# 9" Utilathe Follower Rest



## YYCHM (Jun 20, 2021)

The final thing I'm missing to complete my 9" Utilathe is a Follower Rest.  I've been pondering this for months now and spotting a $500US used SM follower on Ebay finally prompted me to make one.  @Brent H posted plans for one here 9” and 10” Utilathe Follow Rest Plans | Canadian Hobby Metal Workers & Machinists (Thanks Brent!).  Looking at Brent's plans it appears that 1" plate is in order but before chewing my way through this in steel, I decided to mock one up in MDF to check that the dimensions actually work out.






I printed off two views of Brent's plans at 147% scaling.






This gave me a full scale plan of which I could make traceable templates to transfer onto 1" MDF.











This is the mock up.  The dimensions on Brent's plan were spot on, and the two part assembly gives some latitude for final adjustment.  Since it will be made in 1" thick plate 1/2" fingers seemed appropriate, and those will ultimately be made in 1/2" brass round or steel round with brass tips.

Next step will be to rough out the pieces in steel on the bandsaw.

Craig


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## Brent H (Jun 20, 2021)

Great stuff Craig!!!  Glad things worked -
Very hard to design without the actual machine!


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## Johnwa (Jun 20, 2021)

For areas that you can’t get to with the bandsaw you can drill a series of closely spaced holes, say 1/4“ holes spaced at 5/16”.  They need to be spaced so they are separate holes. Then drill them all out with a 5/16 bit.  That should almost separate the pieces.  A hacksaw will likely might be required to cut where the holes don’t quite join.
It sounds tedious but it actually goes fairly quickly.


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## YYCHM (Jun 20, 2021)

Johnwa said:


> For areas that you can’t get to with the bandsaw you can drill a series of closely spaced holes, say 1/4“ holes spaced at 5/16”.  They need to be spaced so they are separate holes. Then drill them all out with a 5/16 bit.  That should almost separate the pieces.  A hacksaw will likely might be required to cut where the holes don’t quite join.
> It sounds tedious but it actually goes fairly quickly.



Yup, been there done that before.  The U shaped piece of the saddle mount will probably have to be done that way. I'm wondering how well cutting 1" thick plate would go with the bandsaw set in the vertical?


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## YYCHM (Jun 20, 2021)

Brent H said:


> Great stuff Craig!!!  Glad things worked -
> Very hard to design without the actual machine!



Here is a question for you.  These plans appear to place the support fingers in direct alignment with the tool post mounting bolt. That pretty much places the tool ahead or behind the support fingers depending upon how you mount the tool.  Does that seem right?


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## Brent H (Jun 20, 2021)

Yes, you can ride ahead, on or behind depending on application.  Ahead for stock removal and on for say threading. Ends of the supports can be altered as well


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## RobinHood (Jun 20, 2021)

That looks like it will work out very well once you make it out of steel. Good job!


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## CalgaryPT (Jun 20, 2021)

Craig — that's the kind of patience and planning that makes for a successful project. Nice work. Can't wait for the finished rest.


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## Hruul (Jun 20, 2021)

Great information Craig.  Following with great interest!


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## YotaBota (Jun 20, 2021)

This will be a good one for the resume, you'll have to keep the pictures coming.


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## YYCHM (Jun 21, 2021)

Let the gnawing begin......






Squaring up some 1" plate @kevin.decelles gave me (Thanks Kevin!)






These are my victims…..






The plan here is to gut the saddle mount with a series of 1/2" holes. Will see how that goes


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## PeterT (Jun 21, 2021)

Maybe its an optical illusion but eyeballing the pic of wood mockup on your lathe, could you reduce the amount of relief & still clear whatever needs to be cleared?


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## YYCHM (Jun 21, 2021)

PeterT said:


> Maybe its an optical illusion but eyeballing the pic of wood mockup on your lathe, could you reduce the amount of relief & still clear whatever needs to be cleared?



Actually I've increased the distance between the uprights by 1/8" on each side.  My cross slide doesn't fit between them using Brent's dimensions.  Also, the cross slide gib screws tend to hang up on the right side upright without some extra space.

