Terry G wrote:
I picked up the lathe yesterday. It looked to be in good condition. It is
a Craftsman 101-17403 with 12" swing and 30" between centers.

It also has a 3/4" leadscrew. So would this be considered a later model?
So I am assuming a standard quick change gear box would fit. I will have to
do some testing with the leadscrew and see if it is going to be a problem.
The threads are all there, but the first 12 inches or so of threads are not
as square looking as the rest of the leadscrew. Everything else on the
lathe looks perfect. I'm taking it all apart tonight to de-grease and
remove all the metal shavings. It looks as if he used an air gun on it just
before I got there, so now there are fresh metal shavings everywhere!

I also want to change the belt that goes to the main spindle pulley. He has
an orange type of elastic snap together belt on it. I guess he didn't want
to take it apart to put on a new belt. It just feels sloppy.

One last thing, the 5" 3 jaw self centering chuck looks to be original. It
centers up pretty nicely, but it is about .003" off. I figured out which
jaw is causing the problem, and if I put in a .0025 to .0035 shim, it seems
to zero it up to within .0005". Is there a rule of thumb for how accurate
you need to be. Or in other words, what type of tolerances should I expect
to get from the rest of the machine? I am pretty picky, and I'll keep
playing with it until it is perfect, but I am not sure what perfect is. I'm
thinking of purchasing a new chuck, they are a bit pricey, but will I get
more accurate than .0005" right out of the box?

Thanks



Hi
If your chuck is at half a thou , stop . I doubt anything you can buy
for this lathe will do any better . To deal in smaller numbers you would
need a lathe that is a lot more ridgid then the Atlas . You think new
chucks are expensive , well wait until you price out a QC gearbox and
leadscrew . Really run the lathe a while first and see how often you
change gears . I seldom need to do more them shift the belt on mine .
The threading I do under 1/2 I use a tap and die set for and over 1/2 I
seldom need . When I do I change the gears which does not take much time
.. Yes I wish I had the QG but wanting and needing seem to be two
entirely different animals in my case . I have not had to deal with the
belts on mine but from what people post here the link belts are well
thought of , quieter and every bit as sturdy . So again I would say run
the lathe and see how you like it . Luck
Ken Cutt