Tapmaster on lathe?

[abstruse1]

I just bought a Tapmaster 50X for my Bridgeport clone mill. and I'm wondering if it's possible to use it on my 5MT lathe tailstock. Will these things work in a horizontal position?

Thanx.

[pete]

Yes they'll work in a horizontal orientation, but I'm almost positive it still won't work in your tail stock. There designed to be powered so the rotary motion helps drive the tap in and more importantly reverses the drive to back the tap back out when the spindle is lifted.

[Russ Hanscom]

Might work with a lever operated tailstock, but will not work on a conventional one for the reason noted.

On second thought, will not work on a lathe tailstock, period. The body of the tapper is restrained from turning by a torque arm, and the input shaft has to be turned. Could probably be used in the lathe headstock, but that means the work would have to be mounted on the carriage. I have three tappers of assorted sizes and they all work the same way.

[ctwo]

All things must be relative so you'd have to drive the Tapmatic 50X body with the lathe chuck, like with a lathe dog. I certainly wouldn't try it though.