what does this thread designator mean?

I don't have a clue what that thread is officially, but try 3/8"-24 hardware with it.. it always seems to fit well with lamp hardware when I modify or use lamp bases for something else.

WB .................

I think it's National Pipe Straight Male, same pitch as National Pipe Tapered.

JimW

Free-fitting straight pipe threads for mechanical joints.

I don't know if they're exactly what's used in lamps, but the NPSM specs are in MH so you should be able to compare to some actual lamp parts.

Ned Simmons

Does she have a lathe? Does it have a turret? If so, I would suggest a Geometric die head with an appropriate set of chasers. This has the advantage that it can be fed directly onto the rotating workpiece, and when the turret reaches its preset stop, the threads continue for another turn roughly, and the dog clutch releases so the chasers retract from the workpiece, and the die head can be withdrawn while the workpiece is still rotating. There is no need to stop and reverse the spindle to back the die head off the just cut threads.

I do 5/8-27 threads in brass at 650 RPM. I would have to look up the right speed for steel before doing that, but I'll bet that you could handle 3/8" threads in mild steel at the same speed.

I would suggest a 3/4" die head so you have sufficient meat for continuing work -- but that makes a set of chasers a bit more expensive. If you need some in a size which is not stocked, you can call MSC (or probably other vendors) and they will contact one of their makers (in my case it was TRW) to have a special set made. Figure on about 50% over the price for stock ones in that size.

Without a turret, it is possible to mount one in a boring bar holder for a quick-change toolpost, but you have to spend some time making sure that the cross slide is in the center, as well as the vertical position of the tool holder.

Good Luck, DoN.

fwiw

Jim chipped in with:

"I think it's National Pipe Straight Male, same pitch as National Pipe Tapered.

JimW "

Yes, that is correct.

Doug

NO.

Does she have a web page? Any pictures of her work anywhere?

She does,

GWE

Very nice lamps! She must design them and have a shop fabricate and fill the orders right?

Lane

No. She makes every single one by hand herself. She used to make the paper, too, but that got to be too much. Actually, I think since she's gotten pretty busy, she has hired some help, and also she does shop out the brass casting and much of the machining, and of course she uses stock lamp parts where she can, but every shade is still hand-glued onto every frame, and every lamp body is patinaed just so using her own self-derived formulas, and she packs and ships every order, and she does all the bookwork.

Pretty amazing when you think about it, eh?

Grant

Yes, very amazing. My hat is off to her, a very ambitious woman. Lane

That's NPS 1/8-27. As others note, "NPSM" probably means the male.

Major diameter is a little bigger than 3/8", per Table 10b is MH 26th, page

Grant,

Ned has correct specification for the NPSM.

...on the cheap, if you have the 1/8 NPT dies, simply reverse the dies and adjust the holder and it should cut straight threads.

sjm1

Grant Erw> My sister fabricates lighting fixtures. She does a lot of threading of brass and

On Fri, 01 Jul 2005 21:16:41 -0700, the opaque Grant Erwin spake:

So, are the lamps cheaper than the competitors, too, or just better? ;) (There are no prices listed anywhere.) Interesting stuff.

So why on Earth isn't she retailing these from the site, too?

- This product cruelly tested on defenseless furry animals - --------------------------------------------------------

Her lighting fixtures are *not* cheap. She made a conscious decision not to compete with her own distribution chain, for better or worse. She doesn't have the resources to sell to the end user, so she is targeting what she knows: the population of interior designers. She does her promotion by working trade shows and making connections with people the old fashioned way, one at a time. As such, her Web site is more of a reference tool than a store.

re: kozolighting.com

GWE

"NPSM" is a straight pipe thread for mechanical attachment. This set should be just the ticket for the lamp work you mentioned.

On Sat, 02 Jul 2005 07:42:36 -0700, the opaque Grant Erwin spake:

I figured that, but the motivation for her to go into business were the high prices of the competition's goods, oui?

Her (part-time?) help could fill web orders, easily paying their salary and providing more profit. If she charged premium prices on the website (more than her resellers), there would be little competition. Just a thought.

P.S: Tell her that squeezing her home page graphic like that makes the text much harder to read. The picture is 595 pixels high but is being shown as 543.

--- Annoy a politician: Be trustworthy, faithful, and honest! ---

Most high end interior design components (lights, mirrors, etc.) are only sold through designers and high-end boutiques so as not to tick off the sales channel.

John