Hi, working on a small lathe I purchased. The planetery back gear I believe is not working. If I slide the pin in the assembly the lathe locks up. If I disengage it the lathe works. It is a 109.23270 Can I free up something as it sits or do I have to pull the assembly out? And if pulling it how do I do this, thanks.
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craftsman 109 model 80 lathe backgears
- Thread starter Orca
- Start date
Maui
Well-known member
If I remember correctly you need to make two adjustments in order to properly engage the back gears correctly on that lathe. There are two knurled knobs that you have to move. One has threads on the shaft and the other doesn’t. The knurled knob with the unthreaded shaft is easy to see on the headstock as you stand there and face the lathe to use it. You have to slide that pin in and rotate the entire pulley assembly by hand until the pin locks the pulley in place so that it doesn’t move. This is probably the one you mentioned above. Then you have to loosen the knurled knob that has a threaded shaft on it that sits on the face of the pulley itself and push up on it and hand tighten it to disengage the V-belt side of the pulley. Now you are in back gears. Reverse the procedure to engage the forward gears. Keep in mind that to re-engage the forward gears you will have to loosen the knurled nut on the pulley face and GENTLY push down on it as you rotate the V-belt side of the pulley until you feel the nut engage. Then tighten it, and pull the other unthreaded knurled nut out. Do not completely remove the threaded one from the pulley face when you are making these adjustments or you will have a ***** of a time getting it back where it’s supposed to go.
Maui
Maui
O.K. Thanks. I am getting familiar with the little guy. Stumbled on the pin on the headstock and thought it locked up unit. I will look in the morning for this other knurled knob. It is a little guy indeed but just making little things with it. I had a beautiful Prentiss Brothers lathe that I made wheel centers for a vintage midget race car project I had. That was a great lathe but had to let it go. I would like to get a bigger lathe to do more substantial work than the craftsman but need to put it in basement so not too big. I will report back tomorrow. Again thanks to all with your knowledge base. Appreciate it
rabidsquirrel
Well-known member
Pretty sure you need an 1/8" Allen key to lock in the knob. Depending how worn out it is it might be a bit fiddly trying to get it locked in.
Sent from my VS987 using Tapatalk
Sent from my VS987 using Tapatalk
Hi , yes I found a socket head screw on the back side of the gear set in there. 10x32 thread. Well I loosened it up but assembly would not rotate freely. Turns out the square de tent that rides in the pulley hub was all jammed up and would not ride up and down to lock and unlock the planetary gear set. the slot was buggered up thinking someone left it loose and it banged up the channel. I filed the slot and now the square de tent rides up and down well. Question, the whole gear set has old sticky grease on it and I need to clean up the entire assembly. What grease should be used to re lubricate the gear set and reinstall everything. Thanks to all!
Are you sure that you have the model number right? I can't find anything on 109.23270, tons of stuff on 109.21270.
There are dozens of YouTube videos on 109.21270 lathes, operation, restorations etc.
here is a 21270 manual.
http://vintagemachinery.org/pubs/detail.aspx?id=601
There are dozens of YouTube videos on 109.21270 lathes, operation, restorations etc.
here is a 21270 manual.
http://vintagemachinery.org/pubs/detail.aspx?id=601
whateg01
Well-known member
Double post
whateg01
Well-known member
Sorry, you are correct on model number. I soaked the gears set in laundry detergent. Crud came right off. Then sprayed with WD-40. All clean as a whistle. I am reading tacky motorcycle chain lubricant works well on gear set. Thanks.
That's probably what I would use too. It's not sealed and you don't want whatever is in there getting flung out. I use Lucas sticky grease for stuff like that.
Fantastic Thank you for the reply. I fully understand manuals from years past have specs for lubes but today's lubes might be a better choice. I have ordered some. I was using lubriplate on exposed gears on the head stock but will try the new stuff on that too! Want to keep this guy going without hurting it! Again this forum is a great resource and appreciate al the help fro the members!!
Maui
Well-known member
You will find a lot of debate about this, but it is generally advisable to use oil, not grease, on the drive train gears. Oil will flush chips out from between the gears. Grease will capture chips and over time they can damage the gear teeth.
whateg01
Well-known member
I usually agree that oil is less likely to retain chips. In this case, I feel like the headstock is shielded well enough to keep the chips away while using the back gear, especially since in back gear, the rpm is low. I guess they could still get in there when operating not in back gear, though. I dunno. I've used grease. YMMV. That should cover it all! ��
islandkent
Well-known member
I use Lucas oil additive for my change gears ,back gears and drive gears. Talk about a quiet drive line. Stringy and I have to clean everything before I thread anything. But I don't thread too much. I have no issues with chips in my gears. I have all the shields in place and made a rubber plug to go into the chuck end of the spindle to prevent chips from working their way through the spindle to the change gears. Like I said crazy quiet.
I usually only use back gears to drill, parting off or polish.
I'm only a hobbyist. I generally keep things kind of tidy after use. I enjoy it????
I usually only use back gears to drill, parting off or polish.
I'm only a hobbyist. I generally keep things kind of tidy after use. I enjoy it????
Hi, wanted to let forum know I got the chain lube and it works well. I sprayed the back gear assembly and assembled it back up. I made a knob from a small nut and welded it to the 10x32 socket head screw that locks up the planetary gears. I tested the lathe and wow now I got slow speed now. I will get some Lucas oil additive for the exposed gears under the cover on the left side of the head stock. O.K. Again thanks to all your help. Forum is the best!!