Edit:  Looks like my scaled drawing for the saddle mount wasn't quite scaled properly.  @Brent H's dimension of 3.6250" between uprights is very close to being correct.  My template ended up being a little on the small side.


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## YYCHM (Jun 23, 2021)

Progress......






The saddle mount gutting process.  My 1/2" drill bit packed it in after 4 holes so I had to switch to a 31/64" bit to finish off the hole drilling.






A trip to the band saw and we had most of center material removed.






Cleaning up the uprights.  I actually consider that end mill to be shot but it's good for side milling still.






And the bottom face all cleaned up now.






Top end detailing and mounting holes drilled.






Mounted on the saddle.  Everything lines up A-OK.  On to the other half of this project.


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## Brent H (Jun 23, 2021)

Nice work Craig!!


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## Dusty (Jun 23, 2021)

Hey Craig well done, remember the kids story about the little train, I think I can, I think I can, pause, I knew I could, I knew I could.


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## Hruul (Jun 23, 2021)

Looking great Craig.


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## YYCHM (Jun 23, 2021)

Do you think this would work?







Or am I courting disaster here?  It's too wide to cut horizontally.


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## combustable herbage (Jun 23, 2021)

Can you flip it and make cuts into both ends?


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## YYCHM (Jun 23, 2021)

combustable herbage said:


> Can you flip it and make cuts into both ends?



What would that achieve?


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## Hruul (Jun 23, 2021)

Do you have a table made so you can cut it with the saw in vertical position?


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## YYCHM (Jun 23, 2021)

Hruul said:


> Do you have a table made so you can cut it with the saw in vertical position?



Yup, I'm looking at that now.  Might need a guide fence, it's too long a cut to free hand.


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## RobinHood (Jun 23, 2021)

I would try it. If you get too much chatter, you can always go to plan B. Can’t walk away from it though, this is a babysitting job, ready to hit the e-stop.


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## Ian Moss (Jun 23, 2021)

Our local abrasive water-jet cutting shop has a minimum of $75, and that would probably cut all your parts and save a lot of time and tooling.


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## Johnwa (Jun 23, 2021)

I’ve done it that way, babysit it like Rudy says.


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## Janger (Jun 23, 2021)

YYCHM said:


> Yup, I'm looking at that now.  Might need a guide fence, it's too long a cut to free hand.



You need a tool, so you can make another tool, so you can make tools for the tools !  

Great to see a project underway Craig. We've had too many shopping posts lately and not enough chips!


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## combustable herbage (Jun 23, 2021)

Two shorter cuts is all I thought are you worried about the blade or the cut?


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## YYCHM (Jun 23, 2021)

combustable herbage said:


> Two shorter cuts is all I thought are you worried about the blade or the cut?



Was worried about the blade not tracking straight down or shaking the work piece loose.  It's way beyond the metrics of a 4X6 bandsaw in that configuration.


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## YYCHM (Jun 24, 2021)

What a PITA....






The cut started arcing over towards the line (other side).






So, I had to stop and remove the piece that was cut so far.






Then reposition to continue the cut.






Sad, sad waste of some nice 1" stock.






This saw has been fighting me every inch of the way....  How the heck are you supposed to clamp something like this.






As a result I've had to resort to a LOT of this.....


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## YYCHM (Jun 24, 2021)

The knawing continues.  Ran out of bandsaw options so let the milling begin.






































Phew.... between fighting with the bandsaw and the mill work that thar piece took me all day to do.

Sad, but true.


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## RobinHood (Jun 24, 2021)

I think your bandsaw blade has lost a couple of teeth on one side - that’s why your cut started to curve.

Good progress, under difficult conditions!


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## YotaBota (Jun 24, 2021)

You've displaced a lot of metal, gave the mill a good work out.


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## YYCHM (Jun 29, 2021)

This project kind of stalled for some reason....






But today, I finally finished the last of the profile shaping.  Need to do some drilling next.


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## YYCHM (Jun 30, 2021)

Did some drilling today....it was kind of nice to hide in the basement and get away from the heat upstairs.






