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Looking for a laser for hollowing

Raul McCai

Raul McCai

Joined
Oct 29, 2014
Messages
469
Likes
90
Location
nj
Tell me what lasers you like and why please.

I'm building a hollowing system.
It's been a journey~!!!

I need a laser pointer and I don't know anything about them.

What color laser do you find best offers the illumination you can see best?
What about power? I suspect that 5mW may be too much power to be looking at the reflected light for very long.

I could mount one of these easily enough
http://www.staples.com/Staples-500-...REta1lKRoCRvDw_wcB&kpid=801990&akamai-feo=off
 
Raul,
It has been my experience that the "pencil" type laser pointers do not last long. They fail due to the vibration on a hollowing rig. They also suffer from short battery life.I have been using this type for years with no failures. The laser light is focusable so you can set it up any way you want. I personally like the red dot.
http://pages.ebay.com/link/?nav=item.view&alt=web&id=120921382860&globalID=EBAY-US
I hook the laser up to a switchable battery box that holds two AA batteries. Also available on E-Bay.
 
I ended up using a $35 radio shack laser pen pointer for about 15 years.
I made a switch with a piece of plastic wrapped around and taped into a cylinder. Slide it up for on down for off.
The 2 aaa batteries last about 30 hours.

I had planned to add a separate switch for about 14 years and never got around to it.

I recently began using the Trent Bosch Visualizer. What a great great advance .

With the laser I continually estimate which part of the cutter I am cutting on and I move the laser to match where I'm cutting quite a few times on inside curves.
In truth there are few times when the laser is through the shortest path to the cutter perpendicular to the vessel the wall which is ideal. So every cut is measured with some error with the laser. I am quite competent with the laser and have taught its use and demonstrated it a lot.

It was a shock how much difference the video made to me.
With the real time video with visualizer, I know exactly where and when I am cutting. No concern with how much I'm stretching the laser setting.
It increased my confidence in hollowing and I was confident and competent with the laser. Kind of hard to explain that I could feel so good about using a new tool for something that I was already quite good at.

My next scheduled demo I will be using the Visualizer. In addition to helping me hollow a bit faster and more confidently it will show the audience where the tool is working. Give them something to see during the boring hollowing process.

The laser works great. The visualizer is better better better!

Al
 
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Raul, you need something that is as light as possible. The pointer and pen type with self-contained batteries are way too heavy. When you have a heavy weight on the end of a long arm, it will be bouncing all over the place when you are hollowing. The two basic requirements are that you have a lens as part of the assembly so that the bean can be focused to a sharp point at the right distance and that the laser diode and lens can be separated from the battery and switch. I have the Advanced Lathe Tools boring bar rig and you can buy the laser assembly as a separate item. You can save a lot of money by building the arm assembly and buying the electronics.
 
I'm with Al on this one. The visualizer is the way to go. I went through several pens and finally bought just the laser online and rigged it up to a transformer. Can't give you the number because it's still all backed in the Mobil Attic waiting for me to finish building the shop (which fortunately is only a few weeks away). Several people have build versions of the Trent Bosch Visualizer using back up cameras for RV's. They come with the small screen and make a complete package for as little as $39 from what I hear. I purchased a camera from a friend to rig up to some sort of screen but the Back up cameras systems cost less than me buying a used screen.
The big advantage as Al mentioned is you never have to stop and adjust anything. With the laser you have to stop and adjust it so it's perpendicular to the area of the vessel being measured or you won't be accurate. If you have it adjusted for the sides it's very easy to cut through the bottom or make the upper lip too thin. With the Visualizer you have all areas of the cutter defined once you set it up so you never have to adjust it. Just turn and watch the monitor.
Here is Trent's video to show you how it works. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bCg7jXCesEA
 
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If you still want the laser, buy from Lyle Jamieson. I built the camera system for a $14 investment on Ebay and a junk lap top from a friend. Put a call out to all my friends on Facebook for old lap tops, and 2 showed up. One worked great, the other was a little jerky, so I guess a bad video card. I like using it better than the laser.
 
lap top for holowing

Richard -
I am using a backup camera and a 7" screen. ($39 from amazon). I would like to upgrade to a larger screen like one of several obsolete laptops - tablets - etc. However none of these has a composite video input. How are you getting the video from the camera onto the computer.
 
