Clausing 5418 Lathe

Ha! I finally figured it out. You bought two machines, a rusty used one that you took apart and a brand new knocked down for shipping kit. ;)
 
Hi Rick nice work and choice of color did you rechrome the tailstock crank wheel or just polish it?
 
Hi Rick,

Here's my 5418, doesn't look nearly as nice as yours! There's a picture of the underside of the compound; use your imagination to see the end of the bearing threaded into the casting. Also a shot of the RH side of the QCGB.

One note on your rebuild, the ends of two shafts have spacers between the bearings and the surface of the casting (lowest shaft and upper one furthest away from the bed). My presumption is they keep the shaft/bearings from chucking back/forth. My spacers are ever so slightly proud of the casting so the sheet metal covers press against them.

The opposite side of the output shaft has a jam nut on it. My presumption here is the lead screw is pinned to the output shaft with an 1/8" brass shear pin. The jam nut is tightened to pull the lead screw end up to the bearing so there is no chucking back/forth on the lead screw.

Hope this helps, Bruce

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Hi Rick nice work and choice of color did you rechrome the tailstock crank wheel or just polish it?

The TS handwheel was actually sand blasted then I foolwoed up with a wire whee and three buffing compunds. I was leary at first but like the result.

Rick
 
Bruce - thanks for the pictures and re-assembly thoughts. I saw the spacers and washers (manualk indicates to use washers as required) so I was leaning towards your thoughts about using those pieces to control shaft movement.

Another couple of questions - there is a key on one of the QCGB shafts that is hooked on both ends - well I busted on of the hooks off. Is this a standard item that can be purchased off the shelf or am I dependant oin Clausing for it?.

Second question - I have one broken tooth on the large back gear - how detrimental is one missing tooth and should I be pursuing a repair?

Thanks
Rick
 
Hi Rick,

I think the key you're referring to is Q-451. Looks like from the parts drawing that the bent up ends are done so the key rides side to side with gear 341-033 on shaft Q-482. The middle portion should fit in gear 341-033 with a bend up on either side of the gear. That gear is attached to the QCGB sliding selector lever so I'm pretty sure the key moves with the gear. I'll take a peek at mine and see if it's visible to confirm I'm picturing the assembly correctly from the parts prints. You should be able to put the key stock in a vise clamped against a piece of stock slightly wider than the gear; hammer each end over and clean up with a file.

I've read other strings and seen ads for machines on eBay with a tooth broken out of the back gear. Didn't seem to cause a lot of problems, but do you fix it with the lathe already torn down? Personally, I'd weigh the cost of a replacement gear vs. how much I plan on using back gears. If you're going to do a lot of single point threading with heavy cuts, probably look at replacing the gear. If you don't fix it, I'd be careful changing chucks if you lock the spindle by engaging back gears without pulling the spindle lock pin. Make sure you have full teeth engaged and not the gap in your back gear. You could paint a witness mark on the shaft and/or gear that'd stand out when you lift the cover over the headstock, just turn the spindle by hand to make sure you're on full teeth when changing a chuck.

By the way, my lathe is serial# 2215, just a few hundred after your lathe. They should be really close if you need me to look at anything else. Mine is a "stripped" model; 2 1/4" x 8 threaded spindle (not L00), no clutch, no varible speed drive. I do a deep knee bend to flip the lever on the floor to lift the motor and move the drive belt to change speeds. Do most of my turning at 650 RPM as a result. Regardless, it's a really nice lathe. Should make you lots and lots of chips with no hiccups. I wish I had the taper attachment like yours!

Best regards, Bruce
 
I have to comment that I doubt that you will bend both ends of square key stock 90 degrees without breaking unless you heat it at least dull red. Before trying that, I would check whether or not Clausing still has any left. Just be prepared to pay current day prices, not what it would have sold for half a century ago.
 
Hi Rick,

Here's photos of the LH & RH sides of my gear shift lever. The lever is 1 3/8" wide, key is 1/8" stock. Robert is probably right about cold bending the key stock in a vise/hammer. I bent up a couple with my Diacro brake; no problem bending 1/8" key stock with a good piece of American-made iron! Maybe a two minute job. I ground the sides flat at the bend (pooched out with the bending). If you want them, shoot me your address and I'll get them in the mail to you. They should work fine, you'll just need to sand/grind the ends down to length. Maybe a little filing too as the key stock checked at 0.127" thick.

Best regards, Bruce

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Bruce - I was going to post that I agreed with Robert regarding the bending of key stock - but obviously the proof is in the pudding - nice job and I certainly would like to give it a try. I'll send shippping information via PM. I have tried Clausing - waiting for a response on pricing from the manufacturer. based on their other quotes I'm expecting to sit down before I look at the quote ($40+ for a $7 bearing). I understand the laws of supply/demand but that seems a little excessive. My thought was to attempt getting a rectangular key and milling out the middle of it to create the hooks but your version is much more efficient.

My lathe is also a stripped down version - step pulleys, no clutch, no variable speed - I've been told that the variable speed is kind of finicky and I should be glad I don't have it. My motor is 3 phase so a VFD should give me all the necessary variability I would ever need.

Regarding the back gear missing tooth - I've seen where a few guys have replaced missing teeth (definitely way over my skill level) so I may attempt to find someone who can do that. My sense is that the one missing tooth is not catastrophic for the things I will be doing but I would like to have it corrected as long as its all apart.

I appreciate everyone's comments and suggestions - I'm sure this will get more complicated as the assembly process begins.

Rick
 
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