Optical Centre Punch - One Day Build Project

G'day everyone,

In this video I am making an optical centre punch as a gift for a friend of mine. I have always liked these quirky tools and I have always wanted to make one.

They may be a bit old fashioned, but I think these are cool tools to have in a small maker space, either as a tool or for decoration. I had a spare afternoon free and I decided to make one. Thankfully they aren't difficult to make and they don't use up a whole lot of material. All I needed was a piece of solid bar steel, some W1 tool steel, clear acyrlic and some aluminium for the stand.

Now this is not the definitive version of the optical centre punch, there are better design, but I like this design and the aluminium holder for the pinch and optical pin.

A quicker video this week but I hope you enjoy it none the less.

optical centre punch
optical center punch

[FlyingDismount]

The bounce when you dropped the acrylic magnifier into the holder and it hit the workpiece is why the better versions of this tool have a step to a wider section at the top of the magnifier so it sits in the holder with just a tiny bit of clearance and doesn't make contact with the workpiece and get that nicely polished end all marred up...

[bobweiram]

You can insert the metal punch on one end and the plexiglass rod on the other. You can then lightly press or tap the punch to leave a concentric point on the end of the plexiglass.

[h-j.k.]

I suppose most people think a center punch is a blow to the nose but this is a really nifty gadget and of course a very nice gift.

[jetegtmeier]

to create the center mark in the viewer (acrilic) use the tool body it self to align the punch with the viewer, push together and spin teh punch against the ciewer, this will let you know if the punch is completely on center with the mark it leaves, if it's a dot than yourr centered, if the mark is a ring than your punch os out of center :)

[jarigranroth]

I have one, made in Germany, got it from my uncle. It's in daily - or at least weekly - use in my shop. Well made gift!

[davidbillington]

A nice little project, might have to make one myself. Regarding the aluminium not machining right, I've seen that with some 6082-T6 where it was soft and gummy, not normal. I called the supplier and spoke to the head guy and he said he knew exactly what I was experiencing as he had run a commercial machine shop producing large volumes of aluminium parts and things would be fine for months until a new batch of material would come in from the mill and things would go wrong as it didn't machine as it should. He said they got the heat treatment wrong, he was large enough they would replace the material. In my case he said to ask for him next time i was in and he would replace it which he did FOC and I could keep the bad stuff which is slowly being used up where it can be.

[blackoak]

Engraved on the holder: "Hey bud, you've been a little off the mark recently, so I made you this"
😆😆😆

[CALDues]

I was taught that tools like these (and transfer punches) are center point markers, so as long as you have decent close eyesight and you can locate a proper center punch in the registered hole it has done its job. Hitting it any harder isn't needed. Looks great!

[rallymax]

A piece of velvet glued on the bottom would finish it off a little nicer too.
Nice job, I’d be honored to get one.

[MCsCreations]

Beautiful work, dude! It turned out great! 😃
Merry Christmas!
Stay safe there with your family! 🖖😊

[mattsadventureswithart]

I enjoy seeing tools like this made, and am likely to do one myself, but i can't help thinking back to those older guys when I was a being trained. They used to have a large magnifying glass in their dominant hand so they could locate the centre punch with their non-dominant, then swapped the glass for a hammer for making the actual mark.

That whole area is now a housing estate with zero trace of its industrial origins 😢

[jimsvideos]

These are handy tools! I bought one before I had machine tools and all it needs now that I think about it is a vent hole so I can swap tools without the vacuum acting to disturb it.

[christophersmith]

Nice gift. I wouldn’t mind having one of these myself

[lesmaybury]

Nicely done and they are a useful addition to any workshop. Especially one occupied by a bloke with tired eyes, like mine.

[aaronfritz]

I have an optical center, and I’m surprised how much I use it. Grate work.

[uebergangster]

I've been thinking about something like this. Don't think I've ever hit centre with a punch, so this will be added to the list.

[kentuckytrapper]

Very nice gift, i would be very happy with it..excellent job!

[alevans]

A project well worth doing! Great job! (watched twice)

[RalfyCustoms]

Happy Holidays buddy, thanks for sharing 🎉

[GeorgeAlex-jk]

Awesome build, your friend should be so lucky.