New To Me Compact 8 Cleanup Thread

mikey said:
Yup, that pin is steel and has a point that fits into a hole in the gib. Simple to make and important to have.

The defect on the cross slide is not uncommon. Sad but hey, it happens.

You can either use what you have or make a new tool post; also simple to make.
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I was thinking of buying an OXA and making a bushing for a good fit on the smaller stud. What sort of tool post could I make without a mill?
 
I meant that a new tool post stud is easy to make if you needed one, and you would use your lathe for that. Once you buy the OXA qctp, you will see if it will work with the post you already have. If it won't then make one that will fit.

The original stud has a round bottom and a hole was drilled in the side of it and the edge of the cross slide so that a roll pin locked it in place and prevented any movement. The diameter of the stud was a light press fit in the hole in the cross slide and the pin just kept it from turning.
 
Well, I found a problem. The lead screw mount for the cross slide came apart and I didn't notice someone had tried to solder it together at some point and painted over it. I totally missed that when I looked it over. It worked fine but I saw this as I was taking it apart. 3 pieces and it show signs of cracking in other places as well. I'm sure this part is zamak. There was a smaller plate mount for the compund slide lead screw I noticed when I had it apart and it looked like Zamak as well but it is in great shape.
A used cross slide is crazy expensive on eBay ($250 + $25 shipping). Not sure what to do about this part right now. Any ideas on how to attempt to make one from aluminum? I don't have a mill. I haven't attempted to make a part like this before. It almost seems like it could be made in sections.
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Well, I've gotten a lot done but still have a ways to go. I haven't been taking as many pictures as I planned on because I'm in a hurry to get it done. At this point, I have the tailstock, cross slide, compound, apron and 3 jaw chuck all cleaned, rust removed and painted where they needed paint. That is most of the business end of things. I have moved on to the pulleys/motor/electrical area of the lathe today. I apologise for a lack of pictures, I will make sure to get some as I start putting things back together (hopefully next week).

This has been a great experience! I will know exactly how to do all of the needed adjustments and have developed a better understanding of this lathe and how everything relates to each other. This may even be better than just buying a new lathe in some ways. I will know everything there is to know about the parts and I've made mental notes of areas that I will want to be mindful of as I use it.
 
Got everything tore down completely today. The only parts that I'm not removing is the headstock from the bed and races that are in the headstock. Other than that it is completely disassembled. I took the bed/headstock and the base cabinet to the carwash and got the bulk of the grime removed that way. I know that is probably a big no-no, but guys...this thing was unbelievably filthy! I drove about 20 miles with the parts I cleaned at the carwash in the bed of my truck and that air dried everything nicely.
Now I need to paint the base cabinet and headstock, clean the motor up and gears/pulleys and other miscellaneous parts. Hopefully everything will start being put back together by mid-week next week.
 
BTW, somehow the bearings and races are in very good condition. I'm planning on reusing them. They may have been replaced at some point because they look like they haven't seen much use and the spindle was tight as a drum when it was installed, no play at all.

Any recommendations for lubrication of the various areas of the lathe (bearing grease, lead screws and other parts)? Anything that is easily overlooked when reassembling a lathe. This is my first time doing a teardown of a lathe and I think I have been pretty lucky so far because the lathe sure seems to be in much better shape than it looked. Most of it was just filth, functionality wise everything is looking really good so far!
 
Look at the manual. It has a lube chart with all the lube points and recommended lubricants.

Personally, I substitute Super Lube grease for all the grease points and use DTE 25 Hydraulic oil for oiling. I use Vactra2 for the ways.

Reassembly is just the reverse of the teardown, nothing to it. Pay attention to the parts breakdown in the manual to make sure it all goes back in the right order. The manual will tell you how to adjust what needs adjusting. When you get to the part where you need to adjust the gibs, give a shout out.

Don't worry, you can easily handle this. Again, do NOT force stuff. Emco machines their parts precisely and it should all go in easily; if it doesn't, its not the part that is the problem.
 
Thanks! The ways weren't "flawless" :rolleyes: after all, but they aren't wrecked either. They will be perfectly serviceable for the type of work I do. Dirt on the ways filled up some little dings here and there but nothing major and the cross slide and tail stock move over them without any issues. No raised metal around the dings so that is good.
 
Got the bed/headstock cleaned up and painted. Again on the paint, not going for perfection. Just wanted to make it look nicer than it was before. Here is a picture of the ways. You can see some of the little dings on the ways. None have any raised metal around them so I assume they were smoothed over by someone already. Nothing major, just not a smooth as they looked when they were dirty.IMG_20181112_075928.jpgIMG_20181112_080011.jpg

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