Tailstock Multi-tool holder

I don't know of a source online, but I have a book that has plans for just such a tool holder. If I remember correctly (I don't have the book handy here at home, it is in my shop), the plans are for this tool to be attached to the tailstock with a Morse 2 taper.

The book is called THE AMATEUR`S LATHE and it is written by L. H. Sparey. I don't remember where I bought it, I think I ordered it directly from England. You can find it here

Two other places with info about this book:

Enco used to make those. It's basically a tailstock turret that fits into the ram of the existing tailstock. My turret lathe came with one, oddly enough, though that one happens to be sized for MT number one.

Jim

================================================== please reply to: JRR(zero) at yktvmv (dot) vnet (dot) ibm (dot) com ==================================================

Grizzly has 'em

For that kind of money, why bother making one? Abrasha

Sacrelidge! He's an infidel! A traitor to the concept of 'roll-yer-own.'

The answer, of course, is, for the fun of it!

Jim

================================================== please reply to: JRR(zero) at yktvmv (dot) vnet (dot) ibm (dot) com ==================================================

I've got one of those, and I hardly ever use it. On my 12" Clausing, it doesn't work very well except for light work -- e.g., in aluminum, plastic, brass. A #2 MT base just doesn't hack it. They're a poor man's turret and they don't come up to the rigidity of a real turret. However, if I were in the mood to "roll my own", I would opt for a real turret. That would not be significantly more difficult than a tailstock turret.

Boris

If you never use it, you should sell it to the OP. :)

I've seen how my enco unit was made, granted there are some precision surfaces on it but nothing that couldn't be done. The turret on my DSM-59 however seems to be pretty intricate, so much so that I would probably never try to make one of those from scratch.

Jim

================================================== please reply to: JRR(zero) at yktvmv (dot) vnet (dot) ibm (dot) com ==================================================

Beizer

I did say "hardly ever."

I agree that making a tailstock turret wouldn't be a "very" difficult project.

I was thinking of something a whole lot simpler than a full featured turret lathe turret. Basically, something that will fit on and lock to the ways, A dovetail and lead screw arrangement to permit controlled movement along the bed -- maybe something with a lever to engage the rack instead -- , topped off with a six sided, fairly massive turret at a fixed height. my point being that it doesn't seem to be a whole lot more work than building a tailstock turret but it would gain a lot in added rigidity. If I were serious though, I'd first try the used machinery guys to see if there's a parted out turret for my lathe available at a reasonable price. A turret lathe (or a turret for a lathe) makes a whole lot of sense if you're into some kind of production -- even limited production runs of a few dozen simple pieces. At least enough pieces that the design, setup, tooling, and diddling time are more than made up for the reduced production time. As a hobbyist, that's a relatively rare occurance for me -- were I doing production work -- it would be a constant requirement.

Boris