ESM-59 spindle nut....

I want to dismantle the headstock on my hardinge
ESM-59, that's a split bed 59 lathe.

I'd like to inspect the lube in the ball
bearings as the machine is low hours but
quite old.

I have the belts and the pulley off the back
side of the spindle, but there's a nut that
snugs down the inner race stack under it.

I am pretty sure it's right-handed, as I've
checked the threads that are exposed. But this
is one of the tightest nuts I've ever seen.

I can lock the front of the spindle with a
bar through a driver plate, and I've got a tool
made with four dowel pins that engage the holes
around the face of the nut.

But this thing is serious tight.

Anyone done one like this?

I used the same tool to dismantle the 47
split bed headstock that I had, and it came
undone with hardly a twitch. This thing
has me stumped. It's been dosed with kroil
overnight, now.

Jim

Well if anyone is interested, or ever gets into
doing one of these, the nut was just on there
*real* tight.

After dosing it with kroil overnight, I modified
the tool a bit also.

Because this nut is deep inside the headstock,
my existing tool wasn't quite the best. The
open headstock it had been made for allowed me
to put a pipe wrench on the tool - which was
a steel pipe coupling from HD, with four slots
milled into it to accept four 1/4 inch diameter
dowel pins.

The headstock was so deep that I could only just
grasp the last 3/8 inch of the coupling, for this
I used my largest 6-jaw chuck. Originally when
applying force to this, it would slip on the
outer surface of the coupling - even though
the surface had been machined to eliminate the
casting defects.

I drilled and tapped it for six 10-32 screws,
which gave the chuck jaws something to push
against.

This time the nut came loose with some serious
leverage, and I was able to pull the spindle
partway out to get a bit more grease into the
bearings.

Jim

Jim,
I have a copy of the Hardinge bearing replacement instructions for this headstock. It is a two page document with step by step instructions and a section drawing of the headstock. It's a poor copy but adequately legible. If you're interested, email me off list with mailing instructions - my scanner is not hooked up now.
Regards,
Jim

Thanks, I would be interested to see what
hardinge says about this.

Jim
520 Highland Ave
Peekskill, 10566

Thanks so much. I can be pretty sure what
at least one line item on the instructions
would be: "Get a really, realllly big
wrench...."



Jim

Jim, thank you ever so much for those hardinge
instruction sheets. They were quite informative
and actually very legible!

I would say that my lathe does indeed have
a "Type R" headstock as the construction, as
far as I could acertain, matched what was on
the cross-section diagram perfectly. It
was pretty clear from the diagram that hardinge
made two versions, one with and one without the
large phenolic handwheel on the outboard side
of the spindle.

Thanks again - Jim

Jim & Jim

I'm just getting into one of these ESM 59 lathes and I'd like to have a look at that manual too. If no one has scanned it yet, I can offer my services. Please email me off list.

Thanks,

Jeff

Update on my ESM-59:

Thanks to Jim S. for sending the instructions from Hardinge. These are very nice to have. I'll be happy to scan these for anyone else that needs them.

The clamp nut that was fighting Jim Rozen is now fighting me. I've got nothing to mount on the spindle, so I don't have a good way to keep it from turning while I try to turn the nut. I guess I'll have to pick up a drive plate, or try to fabricate something.

Does anyone know what size drive belts this lathe is supposed to have? My machine had no belts on it when I aquired it. A crude measurement suggests a length of 60-62 inches and the pulley grooves are 7/16" wide.

"Does anyone know what size drive belts this lathe is supposed to have?"

Usually 3L, but a special long length which is generally available only from McMaster-Carr.

You'll have to determine the length yourself, as there are several lengths, which go along with the several lengths from the motor to the countershaft, if fitted.

Possibly best to install a 3L Power-Twist belt.

IIRC, this machine takes a pair of belts.

I know this is a pretty old thread but I would be interested in the mentioned bearing replacement instructions. Does anyone have a copy they could share? Thanks