Raul, I totally agree with Al Hockenbery and John Lucas. Forget about the laser system and use a video system instead. Alan Zenreich has an excellent YouTube presentation of an inexpensive video system, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pidLwThKHSw. I bought a CCTV just like the one in the video (from B&H Photography for 29.99 with free shipping if the order is >$35) and a monitor from a car backup camera system. (The camera from the kit is a piece of junk.) The system doesn't look pretty because there are too many wires and the camera comes with a 60' cable but it really works. The greatest advantage of such a system over a laser is that you can see the entire cutting edge wherever it makes contact with the vessel whereas the laser will only tell you the thickness where the laser beam is. The trouble is where the laser beam is might not be where your cutter is cutting. I first tried a $14 borescope connected to my retired laptop. It worked for a short while then the camera and the laptop lost communication (through USB) and I was unable to reestablish the connection. I just wrote it off. There are two commercial sources that I am aware of where you can purchase a turn-key system if you don't want to waste your time, the Visualizer by Trent Bosch and the Cutter Vision from JT Turning Tools.
 
Paul Gilbert said:
Richard -
I am using a backup camera and a 7" screen. ($39 from amazon). I would like to upgrade to a larger screen like one of several obsolete laptops - tablets - etc. However none of these has a composite video input. How are you getting the video from the camera onto the computer.
Click to expand...

You can't, Paul. Portable computers and tablets don't use composite input. You have to find a video monitor that has the composite input. A couple of our club members found one on e-bay (for close to $100). However I suspect your problem is the camera just like what I had. (I bought a $39 backup camera system with a 7" monitor from Amazon as well.) Instead of finding a monitor I bought a CCTV and the combination works.
 
Paul Gilbert said:
Richard -
I am using a backup camera and a 7" screen. ($39 from amazon). I would like to upgrade to a larger screen like one of several obsolete laptops - tablets - etc. However none of these has a composite video input. How are you getting the video from the camera onto the computer.
Click to expand...

Paul, There are adapters that can convert the composite video signal to vga so it can be input to a standard monitor. I used this converter http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00M4JY722?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o01_s00 which works well but there are several others from multiple sources as this appears to be unavailable. You need to make sure it says it will convert composite to PC video. I had a monitor that was a good size but i was told that a few club members picked up a used flat panel monitor at a thrift store for about 10 dollars. I used this monitor mount http://www.monoprice.com/Product?c_id=109&cp_id=10828&cs_id=1082808&p_id=5402&seq=1&format=2 to attach the monitor. I am still finishing up the boring bar. Let me know if you have any questions.

Larry

 
If you're brave (or foolish ... sometimes it is hard to tell the difference), you can open up an iPad and remove the camera so that it can be placed on the hollowing rig. I am getting ready to open up my iPad to change the glass panel so I plan to check things out while I have it on the operating table. It's an iPad 2 so it is about due to be retired. Mrs. B. wants an iPad Air ... maybe for Christmas.

It's interesting that a couple years ago there was a lot of criticism about video systems as if using one was somehow turning your lathe into a CNC milling machine. I wonder if the Luddites complained about the Industrial Revolution taking control of our lives when a coathanger was used to check wall thickness? 🙄 The nay saying seems to have gone away now that many people have seen how useful video systems can be.

During a demo at a recent club meeting, one of our members was awestruck how the camera was able to see the cutter inside the hollowform.

My laser is still very useful. It is a great tool for giving our fat lazy cats some exercise.
 
Bill Boehme said:
If you're brave (or foolish ... sometimes it is hard to tell the difference), you can open up an iPad and remove the camera so that it can be placed on the hollowing rig. I am getting ready to open up my iPad to change the glass panel so I plan to check things out while I have it on the operating table. It's an iPad 2 so it is about due to be retired. Mrs. B. wants an iPad Air ... maybe for Christmas.
Click to expand...

Bill, I believe Alan Zenreich already uses an iPhone on his system (for a demonstration project) without taking it apart. Of course an iPad would be too bulky but you could use an obsolete iPhone.
 
Bill Boehme said:
If you're brave (or foolish ... sometimes it is hard to tell the difference), you can open up an iPad and remove the camera so that it can be placed on the hollowing rig. I am getting ready to open up my iPad to change the glass panel so I plan to check things out while I have it on the operating table. It's an iPad 2 so it is about due to be retired. Mrs. B. wants an iPad Air ... maybe for Christmas. It's interesting that a couple years ago there was a lot of criticism about video systems as if using one was somehow turning your lathe into a CNC milling machine. I wonder if the Luddites complained about the Industrial Revolution taking control of our lives when a coathanger was used to check wall thickness? 🙄 The nay saying seems to have gone away now that many people have seen how useful video systems can be. During a demo at a recent club meeting, one of our members was awestruck how the camera was able to see the cutter inside the hollowform. My laser is still very useful. It is a great tool for giving our fat lazy cats some exercise.
Click to expand...

