Impetus-Metalmaster Lathe

With thanks to Mike Collins - who made available much of the material for these pages.

Not be confused with the Metal Master light hobby lathe by the Metal Master Tool Company of Mt. Ephraim, New Jersey, US , the U!"built #mpetus was a general"purpose $combination$ metalwor%ing tool designed by &. '. Urwic% C.Eng., M.#.Mech.E. and manufactured in the early ()*+s by Samuel Jen%ins of ,ougham -ill, .ury St. Edmunds. Mr. Urwich was the owner of a small foundry and de/ised the machine to both e0ploit his patented triangular gib %ey and to demonstrate many of his other uni1ue and inno/ati/e ideas2 the aim was to get the ma0imum /ersatility and accuracy out of a small, affordable machine tool. Unfortunately, the pro3ect ran into what must ha/e been production or costing difficulties and only a do4en e0amples were manufactured " though, fortunately, se/eral seem to ha/e sur/i/ed, including one with a set of original ad/ertising and technical literature. .y further good fortune Mr. Urwic% wrote about his design, and e0plained the theory behind it2 not being able to impro/e upon this comprehensi/e description, it is reproduced in full here. nother $Combination Machine$, the more robust 5abormil, was e/entually to be produced based closely on Mr. Urwic%6s design, e/en to the use 7which was unac%nowledged8 of the patented Triangular ,adial 9ib !ey. The %ey was at the heart of the design6s success for, when mo/ed up or down the main column 7by a 3ac%ing screw8 and re"clamped, the far end of the bed did not de/iate by more than .++($ to .++:$ in radial alignment " a remar%able achie/ement for the %ey was operating 7at that radius8 at a 6disad/antage6 of about :+ to (. Not only was the clamp highly effecti/e but, when released, the two components were able to slide with perfect smoothness. Continued below:

Continued: Notes from the original Instruction Book: General Description: This machine should not be regarded as a special form of lathe. #t represents a new conception of a general purpose machine tool made possible by a simple patented in/ention. This in/ention consists of a triangular gib %ey 7.ritish ;atent No. <)<==>8 which enables any member enclosing and sliding upon a column to be maintained in strict radial relationship to the a0is of the column. &ithin its capacity this machine will perform the duties of a milling machine, a hori4ontal borer, and a lathe with no special adaptation. The attachment of a hand le/er also enables light shaping wor%, such as %eyway or spline cutting, to be carried out without the usual tedious handwheel operation. The bac%bone of the machine is a massi/e column on which the main bed, complete with cross"slide, leadscrew, and changewheel arm, can slide under the control of a /ertical feedscrew. This main bed is %eyed to the column by means of the gib %ey already mentioned and its radial relationship to the column is thereby maintained. #t may be clamped by means of the %ey at any desired height with complete confidence in the accuracy of its alignment. The headstoc% is seated on the head of the column and means are pro/ided for rotating it within fine limits so that the mandrel may be lined up accurately with the main bed and loc%ed in this position. t the bac% of the headstoc% two brac%ets carry an au0iliary Tee section bed on which is mounted the tailstoc%. gain, fine ad3ustment is pro/ided for setting the centres in accurate alignment. #t will be appreciated that the parallel alignment of the mandrel, main bed and au0iliary bed in the /ertical plane is ta%en care of in the design of the machine, but that in the hori4ontal plane there is a radial ad3ustment under the control of the operator. &ith the aid of a test bar, ad3ustment is not difficult and once set, the accuracy of the machine should be retained o/er long periods. The ability to chec% o/er the alignment in a few moments gi/es added confidence where particular accuracy is re1uired. The dri/e from the motor is transmitted to the mandrel by means of a single belt dri/ing a large four"step pulley weighing appro0imately (: lbs. This pulley ser/es a number of purposes? a8 it ser/es as a di/iding head b8 it ta%es the place of a bac% gear c8 the momentum stored in it greatly helps to eliminate chatter, particularly in parting off operations d8 it is /ery con/enient as a handwheel when using taps and dies in the tailstoc%, the weight gi/ing good control as the threads are cut e8 it can be used freely as a brea% to stop rotation after switching off the motor, and generally for turning chuc%s, etc., mounted on the mandrel. The headstoc% mandrel is bored to ta%e >@A$ dial. stoc% and the nose is bored No. > Morse taper for suitable collets. Bor crating and transport, the entire machine can be rapidly dismantled into a number of pieces, each of which is readily handled and pac%ed. ,e"assembly is an e1ually straightforward procedure. 2. CROSSF D !ND " !DSCR # !RR!NG $ N% .oth longitudinal tra/erse 7appro0 (:$8 and cross tra/erse 7=$8 of the boring table are accomplished by solid turned handwheels attached to the ends of the operating screws, the rims of these wheels form inde0 dials > (@:$ and >$ diameter. respecti/ely. The leadscrew nut is not split, nor is a rac% and pinion tra/erse pro/ided. Bor normal operation the four way toolpost is mounted direct on the boring table and the feed applied by means of the leadscrew and crossfeed screws. The absence of a topslide is no incon/enience on a small machine such as this and there is greater rigidity without it. small topslide forms part of the e1uipment but its use should be confined to short tapers and for screwcutting. The leadscrew nut consists of a shouldered bush which is an easy fit in a suitable hole

