kwijibo99
25th Sep 2016, 01:20 PM
My lathe lives on a cabinet mounted on hardwood risers which allows me to use a pallet jack to move it when I need to as I store stuff behind it.
Every time I shift the lathe I recheck the bed alignment to be sure nothing has moved.
In the past to do this I used a pair of V blocks, a precision level (0.1mm/M) and a feeler gauge. A V block was placed on each way with the level resting across them. An appropriate feeler gauge was then placed as needed to bring the bubble to an appropriate location. Something like this:
364359 364360
Starting with the level furthest from the headstock the V blocks were aligned against the saddle and the level adjusted with a feeler gauge.
Using the saddle, the level was then moved to about the centre of travel and the level reading noted before moving to the headstock end.
If necessary the bed adjusting feet were tweaked and the process repeated until the deviation was satisfactory.
This method worked ok but care had to be taken because if the level moved on the V blocks at any point during a pass then it had to be repeated which could make the whole process a bit time consuming.
364361 364362
I decided it was time to build myself a King Way aligning tool but with somewhat of a twist. I didn’t want to drop a heap of coin buying precision vials for a tool I might use once every six months or so, rather I decided to come up with a method that facilitates the use of the precision level I already have. Here’s my solution:
364363
The frame itself is just a joe basic King Way setup to which I added a tilting rest which supports the level itself.
The rods are 16mm 1045 which is what I had to hand and I milled flats on them which makes lining everything up quicker but the flats are not necessary.
The cross shape of the tilting level rest means the V base of the level is supported at three points making it very stable which allows me to complete a check of my lathe in a couple of minutes with the level readings being much more consistent than when using V blocks.
364369 364372
The slide is made from 1” 1045 BMS and is drilled and tapped at 180⁰ and 150⁰ to allow use on both V and flat lathe beds or dovetail ways.
364371
The level tilt can be adjusted by either the M6 X 1.0 cap screw or by using feeler or slip gauges under the embedded ball bearing.
364370
Now I know that a King Way tool has two levels perpendicular to each other but for my purposes the single level is good enough for now.
The tilting rest does allow me to use the level along the bed if I use a couple of V blocks. Again my lathe is far from level so the tilting rest allows me to make this check with minimal fuss.
364368
Something I found interesting is that a greater deviation of the level occurred with the ball foot resting on the flat of the bed than when it rested on the opposite V way which actually supports the saddle. I suspect this may be caused by the level movement being larger as the effective pivot length becomes shorter.
When I get a chance I will do a check with the ball foot on the flat way and an indicator on the V way to see if there is any actual variation.
364364
Deviation with ball foot on flat way.
364365
364366
Deviation with ball foot on V way.
364367
Given that on a Hercus the distance between the rear V way and the opposite flat is only 100mm and between the V ways themselves is only 130mm then the deviation as per the level is within 0.02mm over the 600mm measured.
I know the lathe turns true as I just made up a 400mm crank shaft rod which was within half a thou end to end and I’m happy with that as long as nobody tells Schlesinger :o
Cheers,
Greg.
Every time I shift the lathe I recheck the bed alignment to be sure nothing has moved.
In the past to do this I used a pair of V blocks, a precision level (0.1mm/M) and a feeler gauge. A V block was placed on each way with the level resting across them. An appropriate feeler gauge was then placed as needed to bring the bubble to an appropriate location. Something like this:
364359 364360
Starting with the level furthest from the headstock the V blocks were aligned against the saddle and the level adjusted with a feeler gauge.
Using the saddle, the level was then moved to about the centre of travel and the level reading noted before moving to the headstock end.
If necessary the bed adjusting feet were tweaked and the process repeated until the deviation was satisfactory.
This method worked ok but care had to be taken because if the level moved on the V blocks at any point during a pass then it had to be repeated which could make the whole process a bit time consuming.
364361 364362
I decided it was time to build myself a King Way aligning tool but with somewhat of a twist. I didn’t want to drop a heap of coin buying precision vials for a tool I might use once every six months or so, rather I decided to come up with a method that facilitates the use of the precision level I already have. Here’s my solution:
364363
The frame itself is just a joe basic King Way setup to which I added a tilting rest which supports the level itself.
The rods are 16mm 1045 which is what I had to hand and I milled flats on them which makes lining everything up quicker but the flats are not necessary.
The cross shape of the tilting level rest means the V base of the level is supported at three points making it very stable which allows me to complete a check of my lathe in a couple of minutes with the level readings being much more consistent than when using V blocks.
364369 364372
The slide is made from 1” 1045 BMS and is drilled and tapped at 180⁰ and 150⁰ to allow use on both V and flat lathe beds or dovetail ways.
364371
The level tilt can be adjusted by either the M6 X 1.0 cap screw or by using feeler or slip gauges under the embedded ball bearing.
364370
Now I know that a King Way tool has two levels perpendicular to each other but for my purposes the single level is good enough for now.
The tilting rest does allow me to use the level along the bed if I use a couple of V blocks. Again my lathe is far from level so the tilting rest allows me to make this check with minimal fuss.
364368
Something I found interesting is that a greater deviation of the level occurred with the ball foot resting on the flat of the bed than when it rested on the opposite V way which actually supports the saddle. I suspect this may be caused by the level movement being larger as the effective pivot length becomes shorter.
When I get a chance I will do a check with the ball foot on the flat way and an indicator on the V way to see if there is any actual variation.
364364
Deviation with ball foot on flat way.
364365
364366
Deviation with ball foot on V way.
364367
Given that on a Hercus the distance between the rear V way and the opposite flat is only 100mm and between the V ways themselves is only 130mm then the deviation as per the level is within 0.02mm over the 600mm measured.
I know the lathe turns true as I just made up a 400mm crank shaft rod which was within half a thou end to end and I’m happy with that as long as nobody tells Schlesinger :o
Cheers,
Greg.