Plans for a Levin-like Steady Rest…

[david pierce]

Paul,
That is an interesting looking tool. What lathe did he do the cut on, .120 inches off of the diameter had to take more than a watch lathe can deliver.
david

[Bob Tascione]

Hi Paul,
That looks like some type of swing radius tool. Was this cut made on the 10″ Emco that you mentioned the other day?

Bob

[arutha]

Hi David / Bob,
You are quite right David, it wasnt a watch makers lathe, Bob is correct, it was done on a big 10″ Emco.
I did wonder though if it might be simpler to fabricate something like this as opposed to a steady rest? The one my friend Daryn has is not a radius tool, it is just a guide for cutting and supporting, his is quite a lot smaller than the thing pictured, I am pretty sure his does not have a bearing, he just cuts a brass “bush” to match the size of the holder and the inside diameter to the size of the work. The cutting tool is then set to cut to the required diameter. A great method for turning new arbors with the pinion blank.
Paul.

[tmac1956]

@david pierce wrote:

Tom,
Do you see how much easier to build the second design will be compared to the first design. They will both do the same job which is to hold a shaft while it is turning. The most simple base I can think of is a piece of 1/4 inch x 1 1/2 inch aluminum bar stock about 2 inches long. Drill one or two holes into the bar stock to attach it to the lathe bed and have another hole to insert a 1/4 inch rod or ground dowel pin. The rod will connect the base to the round piece. The round piece will have to have a hole drilled into it to accept the rod. Loctite will hold the whole thing together with no problems if the fit is correct between the rod and the holes. This design should work well for the light loads that it will be subjected to on a watchmakers lathe.
david

David:

Are you saying that the interface of the bottom piece and the round piece is at the tangent held in place by the rod connector? Wow – that would make it much simpler.

Thanks!
tmac

[david pierce]

Tom,
The brass screws will be located at 90, 210, 330 degrees and the rod that connects the ring to the base will be at 270 degrees.
david

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