A frontal lathe or face lathe is a type of

lathe A lathe () is a machine tool that rotates a workpiece about an axis of rotation to perform various operations such as cutting, sanding, knurling, drilling, deformation, facing, threading and turning, with tools that are applied to the w ...

with a horizontal

headstock A headstock or peghead is part of a guitar or similar stringed instruments such as a lute, mandolin, banjo, ukulele and others of the lute lineage. The main function of a headstock is to house the tuning pegs or other mechanism that holds the s ...

, and without a

tailstock Tailstock used for drilling A tailstock, also known as a foot stock, is a device often used as part of an engineering lathe, wood-turning lathe, or used in conjunction with a rotary table on a milling machine. It is usually used to apply support ...

. They are suitable for workpieces with a very large

diameter In geometry, a diameter of a circle is any straight line segment that passes through the centre of the circle and whose endpoints lie on the circle. It can also be defined as the longest Chord (geometry), chord of the circle. Both definitions a ...

(in some cases over 3 meters), but with a relatively short

length Length is a measure of distance. In the International System of Quantities, length is a quantity with Dimension (physical quantity), dimension distance. In most systems of measurement a Base unit (measurement), base unit for length is chosen, ...

. Advantages include their simple and inexpensive construction, good access around the workpiece, and a good overview of the work. Disadvantages include that it can be difficult to clamp the workpiece into place safely, and that the front bearing on the

spindle Spindle may refer to: Textiles and manufacturing * Spindle (textiles), a straight spike to spin fibers into yarn * Spindle (tool), a rotating axis of a machine tool Biology * Common spindle and other species of shrubs and trees in genus ''Euonym ...

is heavily loaded, which is less favourable for

accuracy Accuracy and precision are two measures of ''observational error''. ''Accuracy'' is how close a given set of measurements (observations or readings) are to their ''true value''. ''Precision'' is how close the measurements are to each other. The ...

Description

There are several different designs of frontal lathes. In particular, a distinction is made between lathes where the bedway is parallel to the

axis An axis (: axes) may refer to: Mathematics *A specific line (often a directed line) that plays an important role in some contexts. In particular: ** Coordinate axis of a coordinate system *** ''x''-axis, ''y''-axis, ''z''-axis, common names ...

of the main spindle (similar to a universal lathe), and lathes where the bedway is

perpendicular In geometry, two geometric objects are perpendicular if they intersect at right angles, i.e. at an angle of 90 degrees or π/2 radians. The condition of perpendicularity may be represented graphically using the '' perpendicular symbol'', � ...

to the axis of the main spindle (similar to the letter T in a

floor plan In architecture and building engineering, a floor plan is a technical drawing to scale, showing a view from above, of the relationships between rooms, spaces, traffic patterns, and other physical features at one level of a structure. Dimensio ...

). In industry, face lathes have evolved from the general purpose

universal lathe A universal lathe or parallel lathe is the most common type of lathe. It differs from other types of lathes in that it has the option of a tailstock, separate mechanisms for longitudinal and transverse feeds (typically via separate handwheels), ...

to specialized applications. The face lathe is in some cases a precursor to modern CNC turret lathes, which are a type of lathe in which several tools are mounted on a rotating head. For

watchmaking A watchmaker is an artisan who makes and repairs watches. Since a majority of watches are now factory-made, most modern watchmakers only repair watches. However, originally they were master craftsmen who built watches, including all their par ...

, face lathes have been used since the 18th century and are still common for

prototyping A prototype is an early sample, model, or release of a product built to test a concept or process. It is a term used in a variety of contexts, including semantics, design, electronics, and software programming. A prototype is generally used to ...

References

Machining {{improve categories, date=December 2024

Description

See also

References