New QC Toolpost for Atlas 6" Lathe

[flatlander]

Up until I bought a new Jet GH1340W-1 lathe for rifle barrel fitting & chambering a couple of years ago, the only lathe I'd ran had been Dad's old Atlas TH54, a 6" swing machine with a lantern-type tool post. Now I find myself wanting a 2nd lathe for the times when I've got a barrel dialed in on the Jet, and need to do something like bore a recoil lug to fit an oversize thread tenon. The old Atlas will just barely suffice for small, light jobs like this, so I'm wondering if one of the Phase II QC toolposts would be a little more rigid than the lantern tp? The smallest model Enco lists is the 100 series for machines with swings from 9" to 12" - does anyone know whether this TP would work on the old Atlas, or do I need to look at one of the smaller QC posts advertised in HSM?

I have a 200 series Phase II on the Jet, and have purchased 10 extra tool holders off e-bay at very reasonable prices. Could do the same for the 100 series post at even lower cost, so if it could be used on such a small, light machine, I'd prefer to go this route.

[gearhead]

Flatlander, I just asked the same question in my post. Do you know how much smaller the series 100 is than the 200 series?

[JCHannum]

The Atlas TH54 is a 10" swing lathe, and an AXA/100 series toolposts will work on that.

The 6" Atlas will be a number 618, and the smaller QC toolposts Little Machine Shop and others supply for the 7" chicom lathes will fit that.

In either case, one of the QC toolposts will provide much better performance than the old rocker style.

[ttok]

Years ago, I saw an ad for KDK quick-change toolholders in HSM and purchased a set for my 6" Atlas lathe. Going to their website today, I no longer see their small set of size OO toolholders advertised. Mine worked great. At the time, they were the only ones available for a 6" lathe.

http://www.kdktools.com/

A.T.

[John Stevenson]

Flatlander, I just asked the same question in my post. Do you know how much smaller the series 100 is than the 200 series?

Dimension towards the bottom of this page.

http://www.arceurotrade.co.uk/en-gb/dept_175.html

.

[flatlander]

Thank ye kindly, gents. I measured the height from the top of the compound slide to center of the spindle and found it to be 1-1/2", so it seems the 100-series Phase II QC post will work quite well. I suspect that I'll have to mill a fair amount of metal off the oversize T-nut to get it to fit into the compound's slot, but that shouldn't be a problem. I'm looking forward to getting this upgrade done and grinding some HSS tools to fit the extra holders for use on this machine.

The old girl came with quite a selection of extras, from a milling attachment to a toolpost grinder - most of which has sat gatherind dust for the past 50+yrs. since Dad brought it all home. It'll be handy to be able to get some use out of the Atlas - if the QC toolpost works out, I may also get another backplate and buy a new 3-jaw chuck for it - the old one gives quite a lot of runout. And if that works well, why not go whole hog and get yet anther backplate and a 4-jaw chuck?

[Tin Falcon]

Thank ye kindly, gents. I measured the height from the top of the compound slide to center of the spindle and found it to be 1-1/2", so it seems the 100-series Phase II QC post will work quite well. I suspect that I'll have to mill a fair amount of metal off the oversize T-nut to get it to fit into the compound's slot, but that shouldn't be a problem. I'm looking forward to getting this upgrade done and grinding some HSS tools to fit the extra holders for use on this machine.

Flatlander yes you should be good. The top of the compound to center on my SB 9" is closer to 1 1/4 . And I have an AXA on that. you may want to take a peek at this link for other options
http://www.littlemachineshop.com/Info/qctp.php
a good reference at any rate.
But if the series 100 fits go for it.
Regards
Tin