hotroding a Vega duplicator

I was recently looking through old pics on my computer and came across a few that I took of my 10in Vega for a post I had made on another site eons ago.  It was in reference to a few guys having problems with there duplicator.

So I thought I would repost my portion of the thread here in hopes that it might help anyone who has a Vega.


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I have had many problems with the vega duplicator all of which i have fixed after speaking with vega and working on a few things my self.

For starters i would use lexan template over an original turning as a template because the stylus will wear away at the wood and after a while you will be left with a flat spot on the master.

I had a problem when i first got the duplicator with the chain cutting through the screw that it rested on after the sprocket. I spoke with Vega about this and they told me it was due to the chain being too tight and sent me out a new screw that they said the chain would not be able to cut through.

The problem with the new screw they sent is that instead of the chain cutting through the screw it tends to try and follow the thread and slightly moves the whole assembly forward and back which caused binding.

To fix this problem i found a piece of metal tubing that had a slightly bigger inner diameter then the screw and slid it over the screw. The tubing acts as a bearing and will spin over the screw alleviating all problems.


Using the tubing brought the chain too close to the cover so i had to make a new cover with a notch cut out(The cover is made out of lexan.)


The next problem i had was that the threaded stop bar would hang up.
Vega told me that this was a common problem and it could be easily fixed by tapping on it lightly with a hammer. That did help straighten it out but I also found that the washers that were on it were misaligned and slightly cupped on one side which put uneven pressure when tightened. You want them to sit as flat a possible.


I could not duplicate a whole ten inch pattern. To fix this I simply moved the screw that holds the chain down back one link.


I also found that the wing nut used on the end of the chain to adjust chain tension would move form vibration causing the chain to loosen.  A little wax on the threads each side of the nut took care of that.

If you look closely at the top of the second pic you can see I made a dust shield by  epoxying a thin piece of channel to the Vega case to slide a sheet of lexan through.  This makes it easy to move out of the way when its time to sand.  

Although it will not stop a turning from at me if it splits or grabs it will keep the shavings shooting back towards my dust collector.

There are a few other mods that I have made to the duplicator but they were more of a preference thing. If you have any questions or problems please ask away.

Greg I've had all of the same problems with my Vega. It's funny that Vega knows of these problems but is still producing duplicators with the problems.
as for the stop bar I got a big laugh at the company tech telling you to just tap it with a hammer  
Thanks for posting this info.