Scott, Gary Bluecheck and Twinwillows and everybody who was kind enough to comment on this thread...
WOW, getting compliments is always great, but getting them from other toolmakers is especially rewarding because if you guys are lke me, it's easy to be critical....thank you! (I know there's more than one way to skin a cat... /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif)
Scott,...I cheated in the lapping process. I gave up with the compound and ended up getting a 60 grit flapper emory cloth wheel Ø1" and shoved it in there and buzzed the heck out of those holes. The only problem with that is if there is too much clearance, and the lift block cocks while being raised or lowered, it locks up. So this is what I did to reduce that problem and it worked out. First, I left the fit a little on the tight side. I was able to move the entire scarifier assembly up and down with the manual handle so I knew the 2 ton hydraulic cylinder would still move the assembly.(another reason I chose the HD 6 pitch teeth) In this way I knew I was still locating on all 4 guide pins. I also installed grease lines with Zerk fittings and an interior woodruff cut to lubricate the guide pin holes.
Then in placing the location of the lifting rack, I put the pitch diameter centerline smack on center of the lift bars. This meant I also had to locate the gear centerline to keep that relationship. The gears are held in position by the bars which I welded to the boxblade. I could not gaurantee those bars that hold the gear assembly would be bang on after welding. That's why I cut slots in the side plates so I could slide the gears to match the centerline of the rack. The key was to have the lifting force in the center of the riser bars so they would not bind up and it worked out. Here's a picture of the relationship. The blue rectangle represents the riser bar from an end view.