Steel Bushings...

[Sysop]

Where is the best place to get steel bushings? One of the pins worked loose on my rotary cutter and one side came off while working. I went to TSC and got a new pin with washer and nut but when I went to reassemble everything, I noticed there is supposed to be a bushing in the A-Frame upright to prevent it from being tightened too much (preventing things from pivoting and flexing as they should).

What I need is 7/8" ID x 1-1/4" OD and a half inch long...

 

[LD1]

Try mcmastercarr.

 

[Sysop]

Closest they have is 3/4" long rather than 1/2". They also want $12.50 plus shipping per 3/4" piece. That's a bit silly. If it wasn't for having to wait a couple weeks, I could get them already cut the right length for a third of the money from the rotary cutter manufacturer. I'd think there would have to be someplace that it can be sourced for that price per foot to cut what you need as you need it...

 

[DuckSlayer1017]

MISUMI USA: Industrial Configurable Components Supply great place to get all kinds of machine parts.

 

[downsizingnow48]

If you want to buy the raw material, instead of a bushing, that is a standard thick wall tube size. McMaster Carr has it too. Sometimes eBay. Or several online metal retailers. You could get lucky and find a piece at a local scrapyard.

Why do you say the bushing price at McMaster Carr is "silly" given you apparently have no knowledge of alternatives and costs. LD1 gave you a good answer to the question you asked.

 

[Sysop]

downsizingnow48, I said the price was silly. You think $12.50 for a 3/4" long piece of steel pipe isn't silly? Perhaps you're silly too. As for the alternatives and cost, and as stated above, I am looking for the alternative to waiting a couple weeks on the manufacturer to send me some for a third of that price; so perhaps I do have some knowledge to base my opinion on McMaster's SILLY pricing... As for being a "standard thick wall tube size", standard for whom? Where at? McMaster's thick wall steel pipe doesn't list anything with 7/8" inner diameter.

DuckSlayer1017, Thanks, but upon looking there I can't find anything that matches up to the wall thickness. Everything that would fit the pin would be too large for the frame of the cutter and everything that fit the cutter would be too small to fit the pin. Technically, the same problem I'm coming across everywhere...

 

[4570Man]

That's a good reason to have a lathe. I could make those in about 30 minutes for $0.

 

[Sysop]

amen brother! A lathe costs how much?

 

[4570Man]

Doesn't matter. I have to have one for work.

 

[DuckSlayer1017]

Sysop,
What size do you need?
edit:Never mind, I should have read better. I figured Misumi would have a configurable one but I checked and couldn't find one either.

 

[downsizingnow48]

You are looking for alternatives to the factory part. You do not have a set of alternatives to examine. Instead you complain about the alternatives people suggest.

And here is the McMaster Carr page:
McMaster-Carr

 

[Sysop]

You are looking for alternatives to the factory part. You do not have a set of alternatives to examine. Instead you complain about the alternatives people suggest.

And here is the McMaster Carr page:
McMaster-Carr

I'm simply looking for someplace that carries the needed size without a silly-high markup or ridiculous wait-time. I will never complain about an honest effort to help. McMaster's site isn't the easiest to find what you need on, I appreciate the link. I can handle $13.58 for a foot of that no problem. That is surely better than $12.50 for a 3/4" length of steel (which was the closest I turned up searching their site).

Thanks!

 

[Sysop]

Sysop,
What size do you need?
edit:Never mind, I should have read better. I figured Misumi would have a configurable one but I checked and couldn't find one either.

Yea, it was a good place to check, and thanks for the effort. Take care!

 

[Sysop]

Monday's do open up a world of possibilities...

I ended up with 4750Man's suggestion of a lathe... Walked into a local machine shop that generally does big jobs for big companies. They have a $100 minimum order, but I thought it wouldn't hurt to ask if they had something laying around their scrap pile that would work. Anyway, the owner greeted me kindly, looked at the one I had, and said "I don't know what we'd have to make this out of to meet the $100 minimum order and I know we don't have anything like that in scrap."... I was about to say "thanks for you time" and make a quiet exit, and he said "Can you wait till lunch time?", to which I answered with a smile "Lunch time certainly beats waiting on UPS.". He said "How's $25 sound?" and I smiled and said "It sounds like a good day, thank you so much for your time." Wrote my name and number down and went on my way. Little later I got a call that he was finished, and I said I'd be right in.

The results:

I thought I was only getting one, but he made me two! Heck of a nice guy, as are all of you who assisted in locating some alternatives to the couple week projection of the manufacturer.