cleaning your MT

[dalemcginnis]

I know there has been some discussion about this but cant seem to find it now. What do you use to clean out the morse taper on your lathe?
Was going to turn BCB today and when I turned the lathe on I noticed the dead center appeared to have a wobble till the lather got up to speed. Tuned the lathe off and bought the tail stock up till the centers were point to point. Turned the head stock by hand and the dead center was making a small circuit around the live center. I used a bore brush for cleaning guns and got rid of most of the wobble but since the brush was too small for the MT I need something better.
Hopefully you can tell me to use something I can pick up locally and not have to order. I'm on vacation this week and was planning on spending a lot of time in the shop turning pens but I can't with this wobble.

 

[Dario]

I use an MT2 Reamer.

If it is only gunk that built up inside, you can wrap a rag on a stick and wet it with Simple Green (or similar cleaner). Use that to clean the hole, either manually or mechanically.

NOTE, make sure you can easily let go of the rod if you decide to turn on the lathe.
NEVER wrap the rag to your fingers!!!
DO NOT use sandpaper in lieu of the rag.

 

[jskeen]

Get a baby bottle cleaning brush from wally world, clip off the loop on the end of the handle, chuck in drill, spray with cleaner of choice (I use acetone or DNA, whichever is handier) insert and spin.

Works for me

 

[Ligget]

I just use a sheet of Bounty kitchen roll, fold one sheet in half then half again.

Scrunch up the towel, then using the lathes knock out bar shove the towel into the MT till it sicks.

Then shove the towel out with the k-o bar from the other end of the MT.[]

 

[johnnycnc]

I use paper towel wrapped around a small wooden
dowel,mineral spirits to wet.
On another note,what lathe have you got,and
where is your dead center from?

 

[Rifleman1776]

Just use twisted up paper towel with Acetone.

 

[dalemcginnis]

Thanks all for your help. My lathe is a Jet mini and I got the dead center from johnnycnc. The lathe is about nine months old. I'm pretty sure it's just a build up of gunk causing the problem. When I first got it I brought the tailstock up until the factory centers were point to point and they matched perfectly. Yesterday when I discovered the problem I dug them out and put them back in the lathe and now they are off.

 

[loglugger]

www.PackardWoodworks.com has a taper mate for different MT The mt#2 117902
http://www.packardwoodworks.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Product_Code=117902&Category_Code=
Bob