Dead steady rest finger tips made of aluminium?

[tailstock4]

The three materials I’ve seen used on steady rests and follow rests are bronze, cast iron and ball bearings. The thing you have to remember is when two metals are sliding against each other, one is usually thought of as the sacrificial piece. In a steady rest, you’d prefer that any wear take place on the tips rather than the part. I mostly like to use bronze as it seems to give smooth results with a little more accuracy.

I do usually keep one of my lathes with a set of roller bearings. Sometimes there are situations where these are necessary. I usually make a posterboard collar to keep any stray chips out of the bearings. It just takes one to foul things up. In my shop my Pratt & Whitney 12c has two sets of fingers, one bronze and one roller. This makes for quicker changes when needed.

 

[Flynth]

They may be aluminum bronze, which is a good bearing material.

The spindle bearings in the old Hendey lathes were made of aluminum bronze.

-Bear

Isn't aluminium bronze yellow?

The three materials I’ve seen used on steady rests and follow rests are bronze, cast iron and ball bearings. The thing you have to remember is when two metals are sliding against each other, one is usually thought of as the sacrificial piece. In a steady rest, you’d prefer that any wear take place on the tips rather than the part. I mostly like to use bronze as it seems to give smooth results with a little more accuracy.

I do usually keep one of my lathes with a set of roller bearings. Sometimes there are situations where these are necessary. I usually make a posterboard collar to keep any stray chips out of the bearings. It just takes one to foul things up. In my shop my Pratt & Whitney 12c has two sets of fingers, one bronze and one roller. This makes for quicker changes when needed.

View attachment 436662

That's a nice steady rest

 

[682bear]

Isn't aluminium bronze yellow?

Aluminum bronze spindle bearing...



-Bear

 

[ltlvt]

I'm here to point out the turd in the punchbowl. Why worry about the bearing surface. An old gunsmith trick is to take a piece of emery cloth slightly larger than the diameter being machined. Oil the spot on the shaft and oil the smooth side of the emery cloth. Wrap the smooth side around the shaft and at the same time adjust the steady fingers to the abrasive side of the emery cloth. When in use the cloth will prevent marking of the shaft and the abrasive will prevent the cloth from spinning. Yes, I know this is Blasphemy but why beat the horse to death when you can just teach it a new trick? And that is my story.

 

[benmychree]

One need not be a gunsmith to know that trick, I might have even learned it in high school, or as an apprentice; take it one step further, and have the piece of emery cloth left long enough to clamp the tails in the steady rest clamp joint., the excess can be easily used for polishing jobs later.

 

[ltlvt]

One need not be a gunsmith to know that trick, I might have even learned it in high school, or as an apprentice; take it one step further and have the piece of emery cloth left long enough to clamp the tails in the steady rest clamp joint., the excess can be easily used for polishing jobs later.

Well itis good to know someone else has been to the punch bowl. lol I am no gunsmith but i did learn the trick from a gunsmith.

 

[MrWhoopee]

I'm here to point out the turd in the punchbowl. Why worry about the bearing surface. An old gunsmith trick is to take a piece of emery cloth slightly larger than the diameter being machined. Oil the spot on the shaft and oil the smooth side of the emery cloth. Wrap the smooth side around the shaft and at the same time adjust the steady fingers to the abrasive side of the emery cloth. When in use the cloth will prevent marking of the shaft and the abrasive will prevent the cloth from spinning. Yes, I know this is Blasphemy but why beat the horse to death when you can just teach it a new trick? And that is my story.

Learned it from Fred, was commonly used in his shop.

 

[Shotgun]

The finger are commonly bronze. . .
But what if bronze is the material your turning?

 

[ltlvt]

The finger are commonly bronze. . .
But what if bronze is the material your turning?

See above