I’m Stuck

[Russell EberhardtParticipant @russelleberhardt48058]

I wouldn't let an SDS drill/chisel anywhere near my mill. If supporting the quill on something solid (preferably metallic not wood which may absorb the shock rather than reflect it) and giving the loosened drawbar a whack with a hammer doesn't shift it I would wand to dismantle the head. Is it possible that a previous owner put loctite on the morse taper as well?

If you can dismantle the head and remove the spindle it would be safer to take it to someone with a hydraulic press who could press the thing out safely without risk of damage.

Russell.

[martin perman 1Participant @martinperman1]

If he can dismantle the spindle then he maybe able to try what I did, I bought a lathe with the incorrect drill chuck stuck in the tailstock and I couldnt get it out so I removed the sleeve from the tailstock and put it into our freezer and left there for several days to soak through I then removed it and rapidly heated the sleeve hoping it would expand quicker than the chuck taper, it did and I was able to tap the chuck free.

Martin P

[Michael GilliganParticipant @michaelgilligan61133]

Good thinking, Martin

MichaelG.

[Howard LewisParticipant @howardlewis46836]

Had the same sort of problem with my RF25 Mill/Drill, plus I dislike belabouring bearings needlessly.

My solution(?) was to remove the left hand threaded nut holding the pulley to the spindle, and to thin it, by removing metal from the underside to produce a register.

A simple puller was then made up.

A piece of 6mm plate was bored to match the register on the on the nut, before being drilled and tapped in two diametrically opposed places. The nut was replaced on the machine with the plate held captive.

A similar plate was made up with a central tapping, and two clearance holes on the same pitch as the two tappings in the lower plate.

Two setscrews (I made knurled heads for mine) pass through the upper plate (Use a nut on the underside to make the setscrews captive if you like). A hexagon head setscrew was fitted into into the central tapping, and the two outer ones screwed into the lower plate.

Havinging tightened the central screw, HARD, onto the drawbar (already slackened half a turn), the hand feed worm was engaged , and the quill clamped.

A sharp blow on the head of the forcing screw, did the trick.

Remove the extractor before resuming machining!

For the record, the setscrews were all 1/4 BSF, but 1/4 UNF, or M6 would be equally effective.

The main thing is to avoid using a coarse thread for the central forcing screw, so the larger metric coarse threads are non preferred.

Having also had a 3MT/2MT open ended reducer stick in the spindle, (as always, last thing at night!) I made up a crude puller. (Because of the dimensions of the bore through the spindle, it is impossible to place a drift against the end of the reducing sleeve).

Few of the dimensions are critical.

The forcing screw was a 60 degree cone loctited onto a piece of 1/4 BSF studding. The "collet" for pulling was a flanged sleeve (drilled for clearance over the studding), with an internal chamfer at the flange end made with a large centre drill.

The flange was a little bigger than the 2MT minor diameter, but with six slits (initially made with a hacksaw, but more neatly in the Mk2 with a slitting saw) almost to the end of the sleeve. (to allow it to collapse when driven through the reducer). To allow the "collet" to be driven through the reducer, a nut was run down the studding, to just short of the "collet".

A piece of M.S. bar was was counterbored a little larger in diameter than the O.D. of the reducer, with a central clearance hole for the studding.

Having driven the "collet" through the reducer, the cup was placed over the studding, followed by a stout washer, and a nut.

Tightening the nut drew the cone into the "collet" expanding it so that the flange sat on the end of the reducer, and exerting a force to extract it. Further tightening resulted in a slight "crack" and a loose reducer.

Once stripped down, the parts were stored away against the next time of need.

A larger version was also made up for the 5MT to 3MT reducing sleeve for the Lathe mandrel.

They are crude, but useful devices.

Howard

Edited By Howard Lewis on 17/12/2014 14:24:34

[MuzzerParticipant @muzzer]

Loosen the drawbar 1-2 turns, hit it hard with a mallet and don't overtighten it again. Doesn't get much simpler!

[Tim ChambersParticipant @timchambers76147]

Posted by Muzzer on 17/12/2014 16:57:31:

don't overtighten it again. Doesn't get much simpler!

You can bet that I won't!

I'm beginning to wonder if the first owner might have used Loctite, seeing how much there was on the chuck taper.

Edited By Tim Chambers 1 on 17/12/2014 19:21:32

[Tim ChambersParticipant @timchambers76147]

HOORAY!

I took the quill out of the machine and put the spindle down on the vice jaws and gave it a couple of sharp taps with a hammer, success.Looks like it was stucktion, old grease and oil congealed in the taper gluing it together. I reassembled it and ran it with the collet chuck, then I stood back and thought "What do I do now?"

Don't worry I thought the same when I got the lathe and that has to be one of the best purchases i've ever made.

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