LATHE MACHINE

Lathe machine is a very common and useful machine.
This machine can perform  various operations like cutting, sanding, knurling, drilling, turning etc on the workpiece .There are various types and sizes of lathe machine according to the type of requirement and work. The parts of all lathe machines are identical to each other with little bit difference..
Basic parts of the lathe machine-

Diagram of lathe machine showing its various parts.

BED
The bed of the lathe provides the foundation for the whole machine and holds the headstock, tailstock and carriage in alignment. 

SADDLE
The casting that fits onto the top of the bed and slides along it is known, almost universally, as the "Saddle" - a self-explanatory and very suitable term. 

APRON
The vertical, often flat and rectangular "plate" fastened to the front of the "Saddle" is known as the "Apron" and carries a selection of gears and controls that allow the carriage to be driven (by hand or power) up and down the bed.

COMPOUND SLIDE REST consisting of the CROSS SLIDE and TOP SLIDE 
Sitting on top of the "Saddle" is the "Cross Slide" - that, as its name implies, moves across the bed - and on top of that there is often a "Top Slide" or "Tool Slide" that is invariably arranged so that it can be swivelled and locked into a new position.

CARRIAGEThe whole assembly of  Saddle, Apron, Top and Cross Slide is known as the "Carriage". Some American publications (even makers' handbooks) have been known to casually refer to this as the "Saddle" - but this incorrect.

HEADSTOCK.
The headstock is normally mounted rigidly to the bed (exceptions exist in some production, CNC, automatic and "Swiss-auto" types) and holds all the mechanisms, including various kinds and combinations of pulleys or gears, so that the spindle can be made to turn at different speeds.

HEADSTOCK SPINDLEThe end of the headstock spindle is usually machined so that it can carry a faceplate, chuck, drive-plate, internal or external collets - or even special attachments designed for particular jobs. In turn, these attachments hold the workpiece that is going to be machined.

BACKGEARAs its name implies, "backgear" is a gear mounted at the back of the headstock (although in practice it is often located in other positions) that allows the chuck to rotate slowly with greatly-increased torque (turning power)

TAILSTOCK
The Tailstock was once known in England as the "loose stock",  " Ppoppet head" or "loose head" - the latter old-fashioned term being used by Harrison and other English firms in some of their advertising literature until the early 1970s. The unit is arranged to slide along the bed and can be locked to it at any convenient point; the upper portion of the unit is fitted with what is variously called a "barrel", "spindle" "ram" or "shoot" that can be moved in and out of the main casting by hand, lever or screw feed and carries a "Dead Centre" that supports the other end of work held (by various means) in the headstock.
Special centres, which rotate with the work, can be used in the tailstock ; these are known as "Rotating Centres" and should not be referred to as "live centres" - that term being reserved for the centre carried in the headstock spindle.
Long ago centres were referred to by turners as "Poppets" - presumably from "pop it in" - and they carried their own with them, secured in cotton waste and jealously guarded in the top pocket of their overalls.

DIAGRAMS

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