L00 spindle faceplates and chuck adapters

[Shootymacshootface]

Why so scarce?
The only place that I can find these that are reasonably priced is CMT Tools. Buck and Bison have them but they are almost what I paid for my machine. I have a Clausing from the 50's. I know that a bunch of others used this mounting as well.

 

[machPete99]

There are some semi-finished adapter/back plates on ebay for around $100. You will need to machine the registering boss and mounting holes for your (plain back) chuck.

Its probaby best to have chucks with mounting bolts on the front (jaw) side.

If you leave a bit of slop you can simulate the "adjust true" setups and indicate in 3-jaw and collet chucks by loosening the mounting screws and tapping the chuck around. I did that for my ER collect chuck as I noticed that the L00 mount repeatability can be off .001" or so.

 

[Bamban]

Is this the mount youare looking for? It came with 8 inch 6J Bison set thru that I bought sometime back. I believe it is steel as was the chuck.

 

[Shootymacshootface]

No, L00 has a large keyed taper on the inside, and course threads on the outside.
Thanks for the response.

 

[Shootymacshootface]

If you leave a bit of slop you can simulate the "adjust true" setups and indicate in 3-jaw and collet chucks by loosening the mounting screws and tapping the chuck around. I did that for my ER collect chuck as I noticed that the L00 mount repeatability can be off .001" or so.

That is a really smart way to do it.
Thanks!

 

[4ssss]

They are scarce because only 2 companies, Rockwell and Clausing, used the 00 spindles with any regularity. My South Bend heavy 10 has that spindle, a special order and a pretty in demand machine due to the fact that it's heavy duty. Luckily when I bought it there were a few mounts that I was able to adapt to use for my Buck Chucks and it even had the collet spindle parts and draw tube. Over the years I've been pretty fortunate to find mounts, and will buy any that I find to resell if I can get them for the right price. At the moment I don't have any to sell, but as an example of what you're going to pay, I recently sold just the spindle thread cap for a collet, and it went for over $100. They do come up on Flea bay sometimes, but if you wait you may luck out and get one at a decent price, unless I see it first. LOL

 

[4ssss]

Bambam, the plate you have is for a D1 -3 spindle and that's another one that you'll pay dearly for.

 

[projectnut]

They are scarce because only 2 companies, Rockwell and Clausing, used the 00 spindles with any regularity. My South Bend heavy 10 has that spindle, a special order and a pretty in demand machine due to the fact that it's heavy duty. Luckily when I bought it there were a few mounts that I was able to adapt to use for my Buck Chucks and it even had the collet spindle parts and draw tube. Over the years I've been pretty fortunate to find mounts, and will buy any that I find to resell if I can get them for the right price. At the moment I don't have any to sell, but as an example of what you're going to pay, I recently sold just the spindle thread cap for a collet, and it went for over $100. They do come up on Flea bay sometimes, but if you wait you may luck out and get one at a decent price, unless I see it first. LOL

Actually several manufacturers used the L series spindles from the 40's through the 80's. We had several LeBlond, and American machines with the L series spindles. The smaller machines had the L00 series while the medium and larger machines had L0 and L1 series spindles. The L series were also popular with the Sheldon machines of the 1960's. My 13" Sheldon has an L00 spindle. I have several chucks for the machine made by Union, Pulf (Poland), Skinner, and LW that all have the L00 back plate.

You didn't say what size chuck you had, but there are currently some L series backplates available on Amazon. There's a 6" for an L00 spindle for $68.00 and an 8 1/4" for $192.00

 

[Shootymacshootface]

I am actually looking at buying a new or used chuck. I haven't yet decided on 6" or 8", 3 jaw or 6 jaw. The only thing that I am sure of is that it needs to have an L00 backplate.

What are you guys thoughts on 3 jaw vs 6 jaw?

 

[projectnut]

Unless you're doing a lot of thin wall tubing I would go with either a 3 jaw scroll or a 4 jaw independent. The 3 jaw is easier to use when starting out, but over time I think you'll appreciate the more precision capabilities of a 4 jaw. Even high precision 3 jaw chucks have run out of .001" to .002'. Less expensive ones and cheap imports often exceed .003" or more.

If you're doing a one off operation where the finished piece can be parted from the stock a 3 jaw will work fine. When you need to remove the work piece and reinstall in for a second operation the 4 jaw is a better choice.

As for size the standard rule of thumb is that the jaws should only be opened to the point that they do not extend more than 3/4" from the body. Thus when using an 8" chuck you should have at least a 10" lathe. When using a 6" chuck the minimum size would be 8". I do have a couple 8" chucks for my 10" lathe. However when using them I have to be sure the jaws are not extended to the point the interfere with the bed. The largest chuck I have for my 13" machine is also an 8". To this point I have not needed a larger chuck. However I do keep my eyes open for a 10" 4 jaw. Should a quality one appear for the right price I would certainly purchase it.