Bill,
I think it will revolutionize the way demonstrations are done.
(secret - you can't really see inside can you? It is an illusion! But you brain almost fills in the hollowing tool)

Trent is such a creative person.
When I think of how simple the idea is, how many thousands of folks turn hollow forms, how many millions own video cameras.
How did Trent think of it? Or better yet how did no one else think of it????

A good friend of mine always kids me about using a trapped bar for hollowing says he can't feel the wood with one.
I always has him if he's using a chainsaw yet.

Al
 
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Larry Komroff said:
Paul, There are adapters that can convert the composite video signal to vga so it can be input to a standard monitor. I used this converter http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00M4JY722?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o01_s00 which works well but there are several others from multiple sources as this appears to be unavailable. You need to make sure it says it will convert composite to PC video. I had a monitor that was a good size but i was told that a few club members picked up a used flat panel monitor at a thrift store for about 10 dollars. I used this monitor mount http://www.monoprice.com/Product?c_id=109&cp_id=10828&cs_id=1082808&p_id=5402&seq=1&format=2 to attach the monitor. I am still finishing up the boring bar. Let me know if you have any questions.

Larry
Click to expand...

Larry, you are talking about using a computer monitor but Paul was asking about using an old laptop as a monitor. I confirmed with a computer expert that the VGA port on a laptop is only for outputting video signal. You cannot put video signal into your laptop even if you converted from composite to VGA. If you find an inexpensive way of using a laptop for a monitor, let me know. I have an old laptop that I would love to use it for this.
 
Paul Gilbert said:
Richard -
I am using a backup camera and a 7" screen. ($39 from amazon). I would like to upgrade to a larger screen like one of several obsolete laptops - tablets - etc. However none of these has a composite video input. How are you getting the video from the camera onto the computer.
Click to expand...

Sorry Paul, haven't checked in lately. The camera I use is an inspection camera, and has a USB connector. They can be purchased on EBay for $14 and if you choose the body size correctly, it mounts right in the laser holder.
 
Re: USB input to Laptop

Richard Coers said:
Sorry Paul, haven't checked in lately. The camera I use is an inspection camera, and has a USB connector. They can be purchased on EBay for $14 and if you choose the body size correctly, it mounts right in the laser holder.
Click to expand...

Richard, would you clarify this a bit? How would you display a USB input on the screen of a laptop?
 
Dennis J Gooding said:
Richard, would you clarify this a bit? How would you display a USB input on the screen of a laptop?
Click to expand...

It's no different than any other web cam. They plug into a USB port and generally come with display software that opens a 640 X 480 window to display the video. I have an old web cam somewhere in one of my junk boxes. The only problem is that the software is on a floppy disk. 🙄 IIRC, this dates back to when I still had Windows 98SE. Unlike NT, 2000, XP and later, 98 didn't natively support USB so it required some special patches and drivers. I suppose that you could now just install Video LAN (a free open source program) to display the streaming video.
 
Bill's right. The camera I bought works out of the box on certain operating systems. It didn't on my old laptop, but they provide a small disc that opens it right up in the laptop. Is it legal to post a link to the camera on Ebay on this forum? If so, I'll post the auction number is anyone wants the info.
 
Richard Coers said:
Bill's right. The camera I bought works out of the box on certain operating systems. It didn't on my old laptop, but they provide a small disc that opens it right up in the laptop. Is it legal to post a link to the camera on Ebay on this forum? If so, I'll post the auction number is anyone wants the info.
Click to expand...

Search ebay for inspection camera. There must be 100's of them.
 
Richard Coers said:
Bill's right. The camera I bought works out of the box on certain operating systems. It didn't on my old laptop, but they provide a small disc that opens it right up in the laptop. Is it legal to post a link to the camera on Ebay on this forum? If so, I'll post the auction number is anyone wants the info.
Click to expand...

Yes, posting links to sources of good deals is encouraged, so please do post the link to the eBay auction.

There is a rule prohibiting unsolicited advertising.
 
