"SOMEBODY" is getting one of these for Christmas!
I've had one of those for years, BUT...it doesn't make very deep "dimples" in CAPS (even aluminum ones).
B-)
Loyal
the person getting this needs to be gently "eased" into his punching career, so smaller dimples to start out will be a plus! 🙂
As a firefighter, I have carried one of those for years in my vehicle. Works really well to break tempered auto glass if placed in the corner of a side window. Many accidents in wintertime where occupants are not conscious and window is not broken.
The one time I did not have it when I was in another vehicle, a fellow was coming out of a side street had a seizure and passed out, he traveled across 2 lanes up over a curb and into a building (stopping the vehicle) foot heavy on the accelerator (think burning rubber). Windows up, doors locked...... hmmmmm. Remove the windshield wiper arm and the wiper blade, use as a spring loaded hammer by holding the big end against the middle of the window, the small end near the corner of the window, pull back and let go! Puts the side window into a zillion little pieces.
Please don't try this at home, and make sure you have all of your PSE on! Goggles, gloves, steel toes, hard hat, surveyors vest and tool belt... etc.
OH and, break a window that nobody is sitting next to :bye:
It's for the more precise surveyor....
Oh great...
...now we're going to endure a lengthy post on the "correct" size of the dimple...:bored:
some prefer terms like "thorough", "systematic", "comprehensive", "retraceable"....
An automatic center punch is great for machinist layout, but not very useful in field surveying due to the limited oomph of the spring.
A few weeks ago I lost my favorite punch, a used carbide-tipped pavement grinder bit that I ground to a point. I'd had it for over 20 years, and am still mourning its loss. Although I'd like to get another like it (anyone have access to discarded bits?), I needed a replacement ASAP, so I bought one of these for about 10 bucks on eBay:
It's a carbide-tipped lathe dead center. The tip as delivered was super sharp, and -- as I feared -- it chipped slightly the first time I dimpled the top of a concrete nail. However, the chip was tiny, and so far it's still serviceable, leaving a pretty clean punch mark.
The advantage of the pavement grinder bit is that the carbide cross-section is so fat that when ground to a point it's extremely tough. In 20 years it didn't chip or lose its sharpness, and I used it regularly on concrete nails, manhole rims, and other harder-than-usual metals (though not stone or concrete). However, unless/until I can find another one, I think the dead center will do.
and just HOW MANY dimples can you get on the head of one concrete nail??
geezer
> and just HOW MANY dimples can you get on the head of one concrete nail??
One is generally sufficient.
Is it larger, smaller or about the same as the one already in the center of the nail head?:-S
Oh great...
About 0.04'
>and just HOW MANY dimples can you get on the head of one concrete nail?
About the same as the number of angels that can dance on it, if the dimples are small enough.
Plain Heads
> Is it larger, smaller or about the same as the one already in the center of the nail head?
No dimples on the concrete nails I buy, so I roll my own.
> > and just HOW MANY dimples can you get on the head of one concrete nail??
>
> One is generally sufficient.
Just make sure to leave enough room for another surveyor's "disagreement" dimple.
> Just make sure to leave enough room for another surveyor's "disagreement" dimple.
Then there wouldn't be enough room to engrave my license number and the date.
Going to Extremes
Missing my converted asphalt milling bit (I referred to it earlier as a pavement grinding bit, but have since learned that was a misnomer) as a result of this discussion, I decided to see if I could find one online. The most common term I encountered for the machine that mounts it is a cold planer, so I used that term in the search. I came up empty on eBay, and a general Google search turned up lots of references, but not for individual parts.
Then I found the site for my regional Caterpillar dealer, and saw that they had parts online. I had to set up an account to search the parts books, and it took me a good half hour to learn my way around the parts site, but I eventually found the cold planer bits. The standard order is 2000 units, but -- much to my surprise -- I was actually able to place an order for 2 units (one to use, one as a spare) at $12 and change apiece. By the time taxes and shipping were added in the bill came to almost $40, which I charged to a credit card. It'd cost me more than that in terms of fuel and lost time just to drive there and back, so I figured it was a good deal.
I can imagine the order picker scratching his head trying to figure out why on earth anyone would order 2 cold planer bits. I admit to feeling a little funny about setting up an account for what's likely to be a tiny one-time purchase, but they allowed me to do it, so I suppose it's okay.