In this video, I will explain why parts walk out of a chuck during steady rest operations, and share a easy little trick for getting your steady rest aligned properly. Take a look.
It is very simple to get your steadyrest dead on! Provided that your workpiece is round and smooth. Chuck the workpiece, position the steady maybe a few inches from the chuck. With the spindle off, adjust your two lower rollers to the work, tighten them in place. Loosen the work in the jaws a little and slide the steadyrest to where you will actually be using it, lock it down. Tighten the chuck jaws. Adjust the top wheel now too. At this point your steady is not set perfectly, but it is good enough for the next step. Turn on the spindle and drill a small center in the face if the work. Spindle off. Back off the three rollers a bit, support the workpiece with a live center. Again adjust the three rollers to the work. Now the steady is set correctly. There is another step to use for workpieces weighing hundreds of pounds or more which involves a cathead to center support the work, or drilling a center prior to loading the work.
An old machinist once told me he got into the trade because he didn't want to work too hard and he heard that being a machinist involved a "Bed" and "Steady Rest" and that was for him.
I get up in the morning, fix a cup of coffee and start one of your videos. My feet are swollen and my back is worn out but I get excited and say to myself I can do that. I have a reason to go up to my hobby shop and try something new. Thank You Joe for your time and the knowledge you pass on. I pray that God will Bless you with your business, your family and your RU-vid videos!
This is one of the best channels for getting to the nuts and bolts and things that aren't always found in books. You break the math down to where a peabrain like me can grasp it! I'd say I've learned more from you and Machining Moments in a few vids than from hours of watching Keith and Adam make chips. Definitely going to be making a gizmo to set up my steadies. And your possible discover about your headstock being misaligned because of the 4 levelling screws got me to thinking about a similar issue I'm having with my Sidney. I cant thank you enough for you videos, please keep them coming!!!
It may have also been from the rollers and radius being too forgiving and allowing a few thou of contact to feel too smooth. Feeler gage may have helped that. The top roller was also upside down and I may have marked it incorrectly. The front of the bar was dead on.
Great video, I like your straightforward approach and clear explanations. Your videos will stand as valuable lessons to future generations of machinists, especially if manual work continues to be a dying art in younger generations. I'd like to see more about your lathe alignment techniques, I suspect they'll turn out to be more efficient than many others!
Enjoying your Videos. I've been a machinist for 40 years and I have taught the techniques you show many times to new machinists and apprentices. Good scoop. Keep it up. Unfortunately today with all the emphasis on CNC, very few machinists are taught the basic skills needed with a manual engine lathe.
I agree. Several years ago I noticed that many of the valuable skills and skill sets which many call "the old ways" were being lost due to advances in technology. It's like we are on a speeding train and the locomotive is scooping up technical advances, but since the train can only hold so much cargo, the conductor in the caboose is throwing overboard all of the old to make room for the new. But what happens when technology fails? So I started a youth outreach that is aimed at getting the inner city and suburban youth off of the streets and come together peacefully and we demonstrate how everyone benefits if they cooperate and work together and create a bright future for themselves regardless of what the economy may do. One aspect is to teach them the old ways starting with how to make their own hand tools and wood, metal, and machine tools from scrap. In the process the learn the skills that were used to start the industrial revolution and more. Some of the youth would like to take the knowledge and experience to other countries and help communities start local manufacturing and build a better life. So there is hope and nothing will be lost. I think this grassroots movement will have a positive effect on the USA too as these were the skills that had once made this country great. Peace!
Another useful method, if you have a well-aligned tailstock... Support the part in the steady using the pre-setting method Joe Pi just taught. Then drill a center hole with the tailstock. The center hole will be on center even if there is slight misalignment, because the center drill is stationary and the stock is moving. It will just drill oversize, but that does not matter. Then switch to a center in the tailstock and support the work on the center with the steady rest supports retracted. Then re-set the steady rest supports by touching the work. Now remove the live center and you're as close as you can get. You can also just indicate the center hole, rather than actually supporting it with a center. Thanks for the video, Joe!
