Seat tube slotting setup procedure

[zank]

Hi gang,
One procedure that I am always trying to improve is slotting seat tubes. They say a picture is worth a thousand words. Mind sharing a few thousand words about your process and/or setup? I know there's quite a variety ranging from hacksaws to using a cut-off wheel in a die grinder to using slotting (slitting?) saws in a mill.
TIA!
zank

[e-RICHIE]

i make a small notch in the lug with the sharp side of a 6" half round, grab the starret precision hacksaw technology, site
my target, and show the seat lug who's boss. then i follow up with another pass using a frame that holds two thin blades
simultaneously. from end to end it's a 40 second process atmo. is there a label for this?

[Craig Ryan]

I drill a hole, then hacksaw it like Richard. I follow it up with small files and likely take longer. I then file the inside edge of the slot where it will contact the seat post. A chamber on it keeps scratches down.

[Clockwork]

I use 3 hack saw blades at once for the desired width.

[Archibald]

I drill & slot them before hand. After they're built & reamed, I just cut the tab and dress it. Perfect every time.

[Zimmermanbicycle]

Pretty much what Craig and Richard said,I drill a whole where the bottom of the slot will be,notch the top with a round file and use two hacksaw blades together to cut the slot and then clean it up with a warding file and a quick pass on the inside of the slot with a 6" round file clean it up and take off any burs.
This all takes about 10 minutes max but hey, I'm slow yo.
-Eric

[steve garro]

I use beams of pure focused hatred & confusion that shoot from my forehead on demand.
Slow day at the office, Zank?
- Garro.

[bellman]

I use beams of pure focused hatred & confusion that shoot from my forehead on demand.
Slow day at the office, Zank?
- Garro.

Lemme know next time you are doing a set Steve, I'll set mine out- you can probably hit them from Arizona.

But for the record. I do them sorta like Archie but I'd like it to be more like Carl

[Tom Kellogg]

We do it in the mill. Because our binders are 4130, we had to buy a solid carbide saw.

[Dave Anderson]

I just drill the hole and the use a cut off disk in a die grinder. Two quick swipes, one down each side of the slot and its done....takes seconds:

[pruckelshaus]

i make a small notch in the lug with the sharp side of a 6" half round, grab the starret precision hacksaw technology, site
my target, and show the seat lug who's boss. then i follow up with another pass using a frame that holds two thin blades
simultaneously. from end to end it's a 40 second process atmo. is there a label for this?

Two blades in one frame. Brilliantly simple.

[Carl S]

I got this machine from Ibis. We call it "Jo Jo, the little slotter that could". It works great. I drill a hole, ream then slot, debur and hone. The machine has a two posts, one 27.2 and a 28.6. The table slides with a handle. I put the frame on the post and pull the handle. The slotting process takes less time than it takes me to pull the frame from my work stand and walk to the machine. I've gotten rid of most large tools I acquired in the Ibis days but this large, heavy machine, while taking up a lot of room is worth the space.

[steve garro]

Lemme know next time you are doing a set Steve, I'll set mine out- you can probably hit them from Arizona.

I can do it directly over the line of a rotary dial phone. - Garro.

[suzyj]

I can do it directly over the line of a rotary dial phone. - Garro.

Excellent.

[steve garro]

Excellent.

i am so jealous & I really mean that. I even had one in that same color!
Unfurtunately my method slots the BOTTOM of the ST if phoned in to the S-Hemisphere..... - Garro.

[zank]

Thanks, all! I always learn something from seeing what other folks are doing, even on the most mundane tasks.

[wheelhouse]

Excellent.

dig that coaster!

[edoz]

We do it in the mill. Because our binders are 4130, we had to buy a solid carbide saw.

I do mine like that, except in a lathe. I have a tube clamp that mounts to my tool post, and an arbor that goes in the chuck. It's a pain to set up, so sometimes I do it with a Dremel.

[Too Tall]

Pls. stop me if I'm wrong. This belongs in the framebuilders wiki. I'll leave behind an perm. re-direction link.

[Sparks]

This is my approach
Sparks
cedarboro cycles