Does anyone know of a collet chuck and back plate for a Smithy 1440 lathe? Smithy does not make one. The lathe is great, just would like to have a collet chuck.
Thanks.
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Does anyone know of a collet chuck and back plate for a Smithy 1440 lathe? Smithy does not make one. The lathe is great, just would like to have a collet chuck.
Thanks.
Time to make your own backplate. Cast iron is the best material if you can find a slice
https://i210.photobucket.com/albums/...ps3e677d7d.jpg
There are a couple of ways to do this and I've done this before. The first step is to machine a recess fits the boss on your faceplate. The hard bit is to get the dimensions exact before removing the backing plate or you are no longer concentric.
So I decided to make a pattern piece by holding a slice of 160 mm dia cast iron in a 4 jaw chuck, machined a boss and testing the fit on the back of my 3 jaw. Once I had an exact fit, I chucked up the second piece and repeated the exercise but this time machined a recess that was an exact fit to the boss I had machined. Then marked the bolt positions and drilled and tapped some holes so I could mount the part to the lathe.
https://i210.photobucket.com/albums/...ps1d7b1212.jpg
Sort out some mounting holes
https://i210.photobucket.com/albums/...ps67a8bb6d.jpg
So now we can mount the part and machine it while its attached to the face plate
https://i210.photobucket.com/albums/...ps7beed8dc.jpg
So now you can machine the mounting plate to suite the back of your collet chuck
https://i210.photobucket.com/albums/...ps8fe98108.jpg
And finally mount the chuck which should have perfect alignment
Thanks so much for this tutorial on how to do it. Much appreciated.