Lathe Machine

Introduction
It is the oldest machine tool, stemming from the early
tree lathe, which was turned by a rope passed
around the work a few minutes and attached to a
springly branch overhead.
The work was supported by two dowels struck in
adjacent trees.
The operators foot supplied the motion, which was
intermittent and fluctuating. The tool was held in the
operators hand.


Later, a strip of wood called lath was used to
support the rope and hence named as Lathe.

First screw cutting lathe was built up by Henry

Mauldsley in 1800 having sliding carriage.

Working Principle of Lathe Machine

It is a machine tool, which is used to remove metal
from the work piece to form required shape and size.
It holds the work piece between two rigid and strong
supports called centers or in a chuck or face plate
which revolves.
The cutting tool is rigidly held and supported in a tool
post which is fed against the revolving work.

 The cutting tool may also be fed at an angle relative

to the axis of work for machining tapers and angles.
The normal cutting operations are performed with the
cutting tool fed either parallel or at right angles to the
axis of the work.

Block diagram of a standard engine lathe

Component of an standard engine lathe

Lathe Specifications
Maximum swing diameter without touching the bed (C).
Maximum swing diameter without touching the cross
slide (D).
Distance Between Centres (B): The longest workpiece
which can be held on centers between the headstock
and the tailstock.
Length of Bed (A).

 The range of speeds and feeds, and the horsepower

available.
The height of the centers measured over the lathe bed.
Diameter of the hole through lathe spindle for turning the
material.

Main Components of Lathe Machine

Bed & Bed ways

Carriage
Headstock
Tailstock
Apron Mechanism
Saddle
Cross slide
Compound rest
Tool post
Feed rod
Lead screw
Half nut mechanism

Bed & Bed ways

The Bed forms the base
of a Lathe machine.
It provides a heavy rigid
frame on which all the
other basic components
are mounted. It must be
rigid enough to resist
deflection in any direction
under load.
The bed is made of cast
iron or a steel weldment,
in a box or I-beam shape,
and is supported on legs,
a cabinet, or a bench.

 The headstock and the

tailstock are located at either
end of the bed and the
carriage rests over the Lathe
bed and slides over it.
The ways of the lathe are the
flat or V-shaped surfaces on
which the carriage and the
tailstock are moved left and
right.
Each has its separate pair of
ways, often one flat surface,
for stability, and one V-way
for guidance in a perfectly
straight line.

 These ways are hardened and

ground prepared to close
tolerances.
The
basic
accuracy
of
movement of the carriage
depends on the ways.

Headstock
The headstock is the powered end and is always at
the operators left.
This contains the speed changing gears and the
revolving, driving spindle, to which any one of several
types of work holders is attached. The center of the
spindle is hollow so that long bars may be put through
it for machining. .

 A live centre, a face plate, collet or a chuck can be

fitted to the spindle nose to hold and drive the work.
Headstock spindle can be driven by a stepped pulley
and a belt or by transmission gears in the headstock.

Back Gear
arrangement

Headstock belt
drive

Nose of the head stock, where various work holding

devices may be fitted

Tailstock
The tailstock is located on the
inner ways at the right end of
the bed.
It supports the other end of
the work when it is being
machined between centers,
and holds a tool for
performing operations such
as drilling, reaming etc.
The tailstock is non-rotating
but on hardened ways, it can
be moved, to the left or right,
to adjust to the length of the
work. It can also be offset for
cutting small angle tapers.

 It has a spindle in the upper

part of the tailstock, the axis
of which coincides with the
axis of the headstock spindle,
both being at the same height
above the bed.
This spindle can be moved
forwards or backwards by
rotating a hand wheel.
The front portion of tailstock
spindle carries a dead or
live centre.
When a long work piece is
held in the chuck at the
headstock
end,
it
is
supported at the tailstock end
by moving forward the
tailstock spindle.

Carriage
The carriage can be moved
left or right either by hand
wheel or power feed along
the length of the machine bed
from the tailstock end to the
head stock end.
During this travel turning
cuts are made.
Carriage consists of the
following parts: (1) Saddle,
(2)
Cross-slide,
(3)
Compound-slide
or
compound rest, (4) Tool post,
and (5) Apron.
It provides longitudinal feed,
cross feed & angular feed.