Lots of swarf.






Not perfect but should be close enough I figure.....






You guys ever encounter this?  That collet refused to come out with the nut.  With the nut off I had to give it a gentle nudge with a brass punch.


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## Johnwa (Jun 30, 2021)

The nut should have pulled the collet loose.   The collet wasn’t inserted in the nut completely or the nut is damaged.


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## Johnwa (Jun 30, 2021)

Today I was cutting a 10” piece of 5/8“ vertically.  I gave myself plenty of allowance for the blade to wander.  Wouldn’t you know it, the damn thing cut as straight as an arrow. Now I have to whittle away more chips.


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## Dusty (Jun 30, 2021)

Johnwa said:


> Today I was cutting a 10” piece of 5/8“ vertically.  I gave myself plenty of allowance for the blade to wander.  Wouldn’t you know it, the damn thing cut as straight as an arrow. Now I have to whittle away more chips.



They say it's Murphey's Law whoever they are!


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## PeterT (Jun 30, 2021)

As Johnwa said. Also
- if you heard the collet go click (installed properly) look to see if the ring is distorted/damaged
- another possibility is if its a reduced shank drill, there will be a small radius in the corner where the shank ends. If you pushed the drill in so the collet nose was gripping on that slight fillet enlargement then it would not be properly gripping on the bulk of its ID surface & now its kind of hanging on that fillet so to speak.


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## YYCHM (Jun 30, 2021)

PeterT said:


> - if you heard the collet go click (installed properly) look to see if the ring is distorted/damaged



I've never heard a click installing collets?

What ring distortion/damage are you talking about?


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## YYCHM (Jun 30, 2021)

Johnwa said:


> Today I was cutting a 10” piece of 5/8“ vertically.  I gave myself plenty of allowance for the blade to wander.  Wouldn’t you know it, the damn thing cut as straight as an arrow. Now I have to whittle away more chips.








In my case I think I shot myself in the foot from the get go....  I started out attempting to cut the piece with the bandsaw in the vertical and that cut wonder off on me.  I then attempted to cut it horizontally following the initial cut hoping it would sort itself out.  It didn't.


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## Johnwa (Jun 30, 2021)

https://www.cncsparetools.com/new/mounting-instructions-for-er-collets-and-nuts.html


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## PeterT (Jun 30, 2021)

Its the way you install ER collets


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## PeterT (Jun 30, 2021)

Johns picture is better than mine. Anyways if the ring has become distorted by quality issue or installation, or the nut seat has become distorted or fouled, then the collet may not seat properly. If you gronk on a collet in a very localized area like its nose, its also possible to distort it. It may still grip but potentially loose accuracy. ER's are more forgiving than 5C & other more restricted size collets, but anyways those could be some things to look for.


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## PeterT (Jun 30, 2021)

I know this wasn't your question or issue but generally if you ever have the opportunity to clamp things to gain more/maximum contact area, its inevitably better. Less chance of something moving under force, vibration, heat. For example maybe you could shift the part over to the right & deeper in the vise, let the corner hang out the bottom a bit to the side of the vise way. This may not have been possible but you get the idea just eyeballing the potential area difference. This issue is worse yet with unfinished rougher surface vs skim because your nice flat vise jaws see that surface as a bunch of little hill tops, isolated contact points vs the entire projected surface. Anyways, not a critique, just a friendly tip that might extend the life of a tool or part. Sometimes clamping directly across a big (thin wall) hole can create new problems, but thats kind of different again. You have lots of meat in this part.


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## YYCHM (Jun 30, 2021)

PeterT said:


> I know this wasn't your question or issue but generally if you ever have the opportunity to clamp things to gain more/maximum contact area, its inevitably better. Less chance of something moving under force, vibration, heat. For example maybe you could shift the part over to the right & deeper in the vise, let the corner hang out the bottom a bit to the side of the vise way. This may not have been possible but you get the idea just eyeballing the potential area difference. This issue is worse yet with unfinished rougher surface vs skim because your nice flat vise jaws see that surface as a bunch of little hill tops, isolated contact points vs the entire projected surface. Anyways, not a critique, just a friendly tip that might extend the life of a tool or part. Sometimes clamping directly across a big (thin wall) hole can create new problems, but thats kind of different again. You have lots of meat in this part.



