Carriage lock

[mike4]

I was using my small lathe last night and locked the carriage several times during the job that I was working on .
Then after completing most of the work I went to lock it again , but the screw kept on turning , no big deal I thought , just finish the face off by holding the carriage in place with right hand and turn the compound with left hand.
Job now finished.

Took the carriage apart , and after some frustration of having to work on a machine designed by some A^%$le who never had to dismantle a machine in their life.

The "carriage lock "was simply an extension of a piece of cast iron bolted to the underside of the carriage , what a joke , Now I have to make a STEEL part which wont snap when used ,

I am not someone who will blindly follow the manufacturers or anyone elses use of fragile material in an area which gets used daily .

Cast iron is ok in large castings with bulk but for thin items which are or could be subject to stress I will always use a more suitable material.
Michael

[John Stevenson]

You are lucky you have one.
Many of the new machines don't even have them and if they do they don't work from new

I came across one that was just a tapped hole into the apron, nothing to pull up against the bed at all.
Someone in the factory had just removed a cap screw and replaced it with a square locking bolt.

[mike4]

I have finally made some progress and have the compound off .
The broken plate appears to not have been cut off from the rest of the guide as there is a section milled out to about 1mm depth for this lock plate to clamp onto .
I have taken some photos which I will post later as I cant locate my cameras usb cord, at the moment, it was taken home during Christmas.
I should be able to cut a piece of steel and machine it to the same dimensions of the original and get everything back together today.
I will keep you posted.
Michael

[Boucher]

I had a similar cast lock break on my Nardini. I was able to get both pieces out without removing anything else. The pieces fit back together perfectly for measurements to make a new one.

[Doozer]

A quill lock is also something you don't see on drill presses any more.
I have one on my Atlas drill press, and I use it all the time.
Especially when aligning a part on the table or vise.

--Doozer