Newbie - Hobbymat MD65 Advice Required

Hi All,>>

I'm new here so a quick introduction and hopefully a few of you can help out with a bit of advice.>>

I've just acquired back my dad's old Hobbymat MD65 lathe and BFE65 Mill attachment. He gave it away some 15 years ago to a friend of his. This Lathe hasn’t been used since then but is still in good condition, all the slides and bed where covered in oil so they haven’t gone rusty.>>

This has now got a new home in my workshop but I have got a few bits missing. The main one being the chuck! So bit of a problem at the moment. >>

The lathe runs fine, not tried the mill yet but will in due course.>>

So I need to fine a chuck for this, at the moment a 3 jaw will be fine as I will only be doing small turning work. Maybe a 4 at a later date.>>

The original clutch back plate is still on the machine, same as the photo below.

>>

So can anyone recommend a chuck that will fit on this or will I need to change the back plate too?>>

I’ve been looking at the following two, >>

**LINK**>>

**LINK** >>

Does anyone know if this will fit ok or have any other recommendations? >>

Any advice is most welcome as I’m a bit out of depth at the moment.>>

Cheers

Hi Steve

Not sure on the size of chuck, 80mm or 100mm, fitted originally but seems an 80mm would suit the size of the lathe, depending on your build plan you may want to consider a 100mm 3 jaw SC,

The front mounting type you looked at is useful as it allows you to remove the chuck with a turned part in-situ, you can then mount the chuck on a rotary table or other device knowing the turned part will still be concentric. The fixing screws for the 80mm front mount are smaller than the tapped holes in the backplate so you will have to drill and tap new fixing points.

In any case measure the backplate spigot that fits into the chuck recess to see if you can buy a chuck with the correct diameter recess so matching the spigot on your existing faceplate. From the picture posted you also need to confirm depth of recess will clear your spindle nose.

Emgee

Edited By Emgee on 01/11/2015 20:46:43

You need to measure the size of the slightly raised flange on the 'backplate' and see if that matches the recess on the chuck,( I think that is D1 on your ebay ad) then check the fixing holes. The backplate is not intended to be removed on this lathe and just the chucks are taken off. Chucks are standardised nowadays so you should be able to find a matching one. Note the holes in the 'backplate' are in two sets of three. I find one set matches my original 3 jaw and the other matches my 100mm 4 jaw.

The first link didn't work for me but I see it is RDG. You could also try Chronos as they were one of the original stockists for the Hobbymat back in 1982.

There have been a few posts on this lathe in the past so do a little searching. Make sure you understand how the carriage screws are adjusted .

Edited By Bazyle on 01/11/2015 20:41:46

Hi Steve, as Emgee and Bazyle have said, you will need to match the recess in the chuck to the raised portion of the backplate and also the fixing hole centres. If you cannot find a chuck to match, you should make another backplate to fit between a new chuck and the backplate on the lathe, because it is not recommended to remove the original backplate as this was setup at the factory when the lathe was first made and by removing it you may not get it to run true afterwards. If you wish to fit a 4 jaw chuck at a later date, you will need an additional backplate anyway as you will have no hoes to fix it to and the jaws of a four jaw will most likely foul the fan casing of the motor when they are opened out beyond the chuck body.

Regards Nick.

I did find a 4-jaw that fitted using one of the sets of holes provided which supports my impression that these small chucks are standardised. It turns nearly 5 in dia so there is room for the jaws of a 100mm chuck but the plastic chuck guard is what fouls first.

Steve,

Have look at the Hobbymat entry on Lathes.co.uk web site **LINK**

This is an extract about chuck fitting that may help.

"Held in place by a rather inconvenient 3-stud bolt-on arrangement, chucks are found with three different recess diameters: 55 mm and 56 mm each with M6 bolts, and 63 mm with M5 bolts. The most common is the 56 mm, originally fitted with a Polish-made 3-jaw chuck identifiable by a single key hole. The 63 mm recess units had a chuck of TOS manufacture while the rarest version, the 55 mm, was fitted only to very late-model examples."

Try Pro Machine Tools who are now the importers of more modern versions of the MD65. They advertise on this site.

Steve,

I have sent you a PM. Please check your inbox ( second from the left in the green bar at the top of the page.

Thanks all,

Some great advice and links there, really helpful.

I should be ok now but any problems I'm sure I'll be posting again.

Cheers

Steve

Bear in mind the 100mm chuck might only be able to open the jaws another 20 to 25mm ?

Hi all,

Just an update on the process so far. After a lot of web browsing, measuring and confirm my MD65 had a 56mm recess I decided to go for the 80mm HBM chuck from RDG tools. This chuck had recess of 56mm so if the PCD didn’t match all I would have to do is drill 3 new holes. This was the closest chuck I could fine.

The PCD looked pretty close to what I measured about 0.5mm out from the spec on the chuck but being a newbie I wasn’t 100% sure on my measurements.

After some super delivery from RDG the chuck was with me, so time to line it all up.

And if by magic the 3 front mounting holes line up prefect with the standard back plate. I’ve replaced the supply 50mm fixing bolts with some 60mm ones and tighten it up in place. I’ve put a dial gauge on there and the chuck is running true.

I’ve not turned anything yet but will do over the weekend.

So the chuck is a direct replacement for the standard one which is a right result.

So thanks to everyone for the advice, it has been most helpful.

Cheers

Steve

Edited By Steve_M on 13/11/2015 20:32:07

Edited By JasonB on 13/11/2015 20:33:19

Steve,

I am very pleased that you have found a simple answer to you Hobbymat chuck problem. I am sure this will be of help to others who need a new chuck.

Good luck and enjoy you Hobbymat.

Steve, I don't know about chucks for your lathe, or whether this is of interest to anyone, but that motor, with the fan intake where it is to me looks a bit daft. It's straight behind the chuck read to draw in anything that comes off the revolving metal, and blow it over the outside of the motor and onto the belt, and what ever else at the other end of the motor. Don't know a cure, or if it's a real problem, but it worries me a little.

Ian S C

I know it's a rather old post, but I was a bit concerned too about the fan intake being so close to where I was producing a lot of dural swarf, which occasionally got sucked into the works of the fan motor. I ended up making a very crude sheet ali. shroud that held onto the grille with a magnet, so it could be easily removed if the work in the chuck required the outside of the jaws to protrude so they'd have hit it.

My ML7 has the motor in a similar position and I have fitted a 3mm rubber panel screwed to the fan cowling which is positioned to draw air in from the side away from swarf production!

Alan