Coupling for a mill roll

In a coupling between a roll of a heavy rolling mill and a cardan shaft, wherein the roll and a connecting member are joined by a mortise-and-tenon joint with the roll having a projection with flat surfaces thereon and the connecting member having a recess to receive said projection, the joint being such as to prevent relative rotation and the leading end of the projection and the base of the recess having respectively a pair of mutually corresponding conical surfaces which are coaxial with the axis of the projection and are urged into engagement in order to align the axes of the roll and the connecting member, the improvement that, in order to achieve rigid coupling of the roll and the connecting member, there is provided a split ring which in unmounted condition is axially movable along the said projection and which is radially compressible by closure of the split or splits to grip the said projection, the ring and the mouth of the said recess having respectively a second pair of mutually corresponding conical surfaces which are coaxial with the axis of the projection, and there being provided first pulling means for drawing the first said pair of conical surfaces into engagement and second pulling means for drawing the said second pair of conical surfaces into engagement.