Engineer's blue
Engineer's blue is a highly pigmented paste used to assist in the mating of two or more
components.
Contents
History
Preparation
Use in toolmaking
Other names
References
History
Joseph Whitworth popularized the first practical method of making accurate flat surfaces,
during the 1830s, by using engineer's blue and scraping techniques on three trial surfaces.
Prior to his scraping technique, the same three plate method was employed using polishing
techniques, giving less accurate results. This improvement led to an explosion of development
of precision instruments using these flat surface generation techniques as a basis for further
construction of precise shapes.
Preparation
Engineer's blue is prepared by mixing Prussian blue with a non-drying oily material (for
example, grease). The coloured oil is rubbed onto a reference surface, and the workpiece is
then rubbed against the coloured reference; the transfer (by contact) of the pigment indicates
the position of high spots on the workpiece or conversely highlight low points.[1] This method
has been used to test the flatness of surfaces and the trueness of a bearing assembly.
When Prussian blue is mixed with methylated spirits it forms a quick drying stain which is
known as marking blue or layout dye. This stain is used in the marking out operation in
metalworking. Both the "marking out" blue, and the "scraping blue" may be referred to as
engineer's blue, which can lead to confusion.
The fitter may be told to "blue it up" when using this piece of equipment.
Use in toolmaking
Prussian blue is widely used by tool makers when the core and cavity of a mould is matched
during final assembly. It is also used in other tooling applications—especially during assembly
—such as stamping tools and pressure die casting tools. A thin coating of Prussian blue is
applied (usually with a paint brush) on the "insert"—regardless of the shape or contour—of
the mould or tool before the matching is done with the mating part. If the Prussian blue
(generally called just "blue") appears evenly on the mating area, it is considered—by the tool
makers—as "good matching", indicating a good final product from the tool. Usually no tool
would be transferred to testing or production without "blue matching", (a term generally used
by tool makers in Asia). Prussian blue is considered as an integral part of precision tool
making.
Other names
In the US, the terms scraping blue, Prussian blue, or simply bluing are used instead of
engineer's blue.
References
1. W A J Chapman (1964), Workshop Technology, Part 1, Edward Arnold
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This page was last edited on 17 December 2019, at 21:14 (UTC).
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