Abstract: A wear compensating, precision, linear slide assembly comprises a slide support having a base and an elongate guide rail. The rail has flat longitudinal exterior side walls convergently inclined toward the base and a slide has a guide rail receiving slot with flat longitudinal side walls convergently inclined toward the rail base. The transverse width of the slot is greater than the transverse width of the rail to define a longitudinal space between one side wall of the rail and one of the side walls of the slide. An elongate gib is received within the space and has divergent side walls mating with the side walls of the slide and guide rail. At least one end cap fixed to the slide has a cam part opposite one end of the gib and a cam part on the gib is cooperable therewith to urge the gib to automatically wedge between the guide rail and slide in a direction away from the base as permitted by wear.

Abstract: A chuck for holding an easily distortable hollow workpiece has a rigid body with axially extending co-extensive, circumferentially spaced, flexible chuck fingers carried on a mounting surface. Each of the fingers has one end axially fixed to the mounting surface and an opposite free end which is swingable radially to grip a radially adjacent workpiece. An inflatable ring, mounted on the chuck body radially adjacent the fingers is in engagement with the fingers and, when the ring is inflated, moves the free ends of the fingers radially to grip the workpiece.