Design help for Myford style saddle stop

I am contemplating making a stop for the 12 x 24 Atlas lathe at the museum, and as the bed design is similar to the Myford, I would like some inspiration from our many members who use these lathes.

Which type of saddle stop? There appear to have been two types, at least for the 254.

There is what you might call the "pull" type, which has the stop behind the saddle with the turret secured to the back of the bed. Then there is the "push" type. It has a short rod attached to the LH side of the saddle and comes against a turret which is fixed to the bed in the desired position.

I am not sure how a saddle stop would work for the small Myford. Do they not depend upon the friction clutch in the drive mechanism?

Happy to provide further details of either.

ETA, just to add to the confusion, there have been incomplete cross-slide stops for the 254 on eBay for a while. I cannot quite see where they would go.

Edited By Chris Pearson 1 on 08/02/2023 19:10:14

Picture above of the saddle stop on my Super7

regards Martin

How does the part clamp to the bed?

I like the design from Hemingway

**LINK**

Rod

Now that I have had my tea, I am thinking more clearly. I can see that the only way a saddle stop would work on the small Myford is by manual advancement of the saddle.

That Super 7 one is all very well, but it would appear to work only within a couple of inches of the headstock.

The Hemingway one looks good, but where is the saddle?

This saddle stop shown is of the type that attaches to the saddle and the bed just under the headstock utilising existing tappings and available from new Myford. The original Myford device fits to the rear of the bed using pre tapped holes for this purpose and for the Myford taper turning attachment. The Hemmingway device fits to the front of the bed.

Robert Butler

The evolution of my lo-tech carriage stop on the Myford ML7. Its main use has been when cutting the lines on graduated dials etc. Different length lines are achieved by use of the topslide, doing all the short lines in one go-around, then all the medium length "fives" and then all the long "tens". But also handy for a stop when turning.

Like most carriage stops, it is not designed to be crashed into under power feed. You disengage the halfnuts just before and finish the cut under hand feed. Even many friction drive feed lathes will overpower the carriage stop and either move it or damage the feed mechanism if crashed into. Drummond M Type had the solution, a dog clutch on the leadscrew operated by a knock-off bar with adjustable settings along the length of the bed.

Edited By Hopper on 09/02/2023 02:25:06

Hi Mart , This is the saddle stop made for my 254 which has a similar non gap bed style to the atlas, fairly easy to make and has proved invaluable since I bought the machine, due to the type of bed wipers on the 254 I wish I'd made the round stop rod a bit longer on the right hand side as swarf builds up in the gap ( I do a lot of cast iron). The 254 has a safety feature in the apron in case of a jam up under power feed, but if the atlas is not so fitted the round stops could be made as one rod passing through the main body with a brass shear pin. The one I made for my ML7R was like Hoppers rigid and I never had a problem with it over many years use.

Just found a picture of the one for my ML7R in my album, good lathe I miss it in some ways!

I use the same design on my S7 !

Dave
The Emerald Isle

Hey Hopper ! Nice work. What grey are you using ? Noel.

Thanks Noel. I did the old "faux casting" trick again to keep it looking original.

The lathe is painted in machinery paint mixed to paint code RAL 7011, "Iron Grey". It is actually a shade darker than the original Myford paint.

I think I painted that stop in rattle can Dulux colour "Machinery Grey" which is a tad lighter and closer to Myford original colour but not anywhere as near durable. So close in colour nobody really notices though.

The RAL 7011 is in real life a tad darker than it appears in these pics. The picture of the stop sitting on teh wooden bench top is closest to reality. Depends on lighting and computer screen calibration etc. But compared with the original-paint Myford dividing head and vertical slide I recently restored, the 7011 is definitely a bit darker, despite claims on various websites to the contrary.

I can't import Paragon paint etc due to hazardous freight regs etc so this is as close as it gets. But its a piece of workshop equipment, not a Rolls Royce Phaeton!

Edited By Hopper on 09/02/2023 11:01:44

Edited By Hopper on 09/02/2023 11:03:03

Hi Dave,

Have you got any sketches/drawings for the 254 version, I can't see how it clamps to the bed and clamps the round rod with only one caphead.

Hi Duncan

The round rods are turned down and press fitted into the block, so they can't move, the adjustment is the whole block sliding along the bed and then being clamped using the cap head screw. works the same as the Boxford and Colchester plain bed stops. I've never felt the need for a micrometer version or anything complicated,I did have a Boxford with a micrometer stop but never used it other than as a plain one. In use I admit to using the shank of a drill or piece of bar between the stop and saddle to set the distance, or using the top slide dial for short lengths, not exactly high precision but good enough for most of the things I make. I recently had to make 30 screws with three diameters on them and milled a simple step gauge out of a piece of bar to act as a spacer for the stop which worked well. I'm afraid I never make proper drawings just sketches, if its of any interest will dismantle and put some pictures on this evening.

Dave

Just be aware that the Hemmingway version will not work with power cross feed Myfords.

The mounting strip fouls the back of the saddle.

regards Martin

Ah! gotcha, thanks. Another project on the ToDo list

Similar in principle to some of the above this is mine on my S7 - quickly adjustable it allows work right up to a face plate

I have two lengths of bar (1/2 dia Silver Steel) which is set using slip gauges. The bar impinges onto a hardened button Loctited into a hole drilled in the side of the saddle.

Best - Tug

This is the "push" type on a 254. I cannot understand why there is a gap between the bracket and the bed.

Incidentally, the clutch in the saddle drive is adjustable to the extent that it may be set to slip so easily that it wouldn't turn the skin off a rice pudding, so there is little risk of damage when the saddle comes up against its stop.