How NOT to throw your lathe chuck key through the windshield of your Porsche!

[rbertalotto]

One of my biggest fears in my small shop is not removing the chuck key from the lathe and accidentally starting it up and flinging it through the windshield of my "baby".....

I figured out a way to solve this and wrote a quick article with lots of pictures on my web site

www.rvbprecision.com

Hope you enjoy it!

 

[Mark_f]

One of my biggest fears in my small shop is not removing the chuck key from the lathe and accidentally starting it up and flinging it through the windshield of my "baby".....

I figured out a way to solve this and wrote a quick article with lots of pictures on my web site

www.rvbprecision.com

Hope you enjoy it!

Very clever and GOOD idea,

Mark Frazier

:thumbzup3:

 

[Tozguy]

Whoa..that's a great idea. My GSXR is going to feel a lot safer!
Thanks for the pics and details.

 

[george wilson]

I read your link. That is a good solution. Some keys now come with a coil spring around them,which pushes the key out of the chuck. But,they can be annoying since you have to keep pressing the key all the time to keep it in.

I had one of those belt drive Jet lathes many years ago. I wish I still had it. It was a 10x24",and made much smoother finishes than a gear head lathe. Very expensive gear head lathes can leave good finishes too. But gear head Grizzly,Jet,or other similarly priced lathes leave gear "echoes" on the work. Real good older lathes(they aren't made any more!),like DSG English lathes do not leave gear echoes at all,if you can find one that is not worn out.

I also liked the large range of threads I could cut with my Jet bench lathe. But,I needed the money when I bought a 16" gear head lathe,so I sold it.

 

[rbertalotto]

Some keys now come with a coil spring around them,which pushes the key out of the chuck. But,they can be annoying

All of my chucks came with spring loaded chuck keys. But as you said, they were annoying so I removed them.

This lathe is wonderful. The finish it leaves is simply amazing.

Four things I did to improve finish....

Convert to DC drive. No 60hz AC ripple
Segmented belts have MUCH less vibration. We learned this years ago in our commercial wood shop
Separate DC motor power feed for the slide. No need to engage those nasty feed gears. (article on my web site)
Diamond Tool Holder...Easy to sharpen 100% correctly, perfect for lower power, lower RPM hobby lathes

Before I did these four things, the surface finish, especially on gummy metals was terrible. Now the fininh on 416SS and aluminum looks polished! Even gummy metal comes out beautiful.

 

[zmotorsports]

Nice job and welcome to the forum.

 

[thomas s]

Good idea thanks for posting

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[Eddyde]

Nice solution to an age old concern.
I admit to once making the dreaded error on a lathe. I inadvertently hit the on switch with my elbow with the key still in the chuck, it simply fell out within the first quarter turn and hit the floor. I am not saying leaving the key in the machine is in any way safe, it could have been much worse, say if the key didn't fall out it would have collided with the bed and bent and possibly caused damage to the chuck, gears or bearings. Or worse, if a body part was between the key and bed... Just saying, the key didn't fly out of the chuck with great force, as I once feared it would. That being said, I think I will add the safety disconnect feature to my machines.

 

[Holescreek]

The best solution is to never take your hand off the chuck key while it's in the chuck, an even better solution is to have enough machinery in the shop that a car won't fit.

 

[uncle harry]

One of my biggest fears in my small shop is not removing the chuck key from the lathe and accidentally starting it up and flinging it through the windshield of my "baby".....

I figured out a way to solve this and wrote a quick article with lots of pictures on my web site

www.rvbprecision.com

Hope you enjoy it!

Super idea! I'll give this idea serious consideration when I finally re-wire my M300 Harrison lathe with a VFD. Right now I don't want to spend the national dept on propane to heat my shop.