Jet Lathe Vibration

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mikefoye

Member
Joined
Nov 19, 2015
Messages
36
Location
Lago Vista, Texas 78645
I purchased a used Jet 1014 variable speed. Just new to this and seemed to be working fine. felt a little vibration but didn't seem to make much difference when using a pen mandrel with both ends of the piece "anchored". I bought a chuck and was turning a 4" dia tankard and the vibration was really noticeable the further you got from the powerhead so I set it aside for a while! I was making some bottle stoppers with a 3/8 mandrel and out at the end of the blank the vibration was bad enough that it was slow and difficult to get the piece "round" and even then it was hard to finish the piece (lots of chatter). I finished them and they turned out really nice but the problem seems to have gotten worse because now I have more vibration when even using a pen mandrel.
When I put the spur center on and slide the tailstock spindle center so that they are almost touching and turn the machine on slowly you can see an "out of round" movement on the spur center side and the two points do not exactly match up to touch eachother. They are slightly off.
It seems to me that the main shaft, that the pulleys and head are all a part of, might be ever so slightly bent. Is that possible or has anyone ever experienced this problem? Can I replace it myself or does it require a service tech to press new bearings in?

Thanks very much for any input.
 
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First, if the problem is a matter of alignment, there are four bolts that hold the headstock onto the ways - you can correct misalignment by loosening those bolts. If the misalignment is in the horizontal plane, ,you will have to rotate the headstock. If the misalignment is the vertical plane, you will have to shim the headstock.

But I am puzzled by your description of the problem - you say that when turning a bottle stopper, the wobble is so great that you can't smooth the end of the stopper. That sounds like far more than misalignment. If the spindle is spinning concentrically, then you should be able to round over even the most asymmetrical blank to make a cylinder. If if you can't, then that suggests that something is seriously wrong with the spindle.

Used lathe. Is it too late to get your money back?
 
Monophoto - Louie - thanks for getting back. I did correct the alignment problem as you suggested. I still have a wobble though and I think it might be a spindle problem. I found online parts places and will do a little more checking. If it is just the spindle I can replace that for about $50 which is still really great because I purchased the lathe at a really good price ($250 from a widow getting rid of her husband's stuff) and I love this new hobby and making great Christmas presents!!. Thanks for your help.
 
you guys are amazing. The thing started to squeal loudly today. Clearly one or both bearings are shot. Found the replacement instructions in the Library. Am ordering them tomorrow. Too bad this happened before I got done with Christmas presents :-(
 
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