Metal lathe review coming

[94touring]

Buttoned things up and made a motor shield.  I have a digital rpm gun arriving today or tomorrow so I can see how fast the head is spinning at full power.  I found a company that sells a huge variety of pulleys and associated belts.  I went ahead and ordered a couple different size drive pulleys and a larger diameter driven pulley, along with a couple different length belts. Which all match up to what I already have. This will give me several combinations to play with to alter the head speed to suit.  I don't necessarily need, or want, to be spinning at 4k rpms to get maximum torque out of the new motor.  So if I can reduce it down around 2k rpms at full power that would be ideal.  Options are good.  Here's the shield I slapped together.  I mounted the 4 jaw 5 inch head to make sure it clears.

[94touring]

Well the gearing as is matches the knob as far as rpms go.  Took readings today and halfway is 1300rpms and full is 2500.  Dave was here and concurred that 2500 is fast as hell.  2000 is kind of the sweet spot. 

[94touring]

Pulleys and belts came in. Just have to cut out the centers to match.

[MiniDave]

I'll bet you know someone with a lathe that can cut those out!   

[94touring]

Yep!  On the to do list aside from bore these out is finish stabilizing the external motor to reduce vibrations.  Thinking perhaps a bracket that's going vertical to the table in conjunction to the horizontal bar to the lathe body. I decided the bearing grease situation is I can fill the void in the head halfway up before it hits an access hole that the old motor wiring went through. I can thin the grease down a bit with gear oil so it levels out easily and keeps a flow to the bearings, but not so thin it seaps out of the face. The front face rubber gasket was a failure as it just spins itself into oblivion.  I will machine a more accurate metal piece to seal the face of the bearing but not bind to the spindle.