Bevel Gears: A Little Theory. A Little Practice…Literally!

A kinda long video about making an 8 DP bevel gear..roughly 5 inches in diameter..as a test piece for another hobbing project I’m starting. The ones I’ve made before have been cookbook style…this time I wanted to understand the why behind the method and try to explain it. The result is a decent, usable gear cut with a standard involute gear cutter, which man hobby machinists have in their shop. If you are into this stuff, I hope this helps, if not, there is some cool footage making this test gear on my new-to-me Van Norman 22LU milling machine. Enjoy!

Пікірлер: 65

  • @sky173
    @sky1736 сағат бұрын

    This is the BEST explanation of how these teeth are cut. I have no idea how I missed your last few videos. Can't wait to see this new contraption you have floating in your head. As always, thanks for sharing.

  • @mikemakuh5319
    @mikemakuh531919 күн бұрын

    Thank you! It is good to see someone making a positive contribution to our understanding of machining.

  • @thomasstover6272

    @thomasstover6272

    19 күн бұрын

    Too kind, thanks!

  • @joeg679
    @joeg67917 күн бұрын

    Great video Tom, I've never cut bevel gears, only helical and spur gears. What a great explanation. Thank you for sharing.

  • @thomasstover6272

    @thomasstover6272

    17 күн бұрын

    Thanks for watching!

  • @pyromedichd1
    @pyromedichd118 күн бұрын

    Great explanation of a process I've been wanting to learn about. Thank you!

  • @thomasstover6272

    @thomasstover6272

    17 күн бұрын

    Thanks for your note! Glad it was helpful!

  • @MattysWorkshop
    @MattysWorkshop19 күн бұрын

    Gday, I am no good at mathematics at all and I don’t believe I could possibly make a bevel gear but I find this very interesting and really like the way you explain the process, thank you

  • @thomasstover6272

    @thomasstover6272

    18 күн бұрын

    Morning, Matty! I think anyone can do this. Someday you’ll have a need…and you will remember this little vid. Be fine on the day.

  • @campbellmorrison8540
    @campbellmorrison854019 күн бұрын

    Excellent thank you, this is the first explanation of cutting bevel gears that I actually understood.

  • @thomasstover6272

    @thomasstover6272

    18 күн бұрын

    You are welcome!

  • @bernardwright2420
    @bernardwright242018 күн бұрын

    That's the 1st time I've seen a dividing head on KZread that's exactly the same as mine, I like your process, will try it in the future, thanks for showing.

  • @thomasstover6272

    @thomasstover6272

    17 күн бұрын

    Thanks! Hope you give it a try!

  • @OthamJohn
    @OthamJohn18 күн бұрын

    I have Ivan Law's book and having watched your explanation I understand finally what he was saying. Thank you for a clear and concise walk through.

  • @thomasstover6272

    @thomasstover6272

    18 күн бұрын

    Glad it was helpful!

  • @thigtsquare950
    @thigtsquare95019 күн бұрын

    Thanks for the insight. I thought bevel gears were simple single pass, and all it was to them is the setup. Once you mentioned the cones it was clear to me that they needed 3 passes. It will save me a lot of material and headaches to know the problem and to understand the solution. Cheers, I your video just came in my feed and I subscribed right away.

  • @thomasstover6272

    @thomasstover6272

    18 күн бұрын

    Thanks for watching and subscribing! Good luck!

  • @markfischer9216
    @markfischer921619 күн бұрын

    I have the book and have read the section on bevel gears many times but have struggled to understand the process. I think I get it now. Thank you for the video.

  • @thomasstover6272

    @thomasstover6272

    19 күн бұрын

    Law makes it a little more opaque by not showing all the steps…and by choosing a 20 DP gear with 20 teeth. Profoundly confusing…good luck!

  • @Workshopfriend
    @Workshopfriend18 күн бұрын

    Thank you for your excellent explanation. Encourages me to have a go!

  • @thomasstover6272

    @thomasstover6272

    18 күн бұрын

    Please do!

  • @rodneykiemele4721
    @rodneykiemele472118 күн бұрын

    Excellent video, thank you very much

  • @thomasstover6272

    @thomasstover6272

    18 күн бұрын

    Glad you liked it! Thanks for watching!

  • @perrypark8485
    @perrypark848519 күн бұрын

    Always a good Day when you post a video

  • @thomasstover6272

    @thomasstover6272

    19 күн бұрын

    Thanks, kindly!

  • @wibblywobblyidiotvision
    @wibblywobblyidiotvision18 күн бұрын

    Excellent use of transparencies. Bravo.

  • @thomasstover6272

    @thomasstover6272

    18 күн бұрын

    I have my moments…

  • @BROCKWOOD64
    @BROCKWOOD6416 күн бұрын

    Now, this makes more sense than just watching the process (or trying the 'cookie cutter' method). An added bonus for me is this involved the use of a Van Norman mill & 10" divider! You made mention of your next big purchase - without any hints. If it's the low speed gearbox for your dividing head, you'll want to move your X feed hand wheel from left to right side of the table. Are you missing a crank handle?

