5 ms·
Another good one is the hypoid gearset (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hypoid http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hypoid) , as used in automotive rear ends. For some re
by joe_bleau 14y ago
Another good one is the hypoid gearset (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hypoid http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hypoid) , as used in automotive rear ends. For some reason I've always found them pretty.
Cone drive sets and harmonic gearing (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harmonic_drive http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harmonic_drive) are neat, too. And then there's the Torsen (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z9iPqIQ_8iM http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z9iPqIQ_8iM), which I still don't really understand.
From the service manuals I've seen, I think some of the smaller 4 cylinder cars, especially from Japan, use a mainshaft/countershaft arrangement (like a traditional manual transmission) in their automatics, rather than planetary gearing.
- HeyLaughingBoy 14y agoBecause the machining is gorgeous I used to have the hypoid pinion I removed from my Toyota pickup truck rear end (when I changed the gear ratio to compensate for larger tires) as a paperweight on my desk. The flowing curves and polished steel gave it a really Art-Deco look. It was free, beautiful and weighing close to 10 lbs, very functional. Can't beat that :-)
- joe_bleau 14y agoSpeaking of gorgeous, if you're ever in a machine shop and get a chance to look inside the headstock of a top end 1940-1970s vintage engine lathe, do it. The quality and precision makes automotive stuff look like hammered pot metal.
- HeyLaughingBoy 14y agoI hang out on a couple of online machinist fora and I agree. Even the outsides of something like, e.g., a Monarch 10EE are beautiful. Sculpted in a way that just doesn't seem to happen anymore. Two of my favorite machine porn photos are from WW2 - a woman at a beautiful Warner & Swasey turret lathe: http://www.shorpy.com/node/1809 http://www.shorpy.com/node/1809 There's another one on that site of a woman using a Heald Borematic that I can't find right now, but it's even more amazing. I need to find it so I can order a large print. Yeah, I love machine tools :-)
- joe_bleau 14y agoThe EE is just about the ultimate, isn't it? I'm also a fan of the smooth flowing industrial design of the old Cincinnati horizontal mills.