9" standard modern utilathe nose spindle thread orientation.

[140mower]

There's one other method that I have heard of, but not tried is to make up a fixture that you can mount as long a piece of pipe you can ie: 8-10 feet if possible, engage the back gears to lock up the headstock
Now, gently hang as much weight off the end of the pipe as you are comfortable with, apply your favorite penetrating oil on the threads and wait....... Periodically warm the back plate up and reapply more oil. This can take weeks depending on how many heat, cool and lube cycles you have time for, but I have heard of successes. Just don't shock or you risk breaking the gears, but steady pressure will not......

 

[PowderPig]

There are no visible pins holding the back plate to the spindle (see photos). As for a hammer, I used a small sledge hammer of about 2 lbs. I gave it some pretty good raps but was afraid to damage the spindle bearings. I didn't put anything between the pipe wrench jaws as I thought it would lose its grip but I did install a tight fitting plug in the end to keep the spindle bore from becoming out of round. The pipe wrench jaws chewed the shaft up a bit. Don't notice it with the cover closed. Thanks again for the assistance and possible solutions. Lots of good ideas. I'll be away from my shop for a couple of days but I'll keep plugging away it when I get back.

 

[Susquatch]

There are no visible pins holding the back plate to the spindle (see photos). As for a hammer, I used a small sledge hammer of about 2 lbs. I gave it some pretty good raps but was afraid to damage the spindle bearings.

I agree with your restraint. No point in doing more damage than necessary.

Too bad the rear spindle got marked up but I agree that it's mostly cosmetic. You can probably sand it to improve the looks or better yet, install a rear spider collar to "bury it".

I remember clearly the first time I took a barrel off of a Browning X-Bolt. Nothing I did would remove it. I read multiple threads on line about gunsmiths refusing to rebarrel an X-bolt because the receivers are too thin and removing the barrel twists the receiver. That wasn't to say that it can't be done, just that there is very high risk. The trouble with taking the risk is that you don't just risk damaging the barrel, you risk ruining the entire x-bolt. I sat there studying it and it hit me like a bolt of lightning. JUST MACHINE THE BARREL OFF!!! Ya, the old barrel is ruined, but so what! The action is safe. It worked like a charm and I've never worried about it again.

I know it's counterintuitive to ruin/sacrifice the backplate, but it's a sure safe bullet-proof way to get it off without ruining your spindle or bearings or breaking a gear tooth. Not only that, but you get to do a perfect job of fitting a new backplate cuz I'll bet big bucks that the old one is not a custom fit. It's an off the shelf backplate that came from the factory. The new one will be a perfect fit cuz it will be machined right on the spindle it will be used on. You can also make easier access to the screws at the same time by recessing them into the plate a bit which makes them shorter and easier to access with an Allen wrench.

It's a win-win. You just need to swallow hard and dive in!

The only question is do you start with a trepanning cut or take it all off with regular passes....... LOL!

 

[Mcgyver]

Well folks I’ve tried just about everything I can think of to remove the chuck backing plate from my 9” standard modern utilathe. I tried heating the back plate and cooling the spindle. No luck. Impact gun didn’t work. I fabricated a jig attached to the back plate and put a large wrench on it and locked a pipe wrench to the rear end of the spindle. Applied lots of pressure and also struck the wrench with a hammer for some impact blows.

Getting things apart that don't want to come apart always tries to put me on a path of destruction. I have to tell my self stay calm, breath deeply and don't F it all up

I had one chuck that was glued on, dang, was something. Anyway, once you've figured out to grip each end securely, which you've done, one way is what I call the 1000 taps. Like death by 1000 cuts. No big hammer blows, just tons of little ones, none which is enough to damage the important bits. Probably not unlike an impact gun, maybe the hits apply a bit more force, not sure, but its worked for me before on near impossible disassemblies (without damage!).

100% agree with machine it off before going crazy and bending the spindle...haven't done that but I can sure picture it!

 

[historicalarms]

I agree with your restraint. No point in doing more damage than necessary.

Too bad the rear spindle got marked up but I agree that it's mostly cosmetic. You can probably sand it to improve the looks or better yet, install a rear spider collar to "bury it".

I remember clearly the first time I took a barrel off of a Browning X-Bolt. Nothing I did would remove it. I read multiple threads on line about gunsmiths refusing to rebarrel an X-bolt because the receivers are too thin and removing the barrel twists the receiver. That wasn't to say that it can't be done, just that there is very high risk. The trouble with taking the risk is that you don't just risk damaging the barrel, you risk ruining the entire x-bolt. I sat there studying it and it hit me like a bolt of lightning. JUST MACHINE THE BARREL OFF!!! Ya, the old barrel is ruined, but so what! The action is safe. It worked like a charm and I've never worried about it again.

