Holding Small Rods?

[jouesdeveaux]

I am TOTALLY new to machine work and have a Grizzly G8688 about to arrive. Does a mini-lathe such as this one need special equipment to work on (threading) small rods, say 1/16"~ 3/32" in diameter? Do I need to buy collets, a collet chuck, and a draw bar?

 

[coffmajt]

I am TOTALLY new to machine work and have a Grizzly G8688 about to arrive. Does a mini-lathe such as this one need special equipment to work on (threading) small rods, say 1/16"~ 3/32" in diameter? Do I need to buy collets, a collet chuck, and a draw bar?

With that small size material you will be limited on how much material you can stick out of your 3 jaw chuck, but it will work just fine. If you intend to thread long distances along the rods, then you should have a follow rest or just single point a few threads on the lathe and finish using a die .Remember to use some quality cutting oil when threading. -- Good luck with your projects

 

[Andre]

Make sure your chuck can close down tight enough.

 

[kd4gij]

Collets would be the best choice for that small dia.

 

[jouesdeveaux]

With that small size material you will be limited on how much material you can stick out of your 3 jaw chuck, but it will work just fine. If you intend to thread long distances along the rods, then you should have a follow rest or just single point a few threads on the lathe and finish using a die .Remember to use some quality cutting oil when threading. -- Good luck with your projects

I intend to make stainless steel 0.083" D rods 2~4" long with 4mm of thread on each end. They are used in certain kinds of Sheaffer fountain pens of the 1930s-40s. I repair them and I'm running out of supplies from NOS and old junkers.

 

[Andre]

If the threaded section is only ~4mm in length (.080") a HSS split adjustable die should work quite well. Pick a good grade of stainless and use some thick cutting oil.

 

[jouesdeveaux]

If the threaded section is only ~4mm in length (.080") a HSS split adjustable die should work quite well. Pick a good grade of stainless and use some thick cutting oil.

OD of the thread is 0.056". The diameter of the rod is 0.083". Are HSS split dies made that small?

 

[Ulma Doctor]

a collet will be the best idea to hold the shaft.

 

[Andre]

OD of the thread is 0.056". The diameter of the rod is 0.083". Are HSS split dies made that small?

#0 screw thread OD is ~.060". Measure the pitch of your required threads to be cut, if it happens to be 80 TPI you are in luck, 0-80 split dies are available. Threading #0 in stainless might be pretty tricky though.....Hmm.

 

[Firestopper]

I have turned,knurled and threaded on small diameter stock using a 6" 3 jaw scroll (limited to 1/8") chuck with good results,however it took me well over 15 years to purchase a 5C scroll chuck and set of collets. I can't believe it took me so long to add the 5C system. Its much faster and safer when machining multiple parts close to the chuck. Parting has also improved as I can get up close and personal with out worry of crashing into jaws and preserving my hands and fingers when polishing.
I like the scroll type of chuck with a spider supporting the longer stock through the spindle.

Although not an example of small diameter stock but the same set up can be accomplished with smaller stock. The scroll chuck setup can be change back to jawed chuck fairly quickly without dealing with a draw bar. I will say a draw bar system is faster but more tooling to store when not in use. The spider lives on the input end of spindle and only the cap screws (jaws) require removal when pulling the end cover for maintenance.
For fountain pen turning, this would be a game changer IMO.