No...Go ahead and let the chips pile up.....

[Runs With Scissors]

Well I decided to take advantage of some "free time" and make/try to modify that "mini- welding positioner".

For the money, it seems like a decent tool to have around but the one thing that I dislike is the spindle that sticks up in the middle.




If you take off the table and look at from the side you can see the spindle base is split and appears to be 2 pieces......




That makes it "possible" that the spindle will come off.

Well I decided to take it apart to see if that spindle was removable.

So after careful inspection, I'm pretty sure that removing this cap screw on the bottom is the first step towards disassembly.



Yep, sure enough, that was the "ticket"



But unfortunately, the spindle is "one piece"......(play sad violin music)



Now I have basically 3 options.

1. Cut spindle off, and grind flush.
2. Put it back together and return it, and then pay more money for one that has a "flush turntable"
3. try to make a new spindle....Hmmmmm.....very intriguing..

Options 1 and 2 both have "obvious downsides" so.....

 

[Runs With Scissors]

I am quite sure that for a "real machinist" this is "childs play", but for a mere mortal like me, its going to be an adventure.

I forage though the 'scrap pile' and quickly find a "candidate" (I kind of hate to use that term because I don't need to be convicted of any felonies )

It is not the correct diameter, and I am concerned that I will not have enough diameter to use the "factory hole spacing", but I have a plan for that if the "nuclear option" comes into play.

So I "chuck it up"



It may not seem like it from where your sitting, but that's a lot of steel to remove

I forgot to take a side by side pic of the bar and the original spindle.

I decide that I better use a "live center"....Why you ask?

Well being a "noob" I just like to remove as many "variables" as I can, and I figure. it's quick, easy and it "can't hurt".



So I go at it with my "roughing bit". This bit won't let me turn a "sharp corner" but it removes more meat than anything else I currently have.

Here is a shot at the beginning.

I am "dabbing" on my version of "cutting oil" but its smoking like a "freight train". I sometimes set the fire alarm off, but the wife is used to that now. LOL



Here is a pic of my proprietary cutting fluid......called "RWS's World Famous cutting oil"...

(Since I stopped rebuilding MX forks, I had a few quarts left over)






I do have some actual cutting fluid that I also used, but I could not tell any significant difference in performance or smoke proliferation, so.......onward and forward!!!!!


I finally get it down close and start using a bit that will "turn to the corner" ? )

After some "creeping up" on the final OD, success is achieved.

The bearing slides on perfectly.



So there I am, all fired up and excited....Taking measurements, and patting myself on the back, and just having a "good ole time" all the way around.

I look at the chip pile, and say "Wow....look at that. Thats a sweet pile of chips that I just made..."Good Job Paul" ( I actually think I said those exact words out loud to myself...hahahah)

Just a few more cuts to make it square.

I hit the power switch and .................................BAM!!!!!!!!!!! THUMP, THUMP THUMP, SMASH, SMASH, CRASH, BANG, BOOM!!!!!!!

I just about sh1t myself.

The damn chuck must have "grabbed a string" of the chip pile and started whirling it about the chuck like a dead "steel cat".

It grabbed my lighting thing I use, ripped it apart and twisted it around the chuck.....

Here it is on the floor.




Here is whats left of my "lighting cord"



So after a 15 minute "time out", I unplug everything, and dig what's left of my cord out from behind the chuck and go put on new skivvies.

 

[lynnmor]

Make a chip hook and don't allow chips to build up.

 

[Runs With Scissors]

Ok, lesson learned.

A "cool chip pile" needs to be cleaned up, BEFORE it becomes a "cool chip pile"

Ok, well I was able to get my "pointy bit" to cut decent and "trimmed" everything up.

My finish was "pretty OK", but I wish I could get a mirror finish.

I almost forgot to put the "screw hole" in the bottom, but remembered just seconds for I "un-chucked it"



This also reminds me that I need to get a "spring loaded tap aligner" thingy, instead of trying to crank the tailstock at the same speed as the tap goes in.







Now "parting off' this bad boy just ain't "in the cards" for today, so I 'wimp out" and use the band saw to "part it off' (forgot to picture it)

Now for the other side, which technically should be "easier".




I am going to make a "center nub" so the factor plate gets centered, then plan to

1. use the factory hole spacing if it is big enough, but if it's not.
2. Drill and countersink a "custom hole pattern"

I really don't know how to measure using the compound, so its the "Ansatz Method" for me. (guess and check)



So far, so good.

Now all I have to do is make a "keyway"....Should be simple right?

I get it all aligned in the vise, and find an endmill that is "about" the right size.

But something goes wrong. I am not sure what I did, but it does not go well.



For whatever reason, it's not cutting very well.

My suspicion is that I tried to take it in one cut, but using a small endmill like that, I probably needed to make multiple passes, even though it's not very deep.