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Richard Coers said:
I guess the company is ordering higher quantities from China, the price has dropped on the camera I ordered. It's now $9.09 with free shipping. I paid $13.99 with free shipping. I like the fact they ship from California, not China like so many of these items on Ebay.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/5M-Mini-USB...Tube-Camera-/111417613322?hash=item19f101dc0a

and if you want less cord hanging around, same cost.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/High-Qualit...e-Endoscope-/121728777616?hash=item1c5799bd90
Click to expand...

Is there a program needed to view the video picture? I notice some cameras have a program disc.
 
Gerald Lawrence said:
Is there a program needed to view the video picture? I notice some cameras have a program disc.
Click to expand...

Maybe, maybe not. If the camera is compatible with your operating system, it will likely open a window and run. If it's like my old lap top, I had to use the disc. I created a shortcut on my desktop, and keep the disc in the drive. Double click on the shortcut, and it opens a small window . Click on the maximize symbol, and it fills the screen. My resolution is very close to 1 to 1, so easy to sketch around. There are options in the software, like capturing a screen shot and saving it. This was designed as an inspection camera. I guess it's set up for a contractor who can use it and show a picture to a home owner. Some of these cameras are so small you can send them into a spark plug hole. It's a reason why I bought the longer cord. I thought that someday I may want to use this thing on our sons 1920 Chicago bungalow. Well that, and I had no idea if this would work when I bought it! I made my system very quickly after the commercial ones hit the market. Almost no one had made a DIY yet.
 
Can someone offer a bit more of n explaination?

I understand the camera, monitor, and the tracing on the overlay. I've watched the videos-several times. For the life of me I can't get my head around how a stationary tracing on the monitor tracks the non-stationary arm/camera as you move it along the hollow form.

I see it and I believe it, but I don't understand it. A laser moves with the cutter- that makes sense. The camera moves with the cutter also BUT the traced outline does not move.

Can someone please turn on the light bulb for me?

Thanks
Dick
 
Dick, imagine if you could shrink yourself so that you were no larger than a laser pointer or miniature camera and were standing where they would be located on the arm above the cutter tip. Next, assume that the hollow form is removed and that the lathe bed is covered with a black cloth so that the only thing that you can see if you look straight down is the hollowing tool with the tip of the tool directly beneath you. Now, suppose that the position of the hollowing tool is moved. When you look down, everything still looks the same. Since there isn't anything else in your field of view to give you a point of reference, as far as you are able to discern, nothing has changed. The tool position could be moved anywhere, but your position relative to the hollowing tool is fixed so regardless of whether a laser, a camera, or your eye is pointing at the tip of the tool, in relative terms, the hollowing tool hasn't moved. Next, let's add the hollow form to this picture. Now, when the tip of the tool is moved inside the hollow form, even though you can no longer see it, you know where it is -- its directly beneath you and in relationship to your position, it is the hollow form that has moved. And that is exactly what you see: the hollow form moves in the camera's field of view while the tool appears stationary. So, if you inserted a sheet of glass beneath your position and traced the outline of the tool with a grease pencil, you would know the tool position at all times even though it can't be seen.

Going back to the camera's frame of reference, the hollowing tool isn't moving, it is completely stationary while everything else moves.
 
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another way to say it

dickhob said:
I understand the camera, monitor, and the tracing on the overlay. I've watched the videos-several times. For the life of me I can't get my head around how a stationary tracing on the monitor tracks the non-stationary arm/camera as you move it along the hollow form.

I see it and I believe it, but I don't understand it. A laser moves with the cutter- that makes sense. The camera moves with the cutter also BUT the traced outline does not move.

Can someone please turn on the light bulb for me?

Thanks
Dick
Click to expand...

As you say, the camera moves with the cutter. BUT here is where you went wrong. Because the camera moves with the cutter, the cutter is stationary on the screen, as is the traced outline. Only the background changes as you move the camera. Two other examples may help you. 1. Instead of moving the cutter inside the bowl, keep the cutter still and move your hand so it covers the cutter. Same deal: the cutter and camera and traced outline did not move, but now you only see the outline. 2. If you have some dust on your camera lens, every photo you take has the dust particle in the same location on the print.
 
dickhob said:
I understand the camera, monitor, and the tracing on the overlay. I've watched the videos-several times. For the life of me I can't get my head around how a stationary tracing on the monitor tracks the non-stationary arm/camera as you move it along the hollow form. I see it and I believe it, but I don't understand it. A laser moves with the cutter- that makes sense. The camera moves with the cutter also BUT the traced outline does not move. Can someone please turn on the light bulb for me? Thanks Dick
Click to expand...

