute, and is one of the most time consuming parts of
> the whole job. Small changes in bore profile also have a crucial
> effect on the qualities of a flute. The traditional method of making
> a flute is to take a wooden blank of the correct size, drill a pilot
> hole and then use a specially constructed reamer in the lathe to get
> the final internal profile of the bore. Problem is - you have to make
> a new reamer every time you want to modify the bore profile - which
> makes prototyping a very slow business. So I have been wondering if
> there is some technique available(not too expensive!) using a CNC
> setup and a controlled adjustable boring tool which I could program
> to cut a given bore profile, which I could then easily when I wanted.
> This would eliminate the time and effort involved in making new
> reamers every time I want to experiment with a new bore contour. So
> there it is - any help or suggestions would be much appreciated.

Assuming the variation in internal diameter is not too great, or is
essentially a stepped taper all going one way, you could probably make
a long boring bar, and finish the entire bore with one tool. You would
likely need a solid carbide bar to be stiff enough with such a long
overhang, but if you only needed one, that might be well worth it.
This tool would essentially be a rod with a cutting tip sticking out
sideways at the end.

Jon