  • @thomasstover6272

    @thomasstover6272

    16 күн бұрын

    I am 1 crank handle short, as it happens. There’s another video on my channel about making a change gear set for my VN lead box, if you’re interested. Thanks for watching!

  • @kennyrmurray
    @kennyrmurray18 күн бұрын

    Thanks Tom. I actually have that book but I have a hard time comprehending a lot of it. I went to Chevrolet school, but this is very difficult for me sometimes.

  • @thomasstover6272

    @thomasstover6272

    17 күн бұрын

    I’m open to questions, which I will answer with confidence that may not be justified. Cheers!

  • @MyLilMule
    @MyLilMule18 күн бұрын

    You must have visited HGR. I could spend hours and tens of thousands of dollars there. LOL! Looking forward to the new series.

  • @thomasstover6272

    @thomasstover6272

    18 күн бұрын

    Indeed! This machine wasn’t “last chance”, but it was marked down. This project is going to be fun!

  • @RustyInventions-wz6ir
    @RustyInventions-wz6ir18 күн бұрын

    Very nice work sir

  • @TheJohndeere466
    @TheJohndeere46615 күн бұрын

    Involute cutters for making bevel gears are thinner than the ones for making spur gears . I have some out in the shop.

  • @thomasstover6272

    @thomasstover6272

    15 күн бұрын

    True but they are hard to find in a specific size. I have some, too, but nothing as big as I needed. These gears mesh well and I think they will work well…time will tell.

  • @TheJohndeere466

    @TheJohndeere466

    13 күн бұрын

    @@thomasstover6272 What size cutter did you need. I guy gave me a whole 5 gal bucket of them.

  • @thomasstover6272

    @thomasstover6272

    13 күн бұрын

    @@TheJohndeere466 A set of 8 or 10 DP bevel cutters would be great. In a pinch #4-#6 if you don’t have full sets. Let me know if you want to sell them!

  • @TheJohndeere466

    @TheJohndeere466

    13 күн бұрын

    @@thomasstover6272 i have a set of each except a # 4 8dp . i really dont want to sell them but you can use them. i have 3 #6 8dp. i would sell 2 of those.

  • @TNBen60
    @TNBen6019 күн бұрын

    I enjoy peering over the precipice of your rabbit hole. I may be loosing my footing with a project to make an unnecessarily complicated malt mill so I can experiment with gear cutting myself. Dangerous stuff!

  • @thomasstover6272

    @thomasstover6272

    19 күн бұрын

    Give in to the dork side! It’s a superpower!

  • @camillosteuss
    @camillosteuss17 күн бұрын

    Huh, 22 Van Noman you say... Interesting... Not identical by any means, but somewhat reminiscent of the Schaublin 22... The head and ram arrangement especially, and the sideways offset dovetail for the knee when compared to the head ram... Very interesting... And she seems to be in a very nice condition... Put some proper way guarding on that machine... A nice machine like that should be treated properly and protected from damage... Also, damn, this is some proper educational video... I definitely ain`t picking all of this up on the first run, but i`ll be back for this... I just wanted to check the video, and i discovered a new channel to subscribe to... Nice machines and properly explained stuff... Also, the proper, good, old methods being used hammers it home for me... Transparent film, hand drawn geometry, i mean, need i even say more... Damn glad i checked out the video... Best regards! Steuss

  • @thomasstover6272

    @thomasstover6272

    17 күн бұрын

    Welcome! I can’t promise all will be explained, but I’ll try…thanks for checking it out!

  • @camillosteuss

    @camillosteuss

    17 күн бұрын

    @@thomasstover6272 Oy mate, i have a machinist`s handbook, so i guess i could just look it up and study the artform, but since i have no need for gears at the moment(nor is my shop in any condition to produce any atm), but i sure appreciate lovely machines and people who share in the remarkable love for those majestic artworks in cast iron... You seem have an eye for proper machinery, thus, i conclude that you at least have some love for them...

  • @thomasstover6272

    @thomasstover6272

    17 күн бұрын

    @@camillosteuss indeed I do, to possibly an unhealthy degree…cheers!

  • @camillosteuss

    @camillosteuss

    17 күн бұрын

    @@thomasstover6272 Oh, there ain`t no such a thing... Machines need all the love that can be had, as well as proper maintenance and mindful operation... All the best!

  • @mudnducs
    @mudnducs18 күн бұрын

    I got a BS in mech eng and we NEVER covered gear construction like this. I feel cheated! Thank you so much!! Do you think this would work for high speed gear sets?

  • @thomasstover6272

    @thomasstover6272

    18 күн бұрын

    Wow! Thanks!

