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ID old steady rest?

leeko

Stainless
Joined
Jun 30, 2012
Location
Chicago, USA
Hi all,

A friend brought me a steady rest over today, as he knows I've been looking for one for my lodge and Shipley 16. The one he brought has a 7-1/2" centre height, so it could be adapted to my lathe (18" swing). But, it has the look of an older steady and I don't recognize the pattern of the v-ways. I was wondering if anyone here recognizes it? If it's unobtainium, I'd rather find it an appropriate home than adapt it.

Thanks in advance,

Lee

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Sent from my SM-N960U using Tapatalk
 
Lee, anything that old usually is unobtainium and the bottom looks like the same style for a Flather lathe.
I have looked for a steady for my 16" Flather, swings 17"and has two sets of v-ways.
Here is a photo of a steady for a smaller Flather.
John
 

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Hi John,

That looks remarkably similar, I think you got it right. I'm guessing you're not looking to grab this one, as the center height is wrong but shoot me a PM if you are.

Thanks!

Sent from my SM-N960U using Tapatalk
 
Lee, your pm box is full :o
Could you measure from the top of the V to the center of the steady? Looks close to 8 and 3/8".
I will get a C/L measurement across the top of the inside set of V's on the lathe.
John
 
Hi John, sorry about that. I cleared it out now.

For the measurement, do you mean a diagonal measurement to the true centre point of the steady? Or a vertical measurement to the centre height?

Thx

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The red line as that is how I measure the lathe swing from the ways to a center in the tailstock quill.
The C/C distance across the V's of my lathe is 8".
Thanks, John
 
Hi John,

It looks close, but I'll let you judge for yourself. The top of one v to the other is a little less than 8". Top of the v to centre line looks closer to 8" than 8-3/8".

Best regards,

Lee
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Edit: 44Dwarf, sounds good
 
Hi all,

A friend brought me a steady rest over today, as he knows I've been looking for one for my lodge and Shipley 16. The one he brought has a 7-1/2" centre height, so it could be adapted to my lathe (18" swing). But, it has the look of an older steady and I don't recognize the pattern of the v-ways. I was wondering if anyone here recognizes it? If it's unobtainium, I'd rather find it an appropriate home than adapt it.

Thanks in advance,

Lee

37a79b05391257d0364ba2cdf8f820b7.jpg
034789d6de96715e70e9197891075938.jpg
fb2cdd40ed3fbb7c5c9e8daaa9f12840.jpg
11f0c26da896a7be93df6ab797e72f07.jpg


Sent from my SM-N960U using Tapatalk

Looks a lot more like formergenericum that any sort of highgradarium!

:)

Note the reduction in metal required for each of many, many pours by use of thin body and raised lips or ribs alongside the sliding fingers and the modify-me base? If ever it was OEM, it was not OEM for a Grand Old. Medium eggplant, rather.

In any case... there is a present-day line of generics that are dead-easy to get into service. Pick the swing, mess with a base adaptor and done.

A steady is never all that hard to provide, any lathe, any bed, even if butt-ugly.

A travel-rest is the one as can be, and even then, not for long. Damned few as ever asked for pre-matched ABEC7 bearings, yah?
 
Hi Bill,

Thanks for the input, but i think the quality of the casting isn't really the point. If someone out there has an old lathe that this fits and they've been looking for an "original" steady (or something that looks original), then this is perfect for them. Even if it was a POS back in the day.

People like to restore stuff. I count myself as one of them. I've spent many hours restoring machines that some folks on here would consider worthless, but I enjoyed doing it just for the hell of it, and to teach myself a new skill. And if a part was missing for one of those machines, I'd check here, or Ebay, or owwm, on the off chance that someone else had that particular part on offer. More often than not, I got lucky. I hope that continues, as these sites are an amazing resource for weirdos like myself...

Lee

Sent from my SM-N960U using Tapatalk
 
Hi Bill,

Thanks for the input, but i think the quality of the casting isn't really the point. If someone out there has an old lathe that this fits and they've been looking for an "original" steady (or something that looks original), then this is perfect for them. Even if it was a POS back in the day.

People like to restore stuff. I count myself as one of them. I've spent many hours restoring machines that some folks on here would consider worthless, but I enjoyed doing it just for the hell of it, and to teach myself a new skill. And if a part was missing for one of those machines, I'd check here, or Ebay, or owwm, on the off chance that someone else had that particular part on offer. More often than not, I got lucky. I hope that continues, as these sites are an amazing resource for weirdos like myself...

Lee

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?? It isn't about "Quality".

It is about whether the major makers would have USED that as OEM.

Have a look at the photos around for the Monarch 10EE steady- perhaps an extreme example. There is no STRUCTURAL reason to make it as heavily built as it is. A 10EE only swings around 7" over the cross, and most often only has 20" of c-to-c and no more than that in carriage travel. How heavy could the item in need of a steady be?

The lighter construction of the one you photographed indicate that it probably came with a lighter lathe of lower price-point.

There's where to look if the "unobtanium" metric applies and a chance of a match is to be found..
 
Your points are well taken, but I stand by mine too. That "lighter lathe of lower price point" might be someone's little pride and joy, missing only a steady :)

An example: I have a friend that collect craftsman tools, to the point where his whole shop is 50's era craftsman. By no means the best of any type of tool available at the time or since, but that's what floats his boat. If I see a craftsman grinder for sale, I give him a ping. If I found a steady for a craftsman lathe (sorry for mentioning this here, don't shoot me), I would give him a nudge.

Lee
 
Lee,
My 1896 Flather is a 16" but will swing 17 1/4" as the distance from the V-ways is 8 5/8" so this steady will be a bit low.
The distance across the base is right on.

44dwarf, check your dimensions. This looks like it is for a 15" that swings 16".

Lee, thanks for putting this out here. You must be a 'Craftsman' that likes a project.
John
 
The lighter construction of the one you photographed indicate that it probably came with a lighter lathe of lower price-point.

Not necessarily... it could just as well indicate age. Early steady tests were lightly built by today's standards, as were the lathes they were used on.

The acute angle of the Vs on this particular steady is another age indicator.

Andy
 
Not necessarily... it could just as well indicate age. Early steady tests were lightly built by today's standards, as were the lathes they were used on.

The acute angle of the Vs on this particular steady is another age indicator.

Andy

"Early age" lathes WERE lighter and of lower price-point, yes. Monarch, for one, did not start out making over-built lathes. Quite the reverse. Heavy section beds and long, long carriages came later, but come they did. Thankfully.

The pattern work on this one doesn't look to me to be pre-War One, age of steam, etc. 1920's? Maybe, but I don't see that.

JMNSHO, late 1930's through 1970's where lean productisation had replaced a craftsman's eye for aesthetics more likely.

I hope someone can actually tie it to a particular maker model, and era now. That just out of curiosity as to how good the "node", net of the various and sundry collective guesses of an informal, ad hoc committee of old farts at-large might still be!

The "PERT" approach, as it were.

:)
 








 
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