&. SCR #C'%%ING Though not original, the method of screwcutting on this machine is unorthodo0, but /ery con/enient. #t may not be familiar. slee/e, permanently fitted on the mandrel, carries a :A"tooth wheel, which dri/es the change wheel train and also incorporates a single dog clutch by which it ta%es its dri/e from the mandrel. #n screwcutting, this clutch is used to engage the change wheel train, with the result that it is impossible to pic% up the wrong thread. #t will be found that the changewheels spin 1uite easily as the saddle is tra/ersed bac% to the start of the thread when this clutch is disengaged. &ith one e0ception, the number of teeth on the changewheels are all multiples of three. The calculation necessary to determine suitable changewheels for any particular number of T;# is e0tremely simple, since No. of 'ri/en Teeth C T;# 0 > No. of 'ri/ing Teeth Bor e0ample, to cut < T;#? No. of 'ri/en Teeth C (D No. of 'ri/ing Teeth i.e. one (D tooth wheel on leadscrew together with suitable idlers to gi/e desired rotation. To cut *: teeth? T;# 0 > C (*< C >) 0 A C >) 0 =:@(D To cut *< teeth? T;# 0 > C (<D C :( 0 A 0 : C :( 0 =:@(D 0 (D@:= Numerous metric threads can be cut by the introduction of the >D tooth wheel included in the set. #t will be appreciated that the >D tooth wheel fitted tot he leadscrew with two suitable idlers pro/ides a : mm pitch and that other metric threads can readily be calculated as multiples up and down from this basis. The >D tooth wheel also enables () T;# 7i.e. (@A$ and >@D$ gas thread8 to be cut, with a simple train. (. $I""ING part from the remo/al of the toolpost or topslide, the machine re1uires no modification whate/er to become a small milling machine. cross"feed of =$ and the large slotted table (+$ 0 A (@:$ enable 1uite large wor%pieces to be machined, but it must be borne in mind that this is a light machine and e0cessi/e cuts should be a/oided. machine /ice can con/eniently be mounted on the slotted table and end mills, slitting saws and fly cutters can be used for a /ariety of wor%. #f the gib %ey screws are correctly ad3usted, it will sometimes be found that the /ertical feed can be used with ad/antage in certain milling operations. di/iding head or rotary table, of course, greatly e0tends the range of wor% which can be accomplished. ). %!* R %'RNING &hen turning up a mandrel for holding wor% to which it is desired to gi/e a /ery slight taper, it will be found sufficient to slac%en the ad3usting screws of the main bed gib %ey. The bed than can be slewed to a small angle of taper 7which can be accurately cloc%ed8 and then loc%ed in position by means of the clamping bolt. Bor such things as Morse tapers it is necessary to remo/e the gib %ey altogether. ,aise the bed to full height, loc% in position and lower feedscrew until the upper end emerges. #nsert a piece of wood between the end of the feedscrew and the underside of the bed. Slac%en off the ad3usting screws until the gib %ey falls down the %eyway in the column, when it can be remo/ed. The bed can no be lowered and rotated to any desired degree of taper. #f the taper is not too great, the automatic feed can be used an tapers turned for the full tra/el of the saddle. This procedure will be found to be simple and e0tremely accurate. +. DI,IDING The main dri/ing pulley is pro/ided with <+ e1ually spaced and numbered holes in the rim. ny of these holes can be pic%ed up and the mandrel loc%ed by means of a lin% rod, one end of which is attached to one of the slots in the changewheel carrier arm. Mo/ement of the carrier arm allows fine ad3ustment of wor% held in the chuc% before loc%ing the mandrel in any fi0ed position. The lin% rod itself has a subdi/iding arrangement enabling the <+ di/isions each to be di/ided into <, thus gi/ing total di/isions of ><+ degrees.

