How To Align Your Lathe
ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 20 ธ.ค. 2019
- This episode on Blondihacks, I show you how to align your ways and your tailstock so your lathe won't cut tapers! Exclusive videos, drawings, models & plans available on Patreon!
/ quinndunki
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I saw what you did there @ 6:13. You need to get the level across the 'flat spots of the ways' but the prismatic sections are 'in the way'. :)
😬😬😬
I worked for several of the highest precision large machine tool companies and gained a reputation as machine leveling “expert”, and you still taught me something. In this case, it was finding that there will be an orientation on your surface (plate) where the level will read level.
Great video.
The toothpick scale model was a brilliant representation of both ability for machine movement and the effect in real time. Great job!
It's good that you show your mistakes. I think too many teachers are inclined to edit those out for reasons of pride, but so much more can be taught by sharing them.
Great stuff.
I've been a machinist for 12 years and I've never seen a lathe leveled this way. It makes so much sense! and now you've given me something to do tomorrow lol. p.s. I'll keep an eye out for a good deal on a tenths indicator I can donate to the blondihacks cause!
This method is show in my old Colchester lathe manual from 1964!
@@codprawn and my Myford from 1960…., good video 👍
Yeah and that awsome Sterrett level...I did not realize you can calibrate a level that way too.. an old dog can learn new tricks
@@chuckthebull I didn’t know that trick either so I tried doing it to a couple of my construction levels. One went in the garbage and the other is now for rough work.
😊
The best tutorial on levelling i have ever seen !
It's incorrect. I did it this way and the level was not calibrated (well, it was impossible to calibrate it using this method). If you search for the level axis using a level that is not calibrated and use the bubble in the center, that is not going to be the level axis of the surface plate. You have to find the axis where there is equal discrepancy in both directions, that is the only way to find the level axis with non-calibrated level. After you find the level axis, you adjust the level to get the bubble level, you will have to keep rotating the level and splitting the difference closer and closer and this will probably require very small re-adjustment of the 123 blocks/reference edge. Also, do not fiddle with the screw side as shown in this video, there are small half balls under there which are meant to be the pivot point of the level, you adjust the nuts, not the screw. The incredibly thin slot for the screw is there on purpose to make people avoid fiddling with that side as it will require a specialty slotted head if you want full contact and not risk marring the slot.
How refreshing, someone who really knows what they're doing and methodically walks you through the whole process - CORRECTLY! Thank you.
Best explanation and process to correct that I've seen yet!
This should be added to the lathe skills Playlist.
It had been years since I needed to do this. I found a couple other videos on this but gave up, they were long winded and left more questions than answers. You were clear, concise and I walked back into the shop knowing exactly what i needed to do. Great video, thank you!
I always enjoy your lessons. A wonderful mix of skill, science and of course well timed levity.
@Blondihacks - - - You make it seem so straightforward...! I really like these technical explanations of machine operations and metrology in general. Merry Christmas!
"Don't push the shim all the way under, you'll never get it out again." Words of wisdom, no doubt learned from hard experience.
Quinn would not have pushed that all the way under, right?
Great instruction( as all yours are) I spent 4 hours on my "new" 1939 southbend 9"c, and got a final of .0002 taper per foot- decidedly the best Ive ever done. Thank you, and keep up the good work.
I work on my "new" 48 Logan ten inch, but I learned on a thirties southbend back in the seventies. It's good to know I'm not alone in the old iron.
I love your content, it's great seeing machining from a hobbyist's viewpoint without a model maker's overlay. As an amateur machinist, I machine things for my other hobbies and machining is just an adjunct to those hobbies. I don't make models, I make modifications and repairs to other items. I also like how you aren't a machine snob. A new Chinese manufactured machine is often a better bet than an old American machine that has a lot of wear issues, especially if you are going be making small parts.
Superb video, Blondihacks!
Thank you for explaining the minute adjustments required to remove twist.
Your videos are a testament to your machining AND teaching skills.
One of the most straightforward explanations of how to do this that I have seen!
We, the lathe noobs, salute you. Finally a video about leveling in practice that I understand, thank you so much for this!
Lovely yet again Quinn. You have a true gift for teaching .
Very well done.
When you moved the tail stock, I said to myself, “Blondie, you are going the wrong way”. I didn’t expect you of all people to misjudge the correction.
