Making knobs

[Texan]

I just used a hole saw with the 1/4" bit and cut out a few of them.

I took a trip to Radio Shack and bought a bunch of older radio knobs that were Bakelite and had a brass insert with a set screw. I hammered the knobs once and they shattered and I got the inserts out.

From that point it was just a dab of epoxy and push the brass inserts into the wooden knobs.

I made the knobs out of cherry wood, glued on a small cherrywood cap and spun them in my drill press.

Then I polished them with lighter and lighter sandpaper and then a Scotchbrite pad and a spray of Minwax Marine Spar Varnish to coat them.

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For the price you paid for the knobs and smash time, you could have bought 50 set screws and a matching tap. Let me know if you want the name of a supplier and the size.

 

[SurferJoe46]

Well, let's see Tex.

The knobs were 5 cents a piece since that Radio Shack was going out of business - something about a free gun with every satellite receiver package they sold that the mother ship didn't appreciate.

So, I was out 15 cents plus a cup or so of gasoline and a chance to see who was downtown - there was nobody special so I went to the barber shoppe and played some jug band music for a while until a customer came in and spoiled the mood wanting his annual haircut.

Then swinging the hammer three times cost me something, didn't it?

The epoxy was maybe another nickle's worth - I'm not sure on this --- as the stuff was pretty old and the price has gone up in the past twenty years or so.

The cherry wood plank my neighbor gave me three yeas ago was from a 100 year old tree in Michigan, and I guess the tree gave it's all for that - right?

All in all, I am at a loss here to figure what financial loss to me as I got what I wanted, met a few friends and played a little music until the hair cut intervened, and oh.... let's not forget the priceless epoxy.

But I have to figger in the electricity for the lights, running my drill press to cut the plugs and then to spin them and sand them down.

I already have a full set of taps, dies and all in metric and English/SAE etc from my 50+ years as a mechanic, so that's not even cipher-able.

Let me know what you feel is my loss with some of that new math from Tex a$$.....OK?

 

[BassHappy]

Not to interrupt or anything, but I was wondering if anyone knew about metal knob bushing inserts that are press on type and work with split shaft pots. Not fond of the set screw deal. I love the press on ones but I have searched forever and can't find any knob bushings to use for them.

Would love to find something pre-manufactured that could be epoxied into the wooden knobs and off you go.....

All thoughts and sources welcome on an easy solution....

 

[SurferJoe46]

It's in the UK- but is this what you think you can use: Invalid Link Removed

 

[BassHappy]

It's in the UK- but is this what you think you can use: Invalid Link Removed

Thanks so much Surfer Joe. It's a start, I wasn't able to find anything in my search so I do appreciate it. What I am looking for is the 6mm inserts that have splines on the inside and push on tightly to split shaft pots without a set screw. These are smooth inside, made to work with a solid shaft pot with the aid of the set screw.

As you can see below, they make 6mm pots in both fine with 24 splines and coarse with 18 splines. If I can find either of the inserts I will adjust the size to the size of the pot splines.

I did find these, which are perfect, but it was from an older ebay auction and the shop doesn't have any in stock. They did say that they have them coming though! Someone else has to be making and selling these!