Making a Miniature Tripod Tilt Head

by Switch and Lever

1.8K513

Intro: Making a Miniature Tripod Tilt Head

Hello again, glad you could make it! Pour a cup of coffee and sit back for this instructable, on how to make a miniature tripod tilt head, with the help of some metalworking machinery and a little bit of know how.

You'll need:

Materials:

Aluminium, bar, plate and rod
M8 washer
M8 wingnut
M2 screws, with countersunk heads
Rubber mat

Tools:

Lathe
Milling machine
Files, and sandpaper
Taps and dies, both for tripod thread (1/4 20) and M8
Calipers

I realize that everyone do not have access to this machinery in their own homes, but there are ways of getting hold of similar machinery for a small fee. Go to a TechShop, or whichever similar institution may exist close to you, and sign up for a membership. They'll be more than happy to take your money and help you how to use their machinery.

That's it for this time, hope you enjoyed this instructable, and be sure to subscribe for the next time.

Cheers!

3 Comments

Luke Wilson 6 years ago

That solves the problem of screwing on the camera right. That's awesome!

pfred2 9 years ago

When I need a centered channel I mill the work off center with an under size cutter, then flip it around. Doing that I know the channel is perfectly centered. The fixed jaw of my vise is the reference. If the channel isn't quite wide enough I just move the vise to me half the distance I need by moving the table to me, then mill and flip again. The channel is still centered, but wider.

For me performing mirror operations is the easiest way to get symmetrical results.

I like to use work stops a lot to make things come out evenly too. Another favorite trick of mine is to make parts oversize, then I'll finish mill them together. Then they fit each other perfectly.

My mill has so much backlash I don't even look at the verniers on it. So the only way I can guarantee any kind of accuracy is by using positive stops. If I tried to do things like you did it'd never work here, for me. I do everything by sight, and feel, because my mill isn't the greatest. But we get the job done just the same.

seamster 9 years ago

Very nice! Thanks for sharing this. I think I need more metal working tools!