 The carriage carries a cross slide,

which can independently move in
a crosswise direction at right
angles to the bed.
Mounted upon the cross slide is
another small slide, called the
compound rest (or tool post slide)
which can be rotated in a
horizontal plane.
This compound rest is used
during taper turning to set the tool
for angular cuts.
The compound rest can be moved
only manually.
The cutting tool is clamped in the
tool post which is mounted on top
of the compound rest.

Saddle

The saddle is an H-shaped

casting that fits over the
bed and slides along the
bed ways.
It carries the cross-slide
and tool post.
It has a V guide and a flat
guide on one side for
mounting it on the table
bed guide ways.
The other side of saddle is
provided with a male
dovetail to accommodate
the cross slide with a gib.

Cross Slide

The cross slide is mounted on

the carriage and can be moved
in
and
out
(X-axis)
perpendicular to the carriage
motion.
It is provided with a female
dovetail on one side and
assembled on the top of the
saddle with its male dovetail.
This is the part that moves when
facing cuts are made with power
feed, or at any time a cut must
be made square with the Zaxis.

Cross
Slide

Compound Rest
The compound rest is fitted on
the top of the cross-slide and is
used to support the cutting tool.
It can be swiveled to any angle
for taper turning operations and
is moved manually.
It can be moved in and out by its
hand wheel for facing or for
setting the depth of cut.
It can also be rotated 360
degrees and fed by its hand
wheel at any angle.
The compound does not have
any power feed but it always
moves longitudinally with the
cross slide and the carriage.

Compound rest

Tool Post

Square head
tool post

The tool post is mounted on the

compound rest.
It is used to hold various cutting
tool holders.
It gets its movement by the
movement of the saddle, cross
slide and top slide.
This can be any of several
varieties but in its simplest form
is merely a slotted cylinder,
which can be moved, left or
right in the T-slot in the
compound and clamped in
place.
It can also be rotated so as to
present the cutter to the work at
whatever angle is best for the
job.
Ring and Rocker
tool post

(a) A tool post for single-point tools and (b) a quick

change tool post, which can hold up to four tools.

Apron
The apron attached to the front of the carriage, holds most of the control
levers. These include the levers, which engage and reverse the feed
lengthwise (Z-axis) or crosswise (X-axis) and the lever which engages
the threading gears.
The apron is fastened to the saddle, houses the gears and mechanisms
required to move the carriage and cross-slide automatically.
The apron hand wheel can be turned manually to move the carriage
along the Lathe bed. This hand wheel is connected to a gear that meshes
in a rack fastened to the Lathe bed.
The automatic feed lever engages a clutch that provides the automatic
feed to the carriage.

Feedrod

The feed rod is a long

shaft that has a keyway.
The
power
is
transmitted from the
lathe spindle to the
apron gears through a
feedrod via a large
number of gears.
The feedrod is used to
move the carriage or
crossslide for turning,
facing and all other
operations
except
thread cutting.

Lead screw
The lead screw is powered by gears from the head
stock and is used for providing specific accurate
mechanized movement to the carriage for cutting
threads on the work piece.
The lead screw has a definite pitch.
A splint nut is used to engage the lead screw with the
carriage.
In some lathes, the lead screw performs the functions
of feed rod and there is no separate feed rod.

Apron mechanism

It is used for transferring rotary

motion of the feed rod and the
lead screw into feed motion of
the carriage.
Automatic longitudinal and
cross-feed can be provided to
the carriage by gears and clutch
engagements.
The mechanism is so designed
that when the half-nut is
engaged with the lead screw, the
automatic feed motion from the
feed rod is disconnected.

The half nut or split nut mechanism

The half nut makes the carriage

to engage or disengage with
the leadscrew.
It comprises of a pair of half
nuts capable of moving in or
out of mesh with the lead
screw.
The half nut can be engaged
with the lead screw by means
of a lever provided on the
apron.
The half nut or split nut is used
only for thread cutting.

Work Holding Devices

In lathe work the three most common work holding methods are:
Held in a chuck
Held between centers

Chuck
A chuck is one of the most important
devices for holding and rotating work
pieces in a lathe.
Work piece of short length and large
diameter or of irregular shape which
cannot be conveniently mounted
between centers are held quickly and
rigidly in a chuck.
A chuck is attached to the lathe spindle
by means of bolts with the back plate or
screwed on the spindle nose.