Ya, a lot of my setups on this one were iffy, it's shape just made it awkward to deal with.  Was considering switching to angle plates at one point.


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## YYCHM (Jun 30, 2021)

PeterT said:


> - if you heard the collet go click (installed properly) look to see if the ring is distorted/damaged



I checked my other collets and you're right, they click into place in the nut. All of them, except the 13mm.  A closer look revealed that it's badly messed up, inside and out.  This will be the second 13mm collet I've replaced?


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## Dusty (Jul 1, 2021)

YYCHM said:


> I checked my other collets and you're right, they click into place in the nut. All of them, except the 13mm.  A closer look revealed that it's badly messed up, inside and out.  This will be the second 13mm collet I've replaced?



Hey Craig, was wondering why your 13mm collet is messed up where all other appear to work fine and the collet chuck nut seems ok? Sounds strange to me. 

Accusize has individual ER style collets see page 31 bottom left of page. Also Page 29 top right for collet chuck nuts. check out their attached catalogue as referenced.

https://accusizetools.com/


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## YYCHM (Jul 1, 2021)

Dusty said:


> Hey Craig, was wondering why your 13mm collet is messed up where all other appear to work fine and the collet chuck nut seems ok? Sounds strange to me.



Probably because I do more 1/2" drilling than anything else.  The collets do double duty on both the mill and the lathe and drilling 1/2" and up tends to give me the most grief.


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## YYCHM (Jul 2, 2021)

More progress...






Located and drilled and tapped the upright 1/4-20, then assembled for a test fitment.  Looks pretty good to me for a mill to the line project.  Upright needs to be lowered a smidge.






The easiest thing to  setup and do was mill the  base legs down a little.  Took them down 0.06 in three stages, checking the alignment after each pass.






Looks good to me, I'll think I'll call her done.  Support finger locking screws next and maybe counter sink the upright mounting SHCS a bit (that or switch to a flat head screw).  I'm also thinking welding the two assemblies together might be a good idea any thoughts?.


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## Tom O (Jul 2, 2021)

Looking good I’d put in a smaller dia 1/4 or 3/8 dia to get a better look at it or if your tool is at centre height use it.


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## YYCHM (Jul 4, 2021)

Tom O said:


> Looking good I’d put in a smaller dia 1/4 or 3/8 dia to get a better look at it or if your tool is at centre height use it.



The tool test indicated I was pretty much spot on......






This however indicates I need to come down a bit and right a smidge.  Coming down isn't an issue but offsetting right will be.

Worth putzing with?


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## RobinHood (Jul 4, 2021)

YYCHM said:


> Worth putzing with?



Turn your points off center ==> would give you fine tuning adjustability. Then you can leave the frame alone.


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## Tom O (Jul 4, 2021)

I would put a wider flat on the end to compensate then try it out I would think the forces would be to lift and push on around a 45* angle to the upper rear.


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## YYCHM (Jul 4, 2021)

RobinHood said:


> Turn your points off center ==> would give you fine tuning adjustability. Then you can leave the frame alone.



That's brilliant.....  Have to think on this now.  I was planning on cutting a keyway on the support fingers (?don't know if there is a proper name them?) such that locking set screws would enter the keyway rather than mar/damage the finger surface and make future adjustment a challenge.  That arrangement would negate the ability to rotate them.


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## RobinHood (Jul 4, 2021)

See about how much off center you need to be. Then either make a small flat (what I would do [& @Tom O is suggesting] and include brass buttons) or turn the point and install. Rotate as required for best alignment. Mark. Mill anti-rotation groove (or a flat as you plan) in the corresponding location. Done.


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## RobinHood (Jul 4, 2021)

If you go for a flat, you can install the fingers and run a part. Put light pressure on the part. Leave it run for a bit without lubrication. the part will leave a nice line where it tangentially contacts your push fingers. The true center of contact is on that line. That will give you a visual indication of how much off of the geometric finger center the contact point is.