You made a complicated process easy to follow.
Thank you.
The inside of my head is like cold scrambled eggs. It’s amazing anything comes out right at all.
So many instructions assume that one will just follow along to a perfect result. Some of the most useful and memorable, however, point out the places where you can make mistakes and how to correct it!
Where were you a year ago when I did this? You put together all the info that I scraped together from ToT, Tom Lipton, and others. You're doing an amazing service for the hobbyist machining community by putting all this info into a concise series.
One of my long term goals is to build a spanning beam lathe stand which would allow me to adjust twist by turning bolts instead of inserting shims under the feet. Should allow much better control and make the whole process easier.
Quinn: You're going to need an assortment of precision shim stock.
Me: *Goes through recycling bin and assumes Pepsi Max is thicker than Pepsi.*
Soda cans do make pretty good shim stock for that one size. They are made to remarkably precise thickness, to minimize cost of material. 😀
@@dsloop3907 are you talking about using the skin off a potato? (I really never heard of peel shims, so now I know - thanks. - All the best for the festive season too.)
I wonder if cans are a consistent thickness from top to bottom. If they aren't you could use two strips back-to-back in the way wood shims are used in pairs in construction. They would act like the two halves of an adjustable parallel.
Would ordinary soda can material (made, presumably, from aluminium) not be too soft and likely to crush/deform?
Actually laughed out loud 😂
I’m just an amateur (recovering woodworker), but this has got to be one of the most informative videos
I’ve ever seen. Simple, understandable, and doable by most dummies (and by “dummies” I mean “me”). Now I need to figure out how to mount my mini-lathe on something OTHER than a table made from 2x4s and plywood. (Old habits die hard).
Rob Johnson Welcome to the Dark Side!
If it's a thick table, that's not a bad mounting. Ideally it'd be mounted on concrete, sure, but something that's equivalent to 5" thick wood is pretty resistant to deformation. A sufficiently stiff table can lend a wimpy lathe extra stiffness, though, so error towards overkill.
Get a surplus chunk of granite counter top off Craig list, bolt lathe to that
Mounted mine to a commercial metal 2" thick door 7 1/2 foot long. on wood frame for drawers.
@@OldtimeIronman I’m new at this and always been afraid of using granite and break it if something like stock fell on it, an I just being overcautious?
Thank you for sharing!
Best demonstrated lathe alignment video in TH-cam. Nice job. Appreciating your efforts.
This is like watching a wizard explain magic but then by then end you're very surprised to realize you actually kinda get it.
You're one hell of a teacher.
I really appreciate your focus on precision. I have been machining for about 22 years, but I have mostly been focusing on just making what I need to make to get what I want, and that level of precision was always expendable in the service of getting the job done.
I noticed, though, that there are a lot of jobs, generally involving fast moving parts, that were absolutely off limits for my skill level. Over the years, that has been more and more irritating, because my ambitions are growing.
Thank you for walking us through basic machine setup. I think it will open some doors for me.
As a machinist with over 20 years experience, though I've never had to perform a machine leveling, this is correct and very well explained. Excellent job sharing info and procedure to keep a dying trade alive!
Reql quick. If one has been a machinist over 20 years, and one has never performed any leveling, how would one know it to be the correct way and very well explained?
Well done video, great, concise explanation of a tedious process, love the "Tony" reference - can't wait to do my lathe
Your timing is impeccable. I recently bought that brand's tool that you had to obfuscate in the video, and I'm almost caught up enough on other shop issues to spend a day (I'm slow) calibrating the bed and the tailstock of my lathe. You are a born teacher! To true my mill head, which has neither nod nor tilt adjustments, I had to use shim stock. It was a special form of hell because I had no help in levering the column between shim permutations, but it paid off! So I'm sure it will on the lathe, too.
In my humble opinion, this video is your best work so far. It was entertaining and informative. Keep up the good work!
Aww, thanks! 😄
Hi Quinn, I'm watching your videos and this is the best one (in my humble opinion), lot of very useful info and the ToTOS gave me tears of laughter. Congratulations and keep them coming. Thanks for sharing.
Thank you so much for going into detail on calibrating the level, how to use it in conjuction with a surface plate etc... Im restoing a 1928 series O south bend 11" and this entire vid was invaluable to allieviating my crippling ignorance of this proceedure...quinn you are an absolute godsend!
