Hi Rob,
Yes I guess you could use a lathe with a very short headstock (know you of such a beast?) ...but you would still need to support the unequal mass of a HW breechblock that would be sticking out the back of the headstock (I think this is what a lathe spider would be used for?) otherwise, as it is spinning, the centrifugal force would try to throw the breechblock out/away from the centreline of the lathe spindle with disastrous results.
A HW80 breechblock is roughly 35mm x 18mm in cross sectional area, with an approximate bias of 24mm towards the bottom edge of the block (the bit that houses the barrel plunger and the cocking link) so to keep the barrel turning true to the centre of rotation along it's entire length, you would need a lathe with a spindle bore diameter of at least 48mm to accommodate the breechblock inside the lathe spindle.
I hope that doesn't sound too much like gobbledygook?...but I suspect it does...
Originally Posted by DCL_dave
Hi Rob,
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