Here's a preliminary wiring diagram for the carriage auto-stop project.
The big solenoid is a add-on trunk release deal for automotive keyless entry. AC/DC boards are 450mA, there are two because I also have an Arduino to power, and the monster solenoid is only about 1/2 ohm and would pull the voltage down too low if it was sharing the same 12VDC supply. One of the 555 timer boards is being used as a plain relay, the delay timer isn't needed. The 555 timer on the solenoid is set to 1/4 second or so, there's no need to have power applied to the solenoid after it's pulled the cable. The toggle switches allow it to work in 3 different modes: both motor stop & half-nut release, half-nut release only, or motor stop only (like for metric threading, where you can't disengage).
Knock-off Chinese holder & carbide for the internal threads (http://www.ebay.com/itm/291641042884), self-ground 1/4" HSS for external. I run the internal tool upside down and on the backside so I can see in there and also so the compound doesn't have to be changed when switching from internal to external.
I'm blown away by how well this adjustable chuck backplate works.
I re-chucked the piece I did the male threads on earlier and set up the 0.0005" indicator reading on the previously turned section. It showed about 0.004" runout. I adjusted it down to about 0.0005", then switched to the Mitutoyo tenths indicator.
(A 'tenths indicator' reads down to 0.0001". That is, each division on the dial is one tenth of one thousandth of an inch. From the zero to the 1 on the dial is only 0.001".)
A few more go-rounds making very minor adjustments to the backplate...
Low:
High:
Kinda pointless since no other part of the machine is that accurate, just thought it would be neat to show off. :)
Very very nice. Love these sort of pictures. I just made a driver retainer for a Convoy C8 as the stock one would not earth on the Chinese A6 DD +1 driver.
I have a design in mind for a way to install/remove the thing. To do it I'd need a tiny endmill smaller than anything I already have. I'll have to think on it a bit.
There's still a lot of extra material there that will go away once it's finished.
Boy, I got two F6's I'd love to have this done to... Looks really good, much better than my jammed in aluminum foil technique . Btw, I have an AA size tube for an F6 - they were available a while back on a AliExpress store here but look like they only have 18650 tubes remaining.It fits fine into the "new" Convoy F6's I have (no window).
Tiny endmills ordered. 0.055", 0.010" corner radius.Good thing I can spin my drill press up to 11K, huh?
Had to make a thing to make some other thing.
I'll have to run the indicator on the ID of that center hole, which should be lots of fun. The OD of the threaded sleeve fixture mount holder thing isn't round anymore after it gets squeezed closed in the chuck and there's no other good surface to work from.
I could send you two of the threaded brass plugs, then all you'd need to do is find a 53/64"-20 tap. (while searching for that tap, keep an eye out for a radiator cap for a '69 VW Beetle.)
But seriously, if you can get an accurate measurement of the size of the hole, I can make new plugs (AL or brass) sized to give the correct press fit. Or you can send me your bare tubes and I can thread 'em.
Might take you up on the offer to send them to you. Not sure if you follow the 25/45/85 thread, but I got my parasitic drain down to 0.154 mA with a good chance of reducing it by a factor of 10 (0.015 mA). Those kind of improvements would be nice to have in this F6 light. The Ferrero-Rocher firmware doesn't shut down the AtoD during sleep, so the parasitic drain is about double.
In my 85 firmware, I also have a lock-out feature done by 2 quick clicks and a click&hold. Blinks confirm it's set, then to unset it, do the same sequence.
That plug shown turned into a test piece, I had new endmills and a new setup I hadn't used before so I skipped taking pictures of the process. I also got ahead of myself and took too much off the hex, the goal was 7/16"/11mm but I had to take it down to 10mm to cover the mistake. It will look cleaner with a larger hex/smaller gap to the outer ring and still fit a standard wall socket. This pic with a 10mm shows how much bigger it can be without getting too tight:
I can also put the hex-socket thing on the inside, around the OD of the spring, and copy the design of the stock stainless plug on the outside.
Tom, parasitic drain doesn't bother me. The lights that get used regularly go through a 25R every day, and the ones that don't get used don't eat enough power to make any difference. I have two lights sitting not locked out and in more than two months they're just now down below 4 volts (1 at 3.95v, 1 at 3.93v). At least some of that is the cells self-discharging which is still going to happen no matter what. If those two lights were at 4.05v after two months instead of 3.95, would it really be any different?
Yep, it’s not such a deal breaker to me either for the parasitic drain we are used to, just bugged me to waste away battery life for some unknown reason, and with our direct FET lights, dropping as little as 4.20v to 4.10v loses a fair amount of output. Now I/we know all the reasons pretty much, and I reduced the parasitic drain now by ~95% (from 0.314 Ma to 0.016 mA). The 220K and 47K resistor change over worked out well.
Of course the indicator LED’s I’ve been adding will eat that saved power up, but at least you can turn the indicator LED ON or OFF via a UI on the switch.
. Btw, I have an AA size tube for an F6 - they were available a while back on a 
