Post date: Mar 23, 2013 7:26:03 PM
I finally got the spindle mount completed- it sure feels nice and sturdy. Pictures have been posted.
The mount is comprised of two pieces of angle aluminum- one to hold the tool, and one for added rigidity (and to attach the leadscrew block to). There's another block to hold the spindle in the angled piece. It's just a piece of bar aluminum with a hole the size of the rotary tool turned out with a lathe. A notch was cut in that to allow it to be clamped down. It works really well, and holds the tool quite securely.
The biggest challenge for building the mount was getting the spindle mounting hole exactly the right size- a tedious process with the lathe. After that, it was just a matter of drilling/tapping/countersinking holes in the appropriate places (which still took way too long). The existing CNC mill was helpful for at least getting the holes in the right spots.