Myford ML10 link belt?

hi, i was just about to order a link belt for my ML10 and was wondering if anyone has fitted one and which would be the best to go for? i keep coming across fenner belts which from what ive read seem to be the best choice?

fenner link belt

but i cant seem to find one for the motor to countershaft, is it worth a link belt on the motor or just stick with a rubber v belt? i will be fitting a new one to the motor either way as they are both looking a bit tired i just didnt want to disturb the headstock bearings lol.

Many years ago I had an ML10 and wanted to fit a link belt to the headstock. I phoned Myford first and asked about doing it and what belt they would recommend (this was long before the internet existed!!) and thy said they did not recommend linked belts for the ML10, I asked why and they said that the rivet heads would catch on the headstock casting when changing speeds and would, over time, possibly damage the paintwork!

Anyway I went ahead and bought a belt - one with rivets (as they were the only type available in those days) and It was quite easy to change speeds without catching the rivets on the headstock and the belt worked perfectly when running - there is plenty of clearance.

I would say to go ahead and buy the linked belt rather than disturb the settings of the headstock bearings.

From the motor to countershaft you may find that a "cogged" v-belt will be more supple around the pulleys and give a smoother drive.

Bizibuilder,

Ever thought that myford’s response was likely because they didn’t stock linked belts at that time (but had alternative high priced belts waiting to fulfill your order)?

I’m not sure about single linked belts for this application - but I would not hesitate fitting a pair on my lathe.

Its great. I just replace belts with it as they wear out. Lathe. mill. shaper. whatever

Would have been handy as emergency fan belt kit in the 80s

Edited By Ady1 on 07/07/2021 22:55:09

Using a link belt you do not have to dismantle the headstock spindle to change a belt, having a link belt it is very easy to adjust by taking out a link.

I bought mine from RGD. I did not fit a link belt from motor to counter shaft. as it is easy to access.

belts get old and after a while get a set so make for lumpy running but link belts are more flexible.

i have just ordered the Fenner link belt from lathespares for the headstock but am struggling to find a cogged belt of the same profile as the on thats on it at the moment, its 10mm wide and 8mm deep, all the cogged belts i can find are either 10 wide by 6 deep or 13W 8D :/ unfortunatly its pretty tired now so no serial/part numbers remain intact

i have also just ordered a set of bronze bearings for either end of the leadscrew as i noticed a bit of freeplay in the LH bushing while i was fitting the leadscrew clutch, does anyone know how to go about removing the old ones? they seemed to be in there pretty solidly and didnt want to put to much force on them before i had replacements.

Cogged belts of the section you require can be found HERE (usual disclaimer).

whey brilliant thankyou very much just ordered a Gates Quad power 4

i know this is off topic but it didnt seem worth starting a new thread for (please correct me if wrong lol) im just making a set of wick oilers but i cannot figure out what thread it is in the headstock :/ the male threads on the old oilers are 0.374" (9.49mm) diameter with a fairly fine thread which pretty much matches up with 3/8th BSF but my 3/8 tap has a much courser pitch :/ the old oilers are partridges No18

does anyone know what thread they have as standard??

im trying to attatch a couple of photos but struggling atm haha

cheers

scratch that its 1/8 bsp :/ haha

does anyone know how tight i should go with a link belt? according to the manual, with a standard belt i should have about 4mm freeplay but not sure if that still applies to a link belt?

also does anyone know what kind of feed/drip rate a wick oiler should put out? im forever paranoid about lack of lubrication to the headstock and have removed the oil cups to test the drip rate, after about 15 minutes they have formed a bulge of oil on the the bottom but not yet enough to drop, in my head that is not nearly enough to keep things moving smoothly :/?

I don’t know, but your methodology of checking for flow-rate is a bit flawed. The wick will retain more than a single drop in a free-fall situation (think here of surface tension). What you should be doing is allowing the oil to run away into a measuring vessel without causing intermittent drips. Glass or metal is likely better than plastic. Placing a needle through the bottom of the wick, to drain the oil away would be better. Then measure the amount per unit time.

It requires only sufficient oil to fill the gap between spindle and bearing - that is not much and it does not really need a large flow out of the bearing to maintain an oil film. Depends on spindle and bearing condition as well.

ok and how much would you say was an adequate flow rate? ive just finished making a pair of oilers so need to test them to ensure there flowing anough to keep things moving. the bearings appear to be in decent shape when i look down through the oiler hole it looks like a mirror whith no visable scoring.

is there any kind of change in pressure when their fitted/sealed to the headstock and the spindle is running? is there any negative pressure pulling the oil through is what i mean ?

Wick oilers have a tube sticking up from out of the oil hole with one end of a worsted wool wick in it, The other end drops into the oil cup. The wick carries the oil up out of the cup and down the hole and sets the speed of delivery.

Drip oilers have no tube, the flow rate being set by both the exit hole size and the oil viscosity.