-. . /#!/ C'%%ING The machine is well adapted for small shaping operations such as %eyway and spline cutting. Bor this purpose a hand le/er can 1uic%ly be attached for rac%ing the saddle along the bed and ma%ing the operation less tedious than is usually the case when lathes are used for this purpose. The leadscrew nut can be released from the saddle 7as described in section >8 so that the latter is free to slide and a fulcrum plate can be attached at any con/enient position along the bed to gi/e the desired mo/ement by means of a hand le/er and lin%. 0. BORING 1 !D small boring head with radial feed, operated by star wheel and trip pin, at once con/erts the machine into a miniature hori4ontal borer. This addition greatly e0tends the scope of the machine and ma%es it particularly useful for facing and boring lin%er ends and other aw%wardly placed bosses. The slide of the boring head is pro/ided with fi/e positions for the boring tool. This is to enable both internal and e0ternal wor% to be done wit the same direction of rotation of the feedscrew and also so that the most appropriate position can be used to a/oid e0cessi/e out of balance of the slide. 2. "!RG #OR. &ith the Tee bed in position wor% up to D$ diameter. can be accepted between centres and, with care, it is possible to machine wor% of this si4e, particularly in lighter materials such as wood or aluminium. The Tee bed can, if necessary, be remo/ed when wor% (A$ diameter can be swung o/er the bed. suitable bloc% or machine /ice can be used to raise the tool post to centre height and pulleys or other aw%ward 3obs can be successfully drilled and bored in an emergency. lternati/ely large pieces of material or castings can be mounted on the boring table for drilling and facing operations. 34. , R%IC!" $I""ING /ertical drill mounted on the Tee bed ma%es the machine into a small radial drill. The drill head may be lowered on its column until the wor% can e drilled on the cross"slide table and tra/ersed under the drill as desired. #f the drill is ta%en well out to the end of the Tee bed, 1uite large sheets or other wor% can be passed beneath this bed for drilling. lternati/ely , when positioned at the inner end of the Tee bed, the radial drilling of wor% held in the chuc% may be carried out, in con3unction with the inde0ing arrangements on the dri/ing pulley. small milling head could easily be fitted and would be a useful ad3unct. 33. G !RC'%%ING &ith the di/iding head fitted, gears up to (D or :+ '.;. can be cut with blan%s up to *$ diameter. The cutter may be mounted on an arbor between centres and the blan% tra/ersed beneath it and inde0ed as necessary. Small wormwheels may be hobbed in a similar manner. 32. %O*S"ID Bor normal lathe wor% it will be found most con/enient to use the A"way toolpost attached direct to the cross"slide. small topslide is, howe/er, supplied and is intended mainly for turning short tapers and for screwcutting, if it is desired to feed the tool in at the thread angle. The topslide is rectangular in form, which will be found con/enient when setting with a protractor. 3&. %1 %!I"S%OC. The tailstoc% designed for the machine is fitted with a rac% feed to the barrel. graduated dial, with 4ero setting arrangement, is fitted, and this will be found useful for depthing accurately when drilling. #t may also be used when boring blind holes, as a depth gauge, if it is made to follow the saddle as the tool progresses. The barrel is loc%ed by means of a gib %ey similar to that used on the column. This %ey can be ad3usted so that there is no rotary sha%e in the barrel and therefore less chance of drill snatching. Enly finger tight screwing down of the loc%ing screw is necessary to hold the barrel, owning to the wedge action of the %ey. #t is also instantly released. .eing independent of the main bed, it is seldom necessary to hold wor% with the barrel fully e0tended, since the tailstoc% may be passed right o/er the saddle and brought up close to the wor%. 3(. S %%ING '* ground test bar is re1uired with the machine and one end of this bar should be reduced to No. > Morse taper to fit the mandrel nose. #nsert the test bar in the mandrel nose. Ease off the nut on the central stud passing through the headstoc% casting. .y means of the ad3usting screws, rotated the head on the column in the appropriate direction until no mo/ement is recorded on a cloc% fitted in the toolpost as the saddle is tra/ersed up and down the bed. Tighten down the nut on the central stud when this is so. #nsert centres in headstoc% and tailstoc%, bring up the latter until the two centres are touching. .y means of

