Member postings for Alan Jackson

Probably worth extracting all those old tv programmes before you scrap it. Well on second thoughts probably not because they have still playing been playing them recently

A while ago I fixed up my M1. I did not have a vertical head so I added a Dore Westbury head. This gives plenty of daylight.

Alan

Hopper , Thanks for the plug, I have not fitted any seals at all. The mandrel fits closely in a recess about 0.250" deep in the headstock block bores with about 0,005" radial clearance. The bearings are grease lubricated and as yet it seems to work very well. There has been no grease leakage from the front or rear bearings and running the headstock for extended periods at speeds above 2000 rpm only gets the headstock hand warm. I have dismantled it occasionally and all seems well. I suppose if it was oil lubricated then it would need oil seals but grease does not create these problems.

Alan

I know how you feel Gordon, our kitchens is just as bad

Edited By Alan Jackson on 21/04/2016 10:40:17

Edited By Alan Jackson on 21/04/2016 10:42:03

Edited By Alan Jackson on 21/04/2016 10:43:29

Mark

You can use TurboCNC which is a Dos program you can download, it will work from an older laptop with a printer port. It requires a spindle sensor showing one pulse per rev and a stepper motor and driver. I use it on my Stepperhead lathe and it works very well. It does not have the luxury of the more sophisticated systems mentioned on this thread but it is very suited to model engineers etc. I described it in more detail on my Stepperhead articles. Here it is on utube, you can hear a slight speed variation but this should not be of any real concern in most circumstances.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZH0ZjWauMZ0&feature=channel&list=UL

Alan

Wish you all the best Dave. I do hope you can still enjoy the model engineer world, perhaps in other ways.

Alan

I have an old Colchester Chipmaster (1956). It was removed from a university. I have fixed and modified it to increase its versatility, fitted a new motor and inverter drive. It works very well and is accurate. These lathes seem to be occasionally available on ebay for good prices compared to Myfords etc and I think they are well worth consideration if you are prepared/able to fix them up

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/121885394219?_trksid=p2055119.m1438.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/131721873996?_trksid=p2055119.m1438.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT

Alan

Get well soon Neil, our company needs you.

Alan

Absolutely brilliant Dean, an inspiration.

Thank you

Alan

I made a base with a slope so that the upper part can slide to the right height.

Alan

"The BBC should stick to broadcasting stuff the likes of us don't watch and shut down most of their radio, tv and website channels. Also scrap the licence fee, I object to about £150 a year so the wife can watch Eastenders.. "

And the like.

What a virtually unanimous response from every post and you have certainly got my vote.

Alan

Hi SteveM,

I have also added a detailed description in MEW 210,218 & 219 which also used a Lever locking topslide on the Stepperhead lathe. You may not also have these copies. I tried to copy a PDF file but could not work out how to do it.

If you look at my album you may see some more photos in the Myford and Chipmaster albums.

The toolpost is my version of the MLA toolpost you may be able to Google that.

Alan

Hi Danny,

In MEW mags 119, 120 & 121, in 2005. I described it in great detail with variations for various lathes including Myfords. In the article I tried hard to describe the idea to the MEW world, and even had subsequent discussions with Mr Moore the Myford boss then, to no avail. The one in the photo is a newer version incorporating some other ideas, notably an oval gib, notice the absence of gib screws on the sides. This works very well and enables the slide to be locked along the full length if desired, virtually turning it into a form of Gibraltar toolpost. The flexibility enabled by being able to move, rotate and lock the topslide anywhere and easily remove the topslide from the cross slide cannot be overated. It really enhances the lathe operation.

Alan

Mine is a Lever Locking Topslide. This is the latest version on a Chipmaster lathe. It is so useful to be able to position and angle the topslide anywhere on the cross slide and instantly lock it in position. It also has a screwcutting retract and a slide locking lever below the feed dial.

Alan

Michael, thank you for that here are the details of my version, discuss

Alan

John,

I made this centre about 40 years ago and it has been fantastic and never given rise to any of the problems you seemed to suffer. The hardened steel centre has a close running fit even today. It has been used and abused and very rarely lubricated. It does not suffer from chatter or affect the surface finish. Just does its job.

Alan

Ian P this is what I found on Ebay

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2MT-SMALL-BODY-REVOLVING-CENTRE-FOR-MYFORD-LIVE-CENTRE-/370825984005?hash=item5656f37805:g:bzgAAOxyHE5RqKa6

Your milling machine column will also have to be as vertical as your reference line otherwise your movements will not be in line with the column as it raises/lowers.

Alan

Neil,

"Neat in the execution. I assume Stepperhead is continuing to earn its keep then?"

Yes, I used it to make the Morse taper by setting the X and Y axes to cut the taper and I also ground the points after hardening them using the milling head with a diamond grinding wheel.

Alan

Geoff, Clive

Thank you for this interesting, amazing subject.

Alan

Hi All

Years ago I made a rotating lathe centre using a crowded needle roller bearing at the front with a ball thrust bearing behind. The outside diameter was just below 1" diameter as this avoided the restriction of the then conventional rotating centres featuring a large diameter body. This proved to be very useful over the years so recently I gave it a makeover and reground the point. I had a similar needle bearing and thrust bearing so I made another centre for my Stepperhead lathe. The reduced diameter body can retract into the tailstock barrel for maximum access. The reduced diameter point was just to see if it would be advantageous. The points can be exchanged if required. After doing all this I looked on Ebay and found that you can buy these quite cheaply, Ah well. I have added a couple of pics in my album.

Alan