# Fitting a vernier gauge to a lathe tail stock.



## Tony Bird (Sep 25, 2017)

Hi,

A friend mentioned that he had read a magazine article about fitting a vernier gauge to a lathe tail using the holes drilled in it for the oil nipples.  My Myford Super Seven's tail stock has two oil nipples on the top of it and I have a vernier gauge 100 mm long which is the same as the travel of the tail stock mandrel.  I had already milled a slot in the mandrel to accommodate a section of ruler but a vernier as long as it didn't get in the way would be better.

List of photographs.

Myford Super Seven tail stock.

Scale fitted into the tail stock mandrel.

First the nipples were removed from the tail stock body and their mating surface cleaned.

The nipple thread was 2 BA and a pair of shouldered nuts were made.


Using two threaded rods on with a point the nuts were fitted to the tail stock.

A piece of 2" x 1/8" aluminium angle was used as the vernier gauge support, the pointed threaded rod being used to mark out the position of the second hole.

The threaded rod was drilled to allow oil from the nipple to reach the mandrel.

With the angle in place it was made parrallel to the lathes axis by shortening one of the nuts in the one plane and elongating one of the securing holes in the other.

The angle was shaped and drilled for the vernier gauge and a piece of 2"x 1/4" aluminium angle used for the securing piece for the mandrel.

Finished

Regards Tony.


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## Sansspaceship (Sep 25, 2017)

Nice work tony! 

I don't think you could design a tail stock shape more awkward for the vernier mod if that was your goal in life.... than what you had to work with. Good solution getting around the odd ball shapes.

  I will post a picture of mine tomorrow, I was lucky mine was flat ! 

Cheers,
.adrian


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## WOB (Sep 25, 2017)

Nice job.  Why do you call it a "vernier"?   A vernier gauge is strictly mechanical by definition.    What you have installed is entirely electronic and the proper name is "Digital Readout", or "DRO" for short.   Besides, it is a lot easier to spell.

WOB


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## Blogwitch (Sep 26, 2017)

It is a good thing having a digital readout on your tailstock, it allows for those precision drilling of depths, but only if you have catered for the twist given to the readout by the turning of the quill.

If you don't counteract that, the continual twisting of the readout will cause premature failure.

John


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## b4dyc (Sep 26, 2017)

Here is my version of the same modification for the tailstock 





and also another mod that fits onto the rack to allow for simple DRO.
 This can be added or removed in seconds





The two scales were purchased from China and are stainless.
 Cost for both was around £11


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## Sansspaceship (Sep 26, 2017)

A few shots of the install I did on my wabeco.

Cheers,
Adrian


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## Tony Bird (Sep 26, 2017)

Hi,

*Nice job. Why do you call it a "vernier"? A vernier gauge is strictly mechanical by definition. What you have installed is entirely electronic and the proper name is "Digital Readout", or "DRO" for short. Besides, it is a lot easier to spell.
*
Quite correct the catalogue I bought it from some years ago list it as a Digital Read Out Bar.

Hi John,

*It is a good thing having a digital readout on your tail stock, it allows for those precision drilling of depths, but only if you have catered for the twist given to the readout by the turning of the quill.  If you don't counteract that, the continual twisting of the readout will cause premature failure.
*
Yes I used a piece of brass hexagonal stock acting in the rectangular slot at the end of the bar which allows the quill to move a few degrees. 

Hi,

*Here is my version of the same modification for the tail stock and also another mod that fits onto the rack to allow for simple DRO.
This can be added or removed in seconds.*

I like the fitting of the DRO on the top of the tail stock it must be a lot easier to see; on mine the quill lock would get in the way. The DRO on the rack looks good I fitted a three axis DRO for the bed, cross slide and top slide to my lathe which I am very happy with.  I wrote a thread on it some where.

Hi Adrian,

*A few shots of the install I did on my Wabeco*.

Very neat; as you say a lot easier to fit.

Regards Tony.


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## Blogwitch (Sep 26, 2017)

Tony,
I am glad you didn't forget about the twist imparted by the quill, many people never even think of the problems that can occur until it is too late.

Nice job

John


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## deverett (Sep 27, 2017)

And here's my version.  Note the 2 ball joints to take up rotary movement in the barrel.  
As it is, the barrel ring does not always permit ejection of MT sockets for normal screw operated tailstocks.  The required mod would be a ring of the same thickness, but reduced diameter over half the thickness so that it sits over the front of the barrel.



The description appeared in EIM  Feb 2004.  If anyone needs/wants a copy, contact me and I can forward.

Dave
The Emerald Isle


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## Tony Bird (Sep 27, 2017)

Hi Dave,

I like your angled display, which is a lot easier to see than my vertical one.  I have done a little to streamline mine to stop it catching in shirt cuffs, I also think it looks a little better.  I will give it a little time so see if I want to alter anything else before I try to figure away of angling my display.

It was good to see the different approaches of fitting a DRO bar to a tail stock of a lathe.

Regards Tony.


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## Blogwitch (Sep 28, 2017)

If anyone ever wanted to fit a glass or mag scale to their tailstock, then here is the link to what I did.

https://forum.chesterhobbystore.co....-to-crusader-tailstock-7282746?pid=1294516191


John


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## tornitore45 (Sep 28, 2017)

I have a readout on the longitudinal axis of the carriage.
For precision depth
Set the drill bit on the face where the zero depth starts
Move the carriage and cross-slide so that the tool post is against the tail stock chuck
Zero the DRO
Move the carriage toward the head stock as much as the desired depth, reading the DRO
Lock the carriage
Drill until the TS chuck hit the tool post.
Done
No contraptions sitting on the TS


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## Tony Bird (Oct 10, 2017)

Hi,

Having used the DRO bar mounted on the tail stock for a bit and having had no problems other than seeing the vertically mounted display I decided to copy Dave's system that used an angled display.  So two new brackets were made that held the DRO bar at an angle. See attachments.

Regards Tony.


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