the ad3usting screws .... bring the centres into true alignment, at the same time %eeping the Tee bed parallel with the main bed, sighting by eye. Slide bac% the tailstoc% and introduce the test bar between centres, test with the cloc% in the toolpost, and correct by means of the screws .. in the outer brac%et only. Tighten up the loc%ing screws underneath each brac%et. Ence set, the accuracy of the machine will be retained for long periods, but the abo/e procedure should be used for resetting after dismantling or for chec%ing if particularly accurate long turning wor% is to be done. #n any case, only a few minutes are re1uired to chec% the ad3ustment and the operator can feel that at all times he has the accuracy of the machine under his control. Fertical Beed d3ustment? Slac%en all gib %ey ad3usting and loc%ing screws. Tighten clamp bolt at rear of main bed casting until lifting screw can be lowered and bet held suspended. Slac%en clamp bolt until bed 3ust falls under its own weight. Tighten gib %ey ad3usting screws indi/idually, again ad3usting until the bed can 3ust fall under its own weight. 3). $O%OR DRI, The most con/enient dri/e for this machine is a (@: hp geared motor, ha/ing a final shaft speed of about >++ rpm. #f this shaft is pro/ided with two pulley ( >@A$ and D$ diameter., a satisfactory range of eight speeds can be made a/ailable with suitable belts. The motor should be mounted on a hinged plate with ta%e up ad3ustments. .

The Metalma ster in use as a simple hori4ont al milling machine . The generou sly" proporti oned (+$ 0 A.*$ T" slotted table allowed a decently strong /ice " to be mounted and, with a cross" feed tra/el of =$ " e1ual to many medium "si4ed milling machine s, a lot could be accompl ished in a small space. Note the edge of the cross" feed handwh eel doubling as a microme ter dial " an easy

and effecti/e way to en3oy a large, clear graduati ons at minimu m e0pense. nother /ery unusual English lathe which happene d to use this feature was the Edgar.

small boring head " with automatic radial feed, operated by a star wheel and trip pin " was a/ailable as an e0tra and con/erted the machine into a small but useful hori4ontal borer. similar design of boring head was produced at one time by a third"party accessory manufacturer for the Myford = Series lathes.

.y clamping a fulcrum point and le/er assembly to the bed, and pic%ing up a mounting point on the cross slide, it was possible to use the lathe as a shaper. The lathe was fitted, as standard, with a four"way tool post mounted directly onto the cross slide " an e0cellent way of achie/ing e0tra rigidity. small top slide was offered as an optional e0tra for cutting short tapers and assisting with screwcutting. /ery cle/er arrangement was fitted to e0ploit the <+ $di/ision$ holes which ringed the front face of the large dri/e pulley " the le/er carrying the engagement pin 7it can be seen fastened to the ban3o carrying the changewheels8 was pro/ided with < incremental positions which e0tended the total number of di/isions that could be created to ><+.

The drilling head 7which was omitted from the small batch of machines made8 shown in its operating position with the simple but cle/er dri/e system of a bar and pulley dri/en between centres. .ecause its support ran the length of the bed, the drill became, in effect, a miniature radial"arm type.

The Designer Writes

With thanks to Mike Collins - who made available the material for these pages.

