We like to write about mechanical history, the shoulders of all the greats we stand upon, current tech, basic machine shop knowledge, plus give you as much perspective, references and insights as possible. From old to new, and everywhere in between, we've taken our projects, experiences and interests, and curated them for hands-on people.
We actually read the patents and do original research on the histories to give you some fresh and practical insight. For knowledge, and products that will get you headed to your shop, stick around for new content. Be sure to check out our video library as well!
Gear Tooth Profiles: Gear Gauge Identification Chart | Evolvent Design
Use this printable spur gear template and gear rack template to determine the pitch (or module) and pressure angle of your unknown gear
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How to Choose a Gear Cutter: Involute Gear Cutter Chart | Evolvent Design
Nearly every shaft diameter has a corresponding standard keyway width and depth – this calculator helps you find it. While a designer is free to specify any keyway they wish, straying from the standard option is likely to increase the cost, time, and complexity of the part. Many keyways are milled directly into a shaft or broached into the corresponding bored holes.
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Standard Shafts and Keyways
Nearly every shaft diameter has a corresponding standard keyway width and depth – this calculator helps you find it. While a designer is free to specify any keyway they wish, straying from the standard option is likely to increase the cost, time, and complexity of the part. Many keyways are milled directly into a shaft or broached into the corresponding bored holes.
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Technical Language: From Ancient Shipwrecks to Space
Our modern world is impressive; it gives us instantaneous information through the Internet and this connects us for better or worse. But how about connecting across languages? English sources only show a fraction of what the world knows
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Gears Don't Slide - They Roll
Gears don’t slide, they roll. If you mesh two gears together and rotate one, the two contacting surfaces will roll, and not slide-off of each other. The difference may seem semantic but it has a huge impact on the life and performance of the gear, and it all comes down to friction.
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Rudolph Diesel, A Patent, and Coal
Rudolph Diesel is known as the father of the Diesel Engine, but how did we get to the modern Diesel Engine and Diesel Fuel as we know today? Born in 1858, Rudolph Diesel designed and patented the first Diesel Engine, originally claiming the engine could burn, "any kind of fuel, whether solid, liquid, or gaseous"
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Hydraulic Oils
The name "Hydraulic Oil" is somewhat of a misnomer as the root of the word hydraulic, "hydro," means water. While water was the original hydraulic fluid, any fluid that conveys power may be considered a hydraulic fluid.
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Designing the Pitch of a Screw: History of Whitworth
With the thousands of uniform screw options available now, it's hard to imagine a time with both more, and fewer options. Thankfully Joseph Whitworth standardized a system for the modern thread, giving a worldwide, universal playing field for interchangeable fasteners.
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Lubrication & Tribology
Anything that moves has friction and wear: your car, your bike, and the machines in your shop. Tribologists study the interaction of sliding surfaces specifically in friction, wear, and lubrication. Tribology has established the principles and designed the oils that keep our mechanical world moving
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American Gear Manufacturers Association (AGMA)
American Gear Manufacturers Associate (AGMA) sets the standards for gears, and provides technical resources to the gear-making community
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I just want to make a gear
CAD and machine tools have been rapidly increasing in capability and decreasing in cost, so the ability to mill, route and 3D-print gears is in reach to a larger audience. So how do I get started? Here are some simple answers:
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The Original Hobbing Machine
Christian Schiele is credited with the first Hobbing Machine patent filed in 1856 - a machine capable of making "toothed wheels" (spur gears) and "oblique wheels" (bevel gears). Despite the innovation in design, there was never a physical prototype...
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Gears in a Nutshell - NASA Gearing
Gears in a Nutshell Gears have a special place in the mechanical world, they make things go, move, or rotate. They are also hidden from our view as they need a case to hold their distance precisely together while rigidly on their shafts in a bath of their favorite lubrication.
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NASA Fastener Design Manual: Behind the Most Common Fasteners
Screws, nuts, washers, and other fasteners are designed for their intended use. Most of the time, what you have in your garage will work great for a quick built - but the NASA Fastener Guide shows us the importance of things like diameter, length, pitch, and much more...
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5000 Years of Gears
5000 years of mechanical innovation and progress - researched, documented, and compiled to highlights the pioneers that made the largest contributions. Our modern world is standing on the shoulders of inventors dating back thousands of years, and it all starts with gears.
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How to Use a Dividing Head - The Ellis Dividing Head
Here is a guide on How to Use a Dividing Head, along with the necessary dividing head indexing charts (pdf). Dividing heads (also called indexing heads) are machine tools used to provide controlled and repeatable rotation to a tool or workpiece, usually as an accessory to a milling machine, lathe, or grinder.
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How to Measure Screw Size and Pitch
Screws are defined by three measurements: diameter, pitch, and length. Measure the diameter across the threads and the length from underneath the head of the screws (unless it's a flat-head, then measure the whole length of the screw.) For the pitch, mark out 1 inch of threads and count the number of threads in that length.
Read moreCheck out our Calculator Hub for a list of all of our gear calculators
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