On my lathe the safety switch connected to the chuck guard closes contacts
at about halfway. When I need to turn large pieces (18cm max, about 7") it's
just a matter of tying it half open, using a piece of thin chain and a nail
purposely fitted on the wall behind the lathe.
Probably, the guard could be removed simply by unscrewing the two bolts
keeping it in place, the supporting rod turned into the 'closed' position by
hand.
Also, on my lathe, the engine can be started when the guard is fully open,
providing I'm keeping a finger on the start switch, to keep it pushed down.
The safety circuitry only prevents me from 'normally' running the lathe
without closing the guard.
After the initial surprise, I got used to that: it's very handy when, after
chucking a piece, I want to have a look at how well (or badly) it is
centered.
Is it a common feature on the 7x lathes?
Marcello
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Hi John,
I can't say I've seen their bodge other than in photos so don't know
whether there was another better way of doing it. I'm guessing that what
they did was the cheapest way of doing it, not the best.
Is it a case that a lot of people will not do any work of a size where it
becomes a problem and how easy would it be to remove the shield and
overcome the interlock , either temporarily or permanently?