I know it's counterintuitive to ruin/sacrifice the backplate, but it's a sure safe bullet-proof way to get it off without ruining your spindle or bearings or breaking a gear tooth. Not only that, but you get to do a perfect job of fitting a new backplate cuz I'll bet big bucks that the old one is not a custom fit. It's an off the shelf backplate that came from the factory. The new one will be a perfect fit cuz it will be machined right on the spindle it will be used on. You can also make easier access to the screws at the same time by recessing them into the plate a bit which makes them shorter and easier to access with an Allen wrench.

It's a win-win. You just need to swallow hard and dive in!

The only question is do you start with a trepanning cut or take it all off with regular passes....... LOL!

I had a somewhat similar problem with a P14 action that i wanted to re-barrel (back then it was "gunsmit'n" but now its derogitized to "bubba'ing) that had seen WW1 and all the jungle rot or Russian winter weather that could be thrown at it...apparently that barrel had become one with the action, man it was stuck on.
After trying every effort i could think of that wouldn't torque the action as well, I resorted to visiting a machinist (but definitely not a gunsmit') friend of mine..." can you just cut a slice of barrel off right up to the action ring to relieve the tension" I asked, sure he says . "but Im busy for a bit leave it with me". Went back a day later and he hands me an undamaged barrel...other than the 3 deep pipe wrench jaw tracks on each side....and a deep purple action. It was obvious how he got that barrel off but I asked anyways..."I tried with just the pipe wrench first (hense the deep jaw cuts) but damn that thing wouldnt move so I had to heat that action ring red hot with a rosebud until it spun off with a pry bar in that slot" (action ways).
Needless to say that action was never used again, that was 40 yrs ago and its still squirreled away somewhere in the shop.

 

[Susquatch]

Needless to say that action was never used again, that was 40 yrs ago and its still squirreled away somewhere in the shop.

I laughed at your story. But I also felt your pain. It reminds me of another story of my own.

I had two rifles smithed by Ed Shilen himself when I was 20 something. I still have one of them. The other one I screwed up by ordering too big a barrel. It was to have been my first Benchrest rifle. But even at 260 pounds, I needed a special cart to move that rifle from one place to another. So I took it to a local gunsmith to turn down the barrel. He turned it into a pulley bar with stepped cylindrical sections...... F&#@.

I guess he didn't have a taper attachment or didn't know you could offset the tailstock.

I ended up trading it for a nice Charles Daly over/under shotgun.

This guy was supposedly the best gunsmith in the area. He got no more of my work.

 

[historicalarms]

I laughed at your story. But I also felt your pain. It reminds me of another story of my own.

I had two rifles smithed by Ed Shilen himself when I was 20 something. I still have one of them. The other one I screwed up by ordering too big a barrel. It was to have been my first Benchrest rifle. But even at 260 pounds, I needed a special cart to move that rifle from one place to another. So I took it to a local gunsmith to turn down the barrel. He turned it into a pulley bar with stepped cylindrical sections...... F&#@.

I guess he didn't have a taper attachment or didn't know you could offset the tailstock.

I ended up trading it for a nice Charles Daly over/under shotgun.

This guy was supposedly the best gunsmith in the area. He got no more of my work.

were hijacking this thread ....but...like that aint never happened before. LOL
Actually most rifle barrels to come out of the first war era were straight cut with drop down steps to them. Mauser I think was one that did the taper thing but most others took the simple way to lighten a rifle. Personally, F-class accuracy wasnt even on my radar back then and i had some very good shooting rifles built that way. usually it was the double stage military trigger that set the standard of accuracy achievable with them, put a good quality Canjar ot Timmny oin them and quite often go from <1" groups to cloverleaf's with those original barrels.

 

[Tom O]

My first rifle was a 8mm Belgian FN full wood I bought for $200. Bucks with a wooden case of ammo but soon found out it was too heavy for the bush & I could never keep the tip on the firing pin.

 

[calgaryguy]

I have recently purchased a 70's era 9" standard modern lathe and I would like to remove the chuck but I am not sure if the nose spindle has a LH or RH thread.
Thanks.
Colin

Welcome to the club. There's about 5-6 of us on here with SM 9" Utilathe's. Between all of us we've done pretty much full disassembly, reassembly, and refurbs at this point. PLus upgrades, fixes, etc. And I agree with the others about the pipe wrench usage...