Well the good part is that I did not break it......

So it looks like crap, but since it is traveling at a whopping 1 rpm, I think it will work.

 

[Yooper]

Great write up!

 

[Runs With Scissors]

Now to see if we go with "factory holes" or "custom holes"

I tried using the " transfer punch's", but it did not go well.




So I punted, and just laid it on top and used the factory plate as a guide.






The holes are obviously too close to the edge, but for the small amount of stress this thing should be under, I think it will be OK.




Done!!!!





The End.

 

[D2Cat]

Do you work on projects like this trough the night, and just keep going until finished?

 

[GeoHorn]

Which is more expensive…Fork Fluid…or Cutting Oil…?? …and does Cutting OIl do as well in the Forks as FF..??

and…have you tried SUDT2…?

 

[Lil Foot]

When it comes to "cool chip pile" disasters there are only 3 types of people:
1) Those who will do it.
2) Those who have done it.
3) Those who have done it and won't admit it.

As stated earlier, a chip hook can be your friend.

 

[Runs With Scissors]

Do you work on projects like this trough the night, and just keep going until finished?

I do tend to get 'hyper-focused" sometimes.

Half of me knows that the other half of me tends to get distracted on Multi-day projects.

So there is a constant "internal struggle".

 

[Runs With Scissors]

Which is more expensive…Fork Fluid…or Cutting Oil…?? …and does Cutting OIl do as well in the Forks as FF..??

and…have you tried SUDT2…?

The Fork Oil was a "left over" from when the insurance company forced/asked/told me to quit riding MX, so the price is right.

SUDT2 will get used if I ever sell the General Lee, but until then it does not qualify as a "cutting oil" in my shop

 

[Yooper]

There is a way you can mark the three holes using your lathe. There are sixty holes in the drive gear next to the chuck and you use the pin with the knurl on it to lock the chuck for marking. Couple of different ways to locate the bolt hole center with measuring and math and I put a center punch in the tool post and use the carriage wheel to make the mark.

It is a nice feature built into this model of lathe. I can post pictures if you would like

 

[Runs With Scissors]

There is a way you can mark the three holes using your lathe. There are sixty holes in the drive gear next to the chuck and you use the pin with the knurl on it to lock the chuck for marking. Couple of different ways to locate the bolt hole center with measuring and math and I put a center punch in the tool post and use the carriage wheel to make the mark.

It is a nice feature built into this model of lathe. I can post pictures if you would like

Thats very cool. I had no idea.

Pics would greatly appreciated.

 

[Yooper]

These are the holes in the drive gear along with the indexing pin.

This is the setup I use to mark the holes. Its easiest if you can drill a centering hole in the piece but this is not always possible.

I run the center punch into the hole leaving the set screws in the qc holder loose so the punch can find center. Leave the tool post loose also to establish height. Its easiest to set your cross feed dial to 0 to make it easier moving out the the bolt circle dimension.

Tighten everything up and double check your center and now you can back out the cross feed to the desired bolt circle diameter. Then use the carriage wheel to advance the punch into the work piece. There are 60 holes in the gear so you would advance it 20 holes and repeat this twice for a three hole circle.

You are probably asking how to get the bolt circle dimension. If holes are directly apart such as 4 holes, you can easily measure the distance between opposing holes and divide by two. When it gets to uneven numbers, you will have to measure the distance between two holes next to each other and refer to a bolt circle calculator on the net. Engineers toolbox has a decent calculator. Good luck!

 

[Runs With Scissors]

These are the holes in the drive gear along with the indexing pin.
View attachment 129930 View attachment 129931
This is the setup I use to mark the holes. Its easiest if you can drill a centering hole in the piece but this is not always possible.
View attachment 129932 View attachment 129933
I run the center punch into the hole leaving the set screws in the qc holder loose so the punch can find center. Leave the tool post loose also to establish height. Its easiest to set your cross feed dial to 0 to make it easier moving out the the bolt circle dimension.
View attachment 129934 View attachment 129935
Tighten everything up and double check your center and now you can back out the cross feed to the desired bolt circle diameter. Then use the carriage wheel to advance the punch into the work piece. There are 60 holes in the gear so you would advance it 20 holes and repeat this twice for a three hole circle.
View attachment 129936 View attachment 129937
You are probably asking how to get the bolt circle dimension. If holes are directly apart such as 4 holes, you can easily measure the distance between opposing holes and divide by two. When it gets to uneven numbers, you will have to measure the distance between two holes next to each other and refer to a bolt circle calculator on the net. Engineers toolbox has a decent calculator. Good luck!

Thanks for taking the time, and effort to make this tutorial.

I am definitely going to use this in the future.

I have only used that pin for holding the chuck while tapping.

(BTW I am super jealous of that Quick Change Gear box you have.)