Three jaw self centering chuck

It is used for gripping cylindrical work
pieces when the operations to be
performed are such that the
machined surface is concentric with
the work surfaces.
The jaws have a series of teeth that
mesh with spiral grooves on a circular
plate within the chuck.
This plate can be rotated by the key
inserted in the square socket,
resulting in simultaneous radial
motion of the jaws.
Since the jaws maintain an equal
distance from the chuck axis,
cylindrical
workpieces
are
automatically centered when gripped.

Four jaw independent chuck

With the four jaw chuck, each jaw can be adjusted
independently by rotation of the radially mounted threaded
screws.
Although accurate mounting of a workpiece can be time
consuming, a four-jaw chuck is often necessary for noncylindrical workpieces.

Collet chuck
Collets are used when smooth bar stock, or workpieces that have been
machined to a given diameter, must be held more accurately than normally
can be achieved in a regular three or four jaw chuck.
Collets are relatively thin tubular steel bushings that are split into three
longitudinal segments over about two thirds of their length.
The smooth internal surface of the split end is shaped to fit the piece of
stock that is to be held.
The external surface at the split end is a taper that fits within an internal
taper of a collet sleeve placed in the spindle hole.
When the collet is pulled inward into the spindle, by means of the draw bar
that engages threads on the inner end of the collet, the action of the two
mating tapers squeezes the collet segments together, causing them to grip
the workpiece.

Collet chuck:

Carriers or lathe dogs and Catch plates or Drive plates

Carriers or lathe dogs and

catch plates are used to
hold workpiece when it is
held between centers.
Carriers or lathe dogs are
attached to the end of the
workpiece by setscrews
&catch plates are either
screwed or bolted to the
nose of head stock
spindle.
A projecting pin from the
carriers fits into the slots
provided in the catch plate.

Face plate
A face plate consists of a circular disc bored out and
thread to fit the nose of the spindle.
This has radial, plain and T slots for holding work by bolts
and clamps.
Face plates are used for holding workpieces which
cannot be held conveniently held between centers or
chucks.

Angle plates
This is a cast iron plate having two
faces machined to make them
absolutely at right angles to each
other.
Holes and slots are provided on both
faces so that it may be clamped on the
face plate and can hold the workpiece
on the other face by clamps and bolts.
Angle plates are used in conjunction
with a face plate when the holding
surface of the workpiece should be
kept horizontal, as for example, in
machining a flange of a pipe elbow.
When eccentric jobs are bolted on the
face plate, a balance weight or counter
weight must be added.

Steady rest
A steady rest consists of cast iron base, which may
be made to slide on the lathe bed ways and
clamped at any desired position where support is
necessary.
This is so designed that the upper position is hinged
at one end which facilitates setting and removal of
the workpiece without disturbing the position of the
steady rest.
There are three jaws on the steady rest, two on the
lower base and one on the upper frame, the jaws
may be adjusted radially by rotating individual
screws to accommodate work of different
diameters.
The main function of the steady rest is to provide
support to a long slender work.
For a very long work more than one steady rest
may be used.
However the carriage cannot be fed to the full
length of the work when steady rest is used.

Follower rest

A follower rest consists of a C like

casting having two adjustable jaws
which support the work.
The rest is bolted to the back end of
the carriage and moves with it.
Before setting the follower rest, the
end of the workpiece is machined
slightly wider than the jaws to provide
the true bearing surface.
The tool is slightly in advance position
than the jaws, and the tool is fed
longitudinally be the carriage, the jaws
always
follow
the
tool
giving
continuous support to the workpiece.
The follower rest prevents the job from
springing away when the cut is made
and is used in finish turning operation.

Work holding between Centers

For accurate turning operations or in cases where the long work
surface is not truly cylindrical, the workpiece can be turned
between centers.
Initially the workpiece has a conical center hole drilled at each
end to provide location for the lathe centers.
Before supporting the workpiece between the centers (one in
the headstock and one in the tailstock), a clamping device
called a dog is secured to the workpiece.
The dog is arranged so that the tip is inserted into a slot in the
drive plate mounted on the main spindle, ensuring that the
workpiece will rotate with the spindle.

