My Jet 1014 needs help

[thewishman]

Turning between centers, I still have barrels out of round. Making razor handles and even rotating the blank several times relative to the bushings, My beads are thicker on one side than another.

How do I true my lathe?

 

[Mac]

The first thing that comes to mine, are your bushings true. Do you have calipers to check this. Do your points on your 60 degree centers(dead and live)line up.

 

[KenV]

1. could be sloppy fit on the bushings or the wrong bushings (they move around in the tube)

2. Poor fit between the end of the bushings and the pen barrell.


Take the bushings off and put the barrel blank between the centers lightly but in solid contact. you should be able to see the ghost image if you are out of roud (or be able to measure with a dial indicator.

TBC is pretty tolerant of missed alignment compared to mandrel turning -- but sensitive to bushing fit and alignment.

 

[thewishman]

This happens even without bushings. It is driving me mad.

 

[studioso]

When you say out of round: do you mean oval or do you or eccentric? Is the diameter of the blank perfectly round, but off center?
Are you using 60 degrees centers?
Do they match up when you turn either of them by hand?

 

[thewishman]

Eccentric
60 degree centers
The points match up

When I use the mandrel, the live center is just a tiny bit higher and to the left of the center of the mandrel. It creates a flex point about an inch into the barrel on the left blank.

 

[markgum]

I have the same problem.
Eccentric
60 degree centers
The points match up
I add 3 washers to the rear left tail stock bolt. Using a level I found the tail-stock was not 'true' to the rails.
I haven't tried to turn a pen since adding these. Been to busy with a job search.

 

[LeeR]

Eccentric
60 degree centers
The points match up

When I use the mandrel, the live center is just a tiny bit higher and to the left of the center of the mandrel. It creates a flex point about an inch into the barrel on the left blank.

If points match up, but your live center does not match the end of he mandrel, then it sounds like a bent mandrel, or the mandrel is being held off-center in the headstock.

 

[KenV]

This happens even without bushings. It is driving me mad.

There is crud in the MT or a burr -- or the spindle is not runnng true (bearings have slop).


If the dead center is running true and the point is a point and not making a small circle you need to get some measurements and identify what is throwing the excentric into your turning.

Tool rest and feeler gages will measure runout.

 

[thewishman]

Multiple mandrels are true, no crud in MT, no spurs.

Ken, your spindle not being true is the thing I had narrowed it down to. Mandrels run perfectly straight and true. When I snug up the tailstock, the 60 degree live center is down and in (towards me) compared to the mandrel. It is not much of a difference, maybe most of 1 mm, but it causes problems.

I have a tool rest, no feeler gauges. What can I do when I determine how much it is off? Is it a warranty issue, still have time left on the warranty, or are there adjustments I can make?

 

[Freethinker]

Eccentric
60 degree centers
The points match up

When I use the mandrel, the live center is just a tiny bit higher and to the left of the center of the mandrel. It creates a flex point about an inch into the barrel on the left blank.

I have a Jet 1014VS, and have (what sounds like) exactly the same problem.

The 60 degree centers, by eye, line up just about perfectly.......it is only when I install a dead straight mandrel in the headstock and put another straight mandrel in a chuck and slide it into the tailstock that the out-of-alignment becomes noticeable enough to see with the naked eye.

The end of the mandrel in the headstock is .030 or .040 out of line --up and to the left-- of the other.

I contacted Jet and spoke with a very knowledgeable person and explained to him the problem i had, the measurements I had taken, and what I thought was the problem. (that the bore of the headstock and the bore of the tailstock, when the tailstock was securely tightened down, were not in perfect alignment)

He insisted on sending me another tailstock quill, and even though I told him I was fairly certain that was NOT where the problem lay, they sent me one anyway.

I installed it; the measurements were still the same amount off.

The problem lies in the machining of the base of the tailstock. The base of it needs to go ever so slightly up in front, and to the side a tiny amount. I jury-rigged the amount it was off up-and-down by placing very thin shims under the front......the side-to-side problem I cannot resolve without filing or grinding off part of the 'key' that protrudes from the underside of the tailstock that locks in between the ways when it is tightened. I hate to start grinding on the actual hardware of the lathe....I have been "getting by" with my half-@@@ed measure, but someday I guess I'll get aggravated enough to take a grinder to it, see if I make it come into line (although without some way of ADDING the same amount of metal to the opposite corner of the key, I can not have an accurate register of the tailstock without aligning it by eye with the two-mandrel method) and if not try ordering a new tailstock altogether.

Even that, I have my doubts about. I own two other lathes, and even though I really prefer the Jet 1014 for penturning, I am forced to use the larger Nova 1624-44 if I really want to get perfect accuracy.

(oh....I should also note that I found a place online that sells a double-ended MT2 taper.....if I decide to go the grinding-the-key route, I will probably order one of those so as to know when I have brought the headstock and the tailstock back into perfect alignment)

 

[JerrySambrook]

The issue is that the centerlines of the headstock and tailstock are not parallel.
The further they are stread apart, the more apparent this becomes.

This is where two things can help correct this issue.

1, shim your tailstock so the side to side play is reduced. This will help to insure that the tailstock now runs more consistant to the bed ways.

2, use a double sided taper to align the headstock and tailstock. Extend your quill out about 1/2 the distance it can go, while still being tight, (no slop that you can feel side to side). lossen the four screws that hold the headstock on just enough to be able to laterally move the headstock (not enough for it to move up and down). Place one taper into the headstock, then bring the tailstock up until it too has the second taper in it. Tighten tailstock lock (NOT QUILL LOCK). LIGHTLY tighten quill to firmly seat second side of taper.
This will not pull the headstock and tailstock into alignment. tighten headstock screws slowly and carefully doing a torquing pattern around the headstock in increments, This will help to reduce the chances of the headstock wanting to torque into a certain position again.


Just because the centers line up when next to each other does not mean the system is parallel, which actually is way more important

 

[randyrls]

Chris; Some time ago I had an idea of how to verify the co-axial alignment of a lathe using only two mandrels and 7mm brass tube.

Check out thread: http://www.penturners.org/forum/showthread.php?t=64835

The two mandrels used MUST be checked and aligned perfectly as any misalignment will mask problems later. Put the mandrel in the head stock with the lathe off. Bring up the TS live center until it is about 1/16" from the end of the mandrel. Rotate the mandrel by hand while watching the relative positions between the mandrel end and TS center. IF the mandrel moves in a circular pattern, it isn't aligned. Bend the mandrel until rotation is stationary relative to the TS point. Now remove the mandrel with the knockout bar and prepare a second mandrel the same way. The same problem existed on my 1014 and I shimmed the TS for perfect alignment.
Shim stock can be had from many industrial suppliers of a leaf type thickness gauge can be used as shim stock.

Hope this helps.....

 

[jttheclockman]

If the lathe is under warrenty why are you bothering try to jury rig it. If it is not then you need to be sure what you are doing or will effect other aspects of turning other than pen turning. Sorry I can't help with the fix. Just didn't like the sound of grinding ways down or anything like that.

 

[thewishman]

The issue is that the centerlines of the headstock and tailstock are not parallel.
The further they are stread apart, the more apparent this becomes.

Just because the centers line up when next to each other does not mean the system is parallel, which actually is way more important

Amen, Jerry!

Thanks, Dan, for confirming that I am not losing it. I got so frustrated with this that I quit turning for almost a year. Now that I am turning again, that old problem is bugging me again.

JT, you're right, I'll take it in to the dealer and ask for help. If that doesn't work out well (they are very good people) I'll undertake the adjustments suggested.