Good comment. The whole trick is to get it close right up front. The secondary adjustment is very good. Thats usually after the tracking diameter fiasco. Thanks for the comment. After checking, it was a combination of stock size and roller contact that gave me that .005 rise. Still.....1/10 of 1/4 of 1 degree error on a raw setup is not too shabby. Thanks for watching.
I learned something from every one of your vids Joe, but mostly your methods are teaching me to be more considered in my approach to each job. Thanks and keep em coming.
Thanks Joe for all the info and great videos!. I've done a lot of prototyping in plastic. Never had to worry much about speeds and feeds beyond the obvious. Got into the live steam hobby (almost all steel, stainless steel and iron) and was rudely awakened by melted tool bits and extremely short tool life. I would love to see a video (for a newbie) on speeds and feeds and how you go about figuring that out.
I got to say you R Da Man. I too have been in this trade for over 30 but 26 was as a tool and die maker so I didn’t do ever day machining but I just recently changed jobs and Now I’m just a machinist ( not by no mean belittling the trade ) so now I’m tightening up my skills and I know when I see a true master man. Good job 👍 and thank you. Lenny. 😜
An old timer told me years ago about truing a center drill on the end of a shaft after placing it in a properly adjusted steady rest, by "peeling the center" with your turning tool. It ensures that the previously drilled center is concentric with the new set up. It would of course mean that your carriage would have to be on the right side ( outside ) of the steady rest. By the way buddy, your instructional videos are top drawer! Nobody is ever too old to learn something.
Thanks for making these videos Joe. I've watched quite a few of them now, tons of great tips. I really enjoy using your method of thread cutting. Thanks again!
Thank you Joe for taking the time to make/edit/post your great videos. I've learned a lot & really really appreciate them. Subscribed. Thanks Again & Best Regards, Jon
I've gone from a high precision environment to rough ass marine, still try to keep my precision machine skills even when customers often saying "it doesn't matter" and usually 0.020" clearance on bushes , this videos are super helpful and I find myself thinking back to them the when given certain jobs, that setup you have that there is genius, time ive messed about getting long parts bang on without walking out. These skills can be used as much on shop/repair jobs as on brand new parts. Long time sub, rare commentator, many thanks Joe
Joe - You knowledge and practical advice and insights are beyond compare. Your methods and approaches are always so spot-on and practical e.g. V-Block for centering stock - this ...WOW! Thank you for taking the time
This is great. It took me quite some time to get the rests finally behaving as they should. I could have sure used this lesson oh soooo many years ago. Thanks teach ! Definitely a time for patience and clear thinking.
Before i would go jumping off a cliff panicking that my lathe was out of alignment i would repeat the process using some precision ground bar and take any variables out of the equation. Joe your video has got me thinking of a dedicated tool with an adjustable rod that could be set with a depth mic and a parallel , maybe not as accurate as gauge blocks but for the average home shop machinists plenty good enough.
If you drill your hole at 45 degrees as suggested by Mr. Crispin, you can simply mic over the rod and feeler tip because there will be no inline through hole. just position the mic perpendicular to the main rod, not the feeler rod. Glad the video got you thinking.
I've been learning manual machines through videos for quite some time now. I'd love to get into it later, but for now it's a neutral, educational way to entertain myself and get away from all the politics in the air these days. I appreciate your videos for often showing methods that are either more accurate, safer, easier, or all three to methods I see used other places. I just had a younger friend ask where to start, and I sent him here first, because I believe he is least likely to get taught the wrong way first. Thank you for providing complete solutions to individual problems instead of just trying to add a single detail to methods listed elsewhere.
Thank you very much for this comment. I've only been at this for 6 months, and I try to pick engaging material. A string of CNC programming videos are in process. If you, or your friend have any specific questions, just ask. Regards.
Thanks Joe, I had watched this video a while back, and although it was interesting, I never really thought twice about it. I turned something about a week ago using a steady rest and it in fact, tried to walk out of the chuck. My first thought was that I had not tightened the chuck up, and that was that. Tonight I came across your video again and it all came clear. Thanks again, JB in San Diego.
It gets you right there on the first try. My .005 rise was the diameter of the bar and about .001 too much contact on the initial setup. I checked after the video.
