- Joined
- Oct 17, 2018
- Messages
- 966
I have a lathe from which I want to remove the headstock. I'm having a hard time finding out if this is a bad thing. My internet searches turned up the posts below, in addition to my lathe restoration thread on this site. Everything else seemed to be referencing the spindle and not the headstock alignment itself.
This YouTube video (
) has mostly spindle instructions, but from 9:40 to 10:25 is a sped-up headstock install. No mention of alignment.
Tubalcain has one as well: Shop Tips #236. At about 1:38 he mentions that it's aligned with the headstock by being located between the ways. No mention of alignment issues. The rest is about the spindle, etc.
My restoration post on page 10, #91, question #25 asks about it. Here is the response (from our own Robert!) for reference:
25. I have never actually done a headstock removal but I did sell the 54" bed off of a Craftsman Commercial to someone who wanted to convert his 12 x 24 to a 12 x 36 and he had no particular issue with removing the headstock. So it wan't a press fit. Beyond that, I don't know how tightly they fit between the ways. I would suggest not removing the headstock casting unless there is some good reason to do so. If you do remove it, I would have a pair of studs or 2" to 3" long lengths of All-Thread to screw into the two positioning screw holes to set the left-right position. If, after fully seating the casting between the ways, the studs are not free turning in the tapped holes, move the casting left or right until they are. Then remove them and immediately install the two screws. You will have to reassemble the headstock before you can use any method that I know of to check the angular alignment.
Here is the results of a Google search:
Besides the clamp (similar to the one under the tailstock) that everyone knows about, there are two small alignment bolts under the left end of the headstock. They are well hidden but have to be removed along with the main clamp, and reinstalled before you install the clamp. They were not shown on most of the Atlas illustrated parts lists. I added them to a couple of lists but not I think all of them. Their purpose is only to locate the headstock longitudinally on the bed.
Robert Downs
You should be able to see shims if any under the
headstock. Take a picture for reference so it gets
reassembled the way it was. Upon reassembly you'll need to
set it up all over again anyway to make sure you're not
turning a taper.
The response to the above post:
I have never heard of shims under the headstock. It is an
interference fit between the inner surface of the ways and
is held by a clamp plate from underneath. Other than
getting a socket wrench down between the ways, it is easy to
remove and reinstall. You just want to make sure the bottom
of the headstock and mating surface of the ways are VERY
clean before reinstalling. On some lathes, the position
along the ways is not keyed or pinned in any way, so you
want to make sure you get it back in the same position, so
the leadscrew mount and pulleys line up with where they go.
Jon Elson
In my restoration thread, I noted that I took it off and there was little or no play front to back.
Also, I remember finding another post on another site and someone told the poster that it wasn't a good idea, but they'd never done it. The poster did it anyway and sold the machine before testing the alignment.
This post talks about alignment using various methods. Seems indicating across the faceplate would be a good start, but the ways need to be untwisted.
I found a 500+ page document that has a series of emails about headstock alignment. Seems that bed twist is usually the culprit, along with dirty mating surfaces. I copied and pasted the relevant posts in a Word doc and attached it.
So, IS this an issue? Anyone ever removed and reinstalled the headstock? Did you have any issues with it being misaligned? I'm asking because I'm going to sell the lathe after I take it apart and clean and paint it so I won't have a chance to bolt it down and check the alignment. I can tell the next owner to do it, and they would be wise to do it anyway, but I want to make sure. I'm guessing the dearth of information means it's not a big deal, and what little I did find seems to indicate that any misalignment is caused by dirty mating surfaces or a twisted bed, but I could be wrong.
This YouTube video (
Tubalcain has one as well: Shop Tips #236. At about 1:38 he mentions that it's aligned with the headstock by being located between the ways. No mention of alignment issues. The rest is about the spindle, etc.
My restoration post on page 10, #91, question #25 asks about it. Here is the response (from our own Robert!) for reference:
25. I have never actually done a headstock removal but I did sell the 54" bed off of a Craftsman Commercial to someone who wanted to convert his 12 x 24 to a 12 x 36 and he had no particular issue with removing the headstock. So it wan't a press fit. Beyond that, I don't know how tightly they fit between the ways. I would suggest not removing the headstock casting unless there is some good reason to do so. If you do remove it, I would have a pair of studs or 2" to 3" long lengths of All-Thread to screw into the two positioning screw holes to set the left-right position. If, after fully seating the casting between the ways, the studs are not free turning in the tapped holes, move the casting left or right until they are. Then remove them and immediately install the two screws. You will have to reassemble the headstock before you can use any method that I know of to check the angular alignment.
Here is the results of a Google search:
Besides the clamp (similar to the one under the tailstock) that everyone knows about, there are two small alignment bolts under the left end of the headstock. They are well hidden but have to be removed along with the main clamp, and reinstalled before you install the clamp. They were not shown on most of the Atlas illustrated parts lists. I added them to a couple of lists but not I think all of them. Their purpose is only to locate the headstock longitudinally on the bed.
Robert Downs
You should be able to see shims if any under the
headstock. Take a picture for reference so it gets
reassembled the way it was. Upon reassembly you'll need to
set it up all over again anyway to make sure you're not
turning a taper.
The response to the above post:
I have never heard of shims under the headstock. It is an
interference fit between the inner surface of the ways and
is held by a clamp plate from underneath. Other than
getting a socket wrench down between the ways, it is easy to
remove and reinstall. You just want to make sure the bottom
of the headstock and mating surface of the ways are VERY
clean before reinstalling. On some lathes, the position
along the ways is not keyed or pinned in any way, so you
want to make sure you get it back in the same position, so
the leadscrew mount and pulleys line up with where they go.
Jon Elson
In my restoration thread, I noted that I took it off and there was little or no play front to back.
Also, I remember finding another post on another site and someone told the poster that it wasn't a good idea, but they'd never done it. The poster did it anyway and sold the machine before testing the alignment.
This post talks about alignment using various methods. Seems indicating across the faceplate would be a good start, but the ways need to be untwisted.
I found a 500+ page document that has a series of emails about headstock alignment. Seems that bed twist is usually the culprit, along with dirty mating surfaces. I copied and pasted the relevant posts in a Word doc and attached it.
So, IS this an issue? Anyone ever removed and reinstalled the headstock? Did you have any issues with it being misaligned? I'm asking because I'm going to sell the lathe after I take it apart and clean and paint it so I won't have a chance to bolt it down and check the alignment. I can tell the next owner to do it, and they would be wise to do it anyway, but I want to make sure. I'm guessing the dearth of information means it's not a big deal, and what little I did find seems to indicate that any misalignment is caused by dirty mating surfaces or a twisted bed, but I could be wrong.