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## YYCHM (Jul 4, 2021)

RobinHood said:


> See about how much off center you need to be. Then either make a small flat (what I would do [& @Tom O is suggesting] and include brass buttons) or turn the point and install. Rotate as required for best alignment. Mark. Mill anti-rotation groove (or a flat as you plan) in the corresponding location. Done.



Going a step further..... how does one install brass buttons?


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## RobinHood (Jul 4, 2021)

If you use brass tips on the fingers, they will just wear in to the true center of contact. Might not be worth to mess with the alignment in the first place as long as you are reasonably close - which you seem to be.


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## RobinHood (Jul 4, 2021)

YYCHM said:


> how does one install brass buttons?



Drill a hole in the tip of the fingers. Make an interference fit on the brass pin and press it into the hole. Leave about 1/4” brass sticking out. That would be the simplest way. You could go fancy and machine the brass in the shape of a flat mushroom top: the stem is still an interference fit into the drilled hole. If you miss the fit dimensions, just use red locktite and glue in the tips.

If the tips ever wear out, just cut them off, drill the old brass out of the hole and insert a new brass tip.


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## YYCHM (Jul 4, 2021)

RobinHood said:


> Drill a hole in the tip of the fingers. Make an interference fit on the brass pin and press it into the hole. Leave about 1/4” brass sticking out. That would be the simplest way. You could go fancy and machine the brass in the shape of a flat mushroom top: the stem is still an interference fit into the drilled hole. If you miss the fit dimensions, just use red locktite and glue in the tips.
> 
> If the tips ever wear out, just cut them off, drill the old brass out of the hole and insert a new brass tip.



How big of a hole for a 1/2" finger?


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## RobinHood (Jul 4, 2021)

What do you have for brass stock? I would base it on that.

1/4”, 5/16” or 3/8” would probably work. You could always leave a bit of your taper you have on the fingers already to make the brass “blend in” a bit more. Use a smaller rod first and see how that looks; you can always go bigger if it is too small. Really up to you.

Just make the hole one size smaller that the stock you have. Turn the brass down to press into the hole.

I would not go by drill size to make the brass pin as a drill will most likely give a hole that is oversized. 

Measure the hole and make the brass oversized wrt the actual hole dimension.


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## YYCHM (Jul 5, 2021)

Ooooops.... I'm closer to being on center than I thought






Ends up that chuck key I was aligning with wasn't straight at all.  If you spun the chuck by hand you could see the end wobble.  Looks much better with a dead center cucked up.


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## YYCHM (Jul 5, 2021)

More progress....






Today I added finger locking set screws.  Had to resort to clamping to the table in order to drill and tap two of them.






All tapped....






It's coming together.  Need to source some brass round stock tomorrow........


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## Beez12 (Jul 5, 2021)

Looking good Craig!


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## Dusty (Jul 6, 2021)

Hey Craig well done, don't stop now you definitely have a winner. Adding a QCTP would help likely in your shop plans.  LOL


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## Hruul (Jul 6, 2021)

Looks great Craig.  Thanks for the information, I hope it is still here in a few years when I get around to making one for myself.


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## historicalarms (Jul 6, 2021)

YYCHM said:


> That's brilliant.....  Have to think on this now.  I was planning on cutting a keyway on the support fingers (?don't know if there is a proper name them?) such that locking set screws would enter the keyway rather than mar/damage the finger surface and make future adjustment a challenge.  That arrangement would negate the ability to rotate them.



 Craig to protect your fingers from grub screw damage, create a lead slug ( any old shotgun pellets will work as well) that fits into the grub screw hole. Will conform to finger OD when tightened without maring the finger. It might remain tight to the finger when you want it loose for adjustment, but a slight tap to the flat end of the finger will loosen it up


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## PeterT (Jul 6, 2021)

Are you lining everything up now so that ultimately this joint will be welded? Or maybe I missed how this was joined from underneath?