It took me a while. How can that be etc.

Think of the camera as a laser. It moves with the cutter just like the laser.
It is showing a picture around the "dot". The center of the camera moves the tool moves with it.
In effect the tool is stationary relative to the camera. As the camera pans into the vessel the tool is moving with the camera.
When you draw the outline of the tool on the screen the tool never moves from that outline.

Sort of like when you drive down the highway. Your right front fender moves with the car and the follows the edge of the road.
The road changes but the fender doesn't but it is still moving at 50 miles an hour or whatever. Put a dash camera focus on the right front fender and the fender never moves in the video picture. The road edge comes flying by.

Hope that helps.
Al
 
no light yet

thanks guys for trying, but I've still got a block in my head.

Haven't done much with hollowing as yet- Xmas ornaments and rattles. Other attempts would take A LOT if imagination to be called a hollow form. I don't have a captured system either, but I can't see that effecting my mental block.

I'm definitely going to keep this option in mind. Like someone said, this idea is a game changer.
thanks
Dick
 
It all depends on where you are standing. To you standing on solid ground, you see the camera and the hollowing tool moving while the location of the hollowform isn't changing. To the camera, as it is being slewed around (from your perspective), everything that it "sees" except for the hollowing tool appear to be moving. Which is correct? The answer is BOTH because motion is always stated from some frame of reference, either stated or implied.

If you are taking a trip by plane, do you have a sensation of moving at several hundred miles per hour? The answer would be no unless it is a REALLY rough flight or you have a genuine fear of flying. If it is a clear day and you look out the window, you see the ground scrolling past while a person on the ground looking up sees a plane zooming across the sky while they are standing still. Once again, which observation is the correct representation of what is actually happening? Once again the answer is BOTH are equally correct observations.

If the statements above that both observations are equally valid seems a bit hard to swallow, try looking at things from a perspective on a larger scale. If you go outside on a clear moonless night and observe the stars over a period of several hours, you will see that that they all rotate in a circular path about the North Star which appears to be stationary. If you are standing at the North Pole, the rotation is directly overhead while at the equator the North star is at the horizon. If you were to make the same observations from another planet in our Solar System, the North Start would no longer appear stationary (because no two planets have the same rotational axis orientation) nor would the rate of movement of the stars be the same as seen here on Earth since each planet has its own rate of rotation. Each of these observations of relative motion have equal validity yet we are are seeing different observations even though we are looking at the same thing. Given that everything in the Universe is moving, there is no point of observation that has greater or lesser validity than any other point.

Now, without a doubt, everything must suddenly be as clear as (choose one):
  1. Sparkling crystal
  2. The sky in L. A.
  3. Water in the Hudson River
  4. Mud
  5. India ink
 
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I'm swimming in the Hudson

I really appreciate all of your efforts. Like I said, I'm sure it works but I guess I'm going to have to set this up and try it. Might take awhile before I get to but I will get to it.

Thanks again
Dick
 
dickhob said:
I really appreciate all of your efforts. Like I said, I'm sure it works but I guess I'm going to have to set this up and try it. Might take awhile before I get to but I will get to it.

Thanks again
Dick
Click to expand...

Why don't you just go watch one being demoed, like at a regional symposium? JT Turning Tools had it set up in their booth at SWAT just a couple of weeks ago.
 
Andy Chen said:
Why don't you just go watch one being demoed, like at a regional symposium? JT Turning Tools had it set up in their booth at SWAT just a couple of weeks ago.
Click to expand...

Everything is a journey from where I live. I live in a lovely place, but it's out right next to nowhere.
 
Andy Chen said:
Raul, Alan Zenreich has an excellent YouTube presentation of an inexpensive video system, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pidLwThKHSw. I bought a CCTV just like the one in the video (from B&H Photography for 29.99 with free shipping if the order is >$35) and a monitor from a car backup camera system. (The camera from the kit is a piece of junk.) The system doesn't look pretty because there are too many wires and the camera comes with a 60' cable but it really works.
Click to expand...

I'm checking that out
 
Andy Chen said:
Raul, I totally agree with Al Hockenbery and John Lucas. Forget about the laser system and use a video system instead. Alan Zenreich has an excellent YouTube presentation of an inexpensive video system, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pidLwThKHSw. I bought a CCTV just like the one in the video (from B&H Photography for 29.99 with free shipping if the order is >$35) and a monitor from a car backup camera system. (The camera from the kit is a piece of junk.) The system doesn't look pretty because there are too many wires and the camera comes with a 60' cable but it really works.
Click to expand...

