PM-1340GT Taper Attachment

[Dpaul7]

Anyone have any experience with the taper attachment for the 1340GT?
I ordered mine with the lathe. I have installed it according to the instructions. The first problem I discovered was that the outboard tie rod clamp that holds the rod in position could not be tightened down sufficiently to keep it from sliding. Hence it would not anchor the tie rod to the bed of the lathe and the sliding portion of the taper attachment would not function. To remedy this I cut a slot in the back of the clamp with a hole to “check” it and keep it from traveling so to speak. See photos. Now it grips the rod sufficiently to anchor it in position and the sliding portion of the taper attachment moves as the carriage is traversed forward and back. However, after tightening up all the screws, everything seems to be bound up and the cross slide will not budge. And yes, I read the manual and removed the the cross slide leadscrew nut, checked the clearances, gibs, and alignment of the underside of the draw plate where it meets the center post, etc. Everything seems free alone but when I tie it all together nothing moves as it should. Anyone else had experience with this? I must be missing something.
David

 

[Dpaul7]

Update: Using a machinist level I was able to properly align the taper attachment and now it is running true and freely.

 

[BGHansen]

Hi David,

Glad you got it worked out. I had a problem with the taper attachment on my Grizzly G0709 but the clamping bracket is different from yours. The portion that attaches to the bed on mine was thicker than the bed, so no clamping force at all. Here's the thread to my install.

Bruce

Taper Attachment For The G0709 Lathe

I took advantage of a recent Grizzly 10% off coupon and bought a model T10502 taper attachment for my model G0709 14” x 40” gunsmithing lathe. I have a number of items on my wish list for this lathe: 8” 3-jaw chuck, 5-C collet chuck and a taper attachment. Maybe my wife will read this...

www.hobby-machinist.com

 

[springer]

I bought the taper attachment with mine but never even messed with it turns out ibdont ever turn a taper. Glad to know it works well. I'll prolly end up selling or trading mine off...

 

[matthewsx]

I bought the taper attachment with mine but never even messed with it turns out ibdont ever turn a taper. Glad to know it works well. I'll prolly end up selling or trading mine off...

That will be exactly one week before you have a project that needs a taper turned

Original accessories that came with, or could be ordered for machine tools add to the value of said machine IMHO. Unless you need the money hang onto that taper attachment. Even better use it to turn a couple of pieces that fit your machine's tapers, it's worth learning how even if you don't do it on a regular basis....


J0hn
Owner of a hundred year old Seneca Falls lathe with the original taper attachment....

 

[springer]

Haha that's prolly a good point.

 

[MG&L]

Springer, If you're interested in selling, I have a PM 1340GT and a need for a taper att. Maybe we could talk...?

 

[Larry$]

I ordered the taper attachment with my PM1440HD. It came already in stalled. But the clamp to the bed didn't hold and I modified it. An inherent problem with these things is any slack any place adds up and will need to be taken up before the start of the cut. On very shallow tapers that can be a considerable travel distance! Very small adjustments to the taper attachment greatly affect the fit of a MT. Use enough nose radius on the tool to get as smooth a a cut as possible. I'm no expert but have trail and errored it enough times to mostly succeed. I use the DRO for travel measurement and a dial indicator for OD change over the longest distance possible. Final depth of cut deep enough to produce a continuous chip, power feed for best uniformity. For me, there was a considerable learning curve. I can see where grinding would be a better way.