The Lathe; Not just for turning

[JCHannum]

In preparing for the NAMES show, the bottom drawer of a Gerstner box I will be selling needed regluing. It was late, I was tired and did not feel like rooting around in the garage for a long gluing clamp. Since I wouldn't be using the lathe while sleeping, I hit on this substitute;



The six jaw chuck is optional, a four or three jaw will work equally well.

[Bill Pace]

Ahhh! -- K I S S engineering at is finest!

That just plumb neat JC...

PS, hope to see U at NAMES -- Lane cant make it

[Evan]

The tailstock quill also makes a very good press for light press fits of bearings and similar parts. The 4 jaw chuck is very handy for mixing model paints at low rpm.

And, of course, if it needs to be marked in a regular way around the part and or the length, circular, rectangular or square, scribing with the carriage on the part between head and tailstock is as precise as anyone needs.

[Liger Zero]

I whipped up a crude tumbler, it's more or less a shank bastard-welded to a coffee-can held closed with rubber bands.

Put in stones, toss parts in, close lid, rubber-band shut... insert shank in chuck turn RPM to "very low" and go out to dinner.

Come home, shut off lathe... parts done!



Bastard weld = "you call that a weld you stupid bastard!?"

[bruto]

I've done that with a wood lathe in the past. It's not as out of the way an idea as you might think, because one of the standard ways of doing small face plate work is to glue it to the face plate, often with a piece of paper intervening. You set it in the evening using the tailstock to clamp and it's ready in the morning. When done you simply knock it off. The leap to "big clamp for non turning" is not that far. There is no other long clamp in the shop with a throat that can come close to the swing of a lathe.

[x39]

Some great ideas guys! I've used two face tape to hold parts on a face plate.

[38_Cal]

I've used the floor model drill press for long glue jobs, like forend tips on rifle stocks. Glue it in the afternoon, ready to rock & roll in the morning.

David
Montezuma, IA

[CCWKen]

Well heck, I thought everyone used the lathe for a clamp or press. One of the operations I do when restoring Model T starters is to bore out the snout babbitt bearing and replace it with a bronze bushing. I use the tailstock to press the new bushing in.