# 1966 colchester/clausing lathe taper attachment



## Sk8ter

Hello I have a very nice machine its a 15X48 clausing colchester 1966 vintage with the taper att...

I have drawings etc..but there is no instructions on its use......what i am getting at is on these year lathes there is suppose to be some kind of mechanism that automatically releases the cross lead screw to follow the taper attachment etc....

do any of you good folks know exactly how this works?...  or am i not understanding this right? 

any help would be greatly appreciated

here is the manual


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## Chuck K

I could be wrong on this (I've been wrong in the past), but it looks like it has a spline on the cross feed screw (#16, page 55)  to allow it to travel when the taper attachment is locked down.  That's the way it works on my south bend, although instead of a spline it has a keyway in the screw.  I would try locking the taper attachment and moving the saddle manually to see what happens.  You will have to position the taper attachment so it has enough travel for the length of the taper you plan to cut.  I'm sure a colchester owner will be along to give you a better answer.  Good luck.

Chuck


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## tarawa

Having had a Sheldon lathe in the past, I was also unsure of the Colchesters taper attachment.  Thanks for posting.


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## hermetic

Hi there,
You disconnect the cross slide screw from the hand wheel by removing the smaller of the two nuts (sometimes it's a bolt) in the centre of the cross slide hand wheel. Then you tighten the clamp on the steady rod to the bed, and you are ready to set up your taper. To go back to normal cross slide operation, reverse the procedure. Hope this helps
Phil
UK


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## tarawa

Thank You Phil! I am in the process of making the clamping rod. It was missing from my taper attachment.  Just one clarification.  Is this the large bolt head that sits on top of the cross slide with the oiler in the center?
George


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## Sk8ter

Have a look at this video on youtube this is why i asked ...he says no need to remove cross nut screw for the taper att to work...


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pTpEaES-bXQ


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## tarawa

Sk8ter
That is exactly what I was looking for. It answers a lot of questions I had about the taper attachment. I am missing the lockdown bar and found the clamp end on ebay today! Just have to add the threaded bar. I am really surprised that my Colchester Triumph manual shows the attachment, but no instructions on how to use it. 
Thanks for the link!!!
george


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## Sk8ter

tarawa said:


> Sk8ter
> That is exactly what I was looking for. It answers a lot of questions I had about the taper attachment. I am missing the lockdown bar and found the clamp end on ebay today! Just have to add the threaded bar. I am really surprised that my Colchester Triumph manual shows the attachment, but no instructions on how to use it.
> Thanks for the link!!!
> george




..I do lots of research on stuff but this is the only thing i came up with....but i still would like to understand how this works.....anyone?
my manual also shows the att but does not explain how to use it!! or its iner workings...

george you can make a threaded bar...you have a good lathe  no need to find an original it just holds the base of the att from moving....it could even be aluminum no real stress there...
getter done!!!


Lawrence


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## tarawa

Lawrence
I was setting up to make the whole thing. It would have been much simpler than the original but would have still worked.  It was nice to find an original piece on Ebay that wasnt overly expensive.  
How is the halfnut on your Colchester? Mine was totally missing and I had to make it from scratch.  It works well though.
I have no idea on how the Colchester taper works, but as long as it does, I am good with that!
George



Sk8ter said:


> ..I do lots of research on stuff but this is the only thing i came up with....but i still would like to understand how this works.....anyone?
> my manual also shows the att but does not explain how to use it!! or its iner workings...
> 
> george you can make a threaded bar...you have a good lathe  no need to find an original it just holds the base of the att from moving....it could even be aluminum no real stress there...
> getter done!!!
> 
> 
> Lawrence


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## Sk8ter

tarawa said:


> Lawrence
> I was setting up to make the whole thing. It would have been much simpler than the original but would have still worked.  It was nice to find an original piece on Ebay that wasnt overly expensive.
> How is the halfnut on your Colchester? Mine was totally missing and I had to make it from scratch.  It works well though.
> I have no idea on how the Colchester taper works, but as long as it does, I am good with that!
> George



I have not taken the carriage off the lathe yet...but threading seems fine..I want to take the carriage off because there is no way wipers ...just want to make sure there is nothing there and then make some ...

tell me how hard was it to remove the carriage?


Lawrence


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## hermetic

Correction!!! you do not need to remove the nut in the centre of the hand wheel, the cross slide screw that comes with the taper attachment has a long spline so when you clamp the steady rod to the bed the taper turning attachment takes over the operation of the cross slide automatically. This illustrates the difference between information obtained from the manual, and information gained from actual use of a taper attachment! If anyone has a taper attachment for a roundhead Mk 1 student that they don't need, I would love it! Oh and while we are discussing hens teeth and rocking horse crap I also need a vertical head attachment for a Harrison horizontal milling machine...................... nobody got one? No neither have I :-(
Phil


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## tarawa

Phil 
The video that Lawrence posted is the only place that somewhat explained the Colchester taper attachment.  I tried to do a search and never came up with anything.  Its like somekind of mystery.  I even asked on the Colchesters users group on Yahoo and was ignored!  Colchester users are like members of a secret society!
george



hermetic said:


