NEWLY-ACQUIRED JET 1236PS

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Steggy
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NEWLY-ACQUIRED JET 1236PS

Post by Steggy »

I recently acquired a gently-used, 1991 Jet 1236PS engine lathe (12 × 36), along with a decent set of accessories and tooling. The machine is the right size for what I plan to do and due to being gently-used, is in excellent mechanical shape.

Anyhow, the first task is to get the unit out of the basement in which it is currently located and into the back of a truck so it can be moved to my shop. As a weight-reducing measure, I can separate it from its legs and chip tray, as well as remove the tail stock, motor and power transmission components.

I've thought about removing the head stock from the bed, which would likely lighten the load by at least 100 pounds, as well as make it easier to rig the bed for lifting. However, it isn't clear from looking at the exploded views of the lathe in the (original) manual as to how the head stock is interfaced to the bed to establish alignment. Needless to say, I don't want to unfasten the head stock if I am going to get into an alignment exercise.

So, does anyone here have familiarity with this lathe model (or it's smaller sibling, the 1224PS) and how the head stock and bed fit together?

Thanks!
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liveaboard
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Re: NEWLY-ACQUIRED JET 1236PS

Post by liveaboard »

No idea, but congrats on the new machine!
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Steggy
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Re: NEWLY-ACQUIRED JET 1236PS

Post by Steggy »

liveaboard wrote: Thu Jul 30, 2020 4:06 am No idea, but congrats on the new machine!
Thanks!
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Music isn’t at all difficult.  All you gotta do is play the right notes at the right time!  :D
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ctwo
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Re: NEWLY-ACQUIRED JET 1236PS

Post by ctwo »

I have one of those, but never had the head stock off. I haven't run mine yet. How do you know it's aligned anyway? That's the first thing I'm going to do.
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Steggy
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Re: NEWLY-ACQUIRED JET 1236PS

Post by Steggy »

ctwo wrote: Thu Jul 30, 2020 8:16 pmHow do you know it's aligned anyway?
Well, I do know the machine has never been crashed. So it comes down to whether the factory alignment could be trusted.

That said, this doesn't answer my question.
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Music isn’t at all difficult.  All you gotta do is play the right notes at the right time!  :D
pete
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Re: NEWLY-ACQUIRED JET 1236PS

Post by pete »

Congrats on the new lathe.

Just my opinion, but If that lathe weighs around what the new Jets of that size do then they show a fully assembled net weight of 1210 lbs, I'd guess removing everything you've listed would get it down to around 800 - 850 lbs. Without some type of force multiplier your not moving it with only muscle power alone unless there's no elevation changes in the way. And removing the head stock still won't make it light enough to move by hand if there's any stairs at either end of the move. If it were me I'd make a point of not removing the head stock unless there was absolutely no other way. I've no idea what that lathe uses for it's alignment, but most lathes of that general design will usually use one of the V bed ways with a female V machined and ground in the bottom of the head stock to index it into a correct fixed and repeatable alignment. Some of the newer high end lathes I've seen have only flat ways under the head stock and horizontal opposing bolts are used to set the alignment.I think the Yang's are set up that way for one example. I'm not saying that Jet is poorly made, but I've read a few threads where some off shore lathe head stocks were shimmed at the factory to get the required alignment that should have been correct without shims. That head stock may come off and go right back on with zero changes, except you can't know that for sure before you take it off. With some off shore gap bed equipped lathes you void the warranty if you even remove that gap never mind a head stock because they can't guarantee that gap will return to the exact same position it was in when the bed was originally ground. Even with a perfect repeatable alignment design 1991 was a long time ago, cast iron can move and just pulling the head stock bolts might allow the bed to shift around enough to matter if there's any residual stress built up in the wrong place. For a project lathe I knew I was going to have reground then sure, but yours isn't anything like that.

