Grrr...%$*@#...Nooo!

[Charles Henderson]

A couple weeks ago I lucked into a free Delta 46-700. It is worse to have loved and lost...

Granted, I've spent every spare second on it in those two weeks. Still, I can't believe it BROKE DOWN ALREADY. I went to my shop yesterday and put a blank between centers (I just ordered my $150 chuck :mad only to find out that the headstock is suddenly out of whack. I roughed out the blank and it kept bouncing the tool back at me. I took apart the plastic cover and looked closely. I can't tell what is wrong. I have found some stuff in the various forums that the bearings, spindle, or pulley may be the culprit. I have no warranty, and after buying my chuck I have no $$$. The last thing I had on there was perfect, and I did NOT overtighten the tailstock. This is apparently a popular lathe, so please, somebody help me. Any advice is welcome, the lesser the cost the higher my interest (poverty is great, eh?). I know a guy with a machine shop that might give me a discount if he can fabricate the parts.

 

[MichaelMouse]

Spindle is pretty easy to check. Set up your toolrest so you can just touch a piece of wood against the spindle as you rotate it. Should be in contact all the way around.

Bearings generally reveal themselves by sound and can be checked with your stethescope or by the old mechanic's trick of putting a stick to the bearing and then to your ear to "hear" the rumble or scrape. Really bad ones flop, and can be felt through the spindle.

Now the chuck and insert can easily be the problem. If the spindle runs true, do the same type of test with the jaws fully closed. If it runs out, probably need to recheck the insert. Or, you might have fooled yourself into believing you had a firm mate of jaws to piece, when you didn't. Do the easy checks first, then work your way up, same as with any troubleshooting sequence.

 

[john lucas]

I had that Delta. The pulleys cause a lot of vibration. They come loose and it's kind of a hassle to get them back in the correct position because there's a spring attached that pushed the moveable pulley in. That causes vibration but I don't think it would cause the tool to be kicked away. I'm not sure what you mean by that because even bad bearings won't do that, they just cause chatter and vibration.

 

[Mark Mandell]

Isn't that a reeves-drive with rotating HS machine?

Sounds like the headstock has come loose on the bed.

 

[TEK]

simple things?

Have you checked all the simple things it could be? Does the lathe have a reverse switch? Could it accidentally be put in reverse? Hmmm? Why would I think of something like that? You don't think that's happened to me do you? Are you new to turning? An out of round piece will bounce the tool back if The tool isn't at a good cutting angle or is very dull. Have you changed from having the wood oriented from spindle orientation to faceplate orientation? And not changed your cutting technique? My point is it can be other things than the lathe itself and you sound new to turning. Try to determine if you are doing anything different on this piece than the last one.

 

[underdog]

I wonder if there's a club nearby? I'm sure a club member would be glad to come over and give a hand. I know I would.

Check the directory and give someone a call, if they're nearby.

 

[penmaker]

I used to own one of these.I had to rebuild the reeves drive twice because of the pulleys falling apart. I felt the metal used for the pulleys was too soft and would not stand up to even moderate use. Delta was very good about sending replacement parts. After rebuilding it for the second time I sold it. I did tell the buyer about my problems.

 

[Charles Henderson]

Thanks y'all

I spent a while troubleshooting this morning. I tried to true up the last piece I had on there, and it wasn't as bad it was last night. I think half of it was due to a dull roughing gouge, but it was still out a bit. I found that the rear bearing retaining ring was not seated properly, and neither was the bearing. Easy fix, thank goodness. I don't understand how it ran just fine for 40+ hours, and all the sudden developed a problem. Anyhow, I'm just glad I'm back up and running.

By the way, I don't even have the chuck yet, it is still in the mail.

 

[Bill Boehme]

I spent a while troubleshooting this morning. I tried to true up the last piece I had on there, and it wasn't as bad it was last night. I think half of it was due to a dull roughing gouge, but it was still out a bit. I found that the rear bearing retaining ring was not seated properly, and neither was the bearing. Easy fix, thank goodness. I don't understand how it ran just fine for 40+ hours, and all the sudden developed a problem. Anyhow, I'm just glad I'm back up and running.

By the way, I don't even have the chuck yet, it is still in the mail.

I have the Delta 46-715 and I have a friend who has the same model as your lathe. I can't envision any problem involving the Reeves drive or bearings that could be related to the problem that you are having. However, I can envision a problem related to a badly damaged Morse taper and slipping drive center giving you such problems. Also, Mark's suggestion of a loose headstock makes sense to me. This is a situation in which the point of the drive center would be running off the axis of rotation -- not a problem until the next time that the drive center slips and then suddenly it is like remounting a spindle in a slightly different position. Even this, however, should not be a big deal except when working on fine details. Check out the taper in the spindle bore for damage. The other possibility for the cause of the problem is your turning technique.

Bill