New to Turning - Spindle Stock moves forward when Turning

[Braxtonatoraxto]

Just registered today - although I have been lurking for a little while.

I have purchased a second hand lathe a few weeks ago and have been turning a few things since. I was finishing turning out the inside of my first bowl - when I started hearing a grinding noise. I had a quick look around the motor, pulleys etc and it seemed like the top pulley (attached to the spindle) was rubbing against the bolts that were holding it in place. I tried a few small adjustments - but that seemed to only make it worse.

My question is - what would cause this? Is it something that would be caused by the pulleys being out of alignment? When I started the motor again, it turned freely - but it quickly ground down again and the spindle had noticeably moved forward (ie towards the tail stock).

Any thoughts or advice would be appreciated?

Thanks in advance.

[Treecycle]

Which brand of lathe is it and how is the speed adjusted (belt, lever, electronic)?
Are you able to attach some photos to give us a clearer idea of the setup.

[Braxtonatoraxto]

It is a 'Millers Falls' Brand - I bought it off Gumtree just as an introduction to Wood turning.

It is a 4 Speed Lathe running off a belt.

Can get more pics in the morning if that will help a 'diagnosis'.

Cheers.

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[Treecycle]

Some photos inside the headstock would be good.

[Willy Nelson]

I reckon the grub screws which hold the pulleys onto the shafts are loose.
There may also be a key way loose if it has one
Good Luck
Willy

[Braxtonatoraxto]

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These are the images from inside the headstock - not sure why they are uploading sideways.

Any help is appreciated - I have worked with wood in many forms since I was a young fella - but I am less helpful when it comes to metal and mechanical work! Plus I don't think I can suggest a new, bigger, upgraded lathe to my wife just yet.....even if she does love the work that I have done on this little lathe.

Thanks in advance.

If it's the grub screws - where would I find them in relation to this lathe?

[Woodturnerjosh]

You will usually find the grub screw at the bottom of one of the "V's" on the pulley. So if you take the belt off and turn the pulley by hand you should be able to spot it.
Sometimes (but not always) there will be one grub screw on top of another which acts like a lock, so it might be a good idea to take the grub screw out completely to check.
Hope that makes sense.

Josh

[Mobyturns]

It is a 'Millers Falls' Brand - I bought it off Gumtree just as an introduction to Wood turning.

It is a 4 Speed Lathe running off a belt.

Can get more pics in the morning if that will help a 'diagnosis'.

Cheers.



You are braver than than I am. The minimum speed of 810rpm is fast for medium to larger bowl turning blanks that are out of balance and personally I would not be trying to turn spindle stock of the size pictured on a lathe of that specification / construction. These are lightly built lathes so please be cautious.

[Mobyturns]

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Please stop using this lathe immediately for your own safety!!!!

There is no functional earth connection and the loose earth wires are an electrical hazard - this lathe is electrically unsafe!!!!

Please have a licensed electrician inspect the unit and make it safe.

[Braxtonatoraxto]

Those earth cables have just come off when the screw came loose when I took off the main housing. They will be reconnected when it is all put back together. You can see where they were connected just beside the switch box.

Thanks everyone for your advice though. The lathe had been working well until this issue; so I am still hoping it isn't too difficult to fix. Otherwise I will have to look at getting an upgrade earlier than I had hoped.

[Mobyturns]

Those earth cables have just come off when the screw came loose when I took off the main housing. They will be reconnected when it is all put back together. You can see where they were connected just beside the switch box.

Thanks everyone for your advice though. The lathe had been working well until this issue; so I am still hoping it isn't too difficult to fix. Otherwise I will have to look at getting an upgrade earlier than I had hoped.

Good to see you are aware of the faulty earth conn and will remedy that. Have a look for a used Vicmarc VL100 or a Woodfast 305 far better value for money in the long run than these sheet metal excuses for lathes. Sorry to sound harsh and to burst your bubble but these things should never have been on the market! They are way to light to turn substantial objects and certainly not items to the lathes "capacity" or more corectly "claimed capacity."

[Treecycle]

Looking at a manual for these types of lathes it appears that the only thing that holds the headstock shaft in is the pulley. Either the pulley sits right up against the back bearing or there is a spacer between the bearing and pulley to lock them in place. Here is a generic manual which sort of shows the assembly near the end, but very hard to see clearly. Maybe a spacer is missing.
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[Braxtonatoraxto]

Firstly - well done for finding that manual - I wouldn't have even hazarded a guess to where you found that on the mighty interwebs. I was wondering if there was a spacer that was there originally and had maybe been replaced/removed by the previous owner or something. Still that picture is extremely ambiguous and difficult to understand - I will have a look at some repair options this weekend and see if I can get it up and running. However, I think in the long term - I will need something bigger; 'Mobyturns' has already scared me enough - because I was turning a much bigger piece than what is shown in the original images (maybe I shouldn't admit to that?).

If enough people tell me that this lathe is dangerous for turning bigger items - that seems like pretty good evidence for the missus when I upgrade!!

Thanks for the advice and assistance - see what the weekend brings!

[Mobyturns]

Firstly - well done for finding that manual - I wouldn't have even hazarded a guess to where you found that on the mighty interwebs. I was wondering if there was a spacer that was there originally and had maybe been replaced/removed by the previous owner or something. Still that picture is extremely ambiguous and difficult to understand - I will have a look at some repair options this weekend and see if I can get it up and running. However, I think in the long term - I will need something bigger; 'Mobyturns' has already scared me enough - because I was turning a much bigger piece than what is shown in the original images (maybe I shouldn't admit to that?).

If enough people tell me that this lathe is dangerous for turning bigger items - that seems like pretty good evidence for the missus when I upgrade!!

Thanks for the advice and assistance - see what the weekend brings!

I really don't like raining on another persons parade but those lathes are pretty lightly built. Better to be a party pooper and to make you aware than sit back and say nothing while you go and get injured. Most experienced turners recommend that they be turned into platform sanders.


One thing that has got me intrigued is how did you mount a bowl blank on that lathe? The face plates that I have seen are pretty flimsy and the spindle thread is an odd size for chuck inserts.