tailstock4
Cast Iron
- Joined
- Mar 3, 2013
- Location
- Oklahoma, USA
I’m posting some pictures of my latest project, a hydraulic spindle brake for the Rivett. As many know, this machine has a clutch for direct drive and back gear. When the machine is in direct drive, there can be a long coast down when returning to neutral with the drive still running. I thought the addition of a brake could improve this.
I’ve posted some pictures of the brake fabrication and installation. I decided to have the caliper mounting and adjusting system all on top of the jack shaft housing. This allows adjustment of belts without the need for realigning the brake. I also made two brackets. The bottom one is adjustable for toe in and out. The back of this bracket can pivot left or right. The top bracket slides on a milled channel to adjust length and position of the caliper on the disc. This allows the caliper to be easily removed and put back in the same position.

One of the first modifications I did was to extend the jack shaft with a 7/8” keyed shaft. This was to allow the hub for the brake disc. I used a 7.5” brake disc with a single piston caliper. So far this seems to be more than adequate with a 6” steel chuck up to 3,500 rpm. It will stop the spindle pretty much instantly at any speed but also seems to have the ability to feather the braking. This is true even when stopping the entire drive including the motor and Reeves drive.
I’m not through with the installation yet. I still have some electrical modifications to make. I want to be able to have a switch so that the brake when activated and clutch still engaged will brake the entire drive and kill the motor. I also want to be able to disable this function and have the brake work with the clutch in neutral and not kill the drive.
I also am going to add a limit switch so that when the pedal is pressed it will enable the kill function. I also plan to leave the Dings motor brake and have a switch to turn this on and off for use with the ELSR. I also made some engagement knobs on the back of the Dings brake that mechanically disengage the brake putting it in an open position. All this should allow me to use any of the brakes in combination or individually.
The hardest part of this so far has been deciding what to use in terms of hardware and of course where to put it. So far I’m pleased but also would enjoy hearing any suggestions or ideas you may have.

I’ve posted some pictures of the brake fabrication and installation. I decided to have the caliper mounting and adjusting system all on top of the jack shaft housing. This allows adjustment of belts without the need for realigning the brake. I also made two brackets. The bottom one is adjustable for toe in and out. The back of this bracket can pivot left or right. The top bracket slides on a milled channel to adjust length and position of the caliper on the disc. This allows the caliper to be easily removed and put back in the same position.



One of the first modifications I did was to extend the jack shaft with a 7/8” keyed shaft. This was to allow the hub for the brake disc. I used a 7.5” brake disc with a single piston caliper. So far this seems to be more than adequate with a 6” steel chuck up to 3,500 rpm. It will stop the spindle pretty much instantly at any speed but also seems to have the ability to feather the braking. This is true even when stopping the entire drive including the motor and Reeves drive.
I’m not through with the installation yet. I still have some electrical modifications to make. I want to be able to have a switch so that the brake when activated and clutch still engaged will brake the entire drive and kill the motor. I also want to be able to disable this function and have the brake work with the clutch in neutral and not kill the drive.
I also am going to add a limit switch so that when the pedal is pressed it will enable the kill function. I also plan to leave the Dings motor brake and have a switch to turn this on and off for use with the ELSR. I also made some engagement knobs on the back of the Dings brake that mechanically disengage the brake putting it in an open position. All this should allow me to use any of the brakes in combination or individually.
The hardest part of this so far has been deciding what to use in terms of hardware and of course where to put it. So far I’m pleased but also would enjoy hearing any suggestions or ideas you may have.





