Heavy 10 spindle Hard Chromed

I was wondering if anyone has ever had their heavy 10 lathe spindle hard chromed? If so is there a place in Houston that anyone would recommend. I have heard of Gates but have had no dealings w
I have a 1985 toolroom model that I have been trying for ever to get the runout out of the spindle. No matter what I do with adjusting shims, etc. I still have a mushy feel to the spindle when I try to rotate it. At best even when adjusted so tight spindle will hardly turn there is .003 -.004 movement. After trying to turn a test sample of some 12L14 steel I cannot even rotate the spindle without the dial test indicator moving all over the scale where on my other heavy 10 lathe same material and my intrepid .0001 indicator barely moves. When I purchased this lathe the bearing expanders were sitting on top of the bearing and so this lathe has never turned correctly. I removed and installed new bearings from Joe at Plaza thinking all would be well but it was not.
thank you
John

As to answering your question, I have never done it with a SB spindle, but I have over the years had plenty shafts hard chrome plated to repair damage and then ground them back to size. Its always worked fine in my experience, although the chrome can be a bear to grind. Talk to the platter first to figure out what size to turn it to before platting. Keep in mind you may need to replace the bearings again as they probably have been damaged by the bad spindle running in them. If you decide to replace things instead, I have a complete heavy 10 headstock which I would sell complete, or part out. I don't know what year machine it came off, or how much that matters. It seems to be in good condition.

Tagging this out of curiosity. I have a D1-4 spindle that may need this done as well (after I confirm the runout):

http://www.practicalmachinist.com/vb/south-bend-lathes/heavy-10-d1-4-spindle-wear-298640/

Have you checked your spindle for being bent. Run out should not necessarily be evident even with a loose spindle. .003-.004 runout is a lot and indicates an underlying issue. Loose bearings will allow for lateral movement but you would not see any actual runout.

While hard chroming the spindle is not a bad idea, if the spindle is bent, this will not fix your problem. You will be spending money and never address the real problem.

John;
Hold off on any work on he shaft until you try this ...

I had an engraving lathe years ago that I simply could not get to run true. The problem was NOT the spindle/shaft nor bearings. The problem was the bore of the cast iron pulley. The cast bore was larger in the center of the bore than at both ends of the stepped cone pulley. It slid onto the shaft beautifully but when the pulley set screw was tightened, it bent the shaft slightly causing the runout. Check your pulley carefully. Mount the spindle between rollers and check it without the pulley. Then add pulley and tighten the set screw(s) and recheck for runout. This might be your problem.
Jim

Jim,
that is something I have actually wondered about. It took a lot of pressure to remove and install the pully on the spindle shaft using a 10 ton press for the last few inches. When I removed same it made a loud pop when it broke free.
I will try removing it and measure spindle runout without pully on shaft.
thanks,
John

John;
The pulley ends might be spot on for size but if the ID does not remain true the entire length of the pulley bore, there can be a problem.
Jim

To the OP, you say the expanded were clamped to the top of the orig bearings, but you got new ones.
Did you get new expander too? Or check to be sure the dovetails would still grip? " mushy" suggests they are not dong their job.

Did you mic the bearings? Visible scoring or galling? IIRC 10L should be 2.250" at large and 1.875" at small (just from memory so someone correct me if wrong)

the cone pulley should easily slip on and rotate freely. That sounds like galling and/or cast iron deposits on the spindle.

I should have been more clear. the cone pully will rotate freely if I pull the pin that sererates the gear from pully. it is just that first inch or so where the gear contacts the spindle that is very tight but that is when it is almost seated.
I did purchase what Joe at Plaza said was new bearing shells with expanders but who knows if they were really new. they did look better than the original ones. when the bearings are on the spindle they grip it tight. it is only when I expand them with the screws that the spindle will turn.
thanks,
John