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small lathe indexing

Wow That's nice but a little steep in price. I made my own using some black plexiglass. You can buy them in larger sizes from www.ironfirellc.com Here's a photo of my index system. The wheel would work just as well inbetween the chuck and spindle if you made the hole larger. You can also build a much simpler index pin than I did.
 

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Here's the powermatic with the Iron fire index wheel. I simply put a piece of wood on the lathe using 1/8" roll pins. I drilled the wood through the index plate so the holes would be perfect. then I put pins in the wood and the index wheel and used double stick tape to hold it to the wood. I removed the index plate and drilled 1/8" holes through the wood and the lathe headstock. This aligned everything. It works great. See my mape platter with purple heart inserts in the photo section.
 

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Most serious indexing requires a custom wheel since no lathes index wheels are divisible by 5, 7, 9 etc. and those odd number are so much more interesting.

Another simple device was one J Paul Fennel showed at a symposium a few years ago. He mounted an aluminum disck on the tail stock side of the spindle.
He cut slots around the edge. He then mounts a hinged piece of metal on the top of the tailstock. This fits into the wheel slot and held it in place.

The advantage of this outboard attachment is that the wheel can be loosend and rotated while the work is secure. This makes lining the indexes up with the wood easy. If you want to leave a feature or remove a defect you can set the first index marks about this feature or if you have several of these you can balance out among them rather easily.

My wife does indexing using big disks off the lathe marked with index lines. She learned this from Al Stirt. She removes the piece from the lathe with or without the chuck attached and sets it on the center of the disk then marks the index lines then puts it back on the lathe. This make lining up the grain with the marks even simpler. If she need to mark top and bottom she can flip the piece over. One advantage of this method is that it is easy to compare several different index wheels like a 9 versus a 7.

happy turning,
Al
 
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Jeff Intend to do a complete write up on the Jet mini modifications. You'll notice there is a plate on the top of the lathe. That is for holding the spindle lock so you don't have to use 2 hands or if you want to lock the bowl in position for power sanding with the lathe off. there are also 2 modifications to the tailstock and a new tool rest and a stand.
I will write up how I did the powermatic with the Ironfire index and send it to you with more photos. It's an awfully easy modification and I'm having a great time playing with it. I'm working on a hand mirror right now that will resemble a sunflower.
 
harmonrye I'm still working on the jet mini. I have one more modification to complete and then I'll do a complete write up on all that I did and how I did them for those interested. I got a defective jet mini and decided to make it a project lathe. I've tried to take all the shortcomings of that lathe and improve them. It will take a me a few more weeks because I'm going on vacation next week for several days. That will put everything off a little longer than I wanted.
 
I'll send it to Jeff and he will probably put it in the powermatic tips section. Don't forget to tell him how good a job he's doing with this forum. It's become a fun place to hang out.
 
Thanks, John. And, yes, you're so right in that Jeff has done an excellent job with this forum. Not only has it become a fun place to hang out, the wealth of information is outstanding! :)

And let's not forget Steve's excellent efforts as well the improvements we'll likely get with Ed on board.
 
Jet Mod Write Uup??

Jeff, I intend to do a complete write up on the Jet mini modifications.
Click to expand...

John,
Did you finish this write up? I would really like to see it.

Thanks!!

Bob
 
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