Origins of Precision

What people said

hinkley · 2023-07 · Strong recommendation

There's a way to grind mirrors optics for optics with polishing stones that aren't even flat to the naked eye. Basically the system arrives at tiny tolerances via the process of using the system. And there's way to make three perfectly flat sharpening stones by starting with three raw pieces of natural sharpening stone, just by alternately rubbing the three stones together until they flatten each other out. Paul Sellers can teach you how to flatten a large board without a planer. He also has videos on how to get a wood plane perfectly flat using a large sharpening stone (which can be made as above or with float glass). And if memory serves, you to make something perfectly round you first need something perfectly flat. Once you have something perfectly flat and something perfectly round it's off to the races. Edit: "The Origins of Precision" is a half hour well spent [VIDEO]

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kazen44 · 2020-09 · Strong recommendation

the lathe is basically the one machine required to kickstart the industrial revolution. (and a way to drive it ofcourse). Also, three surfaces that can be ground truely flat is also vital. i can highly recommend the youtube series "machine thinking" if you have interest in this[0], aswell as the book "the perfectionist" [0] [VIDEO] [1] [LINK]

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anitil · 2025-08 · Recommendation

I find this video of theirs the most relevant [0] where they go through how to start on a desert island and build a flat reference plate using the three plate method and the build up from there [0] [VIDEO]

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