.y &.'.U,&#C!. C.Eng., M.#.Mech.E. Birst ;ublished in the S#MEC Newsletter in September ()=> Some twenty years ago # designed and built for my wor%shop the small general" purpose tool here described and it has pro/ed such an un1ualified success that # thin% the ideas behind it must interest readers of your Newsletter. # felt that for too long we ha/e been constrained by the principles of Maudsley and that the model engineer particularly, re1uires a small machine with the greatest possible scope and capacity, which the orthodo0 bench lathe in miniature is far from pro/iding. centre lathe ma%es a poor milling machine for lac% of a /ertical feed to the cross" slide or wor% table. milling machine ma%es a poor lathe because of the difficulty of maintaining accuracy for turning between centres with a rise and fall cantile/ered bed. hori4ontal boring machine is a fine maid"of"all"wor% but is not much use as a lathe and is not, in any case, a/ailable in a small wor%shop si4e. ll these machines, ne/ertheless, ha/e a headstoc%, a tailstoc% and a wor% table or cross"slide and, after a great deal of thought, # managed to rearrange these components to gi/e me the fle0ibility # sought. The headstoc% of my machine is mounted on top of a massi/e column, with a cantile/ered bed carried on the column beneath it and raised and lowered by a 3ac%ing screw at its point of balance, n au0iliary Fee bed carries the tailstoc% and is mounted in brac%ets behind the headstoc%. The top surfaces of these brac%ets are ground true with the mandrel and the au0iliary bed is held by screws forcing it upwards against straps seated on the ground surfaces of the brac%ets. Thus, the wor%ing surfaces of the two beds, the headstoc% mandrel and the tailstoc% barrel are all strictly parallel in the /ertical plane. -owe/er, when loo%ing down on the machine from abo/e, alignment of all these parts can be achie/ed by radial ad3ustment, with the column as centre, and this ad3ustment is under the control of the operator. #t will be clear that, for the success of this arrangement, one component, the cantile/ered bed, must retain its radial relationship with the column with e0treme accuracy and this # achie/ed with a special triangular gib %ey, which # in/ented and patented at the time. s%etch of part of the original ;atent 'rawing is shown here, though the patent itself has, of course, e0pired..

The startling performance of this %ey in maintaining accuracy has to be seen to be belie/ed. #ts /ery simplicity is decepti/e. &hen raised or lowered on the 3ac%ing screw and re"clamped, the outer end of the bed can be relied upon not to de/iate by more than .++($ to .++:$ in radial alignment. Ene must appreciate that at this radius the %ey is operating at a disad/antage of about :+ to (G n error of this order o/er a length of (D$ is probably as good as one would e0pect from any orthodo0 light machine of this class. The Triangular 9ib !ey has three great points in its fa/our for this particular application? 7(8 The alignment of the bed with the mandrel can be maintained to /ery close limits indeed, when it is raised or lowered, on account of the %eyway faces themsel/es being radial. 7:8 &hen loc%ed, the %ey acts as an e0tremely rigid clamp and being of wedge shape, can be ad3usted to a /ery close sliding fit, li%e a gib strip, and yet it clears instantly on release. The sliding clearance at the %ey faces can be so small that, with normal wor% anywhere near the chuc%, it is unnecessary to apply the loc%ing screw and clamp the bed. The /ertical feed can be used for milling or other purposes as freely as the cross" slide or leadscrew feeds. 7>8 #f the %ey is remo/ed, the whole bed can be swung radially and loc%ed, for turning wor% to any desired taper. #n fact, the arrangement can be summed up by saying that parallel turning is merely a case of $4ero taper.$ d3usting screws are pro/ided for truing up the mandrel, and the au0iliary bed and tailstoc% to fine limits and with the aid of a test bar, this radial lining up of the machine can be achie/ed in a matter of minutes. #n considering the general details of this machine many > (@:$ centre lathes were considered and an attempt was made to adopt the best features that could be found amongst them. Ef these lathes, undoubtedly the most original and useful of all was the > (@:$ E0e machine, on the mar%et in the ()>+6s. The headstoc% arrangements and screwcutting details of this beautiful little machine were adopted and no better choice could ha/e been made. The mandrel carries at its outboard end a (:$ dri/ing pulley weighing about (: lbs. The power unit used is a -iggs (@: h.p. geared motor, the output shaft running at appro0imately >++ r.p.m. This shaft carries a :"step dri/ing pulley, thus gi/ing eight mandrel speeds /arying from A* to )++ r.p.m., using a single Fee belt which can be freely thrown on and off the pulleys. -owe/er the main function of the hea/y pulley on the mandrel is to gi/e $flywheel effect$ and pro/ide momentum between wor%piece and tool as the cutting operation ta%es place. &ith a light machine this momentum ma%es all the difference in eliminating chatter and # can turn without difficulty D$ dia. C.#. traction engine wheels or a (:$ dia. aluminium pulley. The au0iliary bed is remo/ed to accommodate large diameters abo/e D$. # was recently able to put a taper bore in the boss of a (+$ dia. marine propeller. #t is /ery useful to be able to swing such an article, the operation itself being well within the capacity of the machine. Bor this 3ob the main bed was rotated on the column to the correct taper, after the %ey had been remo/ed and, at this slight angle, automatic feed could still be used. The screwcutting arrangement too is most ingenious and possibly unfamiliar. slee/e on the mandrel carries a :A"tooth wheel, which dri/es the changewheel train, and also incorporates a single"dog clutch by which it ta%es its dri/e from the mandrel. #n screwcutting, this clutch is used to engage the changewheel train, with the result that it is impossible to pic% up the wrong threadG #n addition to this, the number of teeth on the changewheels are all multiples of the number > instead of the usual *. These numbers (D, :(, :A, :=, etc., brea% down into simple fractions far better than the usual ones and the formula with an D T.;.#. lead" screw is simply? No. of dri/en teeth """""""""""""""""""""" C > 0 T.;.#. No. of dri/ing teeth

