Help Identifying steady rest

[Southren_Canuk]

Just picked up this steady rest for cheap with thoughts of modifying it to fit my lathe but before doing that I wanted to make sure that I am not ruining a good part. No identifying marks but to me looks like someone may have modified this rest before but figure it best to ask others with more experience than me.

It's 5.25" to the center from where it rides on the ways and 4 3/4" gap between the ways.

 

[Ulma Doctor]

if you can modify it for use on your lathe, it's fair game!
due to the adjustability of the 3 fingers,
you could conceivably make a large error in modification and still be able to center the work as intended.

how were you going to modify the rest?

 

[Southren_Canuk]

if you can modify it for use on your lathe, it's fair game!
due to the adjustability of the 3 fingers,
you could conceivably make a large error in modification and still be able to center the work as intended.

how were you going to modify the rest?

I was thinking about milling off the bottom so it is perfectly flat and machine a new bottom plate to match my lathe ways and tig it together

 

[Ulma Doctor]

sounds like a solid plan!
i'll look forward to see how she come out

 

[ErichKeane]

I was thinking about milling off the bottom so it is perfectly flat and machine a new bottom plate to match my lathe ways and tig it together

I did a similar project a few months back: https://www.hobby-machinist.com/threads/adapting-a-large-steady-rest-to-my-lathe.81411/#post-707131

I don't have a welder, but I remade the bottom and just bolted it to the steady rest. As others have said, centering it isn't that big of a deal, but I took a piece of round scrap, then chucked it up in the steady rest. I then was able to use my tailstock and height gauge to figure out how much I needed to take off at each direction.