Work holding between Centers

Lathe centers support the workpiece between the
headstock and the tailstock.
The center used in the headstock spindle is called the
live center. It rotates with the headstock spindle.
The dead center is located in the tailstock spindle. This
center usually does not rotate and must be hardened and
lubricated to withstand the wear of the revolving work.
The workpiece must have perfectly drilled and
countersunk holes to receive the centers.
The center must have a 60-degree point.

Work holding between Centers

Hardened
dead
centers
are
mounted in the
tailstock. They do
not rotate with the
work piece and
must be lubricated.

Hardened live centers

are
mounted
in
the
tailstock; they rotate with
the workpiece and do not
need lubrication.

 A step cone pulley having steps ABCD and a small pinion P

are mounted on the spindle and rotates freely on it.
The gear S is keyed to the headstock spindle. So, the spindle
will rotate only when the gear S rotates.
The step conepulley ABCD and the gear S can be kept
seperately or made as one unit with the help of a pin T.
When the pin is disengaged, the conepulley along with the
gear P will rotate freely on the spindle and the spindle will not
rotate.
There is another shaft parallel to the spindle axis having back
gears Q and R mounted on it.

 These back gears can be made to mesh with gears P and S or

kept disengaged from them.
The spindle can get drive either from the cone pulley or
through back gears.
When the spindle gets drive from the conepulley, the
backgears Q and R are disengaged from the gears P and S.
The pin T is engaged with conepulley.
The belt can be arranged on the steps A,B,C or D to get four
different direct speeds for the spindle.

 Back gears Q and R are engaged with gears P and S.

The pin T is disengaged from the conepulley to make the
conepulley and the spindle separate units.
When the conepulley gets drive through the belt, the power is
transmitted through the gears P,Q and R to the gear S.
Because of number of teeth on these gears, the spindle rotates
at slower speeds.
By arranging the belt on the different steps of the conepulley,
four different spindle speeds are obtained.

Lathe operations

Turning
Turning is a metal cutting process used for the
generation of cylindrical surfaces.
Normally the work piece is rotated on a spindle and the
tool is fed into it radially, axially, or both ways
simultaneously, to give the required surface.
The term turning, in the general sense, refers to the
generation of any cylindrical surface with a single point
tool.
Turning is the most commonly used operation in Lathe.
By turning operation excess material from the work
piece is removed to produce a cylindrical or cone
shaped surface.

Straight turning
In this operation the work is held in the spindle and is rotated whole
the tool is fed past the work piece in a direction parallel to the axis of
rotation.
The surface generated is a cylindrical surface.

Taper turning
A taper may be defined as a uniform increase or decrease
in diameter of a work piece measured along its length.
In a Lathe taper turning is an operation to produce a
conical surface by gradual reduction in diameter from a
cylindrical job.
Taper turning can be done by the following ways;
By a form tool.
By setting over the tailstock.
By swiveling the compound rest.
By taper turning attachment.
By compound feed.

Taper Geometry

d
B
A

Where,

D = Large diameter of taper in mm.

d = small diameter of taper in mm.
l = length of taper part in mm
2 = full taper angle
= angle of taper or half taper angle.

The amount of taper in a workpiece is specified by ratio of the

difference in diameters of the taper to its length. This is termed as
From figure
conicity and designated by letter K.

Dd
K
l

Dd
2
BC l
Dd
tan
2l
K
tan
2
K 2 tan
AB

Taper turning methods

Taper turning by a form tool
Taper turning by a form tool uses a tool which is a broad nose tool
having straight cutting edge.
The tool is set on the work piece at half taper angle, and is fed
straight into the work to generate a tapered angle.
This method is limited to turn limited length taper only.
This is due to the reason that the metal is removed by entire cutting
edge, and any increase in length of the taper will necessitate the use
of a wider cutting edge.
This will require excessive cutting pressure, which may distort the
work due to vibration and spoil the work surface.

