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Kuffy
22nd November 2016, 02:11 PM
Anyone know where I can get a LH thread faceplate M30x3.5?

I want it for turning (possibly just edge sanding if the motor is too weak to let me cut) ~500mm lazy susan's on the outboard side of my little lathe.

The diameter of the plate isn't too much of a concern for me, anything 4" or above will be good nuff.

Thanks

Pat
22nd November 2016, 02:28 PM
Vermec, vicmarc & nova all have left hand inserts. Match the insert to your faceplate/chuck.

Kuffy
22nd November 2016, 02:35 PM
I don't think I can get a LH insert for my no name chuck, I can get one machined up. But even if I did, what stops the chuck from unwinding itself when my tools are controlled by that guy which likes to dig in and catch more often than not?

Pat
22nd November 2016, 02:40 PM
Shannon, the grub screw locks the insert to the chuck. Ensuring that the grub screw is there in the first place is a good idea. If your chuck does not have this facility, don't use it for LH/Outboard turning as life gets very interesting, very quickly :C

I also drill and tap a hole for a secondary grub screw to lock the insert onto the threads.

Woodfast also have LH inserts.

Kuffy
22nd November 2016, 02:53 PM
My chuck/insert doesn't have locking grub screws and because I don't need them for inboard turning, I didn't give it any thought. I just checked woodfast's catalog, and sure enough they have 115mm M30x3.5 LH faceplates. winner winner chicken dinner :D I knew there had to be an easy answer out there somewhere. Thanks Pat.

turnerted
22nd November 2016, 03:22 PM
Another alternative is to just weld a M30 3.5 LH nut to a steel disc . I had no trouble these nuts .
Ted

Kuffy
22nd November 2016, 06:15 PM
awww nutz. Just got a reply back from woodfast and he said they dont have any LH face plates in stock and unsure as to when or if they will.

Ted, your idea of a welded LH nut and steel discs is really good, but I don't have a welder. I have tried using epoxy as a substitute for weld in the past, but it just doesn't work for me. I will give some thought as to how I can use a LH 30x3.5 nut with some MDF discs to use that as a faceplate just for sanding a routed edge on these lazy susans I am making.

chambezio
22nd November 2016, 06:32 PM
Kuffy, take your dilemma to the Metalwork Forum. Those chaps over there are just as good as the fellas here (most of them are double dippers) There is probably some one near to your location who could help you out. Even if you bought a suitable left hand nut one of those blokes could weld it for you. It would be a better finish to actually cut the tread into the face plate and trim/square it on a metal lathe.

powderpost
22nd November 2016, 10:06 PM
Try Woodfast in Adelaide.

Jim

chucky
23rd November 2016, 01:34 PM
use an old GMC lathe or similar unit and remove bars, attach wooden backing disc to the face plate, stick velco onto disc for sanding discs. EASY AS THAT

Kuffy
23rd November 2016, 03:45 PM
Jim, I emailed woodfast about a LH faceplate and they said they had none in stock and unsure if/when they ever will again.

I think I have decided to mount these 500mm lazy susans to my lathe's hand wheel somehow. Maybe even just with double sided sticky tape. I'll use that for sanding the edges that I profiled with a router. It should work, and if not it will just fall to the floor, no dramas either way.

Kuffy
26th November 2016, 04:42 PM
So I gave it a little bit more thought, and after wandering around the shed looking for something else I came across a length of 1/2" threaded rod. So the lightbulb went off in my head and I came up with something which worked out nearly perfect.

Starting with the LH thread handwheel that I have my lathe, I made a circle out of MDF which fits inside the outer recess of the handwheel and therefore picks up dead center of the spindle for me. Drilled a hole in the mdf circle slightly undersize to accept the threaded rod, and I used the rod to thread itself into the small circle. Attached a washer and nut and locktite it on. Though thinking about it now, it probably would have been wise to drill a locking grub screw into it, but I only just thought of that and it is too late now. The threaded rod will pass all the way through the hollow spindle and I will lock it in using another Nut/washer.
400527


Then I made a bigger circle ~250mm diameter out of 18mm MDF and cut a recess for the nut and washer to fit snug as a bug in a rug and epoxy'ed the nut housing and PVA'ed the rest to the smaller MDF circle.
400528400529

I probably could have left it there, but I decided to add yet another bigger MDF disc to bring the diameter up to ~350mm.
400530

I gave it a quick spin at the lowest speed on my lathe and it spins quite nicely. There is a slight amount of runout at the edge of the bigger disc. I'd guesstimate about 0.5mm between the high and low. Since I will just be using this to sand the edges of some profiled edges made by a router/router trammel, the small amount of runout at low speed isn't an issue for me.

