New patriot owner - How do I attach to the spindle?

[Leftychang]

hey guys my friend recently bought a shoptask patriot, and it was a pain getting it set up. ive been lurking around reading some posts online about it and its great to see the community for the shoptask collectively figuring things out and modifying the machine to make it better!

anyway, onto my issue: how do i get r8 tooling attached to this spindle? What am I missing?

[instructor37]

Your picture is of the drill chuck arbor. Look at the top of the spindle where it is splined. You will see a bolt and a jam nut- loosen the jam nut and then loosen the bolt a couple of turns. Tap it with a hammer to release the taper then unscrew the bolt ( drawbar). The drill chuck arbor will drop out and you can replace it with whatever R-8 tools you want.

[Leftychang]

hey thanks for the super fast reply! i think ill enjoy my time on these forums

im excited to help my friend get this machine to make any sort of chips! i will continue to post a few small questions here and there.

right now, the other issue is the Z-axis travel - what is the Z axis travel supposed to be? right now it seems that the motor turns it and then it gets bound up at a specific point (dependant on the location of the lever on the head) - is something set up incorrectly? Do you need more information to troubleshoot?

Sorry for the hazy/unclear descriptions

[dgapilot]

The Shoptask web site says it's supposed to be 4". That's what they said on my Bridgemill also, but the actiual travel is only about 2 3/4".

[instructor37]

Originally Posted by Leftychang hey thanks for the super fast reply! i think ill enjoy my time on these forums im excited to help my friend get this machine to make any sort of chips! i will continue to post a few small questions here and there. right now, the other issue is the Z-axis travel - what is the Z axis travel supposed to be? right now it seems that the motor turns it and then it gets bound up at a specific point (dependant on the location of the lever on the head) - is something set up incorrectly? Do you need more information to troubleshoot? Sorry for the hazy/unclear descriptions

Patriots have 4" travel- older machines have around 3". On the Shoptask website under " HISTORY " you can find specs on all older machines. Remove the clamplock assembly from your quill and check for any rust that could cause the quill to hang up.