Well son of a gun, if that ain't the neatest trick! I've had the walking problem with no idea how to correct it until you showed us how. I also like the way you dialed that three jaw in; gotta fix mine like that. Keep 'em coming Joe.
This is brilliant, it works with collets and materials I have on hand. For the parts I machine, this is better than the specified accuracy with faster setup.
This is very nice of you. Again people liké you continue to lightning thé others with their knowledge and contribute to progress thé humanity. You make me happy with your vidéo. Thanks a lot. I wish you thé b'est of life.
Not only a great tip, but I learned about parts “walking” out of the chuck I’d the steady rest isn’t dead-true. Your vids are *so* informative and useful!
I was hired and will start to work in a machine shop tomorrow. And I was looking for a video to refresh my knowledge and to get some tips. Your videos are great! Thanks lad!
Hey Joe always enjoy watching your videos I'm retired now but just about everywhere I worked somehow I always got to do most of the maintenance on machines and dialing the headstock in to the ways was something that intimated most of the other machinists I adjusted a colchester that had .008 in 8in until I got it down to .0003 start to finish took 4hrs to do the job the machine was bought new was a professional model with a joy stick that the machinist before me wrecked into the chuck in hi speed rapid trans the foreman didn't think it could be fixed they were fighting the machine running it with all that taper because it was the biggest lathe in the shop and I guess they didn't trust anyone but colchester to fix it
Joe, very interesting to see the way different machinists think. What I do is traverse the carriage with the indicator on the shaft both top & bottom and adjust to suit. That also works well if you have rectangular or square bar with a journal at one end, or same bar with a center sans steady rest. But really, what I usually do is get the bar end adjusted close to the tailstock, start the lathe, touch the bar with the center drill and adjust by eye while testing with the center drill. It may sound crude, or unsafe but it really works well and is expedient. You can always shave the center hole or use a tailstock 4 jaw
Don't forget to tighten the chuck to backplate screws. I have to be careful when I'm explaining stuff to someone not to forget something. Excellent way to set up a steady rest. If running rough tubing, having the steady rest set to the average diameter is often good enough with slower spindle speeds to be able to face the end of the tube and cut weld champhers. Be sure to have extra rollers when doing this class of work.. they take a beating and will crack if your steady rest is using bare ball bearings for rollers. If you have 2 steady rests you can machine tubing and shafting very much longer than the bed of your lathe. Remove the tail stock and drive the tubing with a spider held in the chuck and the end of the tubing near the head stock may be faced and champhered as required. Don't run the work at high speed. The second steady rest helps stabilize the work and is required once end caps and journal shafts have been welded into the tubing. All the journal turning work is done at the head stock end and the last operation is parting the work off and letting it coast to a stop in the two steady rests.
Maybe add a tailstock alignment video if you haven't already. I would be especially interested in any ideas on re aligning a tailstock that has dropped below center due to wear on an older lathe. Thanks, keep up the good work.
Always interesting tips Joe. I usually use a 4 jaw chuck, unless I have access to an adjustable 3 or 6 jaw, for something like what you were showing and then a "cat head" on the outrigger end of the shaft...then with the steady rest positioned where I plan on using it I dial in the shaft, using the cat head, once zeroed I just bring the rollers up to light contact with the shaft. "cathead" for those not familiar is just basically a cup that goes over the end of the shaft, fairly close to the shafts dia. + an inch - nothing, with 4 set screws at 90 degree increments around the circumference (used for dialing the part in) and an end with a center drilled hole in it for the tailstock.
Nice - again! Good advice - I hope to use it on my little LYLAK! .I have an oscillatory axle that I need to machine - it is long enough to need a steady.
Handy approach Joe. thanks for covering this. I hope to see a follow up . After our brief exchange of messages I went ahead on my project and managed fine with the steady rest on the bull gear shafts was making , there is some video on my channel showing how I indicated it all in. All the best. Mat
What a simple and straightforward solution. The technique I was taught was very similiar. But I served my apprenticeship in a large shop with a large amount of material on hand. If working with shafting steel cut a slug off along with the stock for the job. Chuck up the slug and indicate the slug to zero (we used four jaw chucks only). Set the steady rest to the slug and carry on. If no excess material was available machine a piece of stock (usually out of the scrap bin and set it to that). It got to the point I kept a set of slugs of the common sizes we used for pump shafts. The rebuilding of pumps for coolant t systems on machining lines was a constant job due to the coolant getting contaminated even with filtering.