One of the best instructional videos I have ever seen. You made everything easy to understand and the videography was excellent. Thank you!
The level calibration method totally blew me away! A very much needed absolute reference in a world of chaos :)
Excellent, love the wooden model👍.
May I wish you and your family a Merry Christmas and a Happy New year.
Thanks for sharing.
Brilliant! I've worked on lathes and mills a fair bit but never knew how they were actually set up for precision. Learned a lot from this!
Very useful tutorial. I just bought a second-hand 290 lathe a few days ago, and I am adjusting it according to your way.
Thank You for this easy to follow instruction.
Merry Christmas!
Somehow you make the most mundane tasks fun. Thank you so much for the videos...
Thanks for going over this Quinn. You answered some questions I had about doing this job.
Once again, Excellent Video! I learn something EVERYTIME i watch one of your videos!
Excellent narration. Concise, complete and accurate. Also entertaining in a low key way.
Nice and clear explanation on lathe alignment. Saving this video for future reference. Thanks for making the video. Happy Holidays.
Hi Blondihacks, Sheldon from down under here. I have been a home machinist for a number of years now. Your video of how to reset the bed is awesome. I have had problems with my lathe turning tapers etc, as the lathe was dropped when I was shifting. I have tried your technique and the lathe is now within 2 10ths (6 inch) out of the chuck. Before, it was running about 3 tho of run out. You are one of the best machinists I have come across to explain all this machining in detail. By the way I have 2 ragdolls that help me on the lathe too! Damn fur!
Most clear and concise demo of this that I've ever seen. Thanks!
Loved the speechifying. And also the Science. Both great, combined, making a great video. Happy Holidays ! And thank you.
Great videos. Simple to understand and very thorough.
Great methodical video. Anyone who does this will be glad that they took the time every time that they use the machine.
I have used an alternative method in the past.
After taking the twist out of the ways like you expertly demonstrated, I have chucked on a long bar that was as perfectly cylindrical as i could find or make. If using a CNC, taper moves can be used in a turning operation to make one. I indicate that bar while rotating the chuck by hand until it runs true close to the chuck and also at the far end, thus establishing the true center line of the rotating axis. A four jaw chuck or buck chuck helps with this. Getting it true at the front first. then tapping the far end, usually having to go back and forth to get it good on both ends. It's critical that the bar is solidly mounted in the chuck so that rotation doesn't affect it.
Once I got good run-out on both ends, an indicator mounted on the tool post with the tip on the bar allowed me to tweak it in by traversing back and forth with the spindle off.
For the tail stock adjustment, a 60 degree center for the chuck end can be made on the machine if one is not available, this also assures that it runs true if not disturbed after the turning of it.
Keep up the great videos.
This is a great and intuitive explanation of a very difficult to understand process. Thank you so much for this video.
Greetings from NZ Quinn. I learnt a bit from this. After doing a 9000 hour railway apprenticeship in fitting turning and machining we never delved in to alignment to any great degree. Thank you Quinn. Im looking at buying my first lathe upcoming and look forward to working precision on a lathe that hasn't been abused. If videos like this existed 40 years ago ........
Videos may not have existed them, but the knowledge did. You'd be surprised what you can find in your local library or online archives.
Congratulations you made a difficult to explain subject look easy , merry Christmas to you and yours look forward to a new year full of projects.
When I got my lathe a year ago, I saw this and made a custom cabinet/stand for my lathe out of steel tubing. The lathe is bolted to the steel frame, and the steel frame is bolted to the concrete floor. There's also adjustable bolts for the frame's feet. To take twist out of the lathe bed, I loosen the hold-down bolts on one end of the cabinet's frame, adjust the feet as needed, then re-tighten the hold-down bolts.
Thanks for all the great information and ideas!
Love your detailed explanations and humor! SO wish I had you as my shop teacher. 👍
Great stuff! Demystified the text & bad photographs in my lathe manual. Thank-you very much.
Also LOVED the insert of the earth with the "Not to Scale" label! Only on screen for a moment, but it cracked me up! Thanks for that, too.
Thanks for all your videos! I was just plowing through material and projects "farmer" style. Your videos have given me the ability and inspired me to set my equipment up right! Thanks again.
Love it, and perfect timing! Great video as always!!!
