I had to replace the bearings and MT1 on my lathe.

It was a very very snug fit and I doubt I'll ever be able to pull it out again....

Here's the problem. My spindle has a different taper than the original MT1. Since I don't have a MT2, I wonder if they sent me the wrong taper.

Here's what I'm experiencing. With my chuck in, it rocks a bit. This means the taper I received is not as sharply angled as the MT1 that is normally on my lathe. Is a MT2 taper indeed more 'relaxed' so that my MT1 in it will rock a bit. Not much but clearly rocking.

Thanks,
Mo

It's an entirely different size. An MT1 attachment in an MT2 taper would fit like a clapper in a bell. It wouldn't "rock a bit" it would just fall out.

..........

Follow-up. Found the answer on the web. Doesn't look like I have MT2 as the opening is too small for MT2. Hmm.......no idea what I have.

Thanks for reading through and if anyone has any idea, love to hear it.

Mo

One thing to try - wad up a rag or towel and run it up inside the female part and clean it. If there is any residue, dirt, grime, etc., inside the taper, it will cause an inperfect fit of the matching part. This could easily be your problem.

...................

Thanks Tom. I posted my 2nd one while you were posting. Just read it.

THANKS!

Mo

Mo

Another thing to check is the tang(flat on the end). Ive seen some cheaper ones come a little bit longer. In this case the back of the tang hits before the tapers will mate perfectly. Sometimes a light file job will fix it.
Similar to Toms solution--- Did you take the protective film off of the OD and ID of the taper before fitting. They both must be extra clean. If you any little burrs remove them with a file.

There is NOTHING between an MT1 and an MT2. So you either have some crud or something in there or you received a taper that was incorrectly machined.

I had this happen and was very frustrated.
It turns out the taper was correct but tang end of chuck was too long. I cut off about an inch (as I recall) and the problem was solved.

Thanks everyone for your help. My chuck and the original spindle fit perfectly and very tightly. This spindle is simply machined incorrectly. I've cleaned and filed to no avail. Going back....

Thanks again. Great forum as always.
Mo

Mo,
Here is a pretty good description of common machine room tapers.
The typical mt1 and mt2 are what is commonly referred to as a morse taper.

Another common taper that is routinely found on drill pressess is a jacobs taper. The tapers can be close, but are not the same.

I wonder, if you had a piece that was shipped to you with a jacobs taper on the end, rather than a morse taper?

[en.wikipedia.org]


I have often see adpters sold on the market that are in fact Jacob tapers, and are NOt morse tapers.

Take care
Roger

I sometimes fool with a old Craftsman mini lathe. Some of the reference sources for these lathes state that there are were approximately 3 differernt tapers used as a Morse #1 taper. It is not at all unusual to get a accessories that is supposed to be a Morse #1 that does not fit a Morse #1 arbor. And yes, the taper can be longer than the hole for it. I finally bought a #1 taper reamer and a new spindle and tailstock spindle.

The lathe will not work long if the taper is wrong and the chuck "rocks" as you suggest. Do a search and find Homecraft tools (William Hardin) and look at what he has avaliable for the little lathes and #1 taper stuff.

Thanks everyone. Very helpful. Currently I'm temporarily getting around the problem by using masking tape to shim the chuck as needed while I wait for a replacement part.

Thanks,
Mo