Mandrel Handle
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David Haythornthwaite Turns his lathe mandrel safe- ly with this pretty balanced handle attachment. any years ago I saw some scrap yard breakers Don’t Fly Off The Msmashing up an old lathe with sledgehammers and I rescued the cross slide handle for Handle !! the price of a pint of beer. On tak- ing it home, I found it to be an anced handle still in place, but do steady for this. Remove from the ideal size for turning the mandrel take measures to keep others away chuck, fit the other end in the on my Myford Super7B and it if you do this. On the Myford chuck and face the second end, simply looks as though “it grew on ML7 the handle also looks as bringing the length to 5.5”. Centre the Myford”. Our noble Editor though Myford had designed it this end again with a small centre spotted it on my website themselves. It looks like a fitted drill. I did consider making this www.Haythornthwaite.com and handle as opposed to a workshop item without centres in the ends, suggested that I wrote it up for the made accessory. but centering the bar makes ma- magazine. That would have been chining so much easier and a small easy if I had made the original, but Order of Machining centre does not detract from the he spotted the one thing that I had As the handle is comprised almost finished appearance at all, in my not made myself. I have now made totally of curves and tapers, it is an opinion. a second identical handle (Photo. interesting and challenging item to Above) and found it to be an inter- make, but I do suggest that you Roughing Out esting turning exercise which use leaded free cutting mild steel First of all turn the bar down to a would benefit many lathe owners. and not just any piece of metal thou or two over 1.3” diameter for which was lying around, as I did. I a length of 4.0”. this will reduce apologise for the fact that the most of the bar to the diameter of Handle Details measurements are mostly imperial, the middle ball, but leave a piece As stated in the introduction, I first but I was copying the handle of an on the end to make the large ball. used this design of handle simply old imperial lathe. Then turn the end of the bar down because it was there and of the The main (radial) part of the han- to a 1.0” for 2.11” i.e. reduce to correct size. However when I start- dle is made from a 5.5” length of the diameter of the small ball in ed to use the handle, the fact that it 1.625” Dia. mild steel and needs to order to form the small ball and was almost perfectly balanced be machined in a carefully control- the thinner tapered part. At this proved to be a massive advantage. led sequence, otherwise you will stage it should look like Photo 2. Although I cannot officially rec- finish up with no means of holding Now it is necessary to make ommend the practice, when you the item for the final sections. Cut grooves in the bar down to the are alone in the workshop, it is off a length of bar just over 5.5” points where the spherical parts of very nice to be able to spin the long, face one end and put a small the item will adjoin the tapered lathe up to full speed, with the bal- centre in this end. I used a fixed parts. This will give space for the Photo. 2 Roughing Out Photo. 3 Turning the Grooves ball turning attachment tool to against the previously made shoul- head as described in MEW issue swing round to complete the edges der. Lock the saddle and make an- 133 to turn all the balls. I do not of the balls. other groove with the parting tool use suds on my lathe being fright- First make a cylinder 1” wide and at this point until the groove diam- ened of rust, but I drip neat cutting 1” diameter on the end of the bar eter is .63” which is the diameter oil onto the work instead. Some in which to make the 1” ball. Line of the tapered section at the junc- sort of cutting oil or suds is defi- up a the left edge of a parting tool tion with the middle ball. In the nitely recommended for a good with the end of the bar and then same manner make a groove of finish. Photo 4. shows the setup move the saddle down the lathe .72” diameter with the tailstock and for all those readers who feel bed by 1” plus the width of the edge (right edge) of the parting upset when looking at photos of parting tool. Lock the saddle and tool 3.41” from the end of the bar clinically clean lathes, when they, make a groove with the parting and a final groove of .78” Dia. themselves, are actually knee deep tool until the diameter at the bot- Which has it’s left edge 4” from in swarf, I have left some of the tom of the groove is .510”. This the end of the bar. The process is swarf in place in the photo to illus- will leave you a cylinder 1”x 1” illustrated in Photo 3. but you will trate that ball turning makes lots of for the small ball and a section that see that I did not follow the same fine swarf. is just larger than the diameter of order, having just cut grooves 1 You can use either an “up and the small end of the taper where it and 3 at this stage. over” attachment or “round the meets the small ball. I actually houses” (vertical axis) type of ball then widened this groove by tak- Turning the Balls turner, but I shall describe the pro- ing a second cut to a slightly larger The first ball to turn is the small cedure using an up and over type diameter. Release the saddle and ball, so leave the bar in the 3 jaw as illustrated. First of all set the move it left so that the left side of and fit a fixed steady so that the ball turning attachment exactly at the parting tool is now 2.11” from end is left clear to use a ball turn- centre height. Do this by adjusting the end, i.e. the parting tool is up ing attachment. I used my boring the ball size of the tool in the ball Photo. 4 Turning The Small Ball Photo. 5 Holding the Work for Turning the Large End Photo. 6 Ready to Turn The Large Ball Photo. 7 Finishing the Large Ball With Tailstock Withdrawn Photo. 8 Turning the Smaller Taper Photo. 9 Milling the Flats and Reaming the Holes turner so that the tool just touches Lock the saddle and cross slide. chuck. As shown in Photo 5. You the top of the work. Move the sad- Open up the jaws of the ball turner will see from the photo the reason dle right, swing the ball turner 180 to allow the tool to clear the shoul- for making the small ball a couple degrees so that the tool is under- ders of the work and begin the sat- of thou under 1” – it will pass into neath the work and return the sad- isfying work of turning the ball. the centre hole of a 4” Pratt Burn- dle. If the ball turner is exactly at Take the size of the ball to a few erd scroll chuck, so that the work centre height, the tool will just thou under 1” diameter for reasons can be held by the 1” diameter touch the underside of the work. If explained later. section that you have left just be- not, then adjust the height of the Once the first ball is finished, hind it. Bring up the tailstock to tool, adjust the “ball size” of the bring up the tailstock to support support the work, and bring the tool and test again until it is cor- the end of the bar and remove the end of the bar to a diameter of 1.5” rect. Once you have set this cor- fixed steady. Using either dials or, in readiness to form the large ball. rectly, rotate the ball turner 90 in my case, the DRO, move the Remove the majority of the metal degrees and move the saddle so saddle left by 2.26” to bring the between the large ball and the that the tool just touches the end of centre of rotation to the centre middle ball by turning it down to the work. You have now proved line of the middle ball. Turn the 0.8” Diameter. And the result that the centre of rotation of the middle ball in the same manner should look like Photo.6 although tool is ½” below the top of the ensuring that you do not cut too you may have the centre ball al- work, ½” above the bottom and deep at the ends of the “swing” as ready formed. ½” from the end of the work. The you will cut into the tapered por- Set up for the large ball as you did correct position for turning a 1” tion of the handle.