Is this detrimental?

[Bamban]

This is a beginner's question, I thought about putting it in the beginner's section, but since it is BP specific, maybe it might fit here better

I had to mount the rotary on the mill when I made the spiders for my lathe. Since this is my first rodeo with the rotary I kind of like it mounted, and I find more use for it as I train more on the mill, so I decided to leave it there. Plus the dang thing is heavy. Is having the vise on one end and the rotary on the other end detrimental to the machine, if I were to leave them both sort of semi permanently for?






Another question. As I mentioned this is the first time for me to mount a rotary, I clamped it on 3 sides, is this too much and did I do the clamping right? I could not clamp it like I did the vise, no 2 opposite mounting holes match up with the T slots.








Note how much cleaner the left side of the machine compared to the rest, I've been cleaning the decades long grime. Slowly....

 

[darkzero]

I personally do not like to leave heavy items hanging on the sides of the table like that to prevent possible sagging. But then again I don't have a BP & my table is not as thick. I suppose it might not cause the table to sag overtime but I feel better not leaving my super spacer on the table at all times, plus it gets in the way.

Another thought is having heavy items on the table all the time can accelerate wear on the ways in those areas. Super indexers like yours are much heavier than super spacers. Be sure to keep the ways properly lubed at all times.

It's fine to use your super indexer clamped like that but if you ever need to to use a tailstock with it, the tailstock will not line up on center of your super indexer unless you clamp the tailstock offset to the same side as well. Just thinking about that seems to be a setup nightmare.

My super spacer slots also did not line up with my table so I mounted it on a plate so I could mount it to the table slots. Finally I got sick of that & decided to machine the slots on my super spacer so I wouldn't have to use the adapter plate.

Super Spacer Adjustment

 

[barlow l]

Some say it's bad for the table, some say it does not matter. I remove all doubt and don't do it. I also find that whatever I have on the table becomes a chip magnet which all ways requires extra time to clean when needed.

If lifting is a problem, build a simple stand on casters at table height for the vice and rotary

 

[Terrywerm]

I find that I must agree with the others, I always remove my rotary table when it is not in use. When I am using the rotary table, the vise is removed. If I do not anticipate using the mill for an extended period of time, I remove everything from the table. Remounting and tramming the vise only takes minutes. Leaving items mounted on the table also tends to create a rust like stain on the mating surfaces, especially if you use coolant of any type, and it doesn't seem to matter how much you oil the table before mounting the vise, either. One last advantage to removing everything from the table is that it is soooo much easier to clean up!

 

[Bamban]

I personally do not like to leave heavy items hanging on the sides of the table like that to prevent possible sagging. But then again I don't have a BP & my table is not as thick. I suppose it might not cause the table to sag overtime but I feel better not leaving my super spacer on the table at all times, plus it gets in the way.

Another thought is having heavy items on the table all the time can accelerate wear on the ways in those areas. Super indexers like yours are much heavier than super spacers. Be sure to keep the ways properly lubed at all times.

It's fine to use your super indexer clamped like that but if you ever need to to use a tailstock with it, the tailstock will not line up on center of your super indexer unless you clamp the tailstock offset to the same side as well. Just thinking about that seems to be a setup nightmare.

My super spacer slots also did not line up with my table so I mounted it on a plate so I could mount it to the table slots. Finally I got sick of that & decided to machine the slots on my super spacer so I wouldn't have to use the adapter plate.

Super Spacer Adjustment

Thank you for the link. Now, I got a project to do. Right now I do not have a tail stock, have no idea how to size one. The rotary came with the mill when I bought it, minus the TS.

 

[darkzero]

Thank you for the link. Now, I got a project to do. Right now I do not have a tail stock, have no idea how to size one. The rotary came with the mill when I bought it, minus the TS.

No problem. Tailstocks are usually listed by size & will list the center height range. Judging by the pics I'm assuming yours is a 6" size. If so look for a 6" tailstock but be sure to verify the center height range also (they're adjustable). With your super indexer mounted on the table, measure the height from the table to the center of the chuck. Then look at the tail stock specs to see if that height is within range of the tail stock.

 

[Bamban]

No problem. Tailstocks are usually listed by size & will list the center height range. Judging by the pics I'm assuming yours is a 6" size. If so look for a 6" tailstock but be sure to verify the center height range also (they're adjustable). With your super indexer mounted on the table, measure the height from the table to the center of the chuck. Then look at the tail stock specs to see if that height is within range of the tail stock.

Thank you.

I needed one to hold the end when I drill/ream the gas port on my AR barrel.