Fwiw I've had to crane in or move a lot of really heavy equipment into some pretty tight spots. The best advise I can offer is go twice as slow as you think you should and fully think through every step about 10 times before making it unless you move machines as your day job. If anything doesn't seem or feel right at any time then you better stop, double check and readjust anything not quite right until your 100% satisfied it is. Moving anything heavy and trying for fast is a costly fail just waiting to happen. All of this is even more important if your trying to move something with less than ideal equipment or without having 10 times the hydraulic power you need right at your finger tips.
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Re: NEWLY-ACQUIRED JET 1236PS

Post by spro »

I would not remove that head.
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Re: NEWLY-ACQUIRED JET 1236PS

Post by TomB »

I have had good luck moving a Shopmaster 3-in-1 that weights just a bit more that your machine by setting it on a two wheel dolly that lays flat with two extra smaller wheels (Lowes or Home Depot sells it) and a 4 strand block and tackle or a come-a-long. I put planks on the stairs and hook the tail end of the block and tackle to a tree of trailer hitch then simply pull the dolly with the machine up the ramp. It will also work for putting the machine in the back of a pickup truck. I have never tried using a refrigerator dolly with the rotating belts on both sides but one of those might work and it would save the cost of buying 2-by planks to cover the stairs. Further a refrigerator dolly can be rented fro U-haul.
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Bill Shields
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Re: NEWLY-ACQUIRED JET 1236PS

Post by Bill Shields »

how did the previous owner get it INTO the basement?

removing the head / realigning it is not a trivial job...especially if there are shims involved (as is the case with a lot of Asian lathes). Some JET lathes were actually made in Japan...the more recent come from China and / or Taiwan.

some are just bolted and shimmed (by people that do it every day), some are also pinned with dowels once they are aligned.

BEFORE YOU MOVE it, I would check the alignment to see if maybe the head has already been removed and not properly re-aligned..in which case you have little to lose by removing the head again since someone has already 'beat you to it.'

hiring a rigger to pull it up the stairs may be $$$ well spent.

A friend of mine, doing what you are attempting but in reverse...cut a hole in the roof of his house - attic floor..into the living room...through the living room floor straight into the basement...and dropped the equipment down with a crane.
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Steggy
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NEWLY-ACQUIRED JET 1236PS

Post by Steggy »

The lathe has been removed from the basement and is now in my shop. After studying the lathe's assembly drawing, I had concluded removing the head stock was not a good idea.

In preparation for lifting, the tail stock, motor (an all-cast iron 2HP beast that weighs a ton), power transmission setup, chuck and tool post were removed. Using a collapsible cherry picker, we lifted the lathe and separated it from its legs and chip tray, After doing so, we set it on a heavy-duty dolly and got it into position at the foot of the stairs. The collapsible cherry picker was taken up stairs and re-assembled in preparation for handling the lathe once it was at the top of the stairs and out the back door. A pair of 2×12's were set onto the stairs and a come-along was rigged to pull the lathe up the stairs. All of this activity took about 3½ hours to complete.

At the shop, we unloaded everything and reattached the legs and chip tray to the lathe, which took another two hours. Each leg is a substantial weldment weighing about 80 pounds, so it was kind of interesting getting the parts lined up. With the legs and chip tray attached, we used the cherry picker to lift the unit and get it to its final location in the shop. By the time that was done, my buddy Ray and I were pretty worn out—we're both old farts in our mid-seventies. :D So we called it quits.

Next step will be to anchor the lathe to the floor and shim the feet as necessary to get the bed squared up. After that, I will have to get power and compressed air to it.

Speaking of power, the lathe's power transmission setup is the typical mélange of V-belts and sheaves, with a quick-release tensioning setup that works okay. As fiddling with belts can get old rather quickly, a VFD setup is planned down the road. Also, I have to get a quick-change tool post—fiddling with bits and a hex key gets old as well. :D
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Music isn’t at all difficult.  All you gotta do is play the right notes at the right time!  :D
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Steggy
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Re: NEWLY-ACQUIRED JET 1236PS

Post by Steggy »

Bill Shields wrote: Sat Aug 01, 2020 12:07 pmhow did the previous owner get it INTO the basement?
Slid it down the stairs on planks with a come-along.
BEFORE YOU MOVE it, I would check the alignment to see if maybe the head has already been removed and not properly re-aligned..in which case you have little to lose by removing the head again since someone has already 'beat you to it.'
See my previous post.
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Music isn’t at all difficult.  All you gotta do is play the right notes at the right time!  :D
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liveaboard
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Re: NEWLY-ACQUIRED JET 1236PS

Post by liveaboard »

Always joy when a job like that is done [more or less], large object successfully handled and set in it's place.
Without significant damage or injury is a major plus!
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