> Correction!!! you do not need to remove the nut in the centre of the hand wheel, the cross slide screw that comes with the taper attachment has a long spline so when you clamp the steady rod to the bed the taper turning attachment takes over the operation of the cross slide automatically. This illustrates the difference between information obtained from the manual, and information gained from actual use of a taper attachment! If anyone has a taper attachment for a roundhead Mk 1 student that they don't need, I would love it! Oh and while we are discussing hens teeth and rocking horse crap I also need a vertical head attachment for a Harrison horizontal milling machine...................... nobody got one? No neither have I :-(
> Phil


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## hermetic

Well I am on the Colchester user group so if they ignored you, shame on them! The problem is I had a very little experience on a TT on a colchester a long time ago, and my round head hasn't got one. The cross slide screw has a long spline which meshes with the hand wheel,when you wind the hand wheel  it operates the cross slide as normal, and when you move the saddle longitudinally with the steady bar loose the taper turner slides up the bed, the cross slide does not move and the lathe turns parallel. when you clamp up the steady bar to the bed and move the saddle longitudinally the cross slide follows the angle set on the taper turner and the cross slide screw spline slides in the hand wheel and the lathe taper turns. Does that make any more sense? It is a hard concept to grasp, but I think the best way round the problem is for you to pack your taper turner in a box and send it to me so I can "check it is working" ;-)

Don't be afraid to keep asking till you get to grips with it, I am always ready to help anyone, as are many others on this and some other sites!

Phil,
East Yorkshire UK


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## tarawa

Hi Phil,
I have had very good luck on the group.  I even found parts for my Triumph on there.  Great bunch of guys. My question was finally addressed on the group.  It seems that the only way to keep undesirables off the board is to review all the posts.  It seems to have a two day delay.  Tough job for the moderators.
I am just glad that I found the bed way clamp on Ebay.  It was like a miracle!
You explained the function very well.
I have another question for you that I will ask in a PM.  I dont want the other members to think that I am totally clueless.  These Colchesters are mysterious.  
George





hermetic said:


> Well I am on the Colchester user group so if they ignored you, shame on them! The problem is I had a very little experience on a TT on a colchester a long time ago, and my round head hasn't got one. The cross slide screw has a long spline which meshes with the hand wheel,when you wind the hand wheel  it operates the cross slide as normal, and when you move the saddle longitudinally with the steady bar loose the taper turner slides up the bed, the cross slide does not move and the lathe turns parallel. when you clamp up the steady bar to the bed and move the saddle longitudinally the cross slide follows the angle set on the taper turner and the cross slide screw spline slides in the hand wheel and the lathe taper turns. Does that make any more sense? It is a hard concept to grasp, but I think the best way round the problem is for you to pack your taper turner in a box and send it to me so I can "check it is working" ;-)
> 
> Don't be afraid to keep asking till you get to grips with it, I am always ready to help anyone, as are many others on this and some other sites!
> 
> Phil,
> East Yorkshire UK


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## Sk8ter

tarawa said:


> Hi Phil,
> I have had very good luck on the group.  I even found parts for my Triumph on there.  Great bunch of guys. My question was finally addressed on the group.  It seems that the only way to keep undesirables off the board is to review all the posts.  It seems to have a two day delay.  Tough job for the moderators.
> I am just glad that I found the bed way clamp on Ebay.  It was like a miracle!
> You explained the function very well.
> I have another question for you that I will ask in a PM.  I dont want the other members to think that I am totally clueless.  These Colchesters are mysterious.
> George





George I would like to know as much about my stuff too....so if you have a questions I would like to hear them too...may help more of us....

we should feel very lucky as these Taper att systems are very expensive used! take good care of it..

while in the middle or getting closer to the end LOL Hendey Lathe renovation I realized how well and how thoughtful the tail stock is....so easy to offset and bring back into alignment all done with one square head bolt very very ingenious...esp for being designed in the early 1900's you can check it out on youtube..

Lawrence


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## Sk8ter

hermetic said:


> Well I am on the Colchester user group so if they ignored you, shame on them! The problem is I had a very little experience on a TT on a colchester a long time ago, and my round head hasn't got one. The cross slide screw has a long spline which meshes with the hand wheel,when you wind the hand wheel  it operates the cross slide as normal, and when you move the saddle longitudinally with the steady bar loose the taper turner slides up the bed, the cross slide does not move and the lathe turns parallel. when you clamp up the steady bar to the bed and move the saddle longitudinally the cross slide follows the angle set on the taper turner and the cross slide screw spline slides in the hand wheel and the lathe taper turns. Does that make any more sense? It is a hard concept to grasp, but I think the best way round the problem is for you to pack your taper turner in a box and send it to me so I can "check it is working" ;-)
> 
> Don't be afraid to keep asking till you get to grips with it, I am always ready to help anyone, as are many others on this and some other sites!
> 
> Phil,
> East Yorkshire UK



I also am on the colchester forum...I posted a few times with no responses ....I gave up on that forum!


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