Excellent explanation. I have followed you advice and now have excellent results. Thanks
Excellent! I wanted a precision Starrett level, but was not willing to pay over $100, so I made my own. I bought a precision glass vial for $14 and mounted it on a piece of 1x1x1/8x6" aluminum channel. After a lot of frustration and puzzling, I ended up using exactly the same calibration method as you, right down to the 1-2-3 block! It's still 1 of my favorite tools.
Wow... Thank you so much! This is the 2nd of your Tutorials I've watched and you do an amazing job. Very much appreciated.
Thanks! That's the most complete and thought video I've seem on this subject. Will try it this week.
Newbies take note. You can learn a lot from this lady. Very well explained, great production, very enjoyable. Congrats
Yes! Ms. Hacks couldn't be more Newbie-friendly! Just walking with her through all her projects (some very ambitious!), trials, errors and saves could save a newbie a lot of pain. Actually, a newbie wouldn't last long, as such, watching these videos and making things in between. Quinn the Newbie-slayer! :)
@@ManicSalamander
I love that she shows her oops, those are the biggest learning moments.
Awesome video as always, Merry Christmas to you and yours!
Merry Christmas Quinn!
Thank's for that, I'll be doing a major overhaul on my mini lathe shortly so I've put this video on my desktop for reference later.
Have a nice Christmas and all the best for the New Year from me here in England.
I very much appreciate the verbal instruction along with the visual. 😀
I've heard about Finite Toothpick Analysis, but never seen it in use...
That was Toothpick360, the new CAD software that all the cool TH-cam kids use.
This is why I am SO thankful for taper correction on the CNCs. I had a tail center in a 350MY that was introducing .008 taper over about 16", fixed that in 10 seconds using the keypad on the controller. The tail stock has since been properly aligned, but I still use that technique to compensate for deflection. If I'm turning anything long enough to require a tail center I program with the assumption that I will have to take out taper somewhere in the part (kinda like bringing the duct tape with you instead of walking across the shop every time you need it 😀).
Jerk. :)
@@IBWatchinUrVids I know, but that's how we do ;)
With a CNC lathe, you can have a machine that has ways like a Detroit road, that wanders around whit heating like a one eyed dog in summer and where nothing is square. The reason, the computers can and do track all that and adjust. Haas machines used to keep track of the movement of the ball screws so that they could comp for the expansion due to temperature.
Excellent job Quinn. Thanks for sharing.
I'm about to go through this, you're an excellent teacher which is the highest accolade I can give.
Happy new year 🎊 @Blondihacks
I have one of those Starret machinists levels. I love it but have never calibrated it. Thank you Blondihacks!
I just bought an old metal lathe from the twentys and this video is perfect I need to check all rhis before I go trying to make things on it
I can see you becoming a youtube Icon. Keep up the good work!
Just enjoyed watching the process, will tune in later.
Thank you for this presentation. I have a 20 yr old Taiwanese small "desk" lathe which was apparently made for US high school trade classes. I also do little more than dabble, mostly turning down bolts or making custom lens mounts. It has a very short bed and beyond the four corner bases under the machine itself, there are no other apparent alignment adjustments. I found it adequate for making my custom lens mounts with alloy and flowcast bronze with sharp tools. Machining steel became difficult but doable. However I just about dropped down on the floor in a dustraising tantrum the first time I tried machining along any length. It also flexed too much for ceramic cutters to be used which either rode or dug in. I have fixed it down to a very heavy solid piece of construction steel "C" section. It no longer chatters so easily and the longer cuts have improved even before any shimming which needs still to be done. Your presentation is very helpful for making what finer adjustments yet need to be done. I also made a recirculating feed for cutting oil by adding a drain tube to the chip tray, using a GM powersteer pump in a small oil tank and a washing machine motor to drive it.
Very well done, I will be doing this process to my lathe very soon. Thanks Quinn!!!
This is a wonderful video. I am rehabbing an old Sheldon EXL P that was once an US Army lathe. Now, it is a Professor's Forge lathe ( :) ) . I am not a machinist at all yet. Not really. This is the most useful video I have ever found for this. I just wanted to thank you. Good channel. You are a good teacher, too.
I was just thinking how much I wanted a new Blondihacks video!
Excellent video. I will be re-aligning my lathe now... thanks Quinn.
