TIG Pedal Modification

[tonyfoale]

It is a very good idea to have a foot switch on a pillar drill and I cant believe I have not yet fitted one but I will now. Like most of us I will sometimes freehand drill a small part and its the only time I will use a thick leather glove which makes it awkward to use the drill switch. Foot switches are cheap enough and I will see if I copy your mod. Thanks for reminding me to do the sensible thing.

Alan, I have two foot switches on drills, both much shorter than my foot. They are different, one has the pivot at the rear and one has it at the front. The one with the pivot at the front was the one with the poor action and is the one to which I added the large pedal. The other one works well as is and I have left it stock.
Apart from the pivot position the "good" one had a flat top surface the "bad" one, shown in the pix. had a top with two angled surfaces, the designer must have had strange feet.

[mklotz]

It is a very good idea to have a foot switch on a pillar drill and I cant believe I have not yet fitted one but I will now. Like most of us I will sometimes freehand drill a small part and its the only time I will use a thick leather glove which makes it awkward to use the drill switch. Foot switches are cheap enough and I will see if I copy your mod. Thanks for reminding me to do the sensible thing.

If I were to do that (I won't) I'd want some sort of arrangement that prevented me from accidentally stepping on the switch at an inopportune moment such as the key in the chuck or my hand holding a drill to extract it from the chuck.

Also, if you allow a pet in the shop, ensure that the spring on the pedal is strong enough that Fido can't trip it.

[tonyfoale]

If I were to do that (I won't) I'd want some sort of arrangement that prevented me from accidentally stepping on the switch at an inopportune moment such as the key in the chuck or my hand holding a drill to extract it from the chuck.

Also, if you allow a pet in the shop, ensure that the spring on the pedal is strong enough that Fido can't trip it.

Would you avoid a foot pedal on a TIG welder for the same reasons?

[mklotz]

Would you avoid a foot pedal on a TIG welder for the same reasons?

I don't weld so I'm not in a position to answer your question.

I suppose that, if accidentally pressing a TIG pedal could cause an immediately dangerous situation as is the case with the drill press, I might but, as I said, I'm not in a position to say.

Actually, I no longer have a drill press. The bench model I had was taking up so much room in my overcrowded Garaj Mahal that I sold it. Since then I've done all drilling on my mill-drill which works well for me. Still, if I did have one, I wouldn't want a foot pedal on it.

[olderdan]

The safe way to wire a foot switch is to put the machine switch as intermediate so the foot switch is only live when you switch the machine on at the moment of use, a live warning light would also be useful. When changing tooling just switch the machine of as you would normally, the foot switch is then dead.
BTW no pets are allowed in my workshop, swarf and paw pads just mean more vet bills.

[tonyfoale]

Actually, I no longer have a drill press. The bench model I had was taking up so much room in my overcrowded Garaj Mahal that I sold it. Since then I've done all drilling on my mill-drill which works well for me.

Using a mill-drill is better than a bench drill press anyway.

[tonyfoale]

The safe way to wire a foot switch is to put the machine switch as intermediate so the foot switch is only live when you switch the machine on at the moment of use, a live warning light would also be useful.

12bolts and I indicated that is how we do it, although I don't have a light. It would be useful because I often leave it switched on. I don't switch off between tool changes though.

[ozepool]

I use foot switches on my drill presses. It is much more convenient and safer as well. If the drill catches and the work starts spinning it is much easier to lift a foot and run, rather than hang around reaching for the ON/OFF switch with a damaged hand.

With all the health and safety these days i would think manufacturers would have a plug in accessory foot switch for most machines where feasible. Even a knee operated off button as reaching up to the button on the drill is bad, just as the button on my lathe. Most imports have the duo on/off buttons with a off button in a lid, most inconvenient, my lathe is particularly irksome, thanks, I'll be doing a foot switch. In the 60s, lathes came with a reversing switch at thigh level, no reaching up over the lathe.



The trend in on off switches, the lid had to go!

[tonyfoale]

With all the health and safety these days i would think manufacturers would have a plug in accessory foot switch for most machines where feasible. Even a knee operated off button as reaching up to the button on the drill is bad, just as the button on my lathe. Most imports have the duo on/off buttons with a off button in a lid, most inconvenient, my lathe is particularly irksome, thanks, I'll be doing a foot switch. In the 60s, lathes came with a reversing switch at thigh level, no reaching up over the lathe.

A lot of elf and safety features on tools actually increase danger because it makes stuff difficult to operate, the switch covers that you show are a case in point. I don't like the illustrated location of the red button on your lathe and although your proposed position is better it still requires you to reach across the spinning plane of the chuck or face plate.

The switch on my lathe was over to the left and I hated the idea and practice of reaching across that danger zone, so I repositioned the switch as far to the right as was easy for the wiring and then added a mechanical extension to the switch which is well out of the way. That also gives me the option of RH or LH operation. The lathe switch that I like the best are those lever types that are fixed to the RHS of the saddle and travel with it. They usually have a third shaft going through the saddle.

Click on pix for full size.

The repositioned switch is shown to the left, the right shows the mechanical extension for right hand operation well out of the spinning area. The extension comprises of a bit of 6 mm threaded rod, a couple of cheap rod ends and a small aluminium block to hold or knock.

[NortonDommi]

I have an E-stop at the top RH face of my lathes headstock right where it is natural for the LH hand to slap in a hurry,(and I have used it), but I had never considered the fact that I would be reaching "across the spinning plane of the chuck or face plate." I have a spare E-stop switch so I will wire it in series over on the tailstock end of the lathe.
Thanks for pointing out this danger, now I think about it I realize just how easy it would be to sustain a nasty injury or fatal blow, very scary.