I could see the locking collar as a failsafe for the bearing, but in order for it to help handle the force, it would actually have to ride against something solid (other than the bearing). This would introduce friction that I don’t want.
I will just show you guys what I’m working on so you see the whole picture.
I want to build a LowRider “Lathe” attachment. It would look something like this:
You see the use of the pillow block bearings here. The force against them would be however much it takes to hold a piece of wood between the stocks securely. (I just assumed 10 lbs max.)
This assembly would be mostly under the LowRider table at one end. It would be situated so I could park the LowRider directly above the stock (and somehow lock it in place), with the centerline of the stock even with the top of the spoilboard. I would disconnect the “Y” stepper from the LowRider and plug in the stepper from the “Lathe” attachment.(I’ve been looking for a switch that would do this, but so far no luck) I could swap out the gear on the 8mm shaft to be as close in diameter as possible to the stock, and then take care of minor differences in diameter between the gear and the stock in CAD or CAM. The stepper motor would be adjustable up or down to accommodate gears of various diameters. The tailstock assembly would be adjustable side-to-side to accommodate various lengths of stock.
Thoughts?