Need steady rest, ?
- Thread starter ron3
- Start date
Post a picture of your lathe and I could probably make suggestions on the easiest way to do it.
Joey, you forgot to mention a crossslide/carriage. I once saw a wood lathe like this that had a drill press milling vice attached to the bed for cue repair...
While the OP can choose go this route, almost anyone on here will refer you to a repair lathe specifically designed for cues (Hightower, Midamerica, or other taig based lathe), Unique Products, or Porper. It will probably save you hours of headache and money.
While the OP can choose go this route, almost anyone on here will refer you to a repair lathe specifically designed for cues (Hightower, Midamerica, or other taig based lathe), Unique Products, or Porper. It will probably save you hours of headache and money.
You can use a razor/knife/chisel if you're skilled enough.
People with a good deal of experience are telling you that you'll spend more cobbling together a half-assed workaround to make the wrong machine maybe do what you want than you will finding the right machine at the right price. But obviously you are smarter than them so I'm kind of confused as to why you bother posting to begin with.
TW
:lol: Then there are folks who are both smart and frugal, perhaps that's what confuses you.
Joey, did yall look at the steady rest the OP mentioned in the first post ? It looks fine, and maybe something others will find interesting.
For the folks with poor google-fu : http://www.oneway.ca/steadyrests/spindle_steady.htm
The guy is looking to do tips and ferrules. There are methods. I appreciate that live threading on a proper lathe (an engine lathe, NOT a little cue lathe) is ideal but lots of shots can be taken with a cue that has a ferrule that is a simple sleeve. Making the tenon on a wood lathe is entirely possible, by hand or using a simple cross-slide arrangement (a $50 touch, not that much of an expense).
And Ron, appreciate that these guys argue about lots of stuff and typically think that a well equiped shop is the only way to go. Good luck with your projects.
Dave
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Very well said DAve.
I have one of those steady rests. They are made well, but they do wobble if the shaft has any substantial wobble to it. Butts are worst due to the taper. The wheels are soft, but can still leave grooves if there is a standard taper. I recommend using a 3 point steady rest with a 1-3/8" ID bearing centered in it, as this is the most ridgid you'll get and you can use the collets from Chris without a problem.
Here is a link, and I'll post a pic of mine in a bit. http://www.woodcraft.com/Product/145095/WoodRiver-Spindle-Steady-Rest.aspx
Dave
I have one of those steady rests. They are made well, but they do wobble if the shaft has any substantial wobble to it. Butts are worst due to the taper. The wheels are soft, but can still leave grooves if there is a standard taper. I recommend using a 3 point steady rest with a 1-3/8" ID bearing centered in it, as this is the most ridgid you'll get and you can use the collets from Chris without a problem.
Here is a link, and I'll post a pic of mine in a bit. http://www.woodcraft.com/Product/145095/WoodRiver-Spindle-Steady-Rest.aspx
Dave
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I am very sorry for the posting , and can assure you it will not happen again. WOw!
Ron,
I see where you are going. If you can mount a steady rest on the bed and chuck the headstock you could get the job done but I think you will need to make some tapered collets that would fit into a bearing on the steady rest so the shafts are protected.
You could also purchase a cross life from little machineshop.com and make a mounting fixture so you could have control over a tool so you don't have to use the tool rest.
I have 9 lathes in my shop that are dedicated for certin purposes and some of the guys here have shops with a lot of machines.
If you want to be creative a modify your maching, go for it and take every thing with a grain of salt. You have got some good advice but unfortunately you will have to machine a custom steady rest and it might be cheaper to buy a mini lathe.
Good luck,
Rick
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Dave - I started with NOTHING and built all my original tools, pretty much from scratch. As I progressed I came to realize that professional results come from professional skills AND professional equipment. The OP is not looking for a way to mess around with his own cue for fun, he almost certainly intends to work on other people's cues and presumably charge money for that service.
When I was in my teens I was riding with a friend and we got a flat tire. He had a spare, but the only "tools" he had were a bumper jack with no handle and a pair of Vice Grips. We managed to loosen the lug nuts with the vice grips, using the hollow upright stem of the jack as an extension bar for leverage. We then jacked up the car, using the handle of the Vice Grips to pump the jack mechanism. We changed the tire, reversed the process, and drove on our way.
From that experience I learned it was possible to do almost anything with almost nothing... but I would never - never, never, never - take my car to a "tire shop" that only had some Vice Grips and a bumper jack. It's one thing to hack around on your own cue with the wrong tools, but it's a whole other prospect to take in someone else's cue and work on it with anything less than professional equipment.
If you think I'm wrong about that please take you favorite shaft and send it to this guy so he can **** around with it trying to make a wood lathe do the job of a cue lathe.
TW
(PS: What you didn't consider is that for the cost of a chuck, Oneway steady rest, and a few other minor requirements the OP could probably buy one of the small "lathes" being made specifically for replacing tips and ferrules. Also, please remember to take before-and-after photos of your shaft when you have him work on it.)
As I said before I am very sorry I started this thread. I am a 68 year old retired guy that happens to own a wood lathe and wanted to use it to put tips and maybe a furrel on my own cues. I have never done nor do I ever intend to repair anyone's cue other than my own.
" ... almost certainly intends to work on other people's cues and presumably charge money for that service. " seems like a very large assumption on your part. I certainly did not get that impression TW. Maybe you have developed mind reading skill, although I sincerely doubt that :lol:
TW, I too have built tools, including my first metal lathe, from aluminum castings I poured, using patterns I made by hand .... whoopdie-doo for me too. The OP seemingly wants to tweak his wood lathe and who are you, one who admits above to ingeneous use of what-is-at-hand, to tell him otherwise ? (I know my own anwser to that, you are nobody to tell him).
And you have no clue as to what I considered Thomas. As I said, you aint no mind reader (OK, maybe you have some understanding of you own ... maybe).
BTW, I do much of my own work ... way cheaper, faster, and more satisfying than risk some cuemaker hold my shaft :lol:
Dave
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steady rest
Try Harbor Frieght they sell them to fit your lathe
Try Harbor Frieght they sell them to fit your lathe