How do you make a machine that has perfectly flat/plumb/level metal components without the aide of a machine to begin with?
In: 224
By scraping it flat by hand.
You can create a flat surface by lapping or scraping three plates against each other. Basically, put some ink on one of them, and rub another on it, then remove all the bits that touch, then switch which plates you compare and do it again. repeat until all three agree with each other.
Plumb and level are relative to gravity, not intrinsic geometry, you can get plumb with a string and a weight, and levels can be checked against themselves when rotated 180 degrees. Add some adjustment and you can correct for inaccuracies of manufacture.
Like the level, many other things can be checked against themselves somehow, and if it’s not right, you can slowly remove material to get it into tolerance. Yes, it’s extremely tedious work.
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