Lathe Tailstock Quick Lock

[Crusty]

Since I've been on a jag getting around to things I've been meaning to do I made a quick lock for my lathe's tailstock from 2 12" bolts and a piece of 3/8" scrap from my pile. The bolts had the sides of the heads sawn off flush with the shank so they looked like a T from the side, then cross holes were drilled in each one. Then I cut a small piece of 3/8" plate, turned trunnions on each side which go into the lever holes and finally threaded a hole in the center for the long clamp screw which used to clamp my tailstock down. A bit of rounding on the belt sander of one corner of the remnant bolt heads and a cross bar welded to the bolt ends and Bob's my uncle, and if any wear is experienced I can easily adjust the bolt to tighten the locking force again.

In the down position the tailstock moves freely.

And in the up position the bolt heads apply force to the tailstock base, tensioning the bolt and clamping the tailstock to the ways. The geometry is such that the bolt heads cam over in the locked position so that the lock stays put until I want to release it.

I've been on a jag for a couple of days taking care of things I've put off for a while. I balanced and trued my grinder so it doesn't wobble and vibrate anymore, built a wooden box to keep my milling accessories in so they don't rust, worked on my parting tool holder so I can mount the blade upside down and run in reverse for trouble free parting (it works), put new tires and a Starrett blade on my bandsaw, built a lever locking mechanism for my lathe tailstock so I don't have to find the wrench to move it, cleaned the lathe (it was hideous), worked on my TIG foot pedal so that the welder shuts the welding current and HF completely off when I take my foot off of the pedal and finally got some time to practice my TIG welding and I see improvement.

So far today I made a wooden box to store my rotary table in so that it doesn't rust and that went so well I've made two more general purpose wooden storage boxes for yet undetermined uses, and next I think I'll spend some quality time sharpening drill bits.

[greenie]

So now you have a rigid arm sticking a couple of feet out from the lathe, wont be long and your hip or leg will love you for it, eh. :-)

[Crusty]

I can readily see how that would be a problem for some, but since I always Pay Attention Around Power Tools I don't anticipate any issues. I made it for me and no one else.

[DIYer]

Thanks Crusty! We've added your Tailstock Lock to our Lathe Accessories category,
as well as to your builder page: Crusty's Homemade Tools. Your receipt:

Tailstock Lock by Crusty

tags: lock, tailstock

[Ralphxyz]

Crusty, thanks for posting. I have started thinking of doing this on my lathe. If you ever take it off could take some pictures of the side view.

Ralph

[Crusty]

Imagine a cross shaped piece of 3/8" flat plate with the side arms turned into round trunnions (about.325" dia) and a clamping bolt hole drilled and threaded in the cross a bit aft of the trunnions' centerline.

The trunnions go into holes cross drilled in the bolts.

The bolts' hex head sides are trimmed off flush with the shanks, leaving the top and bottom portions of the hex heads.

The bolt heads have been rounded at the aft bottom corner on a belt sander so that they bear on the tailstock base surface smoothly as the levers operate.

The bolts' cross drilled holes are placed so that their centers locate the bolt heads forward of the tailstock clamping bolt center but aft of the trunnions' centers, creating a force triangle which wedges the rounded edges of the bolt heads against the tailstock base.

The rounded portion was profile sanded so that maximum force is reached somewhere in the middle of the lever travel and the bolts heads cam over, locking the levers against the upper tailstock ledge.

The cross bar welded to the other end of the bolts prevents the bolts from coming off the trunnions.

I took it off and put it back on enough times that I won't be taking it off again except at gunpoint.

[Ralphxyz]

Thanks, I am starting to see it.

Ralph

[marksbug]

I put a rat**** rench on mine seems to work fine.I also added a spring under the tail stock to push the clamp away so it dont drag. perhaps someday if I ever get around to making rizor blocks for the head & tailstock Ill make a lever for it.in truth I need a bigger better lathe...

[Crusty]

I've used a combo wrench for a couple of years now but I gotta tell you this is a big improvement. Since I routinely use a center in the tailstock to set my cutting tool height I move the TS in and out a lot and this is much faster for that.

Sit down with a pencil and paper and make a conceptual sketch to see how it operates and the approximate dimensions. I think in my version the distance between the trunnions center and the clamping bolt center is of the order of around 3/8" and the bolt head cams exert maximum force within that span. The rounding which occurs last is used to fine tune the operation and since you're reducing the apex of the cam it fine tunes the clamping in conjunction with adjustment of the clamp bolt to set the clamping force (just enough to solidly hold the tailstock).

Since recognition on this site is based on popularity and not content value, hitting that Thanks button is appreciated.

[greenie]

Anybody who contemplates this idea will still have to factor in, what value they put on P-A-I-N.

It is an accident just waiting to happen and your hip or leg, will love you for adding it to your lathe, just make sure your health insurance is fully paid up.

You ask for the thanks button to be hit, but maybe the moderator should also add a DISLIKE button for silly ideas, think you would get more of the later.