Lathe Cutter Height Gage

[rgsparber]

There is no lack of cutter height gages out there. What makes this one different is that you get a go/no go gage and an audible alert.

If you are interested, please see

http://rick.sparber.org/lchg.pdf


Your comments are welcome. All of us are smarter than any one of us.


Thanks,

Rick

[Frank S]

I've read all of these threads about tool height center gauges and many of them look quite impressive but the old faithful Starrett 60° thread center gage has been my old stand by forever. it has such a multitude of uses which I find well within the range of accuracy for many things I do that I hardly ever need to set up a Di center locator except for when doing a set up on very small parts or on the vertical mill
Nice alternate design though, not sure how well it could be incorporated when needing to change tooling while a long cylinder is chucked between centers unless it can be placed on the cross slide as well, Nice feature with the beeper but I doubt if I would be able to hear it although a low intensity LED light might be the ticket

[rgsparber]

The gage won't work if the part is between centers. Then I use a steel ruler pinched between the stock and the cutter. When the ruler is vertical, the cutter is on center.

The beeper is piercing but and LED would work well too. Depending on the ambient light in your shop, you may need to raise the intensity so you can see it. I prefer sound so I can keep my eyes on the adjustment screw.

[Frank S]

I can appreciate piercing but probably wouldn't hear it unless I was looking at the thing,my cell phone has the sound of a fire engine approaching a cross road signal but the only way I will here it is if I see the screen light up. I just about do not hear any sound that I am not looking at or have my self tuned to listen for it. For instance I can hear the clatter of the #1 injector on a diesel engine with my head just inches away from the fan shroud with a 36" diameter engine fan roaring away at a 1000 PRM. My wife says I have selective hearing meaning I only hear it if I really want to hear something she also often says a stick of dynamite could go off next to me and if I wasn't listening for it I might think it was nothing more than a firecracker set off a mile away

[DIYer]

Thanks Rick! We've added your Lathe Cutter Height Gauge to our Height and Depth Gauges category, as well as to your builder page: Rick's Homemade Tools. Your receipt:

Lathe Cutter Height Gauge by Rick Sparber

tags: machining, lathe, height gauge