After a nasty lathe crash Howard Lewis had to put a few things right.
Looking behind the apron, it was clear that the pinion that engaged the rack was badly bent. What follows is what damage had been done, and the actions involved in recovering from this disaster.
Having to strip down something of which I had no knowledge was very daunting. Help came from a poster on the model engineer forum, called Geoff, who, it turned out lived in the next county. Very kindly, he sent me detailed instructions on how to remove the apron and investigate the damage. My lathe is an Engineers Toolroom BL12/24, which is a cousin to the Warco BH600 and the Chester Craftsman, so some of what follows may be applicable to those machines.
When I contacted one of the importers, it became clear that my misfortune was by no means an isolated case and spares were available from stock.
However, having concerns over the strength of the material originally used in my machine, I considered making parts to effect a repair. This would certainly involve purchasing a gear cutter and when the damaged parts had been examined, it was decided to use silver steel for the shaft. I felt that a replacement could be made which would be a little stronger, and at about half the cost, excluding my time. I also decided to modify the rack, to try to prevent any further recurrences.
Strip down
These follow, generally, the instructions sent by Geoff, but list my actions, in perhaps more detail.
If it needs saying, put the parts removed in a safe place, so that they do not become lost or damaged pending reassembly.
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Denne historien er fra May 2017-utgaven av Model Engineers' Workshop.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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Readers' Workshops - Patrick Cubbon
Patrick Cubbon describes his workshops – a portable one from 1963 and the current accommodation
Desktop Gear Hobbing
Toby Kinsey has designed this fascinating piece of gearmaking equipment
The John Stevenson Trophy 2020
Many readers and forum members will remember John Stevenson, a contributor to MEW but best known for his larger-than life presence on the Model Engineer forum.
From the Archives: Twist drill Sharpening by the Four Facet Method
Giles Parkes, MEW Issue 64, February/March 2000
Dividing on the Warco 220 Lathe
Peter Shaw describes a mandrel dividing attachment for this popular lathe that can be adapted to fit many other benchtop machines
Choosing Steels
Stub Mandrel offers some advice on choosing the right steel for the job
A Storage Story
Robin King shares the lessons learned from his experience of workshop moves
A Simple Drill Grinding Aid
A newcomer to our hobby was having trouble sharpening drills, so Howard Lewis made a simple aid for him
Yet Another Bodge-Up!
Peter Shaw finds a use for some aged homebrew slot drills.
Workshop Press Tooling Part 2
Will Doggett makes a set of tooling for his press tool described starting in issue 285