Cool!
*Writes a lathe on the shopping list*
caveat emptor! I bought used for $1,400 what I could have bought new for $3,000 (SEIG AKA Jet AKA Grizzly etc) and boy did I wish later that I'd skipped the "discount" because of missing tooling, documentation, and support. Budget 1/2 the money you think you've got available to spend for the machine, and half for tooling. You will never ever have all the tooling you want for your machine. Promise.
Tooling is an addiction. It's best not to start. ^_^ That said, a lot of Taiwan-made stuff is _good_. You don't need a Kurt vise. ;)
@@railgap I'm sorry but I don't trust american made tools. I've got a Heuer wise and I'm pretty happy with it.
@@RubenKelevra You're the first one to mention American-made tools in this thread, so I don't know what you're replying to or trying to say. I said Taiwan, not American. RIF
@@railgap Kurt vises are (hopefully) still made in the USA. 🙄
Thank you. I have tried for months to align my 1440 lathe. I have been mucking around at the chuck end thinking it was that. 10 minutes spent on the tailstock and bingo.....perfect.
Wonderful job making another challenging task seem within reach of the average man. Your videos are inspiring and fun to watch Quinn. Thank you.
I discovered you today, watched 2 of your videos so far, and immediately subscribed after the first one! Believe me when I say this, both content and presentation is spot on and probably the best I've seen on youtube ever. Thank you so much for these videos, especially this one on leveling the lathe as you've answered some questions about leveling that have bugged me for quite a long time... "lathes aboard ships work perfectly fine" . I've always wondered if being level headstock to tailstock made a difference....now I know!!
Aww thanks for the kind words, and for the sub! ☺️
I learnt so much! Thank you. I’m getting my first lathe soon. Hoping to bore a small home made cast bronze cannon one day. Great videos cheers.
I once asked an ex Navy machinist how they got machines “Leveled” on board......he laughed at me, So I guess square and perpendicular are more important than level.
Flat.. would be the word vs level
Yes level doesn't matter
Great instructional video on an often overlooked subject, even by a lot of experienced machinists. The only thing I could think to add is that used lathes can have significant wear on the ways themselves that is usually concentrated on the part closest to the spindle (90% of lathe use is within inches of the chuck). The uneven wear pattern on the ways can mess with the alignment process.
The best way to fix that is to install a CNC control, then you can program in your error table for correction factors.
This one my love was one of the most helpful time I have spent with you. Thankyou😃
Good video
If the tailstock is still out it may be worthwhile checking the vertical alignment as well
I had to shim mine a year ago after discovering wear
Love the toothpick example! Never thought about it that way! Nice job as always.
Brilliant explanation and demonstration! Thank you.
VERY nice video. I learned how to align my lathe today, and learned how much i didn't know. Thank you so much.
Thanks for a very lucid explanation, one of the best I have seen.
Love your channel, totally going to level my old south bend and see if I can tweak the taper out of it. Thanks for the awesome content!
Had to stop watching an old western for this, but it was worth it....THANKs
Awesome job explaining. Now I know how to do it. Thanks Quinn.
Thank you!!! Expecting delivery this coming week of new mini lathe ... your video should help me a whole bunch!!
Thanks for sharing Quinn.... Best Wishes for the Holidays.
I am watching this on Christmas morning! Yes I'm sad! Thank you for posting this Quinn as in the next few days I will be installing my lathe/mill into my newly enlarged rebuilt 8' x 7' shed small I know but it was 8x5 before! And this will help me enormously. Fortunately I have a10" Rabone precision engineers level which I will calibrate as per your demonstration so thank you so much for the input! Wishing you all the best for "The Holidays"as you Americans put it or us Happy Christmas lol to you and your family. Subscribing now!
Great Vid with all the correct tricks in the correct order for aligning a lathe.
For those who have adjustable feet/bolts at each corner, once you get close it will only take like 1/16 of a turn or less at one corner to make a noticeable difference.
Make sure you lock the locknut down at each adjustment because if you forget and everything is square to the world, THEN have to lock the locknut, it will change simply due to bolt stretch.
Hi I have seen many howto videos on unwanted taper. Also from machining youtube superstars. But this one from a fine lady beats them all. Both in explanation an execution.
Well done! Wery well done!!!
Aww thank you! ☺️