# leaving the gears in place



## Round in circles (Oct 11, 2017)

Something struck me today as I set up the lather to turn 100yards of 2 mm shellac insulated copper transformer wire onto a big spool .

I've not found the answer after a quick read of my  MOLO .

Is it best practice to remove the drive gear off the pin or leave the whole gear train revolving if your not using it to turn threads , wind wire spools or power the saddle or cross slide .


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## kd4gij (Oct 11, 2017)

What ever floats your boat. You can put the tumbler gears in neutral to stop the lead screw from turning. If you like.


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## wa5cab (Oct 12, 2017)

With any of the machines equipped with a tumbler, SOP should be to keep the tumbler in neutral when not actually using the lead screw.  It saves wear and tear on the drive train.  Plus it is quieter.  

With a change gear 10", putting the FWD-OFF-REV gearbox into OFF only stops the lead screw.  In order to disengage or stop  the change gears, you would have to open the change gear guard and loosen the nut on the 9-81 Stud to let the banjo drop down, as you would do were you changing gears.  The 9-81 is actually a bolt. However, I have the impression that few if any 10" owners do that.

But I suspect that if I had a 9" or a change gear 10", I would replace the 9-81 with an actual stud and use a 3980-39 Lock Handle Assembly  (looks like the locking lever for the tailstock ram only larger) to tighten against the bandjo and lock it in place.  And get in the habit of dropping the banjo when I wasn't using the change gears. But I definitely would not remove one of the change gears.  Not necessary.


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## ericc (Oct 12, 2017)

The hand knob on my Craftsman 109 will not turn with the lead screw gear in place.  It is such a drag.


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## Round in circles (Oct 12, 2017)

Trying to get my banjo loosened is a night mare as the left end is a nut on a shouldered stud
 .  Most of the time I have to try and juggle a spanner into hold the stud and use a socket to undo the nut  which is difficult due to me having a  crippled left shoulder joint & back injuries .

 Can you guys tell me what AF size spanner for  the nuts & thread details please as I'm not sure what mine is at present  . I've been monkeying about with two 12 inch adjustable spanners and am sick of getting gravel rash on my knuckles from it  .


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## wa5cab (Oct 12, 2017)

SCREW DIAMETER                  HEX FLAT-TO-FLAT
3/16" & #10                                  3/8"
1/4"                                              7/16"
5/16"                                            1/2"
3/8"                                              9/16"
7/16"                                            5/8"
1/2"                                              3/4"

Those are the normal sizes.for cap screws and nuts.  Unlike BSW and BSF, the sizes apply to both coarse thread (UNC) and fine (UNF).  With machine screws (#0 through #14), the nuts are usually available in two or sometimes three sizes, with the largest size being most common.  But that is very uncommon with hex head cap screws (usually incorrectly called bolts or hex bolts by the unknowing).

I had the info in two neat columns but the !@#$% editor removes spaces when you save it.

What do you mean by "thread details"?


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## markba633csi (Oct 13, 2017)

What's the difference betw. a screw and a bolt?  I'm one of the unknowing I guess
Mark


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## Ulma Doctor (Oct 13, 2017)

markba633csi said:


> What's the difference betw. a screw and a bolt?  I'm one of the unknowing I guess
> Mark


Hi Mark,
as it was explained to me...
a machine screw or wood screw uses a screwdriver or bit , to drive the screw- they are smaller in diameter than most bolts
a bolt (or capscrew - ironically) has a polygon head that is driven by socket or wrench. generally larger diameters than machine screws or wood screws
i guess i was trained by the unknowing too 

here is Webster's definition...
Bolt :a metal rod or pin for fastening objects together that usually has a head at one end and a screw thread at the other and is secured by a nut


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## wa5cab (Oct 14, 2017)

Bolt has several usages.  Bolt (of cloth).  Bolt, the part or assembly that closes the rear end of the barrel in a gun or a rifle.  And then several types of threaded fastener. 

According to common usage as seen in Machinery's Handbook and in various Standards (American, British, etc.) bolts are threaded fasteners of relatively lower precision.  Screws are threaded fasteners of relatively higher precision.  Bolts are often associated with wood or wooden assemblies.  For example Lag Bolt and Carriage Bolt.  There is also Stove Bolt, which generally have slotted round heads.  Legally or officially, the majority of hex and socket head male threaded fasteners are called  Cap Screws.  Generally, if "Cap Screw" is not preceded by a head modifier (such as Socket Head), Cap Screw will be assumed to be Hex Head.


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## rzbill (Oct 14, 2017)

Since the dileneation is so fuzzy, I think the designer, impatient to go home towards the end of the day , could easily use the verb 'bolt' in the drawing title for whatever fastener he was drawing.


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## wa5cab (Oct 14, 2017)

Round in circles said:


> Trying to get my banjo loosened is a night mare as the left end is a nut on a shouldered stud.
> 
> David,
> 
> I missed this comment.  But this is exactly why I said that if I had a change gear 10", I would install an actual stud instead of the 9-81 cap screw that the drawing shows and put the 3980-39 Lock Handle (or equivalent) on it.  Once the nut behind the bandjo had been properly adjusted to touch the bandjo, all that you would have to do to drop the bandjo would be to open the gear cover and loosen the lock handle.  No spanners required.


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## Round in circles (Oct 15, 2017)

Now I've had a clean up in the man cupboard ( first for nearly a year )   I hope to spend sometime this coming week moving the  " Mmight need this some time " scrap  from the lathe stand & pull the lathe out to sort things out , including setting the rear of the saddle gibs .


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## wa5cab (Oct 15, 2017)

Yeah, my "man place" is long overdue for a similar treatment!


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## oldscouser (Oct 28, 2017)

markba633csi said:


> What's the difference betw. a screw and a bolt?  I'm one of the unknowing I guess
> Mark


Hello Mark.  As I understand it a screw is fully threaded up to the head no matter what its length.  And a bolt has a plain shank and a set length of thread, typically about 1.5 D.  So a short bolt looks identical to a machine screw.


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## T Bredehoft (Oct 28, 2017)

I like to distinguish Between screw and bolt thusly. If it has a nut on it its a bolt.  There are exceptions.


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## wa5cab (Oct 28, 2017)

Actually, machine screws are normally threaded to the head regardless of length.  Cap screws normally have a maximum of 1" of thread.


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