David Hudson posted a comment on his experience with the Omni faceting machine’s 45 degree angle adapter yesterday. His comment can be found here:
https://www.omnifaceter.net/another-omni-owners-spindle-and-platen/#comment-23
He forwarded me some photos to back up his text. I’ve copied his comments here as well as posted his photos. As you can see, his nearly-completed stone was totally destroyed when the 45 degree angle adapter literally fell apart.
By hacklebox44 on Mar 11, 2009
Well, the latest fall apart stunt of my OMNIe has just cost me a very nice stone. Yesterday I was cutting a very nice piece of Tanzanian Sunstone. I had the stone complete except for the table, using the 45 degree fixture as I often do I noticed the table wasn’t cutting like it should. All of a sudden the head of the 45 degree fixture fell off hitting the spinning lap and ending up on the floor. I found my stone broken and completely ruined.
Upon checking the fixture to see what the heck had just happened I found the fixture was simply glued together and after near three years of use the glue had dissolved and the fixture fell apart. I talked with two other OMNIe owners that I know and they have had the same problem at one time or the other with their machines.I must say that quality machining and quality workmanship surely shouldn’t include glueing machined pieces together. Again the quality of this machine has reached another new LOW FOR ME, and I am headed to a local show this weekend to check into the possibility of buying different faceting machine, I am tired of trying to keep this piece of junk running.
Of course this is my opionion and should be viewed as such.
David Hudson
45 Degree Angle Adapter from David's Omni Faceting Machine
Broken 45 Degree Angle Adapter from David's Omni Faceting Machine
And here are the unfortunate consequences of David’s 45 Degree Angle Adapter falling apart. If you can imagine the heavy head of the adapter along with a dop and stone attached suddenly falling off the machine and being flung around the lap and across the room, you can understand why the stone ended up the way it has.
My 45 degree adapter with a standard Omni dop weighs an impressive 85 grams. Subtract about 20 grams for the shaft of the adapter and you’ve got 65 grams – more than 2 oz – of brass and stone flying about the room. I expect anyone being hit by that would not be very happy, and being hit in the head or fingers would result in injuries.
The Tanzanian Sunstone destroyed when the 45 Degree Adapter fell apart
Finally, here’s a close-up of the 45 degree table adapter from my own Omni faceting machine. Note the black around the joint where the shaft joins the head. From my early emails with Charlie at Jersey Instruments, he indicated this is pitch used to hold the head in place. Not a press-fit or threaded attachment for such a critical part, but simple pitch.
This part was out of alignment when I first received my Omni, and was among the first parts to be returned for servicing. The “servicing” – which apparently consisted of heating and twisting the dop to the correct orientation – took over 3 weeks. Because I’ve had more pressing issues with my Omni faceting machine, this bit of crappy quality hadn’t made it into the site yet.
As you might guess, my next modification is to either have my table adapter silver-soldered like Dave, or have a new one with a better design manufactured. I’m leaning towards the latter.
My Omni Faceting Machine 45 Degree Table Adapter - note the pitch along the joint
Another View - My Omni 45 Degree Table Adapter with pitch holding it together
Allan, I was just blown away when I saw the pictures of Davids table dop!!
I cannot believe that a company that is trying to produce a quality faceting machine would make any dop out of two pieces, let alone a table dop with the weight and pressure it’s subjected to, just to save a few cents on material costs.
I know from experience that the absolute best way of prouducing any dop is to manufacture them out of solid.
Making them out of two pieces is just asking for a problem, from making sure the fit between the two pieces is tight enough, to making sure the aligninment is perfect after you accualy press them together.
Making the adapter out of solid would be faster and there would never be any chance of it coming apart.
And David, you have purchased dops from me in the past, and I’d be happy to make you a new table dop at no charge.
The only thing I ask is that you have to let me know how it works out for you.
Just drop me an e-mail at Mike@alldops.
Thanks, Mike……..
Say hey Gang,
Well if you look at the pictures of my OMNIe factory 45 degree dop you can see it laying there in pieces. I used Super Glue to hold it together for the short term. But Good Ole Mike from Alldops came to the rescue. He is making a table dop that is made to use. I just got mine in the mail yesterday and today I cut my first stone with it. Nothing like the old table dop. Mikes version is nice and heavy machined at 45 degrees instead of glued at 445 degrees. It also has two allen screws with fiber inserts in the end of the set screw so they will not damage the dops when you mount your stone into the table dop.
The thing I really like of the factory version is there doesn’t seem to be that anoying vibration and squealing that I got all the time when I was working on tables on larger stones.
If you have a OMNIe I highly recommend out check out Mike@alldops for a fine replacement for another of the OMNIe’s problems.
David Hudson