So maybe something like this would do it all?
https://jet.com/product/product/016...NCIfLvrdTuJ2QV3rNNTO9MIP-aZozE2m04aAnfc8P8HAQ

There is a 7" monitor & the camera.
I'd need a 12 VDC wall adapter type power supply that I can get anywhere.

Then Some poly film for overlays and a couple of Sharpies

Thanks for the info. I'd not have thought of this. I'd seen the Trent Bosch visualizer and had no idea what might be a good DIY for that.
 
Raul McCai said:
So maybe something like this would do it all?
https://jet.com/product/product/016...NCIfLvrdTuJ2QV3rNNTO9MIP-aZozE2m04aAnfc8P8HAQ

There is a 7" monitor & the camera.
I'd need a 12 VDC wall adapter type power supply that I can get anywhere.

Then Some poly film for overlays and a couple of Sharpies

Thanks for the info. I'd not have thought of this. I'd seen the Trent Bosch visualizer and had no idea what might be a good DIY for that.
Click to expand...

There are so many of these systems out there that they will make your head spin, Raul. The one you showed here seems like would require more work to come up with a mounting system. The one I bought (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005C76ZXC?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00) is easily adaptable to lathe mounting. Like I said there are so many of these out there and here is another one that seems to have similar specs, http://www.amazon.com/Dragonpad-Rea...1442765125&sr=1-14&keywords=car+backup+camera but even cheaper.

As I posted earlier the camera I bought was from B&H, http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/search?Ntt=swann+ads-120&N=0&InitialSearch=yes&sts=ps. Amazon carries the same item but their price fluctuates. It is focusable, unlike all the cameras that come in the car backup systems. Be careful with the screw on the lens barrel because it has a tendency to shake loose from the vibration as you turn. It is impossible to find that tiny metric screw once it ends up in the shavings. (Don't ask me how I know it.🙁 ) This camera comes with a 12 V power supply that you can use on both the camera and the monitor.

The monitor comes with a plastic protective film and if you don't remove it you can trace the outline of the cutter on it directly.

Just a precaution, once you get the system set up and running, be sure to periodically retract you boring jig out of the hollow form and make sure you tracing still superimposes your cutter.
 
Andy Chen said:
There are so many of these systems out there that they will make your head spin, Raul. The one you showed here seems like would require more work to come up with a mounting system. The one I bought (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005C76ZXC?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00) is easily adaptable to lathe mounting.
Click to expand...

Thanks for that.

As I posted earlier the camera I bought was from B&H, http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/search?Ntt=swann+ads-120&N=0&InitialSearch=yes&sts=ps. Amazon carries the same item but their price fluctuates. It is focusable,
Click to expand...

If the ability to focus useful? Are the Automotive backup systems appropriate for up close? That's a question I had about them. They are fixed focus and might not focus up close.

Be careful with the screw on the lens barrel because it has a tendency to shake loose from the vibration as you turn. It is impossible to find that tiny metric screw once it ends up in the shavings. (Don't ask me how I know it.🙁 ) This camera comes with a 12 V power supply that you can use on both the camera and the monitor.
Click to expand...


About those little screws.
Locktight may be too much for them but there are different grades of thread locking compounds. On my shooting optics (Rifle scopes and such) I use the Purple color, which is not a solid lock like the Red so you can remove the screw but it prevents vibration from loosening the screws.


I use MicroFasteners
http://www.microfasteners.com/metric-screws-nuts-washers.html
as the source for my tiny screws.
This chart might help if you have a pair of calipers that can fit in the hole
http://www.stanleyengineeredfasteni...les/downloads/spiralock-drill-size-charts.pdf
 
Andy Chen said:
The one I bought (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005C76ZXC?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00) is easily adaptable to lathe mounting. Like I said there are so many of these out there and here is another one that seems to have similar specs, http://www.amazon.com/Dragonpad-Rea...1442765125&sr=1-14&keywords=car+backup+camera but even cheaper.
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Ordered a monitor and that camera.
It only needs me to hook up a 12VDC wall adapt or PSU, of which I have several laying around and I gotta get a Male RCA to Female RCA coupler ( $0.75). I had them hooked up and running. This is going to work great.
For just a shade over $50 I'm going to have nuclear powered X-RAY vision. Thanks for sharing.
 
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