HALF NUT
The half nut lever is located under the left hand side apron as shown in
Figure 21.
This handle may be
engaged and disengaged while the machine is still running and while making a cut. Move the lever to the
down position and the half nut is engaged. Because the threads of the nut and
Lead Screw
will not always
be aligned, engaging the half nut may require waiting until they are. Do not force the handle. Apply light
pressure to the handle and when the threads are aligned the handle will engage.
Figure 21.
The half nut lever and carriage
CARRIAGE LOCK
The carriage lock lever is located under the right hand side of the apron as shown in
Figure 21.
This
allows the carriage to be locked in place for precision facing operations while using the lathe or to make a
set in a milling operation more rigid, among other things.
CARRRIAGE CONTROLS
The lathe has 3 handles for manual control of the tool bit during machining operations. One full turn on
the cross slide or longitudinal hand cranks will produce 0.100” (one tenth of an inch) of motion. The cross
slide and apron crank have dials with divisions showing relative motion. The compound has a direct
reading scale on its side which is calibrated in 1 millimeter increments. The following is a description of
each slide and their measuring characteristics.
Compound Slide –
This slide is adjustable to any angle. By loosening the bolts at the swivel base as
shown in
Figure 22,
the compound may pivot to any angle relative to the turning axis of the lathe spindle.
This feature allows tapered cuts to be produced on a workpiece, and when set to 60º, is helpful in cutting
threads, etc. The scale on the side of the slide has divisions in millimeters and is 80 millimeters long.
Each line marks 1 millimeter (or about 0.03937”). The tool post is mounted to the top of the compound
slide and when removed allows the slide to be used as a vice.
Figure 22.
Changing the angle on compound.
Chester UK Model B
16