 

[PowderPig]

All of my past attempts to unscrew the chuck backing plate off of my lathe have caused the headstock DE bearing seal to leak. It's just a small one, but it wasn't there previously. That's it, time to 'cut er off'.

 

[Susquatch]

All of my past attempts to unscrew the chuck backing plate off of my lathe have caused the headstock DE bearing seal to leak. It's just a small one, but it wasn't there previously. That's it, time to 'cut er off'.

As you know, I'd have done that ages ago. I agree, it's time to git er dun!

At some point, you will have to decide if the leak warrants repair and also if it is symptomatic of bigger deeper problems. If it were me, I'd cut that back plate off, and then start looking at bearing play and seal damage.

The temptation will be to get a new backplate and install a chuck asap so you can use the lathe. But I would resist that urge and take the time to evaluate the leak first.

 

[calgaryguy]

All of my past attempts to unscrew the chuck backing plate off of my lathe have caused the headstock DE bearing seal to leak. It's just a small one, but it wasn't there previously. That's it, time to 'cut er off'.

Sounds like you'll be into the headstock gearbox to check everything anyways. The headstock mainshaft is surprisingly easy to remove with a proper sized spanner wrench. @PowderPig where are you located?

 

[PowderPig]

Dalhousie in Northern New Brunswick.

 

[Susquatch]

Dalhousie in Northern New Brunswick.

I've given hundreds of speeches in my life. One of the top 5 I ever gave was at the University in Dalhousie. It wasn't me who made it good. It was a bit of luck and the audience. Dalhousie and the people who live there are now firmly and fondly implanted in my memory. You are fortunate to live there.

 

[PowderPig]

I think you are confusing the Town of Dalhousie in New Brunswick with the Dalhousie University which is is in Halifax Nova Scotia. But you are absolutely correct, Halifax is a charming city.

 

[Susquatch]

I'm not that fond of Halifax although I do love a few of the restaurants and I love the countryside north of Dartmouth and south of Halifax.

The university is definitely New Brunswick. I thought it was Dalhousie but it might be something else. As I remember it there are actually three campuses all affiliated in three different cities. One in the north and two about center. I don't remember everything about it except how much fun I had. I could have sworn one location was St. John, one was Dalhousie, and the other might have been Moncton or Fredrickton. It was a long time ago. The smallest and most fun crowd was the place in the north. I also remember the gift they gave me. They somehow learned that I loved Astronomy and gave me a mariner's sextant.

When I flew home I thought for sure that airport security would not let me take it on board. But they had no Idea what it was and were so taken by the explanation that they just waived me through.

The other hurdle was my corporation that didn't allow gifts so I thought I'd have to give it away. But when I reported it, the ethics committee said I could keep it because it wasn't likely to affect our business practices or financial obligations in any way.

That whole experience in NewBrunswick was amazing! If we ever meet I'll tell you what happened when I spoke. It's just way too big a story and best told in person.

 

[PowderPig]

Interesting story.

 

[PowderPig]

All of the New Brunswick universities are located in the southern part of the province. The main ones being the University de Moncton (french), UNB Fredericton, UNB Saint John, St Thomas Fredericton, and Mount Allison University in Sackville NB. There are some smaller ones and are also in the south of the province. There was a campus of ST. Thomas university in Chatam NB but it believe it closed in 1964.

 

[Brent H]

Wow @PowderPig - you are way up there at the Gaspé. Almost a 5 hour drive from Freddy!

 

[Susquatch]

All of the New Brunswick universities are located in the southern part of the province. The main ones being the University de Moncton (french), UNB Fredericton, UNB Saint John, St Thomas Fredericton, and Mount Allison University in Sackville NB. There are some smaller ones and are also in the south of the province. There was a campus of ST. Thomas university in Chatam NB but it believe it closed in 1964.

Ah, ok. So given your list, it had to be UNB. St John & Frederickton. I know for one was St. John because that's where and when I learned to distinguish between St. John and St John's in Newfoundland. The lecture I gave was called the Dineen Distinguished Lecture Series. I recall Dineen was the president of the university. I think he died. Once a year they invite someone to give a guest lecture in his honour. Is there any chance UNB has an extension operation in Dalhousie? It's a long time ago, but the memory is pretty strong. The people were all so fantastic and I had sooooo much fun.