What protects a steel shaft from the marks left behind from set screws?

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Hi guys,
The vertical 1.25" OD steel shaft, is not hardened, but brand new. The machine is a die filer, and the few different accessories will leave marks in too many locations to grind flats.
My only idea was to take a small piece of round brass stock, and put it in the tapped hole in front of the set screw.
Any advice would be appreciated.
Thank You,
Jon
 
You can do that, you can buy some set screws with Nylon inserts in the end, you could put a blob of braze on the end and machine it flat, or drill the end and press a brass or plastic nub into it. And probably other things. If these are locking collars, there are non-marking collars made by HoloKrome and Allen I believe that won't leave any evidence of a grip.
 
What size are the set screws and how tight do they need to be? A small brass tip inserted would be my first choice for simplicity or a split collar is another option as it distributes the clamping force around the whole circumference.
 
Sharky said:
What size are the set screws and how tight do they need to be? A small brass tip inserted would be my first choice for simplicity or a split collar is another option as it distributes the clamping force around the whole circumference.
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Hi,
thanks for the advice. The size is 7/16" diam in 416 ss
I wish I could make my own split collar, and I can't seem to find a split collar that is atleast 2" high.
The set screw needs to be tight enough to hold the support arm in place, but I added as per design, a split collar bought at mcmaster.
Thanks,
Jon
 
A 1/4" brass nub can be set into the end of the setscrew. Bore a shallow 1/4" hole in the tip of the set screw, insert a short brass pin with a dab of loctite. You can probably source what you need from lowes or home depot in the form of a brass punch and cut the "nubs" from the tip of the punch.
 
I'm with Sharky. I've done this several times with 6 mm and 1/4 inch screws by drilling a hole 1/4 inch deep and then turning a brass piece to act as a tip. When it get's close to the hole size in the screw, I start test fitting every .001". If I recall, I use something around .100 inches for the portion that inserts into the screw, and something a bit under the minor screw diameter for the contact area, but you would select whatever works for your screw size. Finally, I LocTite it in place.

Charlie



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Or, you can get pre-assembled ones from Mc-Master, just search "brass-tip set screws". I'd throw some in with your next order :)
 
hvontres said:
Or, you can get pre-assembled ones from Mc-Master, just search "brass-tip set screws". I'd throw some in with your next order :)
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Hvontres,

i didn't know that... Of course, it's not as much fun as making your own!
 
I just tend to modify the shaft with a flat. Yes, the setscrew still marks the flat but now does not interfere with the smooth operation of the machine.
 
You could chuck the shaft up in a lathe and machine a shallow groove wide enough to accept the set screw. That way, any bugs raised by the screw wouldn't interfere with the diameter of the shaft. Of course, this is only good if the setscrew is always tightened in the same lengthwise location on the shaft.
 
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