I have just purchased a Boxford Lathe

[Hopefuldave]

You right and wrong at the same time. Breaking degrees up into minutes and seconds and keeping count with a split degree division would be a nightmare that’s why you have dividing plates.
I’m not saying your gadgets isn’t cool though.
Real accuracy comes from encoder set ups with 50k divisions in the circumference

A 200-step stepper motor into a 90:1 rotary table will give 18,000 divisions, 1/50th of a degree, which is accurate-ish, but you can also micro-step the motor if you can live with a reduction in torque, that'll get you anything up to 288,000, 4.5 seconds of angle* - but the rotary table or dividing head's not going to be anywhere near that accurate... Where the stepper drive comes into its own is awkward divisions like prime numbers, e.g. 127 for metric/imperial conversions gears etc.

I have a few large (coke-can sized) steppers, but I also have the dividing plates...

Dave H. (the other one)

* about 2mm (ok, 0.0785") over 100 yards... accurate enough for me

 

[Hopefuldave]

Invest in a DTI and stand for clocking parts true in a 4 jaw. Plenty of how tos of the above on YouTube.

If the bar is oversized its irrelevant. Stick it in a 3 jaw. Face the end off flat and drill with a center drill in the tailstock chuck. Then drill/bore to size. Turn the outside to size and your hole will always be central. If you remove the part from the 3 jaw and need to pop it back on the lathe clocking it true in a 4 jaw comes into play.

Or if you need to pop it out of the lathe to try fits, go really old-school and turn between centres with a drive dog on the part,

Dave H. (the other one)

 

[eLuSiVeMiTe]

Or if you need to pop it out of the lathe to try fits, go really old-school and turn between centres with a drive dog on the part,

Dave H. (the other one)

Haven't had the pleasure yet. Have picked up some dogs and a few plates to drive it.

Useful for taper turning with an offset tailstock. Was debating modifying a boring head I have surplus for the task.

 

[Pete.]

Turning between a solid live centre and a solid dead centre is about the most repeatably accurate way you can do it on a home shop lathe. It's vastly under-utilized. It allows you to test-fit a part then re-work it without fiddling about with 4-jaws etc and to guarantee machining both ends concentric.

 

[pressbrake1]

Turning between a solid live centre and a solid dead centre is about the most repeatably accurate way you can do it on a home shop lathe. It's vastly under-utilized. It allows you to test-fit a part then re-work it without fiddling about with 4-jaws etc and to guarantee machining both ends concentric.

That exactly how a good cylindrical grinder achieves better roundness than the best bearings
Two stationary lapped dead centres

 

[slim_boy_fat]

Or if you need to pop it out of the lathe to try fits, go really old-school and turn between centres with a drive dog on the part,

I thought the commentary was by Stephen Hawking, until I saw the name of the channel.

 

[MattF]

I thought the commentary was by Stephen Hawking, until I saw the name of the channel.

That narrator has neither clue nor talent for the job. Listening to people like that is painful.

 

[daleyd]

That narrator has neither clue nor talent for the job. Listening to people like that is painful.

That’s never stopped me...

 

[minimutly]

Well my rotary table is huge - definately not one to mount on its side. But then I do have an angle plate, I wonder if its big enough?

 

[pressbrake1]

Haven't had the pleasure yet. Have picked up some dogs and a few plates to drive it.

Useful for taper turning with an offset tailstock. Was debating modifying a boring head I have surplus for the task.

I forgot to mention the other good thing about turning between centre is the opposite of taper turning, you can adjust to dead parallel even on a worn lathe if each individual diameter isn’t too long

 

[123hotchef]

Going to collect the lathe later today hopefully, cleared out the Ifor horse trailer for the job

 

[123hotchef]

Here it will sit until i sort the floor out where it is going to live

 

[God mode restorations]

Here it will sit until i sort the floor out where it is going to live

Happy days

 

[addjunkie]

Here it will sit until i sort the floor out where it is going to live

Did you twiddle the handles and make turning noises?

 

[123hotchef]

Did you twiddle the handles and make turning noises?

Lol no i refrained from that I was more interested in clearing a space ready to level it off with some concrete. The seller said just use wood

 

[123hotchef]

ok so after thinking about this the lathe maybe better housed in the workshop at the end of the garden.

But i have to lift it up into the house about 2" via 3 steps at the front door then wheel it through the house out the back doors across the decking down 3 steps 1" each then down to the work shop down 1" step into the workshop.

Am I mad?

Where is the best place to lift it from I am thinking engine crane

 

[eLuSiVeMiTe]

ok so after thinking about this the lathe maybe better housed in the workshop at the end of the garden.

But i have to lift it up into the house about 2" via 3 steps at the front door then wheel it through the house out the back doors across the decking down 3 steps 1" each then down to the work shop down 1" step into the workshop.

Am I mad?

Yes

 

[Seadog]

The cabinet has two holes, front to back, for lifting bars. 1" I seem to recall.

You can see them in this picture.

 

[God mode restorations]

ok so after thinking about this the lathe maybe better housed in the workshop at the end of the garden.

But i have to lift it up into the house about 2" via 3 steps at the front door then wheel it through the house out the back doors across the decking down 3 steps 1" each then down to the work shop down 1" step into the workshop.

Am I mad?

Where is the best place to lift it from I am thinking engine crane

No...not mad...you wouldn't believe what I have moved through this house and round the back.

 

[123hotchef]

The cabinet has two holes, front to back, for lifting bars. 1" I seem to recall.

i have seen those holes well i saw one at the end actually i did not look closely