Taper turning methods

Taper turning by setting over the tailstock
The principle of turning taper by this method is to shift the axis of rotation
of the workpiece, at an angle to the lathe axis, and feeding the tool
parallel to the lathe axis. The angle at which axis of rotation of the
workpiece is shifted is equal to half angle of taper. The amount of setover
is limited. This method is suitable for turning small taper on long jobs.
The main disadvantage of this method is that the live and dead centres
are not equally stressed and the wear is not uniform. Moreover, the lathe
dog being set at an angle, the angular velocity is not constant.
From geometry :
BC setover

BC AB sin
setover L sin
If the angle , the anle of taper, is very small, for all practical purposes

D
B
d
A

sin tan
setover L tan
Dd
setover L
2l
entire length of the work X conicity
setover
2
if the taper is turned on the entire length of the workpiece, then l L
setover

Dd
2

Taper turning methods

Taper turning by swiveling the compound rest
This method employs the principle of taper turning by rotating the workpiece on the
lathe axis and feeding the tool at an angle to the axis of rotation of the workpiece.
The tool is mounted on the compound rest, is attached to a circular base, graduated
in degrees, which may be swiveled and clamped at any desired angle.
Once the compound rest is set at the desired half taper angle, rotation of the
compound slide will cause the tool to be fed at an angle and generate the
corresponding taper.
This method is limited to turn a short but steep taper owing to limited movement of
the cross slide.
The movement of the tool in this method is controlled by hand, thus this gives low
production rate and poor surface capacity.

Taper turning methods

Taper turning by taper turning attachment

The principle of taper turning by taper

turning attachment is to guide the tool
in a straight path set at an angle to the
axis of rotation of the workpiece, while
the work is being held by a chuck or
between centres aligned to the lathe
axis.
A taper turning attachment consists of a
frame or bracket which is attached to
the rear end of the lathe bed and
supports a guide bar pivoted at the
centre.
The bar having graduations in degrees
may be swiveled on either side of the
zero graduation and is set at any
desired angle with the lathe axis.
When taper turning attachment is used,
the cross slide is first made free from
the lead screw by removing the binder
screw.

 The rear end of the cross slide is

tightened with the guide block by
means of bolt. When longitudinal
feed is engaged, the tool
mounted on the cross slide will
follow the angular path, as the
guide block will slide on the
guide bar set at an angle to the
lathe axis.
Taper turning by this method
does not disturb the alignment of
the live and dead centre.
By this process both steep and
small taper can be made over
any length of the work piece.

Facing:
Facing is an operation for generating flat surface at the ends
of a work piece. In this operation the feed given is in a
direction perpendicular to the axis of rotation.

Chamfering: It is a operation of
beveling the extreme end of a work
piece. This done to remove
unwanted metal projections at the
ends and to protect end of the work
piece from being damaged and to
have a better look.

 Knurling
Knurling is process of embossing a diamond shaped pattern on the
surface of the work piece.
The purpose of knurling is to provide an effective gripping surface
on a work piece to prevent it from slipping when operated by hand.
Knurling is done with a special tool called knurling tool. This tool
consists of a set of hardened steel rollers in a holder with teeth cut
on their surface in definite pattern.

Other related lathe operations

Grooving or Recessing Operations: Grooving or recessing operations is the
operation of reducing the diameter of a workpiece over a very narrow
surface. Grooving or recessing operations, sometimes also called necking
operations, are often done on workpiece shoulders to ensure the correct fit
for mating parts.
Drilling/reaming/ Boring: These are operations to accurately make holes on
a workpiece. These operations uses the tailstock of the lathe. The tool is held
on the tailstock and is fed toward the rotating work piece.

Other related lathe operations

Parting: In. this operation a flat nose tool is used to cut the work piece, with feed in
the direction perpendicular to the axis of rotation. A parting tool is deeper and
narrower than a turning tool. It is designed for making narrow grooves and for
cutting off parts. When a parting tool is installed, ensure that it hangs over the tool
holder enough that the holder will clear the workpiece (but no more than that).
Ensure that the parting tool is perpendicular to the axis of rotation and that the tip is
the same height as the center of the part. A good way to do this is to hold the tool
against the face of the part. Set the height of the tool, lay it flat against the face of
the part, then lock the tool in place. When the cut is deep, the side of the part can
rub against sides of the groove, so it's especially important to apply cutting fluid. In
this clip, a part is cut off from a piece of stock.