I will drill a 6mm hole absolute dead center on the face of the big disc to hold a short length of dowel so that I can drill a matching hole in the underside of the lazy susans I am making so I can get good center registration when mounting the lazy susan workpieces to faceplate. I plan to attach the workpieces just with some double sided sticky tape. if that doesn't work, I will screw the workpiece to the faceplate at ~290diameter so the lazy susan bearing covers up the holes.

bueller
26th November 2016, 04:50 PM
If you do decide to keep looking for a retail option then email Vicmarc. Marco is very helpful and if they don't have stock they'll probably be able to make it.

It's actually something I need to do soon as well, I have an outboard sanding rest for my lathe but no plate for that side of the headstock.

Kuffy
26th November 2016, 05:17 PM
Yeah I would like a plain jane 6" LH thread faceplate which attaches directly to the spindle. One day I might find one. But until then, this rig should serve me well for sanding the edges of circles, lazy susans, small side tables etc. Only cost me 5bux in threaded rod which I didn't know I had and some MDF offcuts which were saved from the bin during a quick cleanup of the shed this morning.

bueller
26th November 2016, 07:09 PM
Yeah I would like a plain jane 6" LH thread faceplate which attaches directly to the spindle. One day I might find one. But until then, this rig should serve me well for sanding the edges of circles, lazy susans, small side tables etc. Only cost me 5bux in threaded rod which I didn't know I had and some MDF offcuts which were saved from the bin during a quick cleanup of the shed this morning.
It's a good idea for sure! I love a bit of ingenuity [emoji1]

chuck1
4th December 2016, 04:21 PM
Not sure of the brand but I bought a face plate from trend timbers and it has an insert cost about 40 dollars.

Rod Gilbert
4th December 2016, 10:10 PM
My Tough lathe (which became woodfast) has a 200mm and 100mm r/hand thread faceplate and a 200mm witch has a left and right handed thread in it and can be used on either end of the head stock I don't know if a like product is available now but they must be out there but probably easier to get something made from scratch.
Regards Rod.

Kuffy
4th December 2016, 10:15 PM
how does the faceplate with both LH and RH threads work? Is one end of the spindle smaller than the other end?

powderpost
4th December 2016, 11:11 PM
I have a number of lace plates with both right and left hand threads in them. The outboard thread is left hand and this allows me to turn the same project either or both inboard or outboard, very hand at times.

Jim

Paul39
5th December 2016, 04:49 AM
how does the faceplate with both LH and RH threads work? Is one end of the spindle smaller than the other end?

When I bought the Oneway Stronghold chuck for my Woodfast I asked for a 1 1/4 X 8 RH adapter, which is what the box said.

When I got home, 75 miles away from the store, the adapter was a 1 1/4 X 8 RH / LH. It works fine, but I have to hold my mouth just right to get it to start to thread on to the spindle. As it is the only chuck that fits on the Woodfast and is used for making big bowls, I take it off only every year or so to clean and lubricate the spindle threads and put it back on.

The RH / LH internal threads look really strange.

Mobyturns
5th December 2016, 07:27 AM
how does the faceplate with both LH and RH threads work? Is one end of the spindle smaller than the other end?

Both threads are milled into the insert. It looks a mess inside but they do work. I have one for my Vicmarc VM90 chucks for the Nova Mercury lathe. As Paul says you just have to take a little care starting them on the spindle thread.

clear out
5th December 2016, 08:48 AM
My Tough lathe (which became woodfast) has a 200mm and 100mm r/hand thread faceplate and a 200mm witch has a left and right handed thread in it and can be used on either end of the head stock I don't know if a like product is available now but they must be out there but probably easier to get something made from scratch.
Regards Rod.

These early lathes have a smaller spindle size than the later Woodfast one needed.
Hyco became Woodfast.
I've never seen a double thread on a Woodfast or Hyco lathe, they definitely had left hand faceplates available.
That sure sounds like a Tough innovation.
No idea what became of Tough, it was WA based wasn't it?
H.

Pirate323i
6th December 2016, 06:41 AM
If you are wanting to make one without a welder, you could drill and tap three holes into the face of a LH nut (M30 is pretty big, so plenty of room for a decent thread/bolt) and then bolt a plate on with countersunk/counterbored bolts...

Looks like you gave a very usable solution though! (However, why did you make the nut a snug fit in the next layer of MDF? Wont that risk unwinding?)

All the best!

powderpost
10th December 2016, 08:22 PM
I've never seen a double thread on a Woodfast or Hyco lathe, they definitely had left hand faceplates available.
That sure sounds like a Tough innovation.

I have two 300mm aluminium face plates (sanding discs), one 200mm steel face plate and two 80mm steel face plates all genuine Woodfast products made in Australia. All with right and left hand threads.


Jim

bueller
10th December 2016, 09:42 PM
No idea what became of Tough, it was WA based wasn't it?
H.
IIRC they were based out of Bentley in WA and they went under. In saying that I'm sure I remember hearing they sold all their stock and parts to bloke over east, can't remember his name though.