About the Electroless Nickel Plated Spindle Headstock
This new spindle is the same size as our standard spindle headstock, but the spindle has been coated with an electroless nickel plating to aid in rust prevention and to increase the surface hardness of the spindle for durability. It has a #1MT spindle threaded to accept 3/4″ x 16 tools and includes the spindle pulley.
All Sherline headstocks include the holes to add a hard stop. The optional hard stop kit (P/N 40116) contains two hardened steel rods and a knurled thumbscrew lock. Click the link below for details.
How to Distinguish between Standard Spindles and Coated Spindles
There is a subtle change in the color of the coated spindle, but in the absence of being able to compare them side by side, the most evident way to tell whether you have a coated spindle, or not, is to check for the witness mark. There is a machined groove on the shoulder of the spindle where you would insert a Tommy bar. We add this groove at the factory, so we know which spindles to send out for the plating process.