The designer6s own lathe " now in the sympathetic hands of Mic% Collins %he $etalmaster 5 a mo6ern re7ie8? t some point in the early ()=+s 'a/id became interested in model Stirling engines and it was as a result of an article that he wrote on his mo/ing regenerator type in Model Engineer that # first wrote to him. long correspondence and friendship followed and when 'a/id returned to England from his retirement home in Malta # was able to /isit him at his new home in Somerset. Naturally we gra/itated to his newly" built wor%shop where # saw not only his collection of Stirling engines but also his Metalmaster, a machine that had fascinated me e/er since reading about it in the Model Engineer bac% in the fifties. Unfortunately it wasn6t wor%ing as, during the 3ourney bac% from Malta, the cross"slide feed"screw nut had been lost. -owe/er, within a couple of days # had made and posted a replacement to him and the ne0t time # /isited # was able to play with the machine. Sadly, a few years later, poor 'a/id became a /ictim of ;ar%inson6s 'isease and, an0ious that his machine should go to an appreciati/e owner, he offered it to me. fair price was agreed and # became its proud owner. Seen here with the machine are some of the accessories, including the boring head and topslide mentioned in the brochure, together with the /ice designed to fit the cross"slide and a matching di/iding head. The saddle fitted on the parallel au0iliary bed is my own addition and can be slid along by hand before loc%ing in position. #t was originally made to hold a fi0ed steady but, in addition, pro/es /ery useful for holding the lamp, the '.T.#. and the home"made tool height setter, a de/ice similar to the old 6Uni1ue6 indicator, which can be swung out from under the saddle to sit on the tool tip. There is little # can add to 'a/id6s article re the /ersatility of the machine, it is certainly all that he claimed for it and can be con/erted to any of its functions within a couple of minutes. #ts accuracy was all that he claimed for it although now, after nearly fifty years of 6amateur6 use, is slightly impaired by wear at the headstoc% end of the bed. 7#n retrospect, 'a/id thought that since the tailstoc% was no obstacle, the saddle

could ha/e been made rather longer with some ad/antage8 # can6t really comment on the machine6s rigidity since # normally use it for building small model Stirling engines and handle it li%e cut glass " ne/ertheless, recent 3obs ha/e included s%imming the bra%e drums of my wife6s Morris Minor and re"machining the base of an #ndian cylinder barrel, re1uiring the full fourteen inch swing to accommodate the finning around the /al/e seats. Sumitomo tips are /ery satisfactory for all these straightforward turning and boring 3obs. 'a/id6s geared"motor dri/e was becoming /ery noisy and has been replaced with a Sinclair C* motor with infinitely"/ariable speed control since when parting off inch and a 1uarter steel has become a real pleasure " albeit a slow oneG Binally, # must agree with his remar%s regarding the usefulness of the /ertical feed " handling a con/entional lathe now feels li%e wor%ing with one hand tied behind my bac%. nd the sheer /ersatility of the machine has gi/en me a new hobby " that of finding new 3obs for it to do. Mitering picture frames too% longer than e0pected though, due to the need for spotless cleanliness HH... Mic% Collins at?" syl/estrisIbtinternet.com