Reverse engineering of obsolete parts
The part broke. Nobody makes it anymore.
The machine still runs great, except for one part. The manufacturer is long gone, or they want a minimum order quantity with months of lead time. Local shops won't touch it without a print or model, and you don't have anybody in-house to make one. Call/email Mechanical Superiority! I have lots of experience reverse-engineering old parts from my time in industry, and I know what details to ask for to make sure that it fits right.
How one part gets drawn
Quick, one-at-a-time jobs are the point, not the problem.
Send it
Ship me the broken part (or the remaining pieces), pictures of the application, and any partial or complete prints that you might have. Many times you may not even need to send the physical part for me to recreate it; just drawings with dimensions and pictures with a tape measure in-frame.
Measure
I will measure what I can on my end, and work directly with you to make sure we correctly measure relevant critical dimensions that I can't physically touch. We will communicate to make sure everything is going to fit, and we are all on the same page with what needs to be made.
Model/drawings
I will create a 3D model with dimensioned shop drawings that any machine shop can use to make your part.
Rapid prototyping (where appropriate)
One useful extra step might be to have a cheap plastic model 3D-printed so that you can bolt it onto the machine to ensure a proper fit before cutting metal. There are lots of rapid prototyping businesses around, so this part should be easier than you might think to find in your local area. Time-and-location-permitting, I can also print one and bring it to your site.
Cut
Take your model/drawings to your machine shop of choice, or ask Mechanical Superiority for a quote to make small runs in-house.
Why a small shop wants the one-off
Most established shops want long production runs that keep their people busy for months. A single replacement part is an interruption to them. Here it's the job: variable work, which is the interesting kind.
Oil and gas operations, manufacturing plants, mines and farms all run machines that have outlived the companies that built them. Mark spent years in mining and industrial service, and in agricultural technology, before opening this shop.
The biggest one so far
A prototype Air Force travel pod, with no drawings, shipped to Colorado to be measured.
What to send
- PhotosEvery side, with a ruler or tape in frame.
- The partBroken is fine. All the pieces, if you have them.
- What it fitsMachine make, model and year, and what it mates with.
- How manyOne is normal. Say if you want spares.
- By whenAnd what the machine being down is costing you.