Will a BXA work on my Atlas 10F/TH54?

I have a BXA on my Craftsman 12" swing and I think it is fine. The AXA is what most guys choose and I was going to do the same until a machinist friend pointed out one benefit that I liked in getting the BXA instead of the AXA. If you get a BXA you can later purchase a scissor type knurl that will slide right into one of your tool holders on the BXA. You cannot do that with an AXA. Second, if you ever plan on doing any knurling on your Atlas/Craftsman you would be a fool to try knurling with a conventional knurling tool, you really need a scissor type knurl as an Atlas/Craftsman will not take the kind of punishment a pressure type conventional knurling tool will do to the brass compound nut used on an Atlas/Craftsman.


Short story long, the BXA was my choice and I have never regretted it, also, it fits my 12" just fine.

As I think about it, you said you have a 10" which a BXA might give you issues lining up on the centerline of a 10" machine, just a thought. If the centerline adjustment is not an issue then I stand by my original statement.
 
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Bill,

10F is the Series. TH-54 is one of at least 18 different models of 10F. Kinda like the Land Rover or the Ford F-150, the 10" Atlas lathes came in many different flavors over many years.

On your BXA (200) versus AXA (100) question, I side with those who say AXA. While Uncle Buck's scissor knurler comments are valid, I have seen somewhere one (might have been a custom job) that would fit or had been fitted to an AXA.

Robert D.

DJ Bill said:
BTW....Should I call my lathe TH54 or a 10F or both? It has the motor hanging off the back, threading is done with change gears, and the bed says TH 54 on it. It does have power cross feed.
Here's a pic for those who haven't seen it. It should link to the album.
<a href="http://s1296.beta.photobucket.com/u...F lathe cleanup/DSCN1657_zps872783a2.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1296.photobucket.com/albums...10F lathe cleanup/th_DSCN1657_zps872783a2.jpg" border="0" alt="10F in all her glory photo DSCN1657_zps872783a2.jpg"></a>
Click to expand...
 
wa5cab said:
Bill,

10F is the Series. TH-54 is one of at least 18 different models of 10F. Kinda like the Land Rover or the Ford F-150, the 10" Atlas lathes came in many different flavors over many years.

On your BXA (200) versus AXA (100) question, I side with those who say AXA. While Uncle Buck's scissor knurler comments are valid, I have seen somewhere one (might have been a custom job) that would fit or had been fitted to an AXA.

Robert D.
Click to expand...

I did have second thoughts on fitting a BXA to a 10" machine. While I would dismiss those claiming the BXA has too much mass for the compound I do believe that the 2" difference in swing could potentially cause adjustment issues of the toolholders, in fact, I am convinced it would cause issues that are not relevent to a 12" swing Atlas. I would also agree that a scissor knurler mount could be machined to fit the smaller toolholders of the AXA, though I do wonder to what extent that would impact the strength of the mount if that material was to be removed from the scissor mount. In the end I know a BXA fills the bill nicely for a 12" machine, but I feel it would not be a good match for a 10" machine as virtually everyone else here has already said. Any scissor knurler fitted to a toolholder for an AXA post was without a doubt in my mind custom and machined for the application though I am all but positive. Count me in agreement with the majority since it is a 10" machine.
 
I'd like to teach the world to sing, in perfect harmony... :high5: (LOL)... Ok, we all agree on that one!

...

One thing I see a lot, is that new folks tend to want to jump right into carbide and bigger tooling (BXA with 3/4" shanks etc) right off the bat. Yeah, I know, it's cool but we gotta guide them in the right direction. AXA and BXA with 3/8 or 1/2 tooling is plenty good for anything we'll ever do in our home shops. Darkzero (Will) also pointed-out that for some toolholing jobs, he prefers BXA with 3/4 shanks -but this is for the precision knurling he does.

In all honesty, a 12 swing lathe is, depending on how you view it, either a curse because it does well with both AXA and BXA or a blessing because it does well with both AXA and BXA :banghead:. It also depends on how heavy/beefy the compound is. A 12" Monarch (for example) has twice the beef on the compound as most other lathes.

Anyhow, we gotta get the word out that selecting the right size for the job is the mindset to have.

Ray
 
Ray C said:
I'd like to teach the world to sing, in perfect harmony... :high5: (LOL)... Ok, we all agree on that one!

...

One thing I see a lot, is that new folks tend to want to jump right into carbide and bigger tooling (BXA with 3/4" shanks etc) right off the bat. Yeah, I know, it's cool but we gotta guide them in the right direction. AXA and BXA with 3/8 or 1/2 tooling is plenty good for anything we'll ever do in our home shops. Darkzero (Will) also pointed-out that for some toolholing jobs, he prefers BXA with 3/4 shanks -but this is for the precision knurling he does.

In all honesty, a 12 swing lathe is, depending on how you view it, either a curse because it does well with both AXA and BXA or a blessing because it does well with both AXA and BXA :banghead:. It also depends on how heavy/beefy the compound is. A 12" Monarch (for example) has twice the beef on the compound as most other lathes.

Anyhow, we gotta get the word out that selecting the right size for the job is the mindset to have.

Ray
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Actually, I was originally set to buy an AXA post for my 12" until my machinist friend, a well seasoned guy with decades spent in industry, then later teaching the machine shop classes at the local vo-tech pointed me in the direction of the BXA which did turn out to be a great choice for my application in the end. I could see a good case to be made for either size at least for a 12" machine.
 
Uncle Buuuuckkk? The tool man? Didn't know such a critter existed? -Say it ain't so!



Uncle Buck said:
Interesting, I was led to believe no such critter existed! Makes a stronger case for the AXA than it's big brother I have too!
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Another AXA fan!

Not sure if it is just the particular AXA post I have on my 10", but I had to widen the flat on the compound by turning off a bit more of the hump than was done originally, to allow enough room for post rotation.

Not dificult but has anyone else needed to do this?

Bernard
 
Ray C said:
Uncle Buuuuckkk? The tool man? Didn't know such a critter existed? -Say it ain't so!
Click to expand...

LOL, well, yea, it's so! was simply not aware those were even available for the AXA! Ya learn something new every day if yer lucky right! Today was my lucky day! :whiteflag:
 
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