Clamps for use on small lathe faceplates

[Alan Haisley]

On the Sherline Tips site: http://www.sherline.com/tip3.htm is an example of a small surface clamp that could be scaled further. You would obviously need to fabricate appropriately sized T-nuts, but a pair, or even more, of these might suit. These are designed to expose the entire top  of the part, which could be handy.
Alan

[Jo]

They are cute 

Jo

[tel]

I have to agree that holes are better than slots in small faceplates - that's how I did the 3" one I made for the Myford.

[steamer]

Well   Even the big ones.....10"   25 pounds
Pictures later.


Dave

[steamer]

Little clamps....they are on a plate, siting on top of a 123 block
....


And big....one I made for my Logan...10" diameter.


I also have a 3C faceplate..about 4 1/2 inch diameter .....which I think is just beautiful...but with no holes or slots yet.   I'll be putting a true running 1/4" hole in the middle and 10-32 tapped holes in a similar pattern as the big faceplate

Dave

[Tin Falcon]

Thanks Alan saved a copy to my shop notes file.
Tin

[Jo]

Due to the lack of space for the clamps, which meant they had to be very short, I chose to make them out of the corner of a piece of angle. a 3.2mm shoulder was left on the underside to provide the stand off and I have made two curved and two pointed clamps. They are mounted by a tee nut which is just a piece of 9.53mm stainless with a pair of flats to fit the faceplate and an M5 thread in the face:



They fit nicely around the 2.4mm end of the Crosskill cylinder:



You can see how little space I would have had for a second adjusting screw  so I gave up on that idea.



I do fancy some faceplate dogs as well 

Jo

[PeterE]

Oooohh really neat little clamps Jo 

What size angle bar? Looks like somewhere around 35x35x4 and piece about 20 mm long?

Definately on my ToDo-list!

BR

/Peter

[Jo]

Peter, nearly spot on  It is actually a bit of imperial 3/16" thick * 1 1/4" angle (4.76 * 31. 75mm angle)

I ended up leaving them at 25mm long.

Jo

[Alan Haisley]

I would be tempted to prep a handful of blanks to keep on hand if different ends needed to be custom made.   
Alan

[Jo]

Strangely enough Alan I had been considering just that with the short end that is left of that piece of angle  .

To keep from getting bored I have knocked up a set of faceplate dogs:





I have intentionally kept to the same M5 allen screws on these as for the previous clamps because it is the same size as the Cowells toolpost 

Jo

[Dan Rowe]

Thanks Jo,
I just added to my to do list.

Dan

[gmac]

Gee, glad I woke up this morning! Thanks Jo, I think the Taig and 9x20 are in for some new tooling!

How wide were the clamps (version 1) looks like about 3/8"?

For the faceplate dogs could we see/explain how they are mounted to the backside of the faceplate?

I'm sitting at the computer making a CoC of the parts 

Cheers  Garry

[steamer]

Jo

You might want 3 or so of those with the screw angled in towards the face of the faceplate to make sure the part is "bedded" .....just like a shaper toe clamp

Dave

[Jo]

Dave: I was thinking about making some brass ends to go on those screws and I was thinking that one set could be angled to provide just that type of clamping effect  Another could be v'ed and then flat...

Garry, the clamps were made 12mm wide. The mounting for the dogs is simple they were turned round to fit through the hole and then have an M6 screw thread on the end on which is a washer and nut.

Jo