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## YYCHM (Jul 6, 2021)

PeterT said:


> Are you lining everything up now so that ultimately this joint will be welded? Or maybe I missed how this was joined from underneath?
> 
> View attachment 15955



1/4"-20 SHCS.  Do you think it should be welded as well?


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## 6.5 Fan (Jul 6, 2021)

Looking good. I wouldn't weld if your going to use bolts to hold those base pieces together.


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## YYCHM (Jul 6, 2021)

6.5 Fan said:


> Looking good. I wouldn't weld if your going to use bolts to hold those base pieces together.



The upright is attached with a single 1/4"-20 SHCS.  Good enough you figure?


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## combustable herbage (Jul 6, 2021)

I think it would be good there isn't much force or pressure on it just following along.


YYCHM said:


> The upright is attached with a single 1/4"-20 SHCS.  Good enough you figure?


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## Chicken lights (Jul 6, 2021)

YYCHM said:


> The upright is attached with a single 1/4"-20 SHCS.  Good enough you figure?


Welding has the potential for a twist or other movement. If you’re happy with the accuracy I wouldn’t weld it, my opinion


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## 6.5 Fan (Jul 6, 2021)

Ya potential for twisting if welded improperly.


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## PeterT (Jul 6, 2021)

Ya just to be clear, I wasn't suggesting welding, just wondering what the plan was. Dowel pins + retention bolt is another mode, arguably less potential for shifting or movement. But you don't have a lot of real estate to work with. I rarely use my steady so I don't have a good feel for the deflection forces being transferred. I have plans for a toolpost mounted lightweight travelling steady for really delicate stuff - one day I'll get around to it.


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## RobinHood (Jul 6, 2021)

What size bolts are you using to mount the rest to the saddle (red circles)?






The single 1/4-20 SHCS is used to hold the upright (green circle)?

I would make the base-to-upright connection at least as strong as the follow rest-to-saddle.

You are working with 1” wide material, yes? You should have room for more than one bolt from the base to the upright. Or use a bigger one - 1/4-20’ is a bit weak in my view if that’s the only thing holding the two parts together.

The connection of the two parts should be stronger than the weakest section of the solid part. So the joint won’t flex.


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## YYCHM (Jul 6, 2021)

RobinHood said:


> What size bolts are you using to mount the rest to the saddle (red circles)?
> 
> View attachment 15974
> 
> ...



The base is bolted to the saddle with two 5/16-18 SHCS.

The base is bolted to the upright with a single 1/4-20 SHCS.  I don't think it's possible to add more screws to the upright, unless they are small.

Weld them together?  I could silver solder them together... Maybe....that's a lot of metal to heat up.


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## RobinHood (Jul 6, 2021)

Two 5/16-18 SHCS give you a clamping force of ~4719 lbs max each —> ~9438 lbs total holding your rest to the saddle when torqued to the max.

The little 1/4-20 only provides about ~2864 lbs max clamping force.

If you replace it with a single 7/16-14 GR8 bolt, your clamping force of the joint will be ~9568 lbs max.
So at least as strong as the rest is clamped down to the lathe.

A 3/8-16 GR8 bolt would give you ~6974 lbs. More than double the 1/4-20 value.

[all values are theoretical; real life values will most likely be less; the numbers are for comparison only]

Perhaps something to consider. Still no welding/brazing needed, thus no distortion.


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## YYCHM (Jul 8, 2021)

Ahhhhh..... does this seem right to you?






31.75" of 1/2" solid brass round for $20.14 tax in.  Found it in the cut offs bin and was expecting to be quoted something in the order of $40-$45.

I now have more than enough 1/2" brass round that I could make the follower support fingers solid brass rather than trying to add brass caps to 1/2" steel round.  What do you think of that idea?


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## 6.5 Fan (Jul 8, 2021)

So i assume you ran across the parking lot yelling "start the car"


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## YYCHM (Jul 8, 2021)

6.5 Fan said:


> So i assume you ran across the parking lot yelling "start the car"



YUP!!!!  And pinch me I must be dreaming


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## RobinHood (Jul 8, 2021)

That’s good price, Craig. Well done.

