# Sb 9a Crossfeed Lever Will Not Move Up Or Down



## bama7 (Jul 8, 2016)

Well my project SB 9a showed me who was boss again today.  I finally got the 1/3 hp motor installed and running good, so far.  The motor was the same one that was on it when I bought it, but not original.  Anyway, I was running through all the stuff checking that everything operated as it should.  Then I could not get the crossfeed lever to shift to either up or down position.  I took the apron off and thought the “shifter” PT83NK1 was broken.  So I took off to my favorite store, ebay and got one for a decent price.  I decided to remove all the gears and stuff from the apron and be ready when my parts got here.  I did not see anything that appeared to be broken on the shifter.  It was just not machined in some places.  The plunger seems to be free and all the gears are in good condition.  The shift lever goes in place as it should with everything inside removed.  Could the clutch be the problem and if so what do I look for to check its operation?


----------



## pineyfolks (Jul 8, 2016)

Is the halfnut lever engaged? If so you can't move the feed position lever out of the center position.


----------



## bama7 (Jul 8, 2016)

pineyfolks said:


> Is the halfnut lever engaged? If so you can't move the feed position lever out of the center position.


No, I had heard that before and I made sure it was not engaged. Hopefully I will see a difference when I get the parts I ordered. In the mean time I plan to do some reading about the clutch operation. I think I read somewhere about a problem similar to mine and it turned out to be the clutch. I have a hard time making that connection since the lever is all mechanical.


----------



## Chuck K (Jul 9, 2016)

It would seem that if you have it torn apart, you should be able to play around with it and diagnose the problem. It sounds like your interlock that keeps you from engaging feeds while the half nuts are engaged might be jamming things...just a thought.  I can't think of any reason the clutch would stop the engagement. Take it out and inspect it.  If this is a machine that you just purchased it's always possible that the previous owner reassembled it incorrectly.


----------



## jocat54 (Jul 9, 2016)

Chuck K said:


> It would seem that if you have it torn apart, you should be able to play around with it and diagnose the problem. It sounds like your interlock that keeps you from engaging feeds while the half nuts are engaged might be jamming things...just a thought.  I can't think of any reason the clutch would stop the engagement. Take it out and inspect it.  If this is a machine that you just purchased it's always possible that the previous owner reassembled it incorrectly.



I would agree with Chuck---sure sounds like a problem with the interlock rod.


----------



## bama7 (Jul 10, 2016)

jocat54 said:


> I would agree with Chuck---sure sounds like a problem with the interlock rod.


I totally agree.  I cleaned it all very good and then put it back together with no change in the results. With the half nut system completely removed the lever moved relatively well. I need to support the apron s o I can better see what is happening. I did not check to see if the pin is bent and both ends are a little different in shape also. I plan to go through it again tomorrow, check the pin and install it in both directions. If that doesn't fix it all I can do is wait for the other parts to come in and do a little comparison study.


----------



## Chuck K (Jul 10, 2016)

It's been so long since I've had a model a southbend that I really can't remember what the interlock looks like. I'm sure if that's the problem it will be an easy fix. Good luck.


----------



## bama7 (Jul 11, 2016)

Chuck K said:


> It's been so long since I've had a model a southbend that I really can't remember what the interlock looks like. I'm sure if that's the problem it will be an easy fix. Good luck.


I sure hope so!  This lathe reminds me of my body.  The older it gets the more things start to show their age.  The lathe can be fixed with replacement parts, but not so much the body.


----------



## bama7 (Jul 12, 2016)

PRAISE THE LORD! I was doing some more reading this morning and found an article which stated that there were travel stops on the housing and on the halfnut levers. I installed a reworked set of halfnuts on my lathe not long ago. I thought they were all the same, but not so. I looked a little more closely and saw the bottom lever was not allowing the pin to move when I moved the lever. I took the bottom halfnut lever off and filed the stop area just enough for the clearance I needed. The housing also has a stop, but I would rather file the lever instead of the housing just in case that wasn't the problem. It now works as it should.  Just another happy SB owner!


----------



## brino (Jul 12, 2016)

That's great news.
Thanks for posting back, I made need that info in the future!
-brino


----------



## Chuck K (Jul 12, 2016)

Glad you're up and running.


----------

