Lathe attachments

TRS · Post by **TRS** » Sun May 31, 2009 7:15 pm

So I inherited a cheap lathe when I bought my house; it seems to work alright, but I've never used one before. Where can I get and how can I attach buffing and sanding wheels to it? It's just got a faceplate, no chucks....but it seems a waste not to use it.....

Sasquatch · Post by **Sasquatch** » Sun May 31, 2009 7:22 pm

Not sure how it attaches, but Bealle (sp?) makes a buffing system for lathe-mount.

You'll need some kind of chuck for sure, either a drill-style chuck or something fancier depending on what you plan to do....

Post by **KurtHuhn** » Mon Jun 01, 2009 5:56 am

Not all lathes will take the same accessories. If you can find a name anywhere on that lathe, I'm sure someone here could give you good info what will be compatible with it.

TRS · Post by **TRS** » Mon Jun 01, 2009 2:38 pm

It's a Cummins Industrial Tools wood lathe. I looked it up online and found a companion-site called Toolsnow.com. They don't seem to stock this particular lathe anymore. The only accessory they have is an arbor that I think would be perfect if it fits.

Post by **KurtHuhn** » Mon Jun 01, 2009 2:54 pm

Cummins Industrial Tool sold (and sells) a wide variety of tools that are very similar (if not identical) to the same tools sold by Harbor Freight. There should be a model number somewhere on it. That said, the biggest deal is if there's a hole in the spindle, or if it's a solid spindle. If there's a hole, chances are it's a Morse Taper hole - either MT1 or MT2. If there's a Morse Taper in the spindle you're better than halfway there for some good tooling like drill chucks and arbors.

TRS · Post by **TRS** » Mon Jun 01, 2009 3:58 pm

Outstanding, thanks Kurt! There's a Harbor Freight just a few miles away in the civilized lands, I'll check it out.

TRS · Post by **TRS** » Mon Jul 27, 2009 8:37 pm

For the wood lathe guys, judging by these pictures am I totally S.O.L.? I can't find any kind of chuck or attachment for this hunk. Should I just start saving my pennies for a decent lathe and forget about this one? Thanks!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/15961634@N02/

Sasquatch · Post by **Sasquatch** » Tue Jul 28, 2009 12:15 am

You can't find anything that matches that shank/threading? Pretty standard is 1" x 8 tpi.... yours looks smaller than that though....

Kettletrigger · Post by **Kettletrigger** » Tue Jul 28, 2009 12:43 am

Your best bet is to determine the thread on the spindle nose. A thread gauge would be ideal, but a careful eye and a steel rule should work if it's a coarse thread. Once you know the thread pitch you can start searching for accessories to fit.

There are some Yahoo groups out there full of guys who would be more than happy to help you determine what you've got and what you should do with it. I'd recommend trying that route before you spend good money for a new lathe that you may not need.

Sasquatch · Post by **Sasquatch** » Tue Jul 28, 2009 1:04 am

Like, one of these has gotta fit, Scoob!

http://www.leevalley.com/wood/page.aspx ... ,330,49238

Those are offered in more spindle sizes than I even knew existed.

Once you've got something like that, you can go in numerous directions, from mounting small arbors into the chuck (like a sideways drill) to using it to hold something more like the Bealle system.

PIMO sells fairly generic arbors for like 3 bucks.

pierredekat · Post by **pierredekat** » Tue Jul 28, 2009 6:59 am

I'm sure you can find a chuck for it. But if it were me, I don't think I would spend more than maybe $60 on a chuck.

And if you can't find a chuck in that price range, I would sell this lathe to a straight wood turner guy for, say, $75, and use that money toward the purchase of something better suited to pipemaking.

The thing being that you could easily invest two or three hundred dollars in attachments to fit what appears to be something on the order of a Harbor Freight lathe that probably sold for under $150 new.

And when the motor goes out or the spindle gets sloppy, you'll pretty much be out the money you invested in attachments for it.

I say: save your money, research and scout-out some vintage American steel, and when your savings line up with the right opportunity, jump into that one.

Then, hopefully, whatever money you sink into attachments, etc., won't wind up in your trashcan in six months.

Just my $.02.

