Thanks: 0
Likes: 0
Needs Pictures: 0
Picture(s) thanks: 0
Results 1 to 9 of 9
Thread: Wohlhaupter- Not a UPA
-
21st February 2011, 01:13 AM #1.
- Join Date
- Nov 2008
- Location
- Perth WA
- Age
- 71
- Posts
- 5,641
Wohlhaupter- Not a UPA
I was having a look through some stuff I've buried on an external hard drive in hope of locating some images of a Rivett 608, a lathe of pure delight that GreqQ has actually seen.
I could not find it but found this instead, Smaller and maybe rarer than the 608.
Wohlhaupter make amongst other things, superb and very expensive boring and facing heads. This is not one of them.This was something more! The following text describes the UK4 head which was offered for sale on Ebay four years ago.
Well now here’s something you don’t see every day. This UK4 Wohlhaupter head is a metal working marvel in its own right. This is not the standard boring and facing head you are used to seeing from Wohlhaupter. In fact, I couldn’t figure out what it did, so I contacted the folks at Wohlhaupter and they were very kind to provide some information on this special tool.
Apparently the UK4 heads were produced in very limited quantity, maybe 100 or so in all, between the years 1948 and 1968. The designation “UK” stands for “Universal Copy turning”. They work something like a pantograph in that they were designed to create a profile by copying a master profile. The complexity of the UK4 is clear from the details shown in the photos. It has a vertical slide, a horizontal slide, and another angular setting adjustable through 90 degrees. It comes with what appears to be a complete kit of accessories, all in near –new condition except for on small piece that has a few specks of rust. The UK4 head itself is in excellent condition, the only observable flaw being an inventory number lightly engraved in one spot.
Now here’s the problem. To quote the Wohlhaupter folks, “The complexity of this tool combined with the skills required to operate this tool are almost non existent in today’s metalworking world . . . We no longer make spare parts for it and have no capability to repair it. In fact we don’t even have an operation manual for it anymore.
The tool never really took off well enough to make it economically profitable for us to continue production. Like many of the tools we have invented over the years this tool was an advanced idea that never turned into a market that found a large enough audience for us to justify high production.”
So, in effect, if you buy this UK4 head, you are buying a beautifully-made mechanical puzzle that appears to be capable of amazing things if you can figure it out. However you must understand that you will have to do this on your own, as the folks at Wohlhaupter are no longer in a position to help you. The employees who made these heads retired many years ago and there is no residual information available from Wohlhaupter. In any case, if you buy this UK4 head, you will most likely be the only guy on your block to have one.
-
21st February 2011, 01:46 AM #2GOLD MEMBER
- Join Date
- Jul 2010
- Location
- Melbourne
- Posts
- 7,770
I want one!!!!!!!!!
Very interesting piece of kit bob. Did you see what it went for?
Stuart
-
21st February 2011, 01:57 AM #3Dave J Guest
I see how it works.
If you turn the thingamajig and push in the whatchamacallit while holding the other bit, it will follow the contour of the original part, simple hay. LOL
I wounder if Wohlhaupter translates to whatchamacallit.
Thanks for posting Bob, very interesting, I would love to have a play with it.
Dave
Just did a spell check (ieSpell) and all of those words are in my dictionary, but 'lol' isn't neither is 'collet'?
-
21st February 2011, 07:34 AM #4
What an interesting contraption!
No idea how it works either.
Wouldn't fit most peoples' mill, that arbor looks like your standard MT2/3 for a drill press.
-
21st February 2011, 09:13 AM #5.
- Join Date
- Nov 2008
- Location
- Perth WA
- Age
- 71
- Posts
- 5,641
The arbor is puzzling. I wonder if that's a taper pin in the end holding a removable tang?
And why the ejection slot?
I have no idea of what it fetched in the auction. I'ts one of those things that could have gone either way. I've bought some fantastic stuff for next to nothing because there were no other bidders.
Owning it would be a frustrating thing. You'd have this exquisite thing, but you couldn't use it. I have an absolutely beautiful little Swiss Bolex standard 8 movie camera. Three lens turret, pistol grip, leather case, the works. Now and again, I get it out, fiddle around with it then put it back in the cupboard. I can't use it because it's 60 years old and the film doesn't exist. When I found the thing about 15 years ago, you could still find film for it but it was rare and expensive.
I have a fair amount of stuff and it's stuff that can be used. Maybe it might get used once in my lifetime but the idea of buying something to place on a shelf has never worked for me. Works for a hell of a lot of others though.
BT
-
21st February 2011, 03:23 PM #6
Nothing better than a good mystery,
I wonder if its designed to work with some external tool changer or automatic calibration system.
Can't see why you would have all that extra complexity on a boring head.
Beautiful looking thing though.
Regards
Ray
-
21st February 2011, 04:00 PM #7Distracted Member
- Join Date
- May 2010
- Location
- Lower Lakes SA
- Age
- 59
- Posts
- 2,556
I guess before numeric control came along, mechanical automation must have looked like the way forward.
-
21st February 2011, 04:56 PM #8GOLD MEMBER
- Join Date
- Jul 2006
- Location
- Adelaide
- Posts
- 2,661
crikey...you'd need a lot of screwdrivers...lots n lots of screws in that...
but i'd reckon it be a masterpiece in tooling
reminds me of swmbo...it looks horribly expensive
-
21st February 2011, 06:18 PM #9