# Moving Steady Attaching ..how ?



## Round in circles (Nov 19, 2016)

If any of you have a moving steady fitted to your Atlas lathes would you be so kind and take several different angled  pictures of it including some from the rear of the lathe looking almost level with the saddle area when standing by the motor  and post it in this thread please .  

 My reason for asking is I've got hold of a set of old but pristine unused moving & fixed steadies without any mounting plates etc . , unfortunately they are for a slightly smaller 8 inch  throw lathe .( Mines a 10 inch throw ) .
I've sorted out / drawn up  the fixed steady arrangement and found suitable measurements for things .

I want to try and work out how /where  the moving steady should be mounted as I'll  have to fabricate my own mountings  .


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## pollardd (Nov 20, 2016)

Hi There,
I have a 10" Atlas and it came with a traveling steady rest.  I'd say from the telltale grey paint, or what is left of it, that it is an original.
It has a dovetail that fits onto the cross slide so you just move it in and out to where you want.
It has a brass block that moves around to contact the work but I have never used this yet so I'm not sure exactly how that works.
I have attached one pic.  I have taken some other but can't get them to upload at the moment.

Hope this info helps.
David


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## pollardd (Nov 20, 2016)

Here are the other photos.


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## wa5cab (Nov 20, 2016)

David,

I don't recognize that unit.  Perhaps it was made by someone other than Atlas.  Below are photos copied from the earliest catalog that I have (1935 Catalog No. 15)  which shows the Follower Rest.  The steady rest also appears in the 1934 Catalog No. 8.

Note that in U.S. parlance, the Fixed Steady Rest is just called Steady Rest, and the Traveling Steady Rest is called Follower Rest.


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## wa5cab (Nov 20, 2016)

I forgot to mention that, although it should be visible in this view, the photograph does not show the clamp that locks the Follower Rest in position on the carriage dovetail.  It is a bolt with a special cylindrical head with the shape of one side of the dovetail cut into it.  The nut and end of the bolt threads should be visible in the foreground of the above photo.


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## pollardd (Nov 20, 2016)

Hi Robert,
Looks like a similar mechanism is used to attach to the cross slide dovetail.  Mine just has a gib that wedges onto the dovetail.

David, (Round in Circles) 
Perhaps you could post some pictures of the Follower Rest that he would like to fit to your lathe.

David


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## Round in circles (Nov 20, 2016)

Thanks guys what you have shown me is very useful & helpful for me .
 I will take some pictures tomorrow when I have time .
Somehow I'm getting the distinct feeling I'll be having to make or obtain some sort of clamp mount to attach my follower to . Especially wrt it being directly behing the cutter  
Think I'll have to look carefully at the follower when it's sat upon the cross slide then sleep on it for a couple of days .


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## Round in circles (Nov 21, 2016)

Waaaagh ! 
Looks like I'm the victim of my own cleverness.

 I moved over from anything Microsoft as my ancient six year old computer ran on MS 7 . When it reached the stage of it bit being unable to be updated any more it wouldn't recognise any of my laser printers , the drawing tablet & several other add on's   I changed the platform to one called called UBUNTU .

 For the last t 2.5  years or so it has worked well with Photo-bucket & the now failing printers  .  Recent updates to both Ubuntu & Photo-bucket however , plus me installing a fantastic ad blocker have prevented me being able to get the  pictures I've taken tonight into the thread . 

I'll see if there is an open source free IMG converter / coding program I can find for UBUNTU ..There usually is something available  and they are every bit as good if not better than any pricey MS stuff . 

 Meanwhile :- 
The fixed steady  is about 1.3 inches too high to sit on the cross slide keyway . So it looks like I'll have to make a base clamp to sit upon the keyway then carefully calculate  the  closed contact arms centre  height on to  a very fine turned point set in the tailstock chuck .
Then cut the old foot off on the metal bandsaw , tap the new foot for a high tensile steel  12 mm stud and a pair of  precision locating pins .
 In making the new keyway clamp I'll also have to design it so that the tool post is able to sit centrally in its travel & square to the steady .


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## stupoty (Nov 22, 2016)

Round in circles said:


> Waaaagh !
> Looks like I'm the victim of my own cleverness.
> 
> I moved over from anything Microsoft as my ancient six year old computer ran on MS 7 . When it reached the stage of it bit being unable to be updated any more it wouldn't recognise any of my laser printers , the drawing tablet & several other add on's   I changed the platform to one called called UBUNTU .
> ...



I use a handy program called "converseen" on linux , handles most image formats.

Stuart


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## Round in circles (Nov 22, 2016)

Thanks Stuart , I played with gimp 4 earlier tonight  but nothing worked ...... put it down to my depleted brain ..


I've made a note of it for tomorrow evening's episode .


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## Round in circles (Nov 23, 2016)

OK,  tonight has be hectic & interesting .
I haven't had time to do anything other than check the forum now I'm back home.


 Question .

When we measure the size of the keyway /dovetail  should I also measure or calculate the angles of the edges.  ?
In other words are the dovetail dimensions different from manufacturer to manufacturer  .

 I ask for I might be able to swap my flat base steadies for dovetail fitting ones .



 Found a way of getting up a picture of the moving steady .. you'll laugh ,,,,, the set I have are the same but in duck egg blue /white grey.

It's an ebay number 
361258420958


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## wa5cab (Nov 25, 2016)

David,

Go to DOWNLOADS, Manuals, Atlas, Lathe, Drawings and download the drawing for the Atlas 10-765 Draw Bar Guide.  It has all of the dimensions you would need for something to fit the Atlas lathe carriage dovetail except for length (and total height).


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## Round in circles (Nov 29, 2016)

Thank you gents .  60 deg. dovetails.


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