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6th Jan 2021, 01:54 PM #16Most Valued Member
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Generally there's no drama with screwing a leadscrew completely out of its nut, so IMO no need to mark the travel or add a stop.
One place where it IS good to have a mark is on the chuck so when using larger diameter workpieces you're not guessing whether or not you still have good jaw engagement on the screw.
This youtube video from Joe Pieczynski (one of my YT fav's) explains it much better than I could: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j6hGlf1F2VY
Steve
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6th Jan 2021, 08:15 PM #17Intermediate Member
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Thanks for the link, Steve. putting a safe limit mark on the chuck is a really good idea. Your explanation was fine, I understood what you meant. I also watched the youtube video, he explains things very well.
Website: https://jaynevar.wordpress.com
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10th Jan 2021, 08:21 PM #18Intermediate Member
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I was debating whether or not to disassemble the headstock. The spindle was spinning freely but on closer inspection I noticed some insects had at some stage taken up residence in the bearing oil holes. I didn't want the dirt carried in by the insects spinning around in the bearings so decided to disassemble the headstock to clean and inspect. It came apart quite easily, first I removed the back gear and then slid the spindle out. The spindle needed a light tap using a wooden block to free it and then I was able to pull it out.
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Now that I've taken it apart this far, I'm wondering whether to go further and take it completely apart. If the bars are correctly aligned now, then releasing them from their clamps could create complications later to get them realigned. If they are not correctly aligned, then releasing them from their clamps should not be an issue since it will need aligning anyway. Having the headstock casting free from the rest of the lathe would make it easier to thoroughly clean and repaint. Does anybody have any thoughts or suggestions about releasing the bars from their clamps?Website: https://jaynevar.wordpress.com
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10th Jan 2021, 09:56 PM #19Intermediate Member
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- Mar 2012
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- South Australia
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As mentioned earlier, these lathes were made by a Clarrie Burden in his backyard workshop at Glenunga, a suburb of Adelaide. He used some parts that were common to the Hercus lathe.
Clarrie and Fred Hercus knew each other as they were both members of the South Australian Society of Model and Experimental Engineers.
I attended Clarie's house many times by invitation to drive his model locos, 5 inch Gauge, around his backyard track.
At the very back of his house block was a big heap of, many tonnes, of metal shavings dumped for convenience sake. This would have made an interesting discovery when the property was eventually sold.
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10th Jan 2021, 11:08 PM #20Intermediate Member
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That is very interesting, did he build the locos himself?
Do you know roughly how many of these lathes Clarrie made? It’s hard to imagine large volumes of production coming out of a backyard workshop.Website: https://jaynevar.wordpress.com
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11th Jan 2021, 11:25 AM #21Senior Member
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Just saw this on eBay - the tooth count of the change gears supplied might of interest?
I see it doesn't have anything like the spacers you mentioned on the cross-slide.
https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Vintage-...frcectupt=true
Ray
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11th Jan 2021, 12:08 PM #22Intermediate Member
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Thanks Ray. Garry brought that ad to my attention earlier today. I’ve already been in contact with the seller. It looks more complete and much better condition than mine is. Lol. Too bad it’s in Victoria and I’m in Sydney and the border is closed.
Website: https://jaynevar.wordpress.com
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11th Jan 2021, 01:30 PM #23Senior Member
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- Greenmount, W.A.
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Calculating the inflation for the purchase price for a back geared lathe with compound slide (in the 1939 advertisement) which is listed as £16/10/- (full price, not sale price), would equate to $1,473.38 in 2019!
I used this Reserve Bank of Australia's calculator at this site to do this:
https://www.rba.gov.au/calculator/annualPreDecimal.html
The plain lathe without backgear or compound slide at £10/5/- in 1939 was a snap at $915.28 in 2019!
For reference, the 1939 minimum hourly wage of workers, by Federal Legislation was 25c (2/6), so you would have to work 84 hours (before tax) to earn £10/5/- in 1939. Longer for an after tax amount.
In 2019 the minimum hourly rate was $19.84 per hour, so you would have to work 74.26 hours to earn that amount before tax.
Working out the tax was too hard!
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11th Jan 2021, 08:33 PM #24Intermediate Member
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Alan, converting the value of money from 1939 to present day puts things into perspective. It seems so strange to see such low prices on those old ads not having lived in that time period and experiencing a different value of currency to what we have today. It still seems like a great price at around $1500 for a machine that didn’t come off a mass production assembly line.
So, I bit the bulletin today and finished taking the lathe apart. All the pieces are now sitting in various compartments of a trolley. Is there a preferred product that works well to clean cast iron? Now that it is all in pieces, I’d like to clean everything well and repaint the non machined surfaces.
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The lathe came with a home made stand. The stand needed a little TLC so gave it a good once over with a wire wheel on the grinder to remove any flaking paint and rust then a thorough clean with some turps and a coat of paint. I had a can of yellow rust guard spray enamel so that’s the colour it got. It needs at least one more coat, not sure if I should stick with the yellow or paint it the same colour as the machine. I am also planning on enclosing the sides of the stand to create a seperate compartment for the motor and a storage cabinet in the remaining space.
6AC501C2-C61A-4441-BD0A-752BEB80910F.jpg535E77F5-9403-4EAF-9F56-7C146BCD4190.jpgWebsite: https://jaynevar.wordpress.com
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12th Jan 2021, 12:02 AM #25
Hi Jayne, Guys,
Its always handy to have some storage space under the lathe ! I keep my chucks and various lathe keys and other tools under mine. I also made a drawer to keep things like micrometers and gauges in.
As far as your stand colour is concerned, I really fancied bright yellow at one time, I even bought a two litre tin of it. I looked awful under the florescent workshop lights. So to match everything else Green became the colour of choice.Best Regards:
Baron J.
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12th Jan 2021, 11:03 AM #26Senior Member
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Was the green "eau de Nil" or "British racing green"?
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12th Jan 2021, 05:30 PM #27
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14th Jan 2021, 04:32 PM #28Intermediate Member
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Could somebody tell me what this gear is called? It is the small gear on the end of the spindle which drives the change wheels to turn the lead screw when engaged. And is the bracket where the change wheels mount called the banjo bracket?
Thanks, I am very much learning as I go here.
22261CA6-E553-41C1-BF90-2656B7093E2F.jpgWebsite: https://jaynevar.wordpress.com
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17th Jan 2021, 05:37 PM #29Intermediate Member
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I started cleaning and painting the castings, so far the headstock, tailstock, tail mount and saddle have been cleaned and received a first coat of paint.
Here a some photos after cleaning the grime and removing any loose paint and rust.
Tailstock
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Headstock
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Saddle
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And a couple photos after the first coat of paint. The paint is White Knight Rust Guard Epoxy Enamel. I've had good success with that type of paint in the past with durability and it seems to stick to just about anything. I'll put a second coat on tomorrow and possibly a third coat after that has dried, depending how it looks.
IMG_1115.jpg IMG_1130.jpgWebsite: https://jaynevar.wordpress.com
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17th Jan 2021, 07:45 PM #30Most Valued Member
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Looks great. I’m also a fan of that epoxy enamel paint. It’s easy to use and seems to hold up well.
Steve
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