best way to shorten action screws?

A

alinwa

oft dis'd member
OK.... So I've tried hacksaw, sawzall, bandsaw, cutoff wheel in dremel, corner-cut on grinding wheel, bolt cutters, shearing pliers, rebar cutter, can't remember what-all else.....

Currently I spin a couple 1/4-28 nuts on, hold it in visegrips and just lean into a coarse carborundum wheel and MELT 'er off...... like grind off a half inch...... red hot and messy.

Then clean 'er up in a screwholder gizzie.

I'd like a nice clean method to cut a bolt off square without completely destroying any hardness that may be present.

Anyone got a better way?
 
Hey buddy! :)
I measure and lightly cut through with grinding wheel, then touch up on belt sander at slight angle. I hold with fingers to see if it’s getting to hot. Nothing cosmic or new. I’m sure there’s a better way, but did some today for a build and worked
 
for small changes i just grind to fit, with water cooling
really sharp fine tooth blade in a hacksaw for bigger changes.
i leave most a little long and use a dremel to fine tune lengths
 
Chuck it in a drill & gentle it against a belt, bevelling down a tad past final length then squaring the end off.
 
If you have a lathe and collet attachment, just use a 1/4 collet. Insert the screw from the back, then install the collet in the lathe.
 
Everyone should have two cheap 6" grinders. One with an abrasive cutoff wheel and a Scotch Brite wheel. The other with a wire wheel and medium grit stone. You can shorten, clean, chamfer, sharpen, polish etc in short order.
 
I don't have a collet attachment so I take piece of round aluminum drill it in the lathe three jaw and then split it with a hacksaw. CLamp it in the three jaw and cut away
 
Dave Tooley said:
Everyone should have two cheap 6" grinders. One with an abrasive cutoff wheel and a Scotch Brite wheel. The other with a wire wheel and medium grit stone. You can shorten, clean, chamfer, sharpen, polish etc in short order.
Click to expand...

Hey now!!!

I like that!

I didn't even know about the Scotch Brite wheel.... I have them for angle grinders (which I've never used) guess I'd never considered th'owing one on a bench grinder


This WILL happen, today :)
 
Al,

What I've done is drill and tap a piece of aluminum roundstock that is shorter than the screw. Tighten the screw up in the hole, then chuck it up in your lathe so the to-be-cut end of the screw sticks out. Part or face to length, and chamfer.

Works like a charm.

Justin
 
I have some soft jaws with a 1/8” gap ground out about an inch back from the face. Works for rear screw, but not for front.
 
Dave Tooley said:
Everyone should have two cheap 6" grinders. One with an abrasive cutoff wheel and a Scotch Brite wheel. The other with a wire wheel and medium grit stone. You can shorten, clean, chamfer, sharpen, polish etc in short order.
Click to expand...

Well, I broke your rules a liddle :) I bought a 5/8 arbor buffer drive which accepts all my right-angle grinder wheels..... and a stand.....and am tying it to the wall and building elbow supports after church today.......

It's not breaking the Sabbath when you do it for fun, right?
 
You say you have a lathe, so put the screw into an appropriate sized die, put the die in your 3 jaw chuck, face the screw off to the length desired. Then use a file to roll over the lead thread.
Easy peasy!
 
Pat Miles said:
You say you have a lathe, so put the screw into an appropriate sized die, put the die in your 3 jaw chuck, face the screw off to the length desired. Then use a file to roll over the lead thread.
Easy peasy!
Click to expand...
I have 3 3-jaws but I can't imagine ever using one

I'm good enough with a 4-jaw, and have sometimes used a bassackwards threaded dealio but next time the screw was trimmed further.... like only left a quarter inch of thread.....and it wobbled and jammed.... and I weren't gonna'make another one so I faced it off.....

And se



Can't picture a die working.....are you figuring it'll clamp down because it's slotted?
 
I bought an inexpensive vacuum base vise from Harbor Freight just for this job. It has vertical V groves in both jaws as well as horizontal. I use the vertical ones, clamp the screw and use a file for small adjustments, and a cutoff wheel on a Dremel type tool for the rough cut, if more needs to come off, and then finish with a file.
 
alinwa said:
I have 3 3-jaws but I can't imagine ever using one

I'm good enough with a 4-jaw, and have sometimes used a bassackwards threaded dealio but next time the screw was trimmed further.... like only left a quarter inch of thread.....and it wobbled and jammed.... and I weren't gonna'make another one so I faced it off.....

And se



Can't picture a die working.....are you figuring it'll clamp down because it's slotted?
Click to expand...

Exactly!
 

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8" disc sander and a bucket for quenching. You can watch the top thread melt away and you don't get as much of a mushroom top as you would with a grinding wheel. I would much rather use the lathe, but the disc is real easy
 
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