TRS · Post by **TRS** » Tue Jul 28, 2009 8:08 am

Hey, thanks you guys. I understand now that I can get a scroll chuck for it, but what about a drill chuck? It's my understanding (probably deeply flawed) that to drill you mount the block in the chuck and have a drill chuck on the tailstock? I was emailing a guy at a woodworking supply and he said that he thought I wouldn't be able to get a drill chuck which fit...? Thanks again, I appreciate everyone's help/advice.

Post by **KurtHuhn** » Tue Jul 28, 2009 8:24 am

I agree with Robert. While you could certainly find a scroll chuck for the headstock, I wouldn't invest any more than a few dollars in it. That is a solid spindle, and looks like it's probably 3/4"-16tpi - though without standing in front of it, I wouldn't bet any money on that guess.

Have you turned it on? Does the spindle rotate smooth and without vibration? I f not, it has suffered the common bent spindle problem, and is worth more as scrap than a tool.

If it operates okay currently, I personally would be tempted to keep it around for light duty bowl and platter turning - but that's only because that stuff interests me, and a free tool is a free tool. However, if you have no interest, sell it and put that money towards a decent lathe.

TRS · Post by **TRS** » Tue Jul 28, 2009 2:15 pm

Okay, I flipped it on and it runs really smooth, no vibration. I measured the spindle; the threaded area is 3/4" long and has about 8 threads on it.

Frank · Post by **Frank** » Tue Jul 28, 2009 2:19 pm

BeatusLiebowitz wrote:I understand now that I can get a scroll chuck for it, but what about a drill chuck? It's my understanding (probably deeply flawed) that to drill you mount the block in the chuck and have a drill chuck on the tailstock? I was emailing a guy at a woodworking supply and he said that he thought I wouldn't be able to get a drill chuck which fit...?

If the tailstock has a morse taper, then it can hold a drill chuck. All you need is an arbor adapter with a MT on one end, a JT on the other and a chuck to fit the JT.
This sort of wossname: arbor adapter
Just pick your sizes from this: Choose Adapter

Frank · Post by **Frank** » Tue Jul 28, 2009 2:22 pm

BeatusLiebowitz wrote: the threaded area is 3/4" long and has about 8 threads on it.

We're talking about teeth-per-inch. "About 8 threads" isn't accurate enough. You need to know exactly the tpi plus the diameter of the shaft/spindle.

Post by **KurtHuhn** » Tue Jul 28, 2009 3:31 pm

That's outside diameter as well - the peaks of the threads, not the valleys. And you can use a printable thread gauge like this to get the TPI:
http://www.boltdepot.com/fastener-infor ... -Sizes.pdf

And one thing just struck me. That tailstock is probably the hokiest looking setup I've seen almost anywhere. It does not appear that it accepts a morse taper. Instead, the barrel appears to be an acme thread, or a very coarse national or metric thread, with a bigass nut used to lock it down. Suffice to say, that tailstock won't accept any kind of morse taper jacobs chuck. Depending on how the live center is attached to the threaded tailstock spindle, you *might* find a jacobs chucks to fit it - assuming you could thread one on. However, I highly doubt that this is the case, and without extensive machining, you'll never get a jacobs chuck in that tailstock.

Like I said, if turning spindles, bowls, platters, and the like interests you, hang on to it. If not, consider seeing what someone would be willing to pay for it.

TRS · Post by **TRS** » Tue Jul 28, 2009 3:46 pm

Thanks a lot guys, I appreciate your bearing with me. The DIAMETER of the spindle is 3/4", and thanks Kurt for the printable thread gauge; I was actually at the hardware store NOT finding one while you were typing that up.
Anyways, I think I'll just go the saving route, rather than waste money on a chuck for this lathe. Primarily I want it to drill with which appears impossible. You're right, the tailstock is useless. The live center is permanently attached to the tailstock spindle. Blah.
Thanks again for all the help. Anyone wanna buy a lathe? Top o' the line!

Post by **KurtHuhn** » Tue Jul 28, 2009 4:09 pm

BeatusLiebowitz wrote:Anyone wanna buy a lathe? Top o' the line!

Yes, is a great lathe! FOR ME TO POOP ON!!!

caskwith · Post by **caskwith** » Wed Jul 29, 2009 12:29 pm

It may not be useful for drilling etc but with some minor homemade modifications you could turn it into a great sander buffer setup!