  • @gertjevanpoppel7270
    @gertjevanpoppel727018 күн бұрын

    Excellent work and great video 👍 Im making a bevel gear myself for a milling machine that I have . The problem is that it has a bevel gear that hasn't have a constant depth. But it is very difficult to find out how to make one. I also have tried the same method as in the video and i found a copy of the machinists handbook where this method is described. But someway it doesn't give me the correct gear. My first problem is to determine the precise type of gear I have and i know it must be the metric variant. But it is very difficult to reverse engineer and to come up with the correct numbers. After making 5 gears that all had some errors i gave up and try to figure out on how or what i do wrong. If you or someone has any tips I would appreciate it 😀. Specially on how to make a bevel gear that hasn't a constant depth. And the math behind it.

  • @thomasstover6272

    @thomasstover6272

    18 күн бұрын

    The normal approach for a “proper”bevel is to set up the gear on the large diameter, so if you can estimate the pitch diameter at the big end, you should be able to determine from that and the tooth count whether it is a DP or a MOD gear. I don’t believe you can cut a proper gear this way unless you have special bevel tooth cutters, which must have a much narrower profile, since the basic profile is established on the outer diameter and the tooth gets narrow as you move down the flank. I am not sure what I can offer beyond that, as I have never made a gear that way. Best of luck!

  • @TheJohndeere466
    @TheJohndeere46617 күн бұрын

    I bought a van norman mill like that on ebay for 164.00. Mine has an overarm support with it.

  • @thomasstover6272

    @thomasstover6272

    17 күн бұрын

    Well, that’s a pretty good deal!

  • @ThePottingShedWorkshop
    @ThePottingShedWorkshop19 күн бұрын

    Brilliant explanation! Now you're making me want to dream up a project that needs bevel gears so I can try this out - as if I don't have enough already!

  • @thomasstover6272

    @thomasstover6272

    19 күн бұрын

    Thanks, Robert! Glad it wasn’t too confusing! The key thing for me was to be able to use a standard involute cutter.

  • @thomasstover6272

    @thomasstover6272

    19 күн бұрын

    Now that I understand this, I am sure that you could apply this approach with your shaper setup. The constant depth tooth could be generated as you have been…it would just require 3 passes…

  • @thomasstover6272

    @thomasstover6272

    19 күн бұрын

    On second thought, I don’t think it will work. The reason this works is that you are cutting the flank, rather than generating it. I think you would have to rotate the blank around the pitch line…more complicated. Maybe.

  • @quirty864
    @quirty86419 күн бұрын

    The dividing machine has to be offset for the second and third cuts, right? If I have that right, what is the method to do that? Thanks.

  • @thomasstover6272

    @thomasstover6272

    19 күн бұрын

    Just moving the table on the milling machine perpendicular to the tooth, 1/2 of the tooth width at the pitch circle.

  • @quirty864

    @quirty864

    19 күн бұрын

    @@thomasstover6272 Hah, I can be a bit dense at times, lol. Thanks, kid.

  • @timstover7923
    @timstover792319 күн бұрын

    No! The first rule of bevel gears is YOU DON’T TALK ABOUT BEVEL GEARS!!

  • @thomasstover6272

    @thomasstover6272

    19 күн бұрын

    No, the FIRST rule of bevel gears is “you don’t understand bevel gears!” 😁

  • @paradiselost9946
    @paradiselost994616 күн бұрын

    bevels. the worst gear of all to make without a proper gleasson. try to avoid them like the plague, where possible... alter designs for something more... simple. helicals. not often that shafts HAVE TO intersect... me myself and i, the few ive had to do... slot saw, two rotaries, and generate them just like the gleasson but... slower! have to roll the work, whilst simultaneously "rolling the cutter". just like generating a spur gear with a slot saw but with an extra rotation and offset. once youre going its easier than using an involute, with far less fudging and filing for proper heel-toe contact... just gotta do a bit of trig for the angles and offsets. and rather than one tooth at a time, work through them all one pass at a time... only working on one flank at a time. there is a special "bevel involute cutter", made narrow enough for the inner gap, yet it obviously can only generate the correct profile at the heel of the tooth... so even with them, its all a bit of fudging, offsetting and rolling the work... filing and blueing... generating them ensures theyre as near perfect as they can be... sigh. the only gleasson i know of i can touch happens to be a freaking ornament in a refurbished train workshop where the yuppies have no idea what the hulking lump of cast iron in the lobby happens to be... made one guys day when i told him... yep. all that machine just to make silly little angled gears... (could probably cut 5ft diameters? it is rather large...) wonder how they would react to having that thing fired up and throwing some chips in their lattes and frappucinos?

  • @thomasstover6272

    @thomasstover6272

    15 күн бұрын

    I’d like to see that Gleason machine someday! Where is it?

  • @paradiselost9946

    @paradiselost9946

    15 күн бұрын

    ​@@thomasstover6272 sydney, eveleigh, "australian technology park".

  • @thomasstover6272

    @thomasstover6272

    15 күн бұрын

    Thanks…might take a while to get there! Cheers!