Jim,

On Apr 6, 10:49 am, Bill Schwab wrote:
Jim,
...
On my lathe the compound handle hits the tailstock when turned
parallel to the ways.
Mine appears to be fine in that orientation, but I see where you are going.

It's only a problem for small, short parts running between centers. I
use collets if at all possible.

A 5C setup will appear, but not right away.



One thing that made me cringe was stepped block used in airplane
construction. They've apparently worked for decades, but it sure looked
like an crack waiting to happen.

Where are they used? My aircraft construction books are mainly
training manuals for WWII production workers. I don't plan to build an
airplane but there's a lot of generally useful metalworking info in
them.

It was a long time ago. I know who showed it to me, and AFAIK can still
contact him, which I should do. For now, my recollection is that they
were used to connect pieces of sheet metal onto spars or similar
structures. That's pushing quite a few cobwebs out of the way, so take
it for what it is worth.

Enjoy the books!



Generally the finish on the diameter is more critical so I rough the
length, finish the diameter, then risk a groove from re-establishing
the tool position on the shoulder.

It helps enormously that I almost always get to specify and design the
part, either for my home projects or

Same here. I design with the strengths and weaknesses of my machines
firmly in mind.


for an electrical engineer who
lets me do whatever I want after I slip "Young's Modulus is, uh, 29E6
for this steel" into the discussion.

Well done - just don't mention permitivity or you'll get an earful

Bill