@@joepie221 Before the Press Room at the facility I worked at was shut down every so often we would have to make a new clutch shaft. Depending on the press model these were between 5 to 7 ft long. With about a 1/2 hole drilled maybe 2/3rds of the way down. The shafts could be up to 8" in diameter. They definitely went on the table of the Boring Bar before they saw the lathe. Stay cool
This is great! I've been fighting away trying to line up the steady rest and accepting reduced accuracy because I never knew about this method of lining it up. Looking forward to the video on setting up the headstock as I have the same lathe as you.
great video joe. like the set up bar. when i use my steady it is usually to support a piece of material that is realy to big for my lathe ! I usually have't enough room for my tailstock. Your method is ideal as it can be all done from the chuck end.
I think I must be low tech. Of course I have a small south bend and seldom do anything with a lot of weight but most often I simply indicate the end of the stock that then set the fingers to the work. I've had great success doing this although I will admit, I have never machined stock between the rest and the chuck. Seeing as how my 3 jaw is not adjustable I'm sure I would end up with a slight taper. I can't imagine walking stock out of the chuck. It seems like you'd have to be out a long ways to make that happen. I probably won't use this information but in general I have learned a lot from your videos! Thanks.
What a great method. Also well done on the subscriptions, I have never seen a machining channel grow so rapidly. A thought on the devise for setting the rollers - If you were going to make a tool specially for the purpose of setting steady rests you could make it with the projecting rod running at 45 degrees instead of 90. You could then use a micrometer to set the radius of the rod without needing to set slip gauges up. One micrometer anvil on the radiused tip and the other inline on the back side of that 3/4" bar. To find the projected radius it would just be micrometer reading minus 3/8". The grub screw would have to move from the end of the bar to the diameter. Hope that makes sense. Cheers. Crispin
Hello Crispin. Always good to see a comment from you. Thanks for the well wishes on the subscriptions. The channel has a lot of momentum right now. I never expected anything like this, but I am interested to see where it goes. Your suggestion is right on. You would be limited to your range of measurement by the diameter of your main rod (rod pocket depth), but being able to set with a mic would be fast and easy. No big deal, just have several rods along with the main one like a depth mic set. Your 45 degree suggestion is interesting, but 90 would work with a non thru hole as well. Regards.
Hi. The idea of the 45 degrees is so that you can have a through hole. If you have a through hole at 90 degrees you have no where to put the mic anvil as you say. However at 45 the exit of the through hole is behind where the mic anvil would be. Have a look at one of my videos called 'machining cylinders part 2' where I show this idea with a line boring bar. Cheers
Excellent point. I was imagining positioning the mic inline with the small rod, not square to the big one. I like the way you think Crispin. you are a sharp guy.
nice video, Have you ever used a mag base magged to the chuck jaw face and then extend the reach towards the steady rest , put the indicator on the shaft pointing to center of shaft, now rotate chuck by hand and watch indicator, indicator will show you run out if its not aligned, you can then adjust steady rest to zero and true to the chuck, just have to have a good mag base and stem , otherwise you could see some droop with the extended reach with indicator depending what position the chuck is at. depending on the alignment of the ways to the head stock, (and 72 degrees outside ) we were taught in the Navy to turn a Dia and then slide up steady rest towards chuck and then adjust rollers, then move steady rest back to where needed . seems that would work in a perfect world but seems it always needed tweaked in to keep part from trying to cork screw out of the chuck.. I like the sound effects at 3:26 .Thanks again , you always have great videos with good instructions Rondal Nannie
I think your videos are great Joe. One suggestion I might make, is to make certain that that the headstock is level and all other adjustments are relative to that
Hey Joe. Keep up the awesome videos. We all wish we had a guy like your to learn from in our home town. Im having some trouble with my new Grizzly lathe when drilling deep holes. The drill always seems to wander out the back side.