Even though you have lots of brass material, I would still only make caps for the push fingers. Make two sets, one to use and one for spares.

You could make a nice set of brass punches with the extra material. Even try out the follow rest making them…


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## YYCHM (Jul 8, 2021)

RobinHood said:


> Just make the hole one size smaller that the stock you have. Turn the brass down to press into the hole.
> 
> I would not go by drill size to make the brass pin as a drill will most likely give a hole that is oversized.
> 
> Measure the hole and make the brass oversized wrt the actual hole dimension.



What do you consider one size smaller to be?  My drill bits increment in 64ths.  Also, what red thread locker do you use?  I have some Permatex High Temperature Red Thread Locker that I'm not impressed with so far.


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## RobinHood (Jul 8, 2021)

Loktite 262 - stuff works well for me.

Now that you have 1/2” stock, you need to decide on the design of the buttons.

Here is what mine look like when I made the steady rest.









What I was getting at is make sure the button actually presses in. Decide on a size and drill the hole. Now measure the hole accurately, and make the pin portion deliberately oversized for a press fit. Also, make sure you have the head bottom out on the face of the push finger by either undercutting the pin-to-head transition (this is what I did - you can just see the undercut on the brass piece) or generously chamfering the hole in the finger (I also did that, just for double assurance) so that the radius does not ride up on the face of the finger and thus leave a gap.

You could just use a straight piece of brass. This is where I was going with the 1 size under: say you decide on a nominal brass cylinder of 3/8”. Drill the hole 23/64” at the most. Maybe even 11/32” and take a light skim of the nominal 3/8” brass rod. That way you will get a press fit. If you drilled 3/8”, chances are great that the brass rod will wobble in the hole as drills have a tendency to make holes oversized.

But since you have 1/2” rod to work with, you don’t need to worry about fitting nominal sized stock into a drilled hole. You have extra material you will be able to turn off and make a custom fit.


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## historicalarms (Jul 9, 2021)

Personally Craig I wouldn't use the complete brass bars for the fingers. The brass would deform & mar very easily from grub screw tightening. Brass plugs on the end of the steel would be the only option I would use.


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## YYCHM (Jul 9, 2021)

And..... Done  This took me the better part of the day to complete.






Finger drilled and end cap turned down for press fit.






I used the tail stock to press the caps onto the fingers.






The first cap pressed in no problem.  The second cap needed a little persuasion with a hammer






I turned the points with the flat caps mounted on the fingers.  I'm really surprised with how well press fits work for this, I didn't need to resort to red thread locker at all.  Added some very shallow key ways and dropped brass slugs and grease in ahead of the locking setscrews.  Didn't have any lead shot that was big enough.






And all slicked up in Utilathe grey.   I'll never use brush on TREMCLAD again.... What a PITA


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## RobinHood (Jul 9, 2021)

Well, there you go! Nice job.

Those brass caps have enough meat on them that you can re-face them when they wear.


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## combustable herbage (Jul 9, 2021)

That turned out great Craig very nice work


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## YYCHM (Jul 9, 2021)

RobinHood said:


> Well, there you go! Nice job.
> 
> Those brass caps have enough meat on them that you can re-face them when they wear.



Thanks Rudy.  The image of your steady rest end caps inspired me to give the press fit caps a go.

And.... I really have to thank @Brent H for developing and posting the drawings.  Although what I made isn't as eloquent, the dimensions the drawings provided  made a functional facsimile possible.

Thanks Guys!


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## YotaBota (Jul 9, 2021)

Add another one to the resume.
Did you change out the 1/4-20 bolt for a 7/16-14 as per RobinHoods suggestion?


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## YYCHM (Jul 9, 2021)

YotaBota said:


> Did you change out the 1/4-20 bolt for a 7/16-14 as per RobinHoods suggestion?



No.... I'll try it as is before deciding if that upgrade is necessary.


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## Hruul (Jul 10, 2021)

Looks great Craig thanks for posting.


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## 6.5 Fan (Jul 11, 2021)

Looks good, nice addition for the lathe.


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