[Newbie] Centering

[CIRCUIT BREAKER]

Thanks a lot for your help. I thought the center had to be almost perfect. I will try again. I really needed the 1" turned down quick as it was holding my project up. I am making a backhoe for my tractor and the 1" is part of my bushing. I ended up chucking the round stock in the lathe and and sanded it to the dia. I needed with emry cloth. No fun but it worked. Does a bell punch work? Thanks again. This is a great place to learn. I have spent a lot of time reading!

 

[intjonmiller]

Well, actually that's precisely the function of a bell punch, so yes, that will work.

Emery cloth is great for taking off very minute amounts of metal in a not-particularly-consistent way. Sounds like you've learned that lesson by now.

Your backhoe project sounds interesting, but really deserves some photos and a post of its own.

 

[kwoodhands]

Thanks a lot for your help. I thought the center had to be almost perfect. I will try again. I really needed the 1" turned down quick as it was holding my project up. I am making a backhoe for my tractor and the 1" is part of my bushing. I ended up chucking the round stock in the lathe and and sanded it to the dia. I needed with emry cloth. No fun but it worked. Does a bell punch work? Thanks again. This is a great place to learn. I have spent a lot of time reading!

Next time scribe a center line on a granite plate using a dial height gauge. Turn 90° and repeat. Now you have marked a true center. If practical, drill the center on a drill press or mill. You can also repeat this to the other end and use a face plate and a dog to turn between centers. This method is accurate. After turning to dimension the part can be chucked in a 4 jaw and bored .

 

[Tony Wells]

If the OD is smooth, relatively speaking, like cold drawn round, use your steady rest up close to the chuck. The tailstock end ideally would be supported by an inverse bell. Then you can sweep the chuck end with an indicator and adjust the position with the steady rest. You can get very accurate results this way. Holding the stock by hand isn't too bad, unless it is rough, as in hot roll. Using vice grips I view as a bit dangerous, because even if you let go of them, they are still going to spin with the work. I'd prefer channellock or plain slipjoint pliers......something that will lose it's grip on the material should something go wrong. But if the material is rough, it's less likely you would use this method. Not that it wouldn't work, just not as accurate. Once you get the first end done, you can then proceed normally unless you absolutely need centers in both ends.