Lathe Change Gear Cover Knobs

[Paul Jones]

I made two aluminum knobs to replace the 3/8-16 nuts and washers used to secure the lathe change cover. This cover is at the rear of the headstock to my 12” swing geared-head gap bed lathe. The knobs were made from 1.25” dia. 6061-T6 aluminum and approximately 2.1” long. The knurling is 21 pitch and the aluminum rod diameter was reduced 1.122” for a better fit for this knurling pattern. I used a semicircular shaped carbide insert for the Nikcole Mini-Systems grooving tool to machine the 0.125” wide grooves (using Copying Insert GIE-7-SC-3R). The larger diameter and longer length makes griping and turning the knobs very easy and no need for wrenches.