Bs-0 Dividing heads

[ronan]

I see plenty of the far eastern bs-0 dividing heads on ebay for about 250 pounds. Anyone have one ? Are they worth bothering with ? Not the sort of thing you use everyday, once in a blue moon more like. Handy thing to have on occasion though.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/BS-0-Sem...910772?hash=item1a4d4b00f4:g:maYAAOSwIzBaycwh

 

[Wedg1e]

There must be any number of 2nd-hand ones kicking about for a lot less than that though; bit spendy for something you don't use often.
I think I paid £40 for mine (although it's not a 'unversal' type, horizontal only).
One thing always puzzles me though; I've never seen a dividing plate with holes on both sides but there's no reason you couldn't, that I can see. I know the three mounting holes are countersunk but you could have three more in the gaps, c/sunk from the other side. That way nobody would ever lose the second plate!
I only got one plate with mine so I made a second using the rotary table; just calculated what hole circles would divide closest into the resolution of the table. Any 3 or 4 decimal places error will be lost in the reduction ratio of the dividing head.

 

[ronan]

There must be any number of 2nd-hand ones kicking about for a lot less than that though; bit spendy for something you don't use often.
I think I paid £40 for mine (although it's not a 'unversal' type, horizontal only).
One thing always puzzles me though; I've never seen a dividing plate with holes on both sides but there's no reason you couldn't, that I can see. I know the three mounting holes are countersunk but you could have three more in the gaps, c/sunk from the other side. That way nobody would ever lose the second plate!
I only got one plate with mine so I made a second using the rotary table; just calculated what hole circles would divide closest into the resolution of the table. Any 3 or 4 decimal places error will be lost in the reduction ratio of the dividing head.

Trouble is anything second hand in the dividing head/rotary table line i have seen have been worn out, usually the gearing, giving play. Some of the American makers used 3/8" thick plates and they were double sided.

 

[eLuSiVeMiTe]

Na. You want a nice stepper driven rotary table Ronan.

Trouble is anything second hand in the dividing head/rotary table line i have seen have been worn out, usually the gearing, giving play. Some of the American makers used 3/8" thick plates and they were double sided.

Might be able to help you there

Put this up for grabs in the sales section today

Looked unused when I got it. Cleaned out the old grease and repacked it.
Definitely not worn out. Tailstock too.

 

[Wedg1e]

Trouble is anything second hand in the dividing head/rotary table line i have seen have been worn out, usually the gearing, giving play. Some of the American makers used 3/8" thick plates and they were double sided.

Hmm. But just like slack in a leadscrew on a lathe, as long as you keep the load on the gearing in the same direction it will largely compensate; use the spindle clamp once you've cranked it and it shoud be kosher. Obviously if it's slacker than Tina from Chesterfield then you probably want to run like hell in the opposite direction...

 

[Agroshield]

Read the listings very carefully. For the one to which you link, it notes the imperial one has a No. 7 B&S spindle taper. You will have great difficulty finding something to fit that. It also makes no mention of the spindle nose thread so you do not know what chucks will fit.

Appreciate the difference between a dividing head with a relatively small diameter body, tiltable to any angle between horizontal and vertical and a rotary table with a huge body (meaning the work has to stick out a load so the cutter can touch it). RT can only easily be used vertical or horizontal.

The electronic conversion is, however, so much better.

 

[Shox Dr]

Vertex resell the better BSO dividing heads. You dont see many about for reasonable money though