Clausing 13x36 Round Head Lathe Headstock Question

I have a 13 INCH Clausing round head lathe and I have a question about the headstock spindle taper. The manual I found online says the machine comes with a #3 Morse Taper. The parts manual shows a Centre Bushing Clausing part no. 5119. I have been looking through all the tooling that came with the lathe and I can't seem to find that bushing. I have what I think is a #4 Morse taper adapter. It is a 4MT-3MT. It seems to fit in the spindle nicely. Would this work or am I going to screw up the spindle taper? I have read where some lathes have a short taper and some have long. Any Clausing guys know which style this lathe has. Is it a #4 MT, or is machines at the factory to a different taper. Please bear with me. I am no a machinist, more an amatuer with a little experience. I don't want to mess up this lathe. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks

Put up a photo of the lathe please. Blue up the adaptor you have and insert it carefully, that should tell you all you need to know.

I worked in a senior school before I retired. Previously they had 10 " Colchester Students " in the workshop. In my day that was down to 5. I was having a nosy around the stores when I first got there and I opened a drawer in the stores. In it was all 10 taper adapters stilled wrapped in the rust proof paper !

Regards Tyrone.

Best bet is to measure it and, if its non standard, make one. Nooging round t'web there is so much variation in what is said to be the taper from folk who appear to know what they are talking about that its quite possible it changed over the years. Folk say 4, 4 1/2 and 5 morse fit OK. 4 and 4 1/2 are so close that either might well be OK but 5 should be obviously wrong or if its 5 the 4 or 4 1/2 will be clearly wrong.

If it is a morse it will be truncated.

In my experience Jarno is the only headstock taper above MT 3 that actually is a book value.

If you have an indicator or extension arm able to reach right in measuring is easy. If not there are various work arounds.

Many mill owners have a co-axial (Blake) style indicator which will reach down fine with the longer probe. But it won't be calibrated so use a proper indicator on the cross slide to measure travel needed to bring it back to zero after a known insertion depth. Use any solid block to set the saddle travel for insertion. Last time I did such a thing I used the 2" block out of my gash, won't wring, gauge block set for that. Just set the probe about 0.1" in, adjusted the cross slide to zero, and used the block to set the bed stop so I could wind the saddle in 2". Adjusted the cross slide to go back to zero and read off taper over 2" on the dial gauge.

Works just as well going t'other way from small to large but now you have to put the bed stop t'other side of the saddle. Going small to large you could use a decent diameter solid rod and rely on your feel when winding the cross slide so the rod touches the side of the taper.

Another simple method is to mount a solid bar just a bit too big to go past the small end of the taper dead on centre with a cylinder an inch or so long bored to be a stiff sliding fit on the bar. Cylinder outside diameter needs to be such that it only enters the taper a short distance. Make sizes your best guess at 2" between the end of the cylinder and the end of the carrier bar when both touch the taper. Start with the cylinder about 1 3/4" down. Wind the saddle along until the inner bar contacts the taper. If the set-up is reasonable the cylinder will get pushed back as over the last part of the inner bar travel. Pull it all out and measure the distance from the end of the bar to the front face of the cylinder. Knowing the diameter of the bar and the cylinder you can calculate the taper. Simples. Important that the faces of the bar and the cylinder are flat and true.

Can do the same job with two bobbins made a sliding fit on a smaller, but still stout, bar with suitable locking screws hold the in place. If you go the bobbin way the you slide the larger bobbin up by hand. If you go that way make the bar a decent length with good centres and keep it for checking tailstock offset setting once you've made or got an adapter to fit a headstock centre. You will never need the bobbins again so skim down to same nominal size and either use a dial gauge or take skim cuts and measure diameter when setting tailstock.

Clive.

Great News !!

I have some great news to report. When I bought the Clausing lathe, the guy I bought it from gave me two heavy duty boxes full of tooling. He was vacating a small shop at an Airport. He said that not all of the stuff was Clausing. I took a quick glance in them when I got the lathe, and it was mostly older Bridgeport Mill stuff, a bunch of lathe drive dogs, etc. Well, on a hunch, I emptied them out yesterday and low and behold, in the bottom of the second box, was the spindle nose bushing. In the parts book Clausing calls it a Centre Bush 5119 & Centre, No. Morse 5185. The center was still in the bushing. I took a small brass hammer and gave it one tap, and the center came right out. I am so happy I found that bushing. It is like Christmas lol. Anyway,,to all those who tried to help me, thanks allot!!!!

It's a great feeling when you find something you thought was long gone.
The spelling of centre suggests that the lathe was built by " Colchester " in the UK.
Regards Tyrone.