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HLV-H tailstock difficult to move

rmw

Cast Iron
Joined
May 3, 2007
Location
Northeast Atlanta, GA
I think I have seen something on this before, but cannot find it. I have a 1974 HVL-H in pretty good shape.The tailstock used to be very easy to slide along the way, but has gotten very difficult and stiff to move. I have always used Vactra no.2 way oil in the way lubricator. What do you all do to keep yours moving easily? Any help is much appreciated. Greg
 
Is your TS lock gummed up or miss-adjusted? I would start with cleaning and re-lubing it. There is mention somewhere, I’m not sure it’s on PM, about a guy who plumbed his with compressed air and a few simple air passages. He opens a dedicated valve and the TS floats on air to its desired location.


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I have found that after thoroughly cleaning the ways, I can put a small puddle of vactra #2 in the middle and lift up on the tailstock ( it will have some play when unlocked) I then set it down on the puddle. My lathe is not perfectly level the tailstock looks like it is going to float off the bed (I have caught it ever time so far). Thought about drilling a hole in the middle and putting an oil ball on top to do the same thing. One of these days.
 
Why move it over tiny metal fragments?

Clean the bed first before moving the tailstock. Clean by brushing, then oil rubbing lengthwise. Move it then clean the spot it was sitting on. After that it slides good.
I use Vac #4 because I'm trying to get rid of it.
 
Why move it over tiny metal fragments?

Clean the bed first before moving the tailstock. Clean by brushing, then oil rubbing lengthwise. Move it then clean the spot it was sitting on. After that it slides good.

Exactly what I do and furthermore I run the carriage to its aft extreme and oil the whole length of the bed (as well as pushing some oil through the galleries of the carriage).

Maybe an over kill but it's my way of caring for it ;)

John:typing:
 
HLVHs always have this issue to some degree. Take the tailstock off and clean it well. Keep a squit can of ATF handy and use it well. You can bump the tailstock right with the carriage. We also keep a bar with a hook on both ends to use the carriage to bump it left.

Plan is to put air on it when we get a roundtuit.
 
HLVHs always have this issue to some degree.

Puzzling?

HBX-360-BC "Capstan" TS must weigh nearly as much as an entire HLV-H bed?

Yet the big bastid is no harder to move than a 10EE TS. Which isn't hard at all.

What did Hardinge do so differently on that tiny TS? Or did they not?

Comensurate with its small size, it APPEARS to have just as much bearing surface area - and similar lube - to slide on - if not MORE - than medium and large lathes. SHOULD be a "light touch" creature.

Sure the clamping is fully releasing? Or maybe it is no longer able to do?

Sounds more like "neglect" than any sort of design flaw to me.
 
Yep, it's huge. They get worse with fines from chips jammed up under the ends. They all do this to some degree or other.

F**ks sake! Short-rations of simple "pride"?

What's the POINT of possessing one of the world's finer light lathes... then neglecting it as if it was "somebody's elses" welding-bench beater, the owner merely one more hourly munchkin hired to stand in front of it and manipulate the levers?

Clean it, lube it, attend to its needs... or lose the beneficial use of it.

Can't figure that out?

Ask a "night lady"!

:(
 
Puzzling?
HBX-360-BC "Capstan" TS must weigh nearly as much as an entire HLV-H bed?
That Caz TS weighs very close 150lbs. It does contain a much higher proportion of air than a Hardinge TS does. A complete HLV bed, with the bed plate (in case HH is lurking to pick nits) is 305 lbs, so I suspect that an HLV-H bed is about 400 or so. Regardless, that's a curious comparison...
Likely the problem that the OP is having is due to lack of cleaning/maintenance, but it just might be something else. Hardinge tailstocks do move nicely when cleaned and lubed well.
 
Thse touble with the hlvh tailstock is that it has an extraordinary large surface area, great when well lubricated but nott so good if the thing has had the chance to settle .

It becomes stuck easily , and can be a sod to get moving . I added an extra length of rack and a geared handle to my lathe because of an old motorcycle injury left my right shoulder weak .
handwheel gearbox 4.jpghandwheel gearbox 3.jpg
 
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Hee hee. Also notice the three odd marks on the left side of the tailstock, down near the bed. Those are the markes of the button head screws that secure the steel wipers to the right side of the carriage. An indication, like the ones on our HLVH, that the carriage has been used to bump the tailstock loose on occasion.

As mentioned, the problem is the lube tends to squeeze out if the machine is left unused for a while.
 
You all were right. I pulled the tailstock off and cleaned the bed and oiled it. I really didn’t see anything there, but I’ve always given it a wipe when finished and always made sure it was “wet”.

The nether regions of the TS were a different sorry. It was very dirty. It looked to me that the scraping had filled with gunk and there was no place for the oil to be. I rubbed it with a foam brush and mineral spirits until it was brite, let it dry and oiled it. Back on the bed, it is a one hand operation like it used to be. Thanks to all who replied. I would never have thought it was filthy like that since I clean the bed all the time.

If anyone has a drawing or description of the mod for oiling passages, I’d like to see it.

Still can’t understand why Hardinge cast iron is so heavy.

Greg
 
Still can’t understand why Hardinge cast iron is so heavy.

Greg

When I wipe off what looks like clean metal the rag is grey. Fine particles picked up rather than left on the surface. Notice any horizontal lines on your bed.
That is from the grinding action back and forth over the years.
 
Took this off yesterday, gave it a complete brush-down with a brass brush and solvent. Until the rag came off clean.

Also used a scraper to remove considerable mung from the flats at the edges of the ways. So far it's behaving much better, as predicted
by the gallery here....
 








 
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