Lathe steady rest ID

I was refered to this forum from the South Bend Lathe forum. I have acquired an old steady rest that does not fit my South Bend 9" lathe. It seems to be for a lathe with a 12" swing.
This steady rest has two "V" grooves on the bottom to align it. This is very different from the usual one groove and one flat steady rests that I have seen.
Also, the top half of this steady rest is made of cast brass (or bronze, but I think brass)and the bottom half is cast iron. it is missing the clamp, but that would be an easy fabrication.
Thanks for any help that you guys can provide.

The very wide "stance" of this SR makes me think Putnam.

There is currently a Putnam SR for their 14" inch lathe on Ebay - check out Heavy Cast Iron Steady Rest From Putnam Machine Co. 12" Metal Lathe Circa 1863 | eBay which differs in details, but will fit a 14" post Civil War Putnam which measures (almost exactly) 6 centerline above the top of the V's. (about 7" when the angular offset of the V's is considered hence this a 14" lathe.)

The story of this Ebay Putnam part is sad for a preserver/historian - this a case of a "parts dissolver" doing his thing. So far the only Putnam parts appearing on Ebay is this and a T-socket wrench apparently found with the lathe.

On yours the brass upperworks makes me think this is someone's attempt to "recycle" a broken lathe accessory since it would be more usual for the entire frame to be made of cast iron.

The reason I notice this Ebay posting is I own a 14" Putnam lathe which I'm trying to bring back - its missing the steady rest but so far I haven't dealt with the Ebay seller except in venue outside of Ebay. He has not seen fit to work with me.

Can you measure the distance between grooves on that base? Also check the grooves themselves as Putnam tended to a more "acute" angle to the V - Putnam is not (usually) a 30 degree included angle as became more common on later lathes. More like 25 degrees.

Joe in NH

Thank you Joe for your prompt reply. I did look at the eBay listing and it does look very similar, especially the hinge joint. If the top on the SR that I have is a replacement casting, it was done very well. If not for the fact that it rings like a bell and when I tried to clean it up a bit it showed brass, I would not have known it was out of the ordinary.
I measured the distance between the "V's" and it appears to be 6".
I used my protractor and it looks like a 40degree angle. I put an 82 degree (included) countersink in the groove for reference. a 90 degree block would not go to the bottom.

My Whitcomb Blaisdell lathe has V-ways on the front and back like that steady would use. Mine's a 14" (which was the smallest they made) but it measures closer to 15" swing.

On edit: it wouldn't fit my Whitcomb. On mine the V-ways are 6 3/4" appart and it's 7 3/4" from center to the top of one V way.

The 1863 Putnam is about 7-1/2 between V's - as I say "splay footed" for a steady rest. My 1864 Shepard Lathe & Co. and it's near cousin the 1866 Lathe & Morse Maker are both 7" between V's.

So an additional thought and a correction to my Putnam thought - splay footed probably means "early" lathe, possibly a weighted lathe but that is not absolute.

One descriptor commonly referenced about early lathes is the top of the bed is frequently quite "wide" compared to later lathes.

Given the quantity of early lathes and the number of makers all relatively low production, it may be a difficult ID without a direct match.

Joe in NH

Robert Shimko said:

I was refered to this forum from the South Bend Lathe forum. I have acquired an old steady rest that does not fit my South Bend 9" lathe. It seems to be for a lathe with a 12" swing.
This steady rest has two "V" grooves on the bottom to align it. This is very different from the usual one groove and one flat steady rests that I have seen.
Also, the top half of this steady rest is made of cast brass (or bronze, but I think brass)and the bottom half is cast iron. it is missing the clamp, but that would be an easy fabrication.
Thanks for any help that you guys can provide.
View attachment 282714

Click to expand...

Joe in NH said:

The 1863 Putnam is about 7-1/2 between V's - as I say "splay footed" for a steady rest. My 1864 Shepard Lathe & Co. and it's near cousin the 1866 Lathe & Morse Maker are both 7" between V's.

So an additional thought and a correction to my Putnam thought - splay footed probably means "early" lathe, possibly a weighted lathe but that is not absolute.

One descriptor commonly referenced about early lathes is the top of the bed is frequently quite "wide" compared to later lathes.

Given the quantity of early lathes and the number of makers all relatively low production, it may be a difficult ID without a direct match.

Joe in NH

Click to expand...

Robert and Joe,

Just found this thread while looking for anything Putnam Lathe-related that I have not seen in the interweb....

I have what I believe is the original Steady Rest for my 14" pre-1892/93 Putnam lathe. Just started cleaning it on Tues before the thanksgiving festivities took over. If it will help, I can post some pics and measurements after I get back down to the shop.

Until then, I can confirm it is all cast iron and seems to be very original. So far, the only detail obscured by all the gunk was "50" found stamped on one side of the bottom half iirc near the hinge.



All this chasing and looking into every nook and cranny for one new spec of info at a time makes me want to start a Putnam Lathe pictures and random info thread. Might make verifying and discounting some details a lot easier for Putnam fans. I haven't seen one here yet. Any thoughts?

acbutton said:

Robert and Joe,

Just found this thread while looking for anything Putnam Lathe-related that I have not seen in the interweb....

I have what I believe is the original Steady Rest for my 14" pre-1892/93 Putnam lathe. Just started cleaning it on Tues before the thanksgiving festivities took over. If it will help, I can post some pics and measurements after I get back down to the shop.

Until then, I can confirm it is all cast iron and seems to be very original. So far, the only detail obscured by all the gunk was "50" found stamped on one side of the bottom half iirc near the hinge.

All this chasing and looking into every nook and cranny for one new spec of info at a time makes me want to start a Putnam Lathe pictures and random info thread. Might make verifying and discounting some details a lot easier for Putnam fans. I haven't seen one here yet. Any thoughts?

Click to expand...

Since my previous entry, the "part dissolver" still has his Putnam Steady Rest - although he has apparently sold all the "topworks" for this now fully dissolved lathe. I entertained buying these parts myself needful as I am for a good portion of what he was selling, but his price including shipping was a little more than I wished to spend - and I may have other parts options.

Still, I cruise looking for early Putnam parts and recently found a "no-name" steady rest which I'm near sure is a Putnam. It fits my Putnam. Notice the "splay footing." Still, it's not marked but at least functional.

Now for the rest of what I'm missing.

The stuff IS out there.

Joe in NH