Need Help Identifying Steady Rest

If you are careful to provide the dimensions you have already measured, then you shouldn't have any trouble selling it e.g. on ebay. It would be nice to mention whether the castings are iron or aluminum. You're going to need some luck to find out what lathe that came off of. If the castings are aluminum then I bet it came off an import, the way those adjusters work. - GWE

Grant,

Thanks very much for the input.

These castings are heavy gray cast iron. Magnet sticks nicely. This rest weighs 51.4 lbs., which is just about twice the weight of my

The 'fingers' are 1.250 inch diameter, were turned on centers and are an extremely nice fit in their bores, even with no tension on the locks. The locks press in on the sides of the fingers in a gib or tapered wedge manner.

I liked the large fingers, figured it would be a great candidate for roller bearings. I may yet mill the bottom off of this thing and kludge on something to mate with one of my lathes.

Maybe E. European import?

I was hoping someone here might recognize it as similar to one they used on brand 'x'.

Thanks again, Jess

Minor Update regarding hardware - the screws for the adjusters are

Original color of the rest was probably blue - gray (or is it called gray - blue, never can remember - you know a color similar to the old South Bends and Monarchs.

Thanks, Jess

Oddly enough..I have one nearly identical that came with my 15" Clausing Cholchester

Shrug

Gunner

"Pax Americana is a philosophy. Hardly an empire. Making sure other people play nice and dont kill each other (and us) off in job lots is hardly empire building, particularly when you give them self determination under "play nice" rules.

Think of it as having your older brother knock the shit out of you for torturing the cat." Gunner

Gunner,

Thanks for the help. I don't guess Clausing ever made a 16, did they?

Jess

No..they made a 15 and a 17 though. How did you determine it was from a 16" lathe ? Measure to the center of the steady, from the flat way?

Gunner

"Pax Americana is a philosophy. Hardly an empire. Making sure other people play nice and dont kill each other (and us) off in job lots is hardly empire building, particularly when you give them self determination under "play nice" rules.

Think of it as having your older brother knock the shit out of you for torturing the cat." Gunner

Hmmm, Thanks for the help, Gunner. You've got me thinking now. I had measured the vertical difference between the flat way and the center level, not the diagonal distance from the rest's center point.

Ok, if we're talking in terms of swing over the flat from center, its about 8&1/2 (just looking real quick). The swing over the vee way is just 'bout 8&1/2" as well, do you think this thing might be right for the 17" Colchester?

I wonder where I could find some bed / center dimensions for the 17" Colchester? Could probably rule it in or out pretty fast that way.

That 31-18 stamping on the top of the lower half mating surface has always worried me. Keep thinking this might fit some machine known as an 18" swing.

Thanks again for all the help. This is one of those things that just kind of bugs me (not knowing what machine it fits).

I guess its just because I've had to outfit so many bare machines, I bet there is a fellow metal turner somewhere out there that needs this steady. Once, when business needs dictated it, and I had no time to look around for a used steady (nor the time to make one) , I paid $750. for one that isn't half as good as this orphaned one, in terms of design or worksmanship.

Jess

Leigh at MarMachine has a Colchester 17", along with a LaBlond.

snipped-for-privacy@aol.com

Perhaps he would measure the features of both, and you could rule out (or not) both

I know exactly what you are going through...Ive a couple generic steady rests collecting dust on the shelves myself. I was able to ID the Logans, South Bends and Atlas ones and find homes for them.

One of remainder is going to become a steady for the Hardinge HLV-H sometime this winter.

Gunner

Probably off an American lathe, then. Nobody else on the planet has been so stupid as to use 13 TPI - the std UNC thread pitch. Ever tried screwcutting one? Yecch. BSW is 12 TPI, piece of cake.....

I have a very old Smith-Drum lathe with 1/2-13 bolts all over it. Funnily enough I got a steady rest with it - that doesn't fit. One of these days I'll do what you're doing, then probably sell it.

PDW

Just a quick update note -

Updated the info page on the steady rest, includes a link to a new drawing showing dimensions. Working theory right now is that this thing is for a 17" Clausing Colchester lathe...

Thanks,

Jess

IRRC...1984

Gunner

Confronting Liberals with the facts of reality is very much akin to clubbing baby seals. It gets boring after a while, but because Liberals are so stupid it is easy work." Steven M. Barry

Update: Have identified the steady rest as fitting a 16" Swing B Model Pratt & Whitney lathe. Thanks again for the help, guys (especially Gunner and Gant!). Jess