How to align a fixed steady?

This is my first workpiece that requires a steady. I'm not sure how to align the steady so that the workpiece sits staight. YouTube proposes a couple of methods, one very long winded which requires specialist tools and another method using a dial guage attached to the chuck. The dial guage method isn't working for me due to lack of space on the mini lathe.

What methods are mini lathe owners on this site using?

I'd suggest a dial indicator with a magnetic base and stand. Mag base positioned on lathe bed top or front, indicator tip running on the end of the workpiece near centre front. adjust the steady's jaws until runout is near zero. That's it. The setup in your pic looks like there is lots of room for this method.

If the workpiece is running true and is circular then fit the steady to the bed as close as possible to the chuck, set the steady fingers to the job and lock off the bottom 2, slacken the top finger to allow the released steady to move along the bed closer to the end of the work then lock the steady to the bed and tighten the top finger to the work.

Emgee

Hi Philip.

I've never used one either but I watched a doubleboost video on youtube yesterday where John set one up.

He mounted the work in the chuck, set the steady around the work piece, close / adjacent to the chuck. Adjusted the steady so the fingers just made contact with the work piece. Then moved the steady to it's desired location. The logic being that the workpiece and chuck would be very close to concentic close to the work piece and errors increasing as you move away from the chuck.

Like Emgee I will chuck the work and just turn the chuck by hand to make sure it eyeballs true then set the steady close to the chuck locking the two lower fingers. Loosen top finger and slid esteady to end of job then set top finger.

Can't see the point in using a DTI on the end as it could be indicating true but may be up down or sideways from the lathes axis and if so can start to walk out of the chuck when you start up. If you are going to use a DTI fit to carriage and run along side then top of the work to check it is parallel to lathe axis

One I did last week

Edited By JasonB on 04/02/2021 10:12:57

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The supported & chucked end has to run true & the part has to be true to the lathe axis both in a vertical & horizontal plane. As the fingers need to touch the work there is always going to be some marking.

Tony

Edited By Tony Pratt 1 on 04/02/2021 10:18:09

I seem to remember that Sparey covered this issue in his book

One option is to use roller fingers. Small bearings can be used for this. Plastic bearings are also available. Wood turners use skateboard or roller blade wheels.

The trouble is that most steadies supplied as standard with a lathe are woefully small. I believe Hemingway offers a large capacity one and John Stevenson showed one made up of laser-cut steel sheets laminated together.

You don't need to align the steady, just make sure it sits right

It's the workpiece that needs aligning, use a dti

can take a while, a dead centre in the tailstock helps a lot, then remove it for final tweaks

edit you can use other systems like the cutting tool touching but if you want good accuracy you must get a dti system setup

GL

Edited By Ady1 on 04/02/2021 11:32:22

For quick 'n' dirty work I use the 3-jaw chuck and adjust the fixed steady to align a mark on the end of the bar to a centre in the tailstock:

For more accurate work I use a short length of stock in the 4-jaw, centred with a DTI, and then used to set the steady. Then the steady is moved, the workpiece installed and the chuck end checked with the DTI, as with this 30" long bar:

When the steady fingers are well oiled they don't seem to noticably mark steel or cast iron. If marking is a problem then use a ring of oiled paper between fingers and work.

Andrew

I turned a nylon piece to be a close fit on the part diameter where the steady fingers were making contact, see in the video here. **LINK**

Emgee

But not just checking the rotation. You also need to check the alignment along the length, vertically and horizontally, to ensure that the steady is not bending the workpiece. Setting the steady up at the chuck end then moving it along the bed to the required position has always worked for me.

Stay well,

Rod

DC31k mentions the use of small rollers instead of fingers. While this sounds like a good idea, I'd be concerned about small shavings being crushed into the workpiece. Fingers will simply brush the shavings aside. I have the same concern with roller blade guides on a wood bandsaw squashing resin onto the blade.

The chuck can mess things about too, especially if its a 3 jaw

4 jaw is best, but more hassle to set up

My favourite method is to turn a short length of material to the same diameter as the work to be supported by the steady. Then set the steady to that. I also prefer to hold the work in a four jaw chuck so it can be held true. Inaccuracies can cause some interesting geometrical errors.

In extreme, a poorly setup steady can cause the work to "walk" out of the chuck jaws.

John

THIS^

Neil

I would align the workpiece first and then carefully bring the fingers into contact, using a dti to make sure that a minimum of deflection was present. If the work needed turning at the point where the fingers were going, I would attempt to turn a portion near the chuck and then turn the workpiece around if possible. I made a set of fingers with little ball races for less friction and no wear. As already mentioned, a collar could be used to run on if the marking was not desirable. A piece of card should be cut to form a barrier against swarf getting stuck in the fingers.

Even with medium hard steel and rollers, marking is likely, the steady marks show on this spindle, but do not matter, fortunately.