Hi all,

I've got this neat old steady rest, and I've had it for years, without
ever knowing what it originally fit, and well, was hoping to get some
help with its identification from some of you old (and / or new) hands
here in the group.

Here is the link to a picture and some dimensions / details. No spam
at this link, just info. on the rest.

http://www.indiancreekprecision.com/steadyrest.html

I believe it would fit a lathe with a swing of 16".
Its a very well made, heavy and rigid rest, I wish all steadies were
made this way. I love the adjusters on this thing.

I have thought about copying this pattern to make a 'jr' version of it
for my smaller lathe.

Anyway,
Thanks for any help.
Jess

Jess wrote:

I've got this neat old steady rest, and I've had it for years, without
ever knowing what it originally fit, and well, was hoping to get some
help with its identification from some of you old (and / or new) hands
here in the group.

Here is the link to a picture and some dimensions / details. No spam
at this link, just info. on the rest.

http://www.indiancreekprecision.com/steadyrest.html

I believe it would fit a lathe with a swing of 16".
Its a very well made, heavy and rigid rest, I wish all steadies were
made this way. I love the adjusters on this thing.

I have thought about copying this pattern to make a 'jr' version of it
for my smaller lathe.

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

On Fri, 30 Sep 2005 07:29:51 -0700, Grant Erwin
wrote:

Jess wrote:

I've got this neat old steady rest, snip
need help with identifying its 'parent' machine
http://www.indiancreekprecision.com/steadyrest.html

snip It would be nice to
mention whether the castings are iron or aluminum. snip - 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
16" South Bend Steady rest.

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

On Fri, 30 Sep 2005 20:27:59 -0500, Jess
wrote:

On Fri, 30 Sep 2005 07:29:51 -0700, Grant Erwin
wrote:

Jess wrote:

I've got this neat old steady rest, snip
need help with identifying its 'parent' machine
http://www.indiancreekprecision.com/steadyrest.html

Minor Update regarding hardware - the screws for the adjusters are
1/2-13 tpi
The hold down screw is 3/4-10 tpi
The banjo bolt for the swing - open feature is 1/2 - 13 tpi

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

On Fri, 30 Sep 2005 20:27:59 -0500, Jess
wrote:

On Fri, 30 Sep 2005 07:29:51 -0700, Grant Erwin
wrote:

Jess wrote:

I've got this neat old steady rest, snip
need help with identifying its 'parent' machine
http://www.indiancreekprecision.com/steadyrest.html

snip It would be nice to
mention whether the castings are iron or aluminum. snip - 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
16" South Bend Steady rest.

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

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 **** out of you
for torturing the cat." Gunner

On Sat, 01 Oct 2005 14:03:03 GMT, Gunner Asch
wrote:

On Fri, 30 Sep 2005 20:27:59 -0500, Jess
wrote:

On Fri, 30 Sep 2005 07:29:51 -0700, Grant Erwin
wrote:

Jess wrote:

I've got this neat old steady rest, snip
need help with identifying its 'parent' machine
http://www.indiancreekprecision.com/steadyrest.html

snip It would be nice to
mention whether the castings are iron or aluminum. snip - 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
16" South Bend Steady rest.

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

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

Shrug

Gunner
snip
Gunner,

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


Jess

On Sat, 01 Oct 2005 15:21:01 -0500, Jess
wrote:

On Sat, 01 Oct 2005 14:03:03 GMT, Gunner Asch
wrote:

On Fri, 30 Sep 2005 20:27:59 -0500, Jess
wrote:

On Fri, 30 Sep 2005 07:29:51 -0700, Grant Erwin
wrote:

Jess wrote:

I've got this neat old steady rest, snip
need help with identifying its 'parent' machine
http://www.indiancreekprecision.com/steadyrest.html

snip It would be nice to
mention whether the castings are iron or aluminum. snip - 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
16" South Bend Steady rest.

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

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

Shrug

Gunner
snip
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 **** out of you
for torturing the cat." Gunner

On Sat, 01 Oct 2005 21:38:51 GMT, Gunner Asch
wrote:

On Sat, 01 Oct 2005 15:21:01 -0500, Jess
wrote:

On Sat, 01 Oct 2005 14:03:03 GMT, Gunner Asch
wrote:

On Fri, 30 Sep 2005 20:27:59 -0500, Jess
wrote:

On Fri, 30 Sep 2005 07:29:51 -0700, Grant Erwin
wrote:

Jess wrote:

I've got this neat old steady rest, snip
need help with identifying its 'parent' machine
http://www.indiancreekprecision.com/steadyrest.html
snip

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

Shrug

Gunner
snip
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
snip

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

On Sat, 01 Oct 2005 19:59:41 -0500, Jess
wrote:

On Sat, 01 Oct 2005 21:38:51 GMT, Gunner Asch
wrote:

On Sat, 01 Oct 2005 15:21:01 -0500, Jess
wrote:

On Sat, 01 Oct 2005 14:03:03 GMT, Gunner Asch
wrote:

On Fri, 30 Sep 2005 20:27:59 -0500, Jess
wrote:

On Fri, 30 Sep 2005 07:29:51 -0700, Grant Erwin
wrote:

Jess wrote:

I've got this neat old steady rest, snip
need help with identifying its 'parent' machine
http://www.indiancreekprecision.com/steadyrest.html
snip

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

Shrug

Gunner
snip
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
snip

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.



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

In article , Jess
wrote:

On Fri, 30 Sep 2005 20:27:59 -0500, Jess
wrote:

On Fri, 30 Sep 2005 07:29:51 -0700, Grant Erwin
wrote:

Jess wrote:

I've got this neat old steady rest, snip
need help with identifying its 'parent' machine
http://www.indiancreekprecision.com/steadyrest.html

Minor Update regarding hardware - the screws for the adjusters are
1/2-13 tpi
The hold down screw is 3/4-10 tpi
The banjo bolt for the swing - open feature is 1/2 - 13 tpi

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...

http://www.indiancreekprecision.com/steadyrest.html

http://www.indiancreekprecision.com/dimensions

Gunner, what vintage is your 15" machine?

Thanks,

Jess

On Mon, 03 Oct 2005 19:59:44 -0500, Jess
wrote:


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...

http://www.indiancreekprecision.com/steadyrest.html

http://www.indiancreekprecision.com/dimensions

Gunner, what vintage is your 15" machine?

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

On Tue, 04 Oct 2005 07:41:05 GMT, Gunner Asch
wrote:


Gunner, what vintage is your 15" machine?

Thanks,

Jess

IRRC...1984

Gunner
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