Lathe Tooling for Retaining Rings

[wilsonmw04]

Greetings,

We are working on a fall project and want to try out retaining ring of our axles.
We are using a 3/8" and 1/2" retaining rings. According to Mcmaster we need to cut a 0.029" and 0.039" wide grove in the shaft for them, but our lathe does not have a small enough bit. Do we need to grind a larger cutting tool down to size or can we buy a COTS items at that size, if so, where?

Thank you for your help in advance.

[FrankJ]

Here is a thread on grooving tools

[Brandon Holley]

I have had abysmal luck with Mcmaster and grooving bits in the past, and I like to think of myself as pretty Mcmaster proficient.

MSC however has been a slam dunk for me, plenty of options:

http://www.mscdirect.com/browse/tn/I...navid=12107106



-Brando

[ajlapp]

I use this system from Enco....see attached.

[DonRotolo]

Originally Posted by wilsonmw04

.Do we need to grind a larger cutting tool down to size or can we buy a COTS items at that size, if so, where?

If you have a lathe, you should have some high-speed steel blank bits on hand at all times. Grind one down, using the tool tables to get the angles right, to the size you need. Yes you can buy one, but 20 minutes with the grinder and you're done.

Get "how to run a lathe", a book from South Bend Lathe, for example. Use copies on eBay are $15-20. Or the book from Atlas Press Co, maybe the same name, also about the same price. Both were first published almost a century ago, and are still completely valid. Everything about running a lathe is in there, in detail and plain language.

[RoboChair]

Everything you need, right here.

0.040 cut off blade ~$8
https://littlemachineshop.com/produc...gory=202639332

Cut off blade holder for a quick change post ~$22
https://littlemachineshop.com/produc...y=100520820 4

Quick Change post set (2 turning holders, a boring holder, and a parting tool holder) ~$90
https://littlemachineshop.com/produc...y=120649205 8