| Author | Message | ||
     S1owner |
I am a beginner with this I have ran a metal lathe before but it has been years. I bought a nice small hobby lathe old school my question is are there any good basic lathe books that anyone knows of? | ||
| Bluzm2 |
Check Youtube.. | ||
| Stevel |
There is the classic for beginners "How to run a Lathe" by South Bend. It has been reprinted many, many times. It is available everywhere. | ||
| Jayvee |
Yeah! just downloaded as a pdf for free.. there a couples places pop right up on Google. S1, what kind of lathe you get? I'd really like to have a small one | ||
| S1owner |
Where did you find the pdf? I found a little craftsman from the 50 or 60's the old timer that had it bought it new used it a dozen times oiled it up baged it and stored it as he got a bigger one mint shape all the accesories $400 out ghe door. | ||
| Bluzm2 |
Ken, you suck....  | ||
| S1owner |
Even I get a bone once in awhile! I looked for over a year I wanted a small table top one that I could easily stow away but not some china made pos and I got lucky. So yes I suck | ||
| Kenny_gilgore |
Brad, If you have room for a fair size Atlas Lathe there are still a ton of them floating around in machine shops that are now mostly CNC. I have bought Bridgeport Mills and Atlas lathes for a few bucks in recent years. The only problem is most of them are going to be 3 phase if they come from a big shop, but ask, they may have some single phase motors laying around or even an un-used phase converter. Kenny G | ||
| Buell_bert |
I bought a mill/lathe combo from Grizzley about 10 years ago for about 8 hundred. The tooling cost WAY more than the machine. It is a very nice machine but is made over seas and no longer in the catalog. I have a brother that is a machinist to help me if problems arise. This has been a great tool over the years and I have made many parts for many projects plus I have learned alot of what goes into the processes involved with producing things. Not just bikes but cars and things or custom parts I need at home or for other people. I have drilled, turned, knurled, bored, milled, faced, threaded, etc. etc. etc. One of the best tools I have bought. I even made/welded up the stand that supports it. | ||
| Bluzm2 |
Kenny, I hear ya... I do have an old Atlas 12" but it needs some parts and a bit of work. I'll have to ding into that one of these day. I would like to have a mill though... Old Bridgeports are pretty cheap but like you said, they usually need a phase inverter. | ||
| Kenny_gilgore |
You can still find parts for an old Atlas. If you are handy you can make your own phase converter. I had a trade school teacher make me one and I ran it for years. Kenny G | ||
| Mnscrounger |
I agree the Grizzly's leave a bit to be desired in quality, but not all chinese and Taiwan products are junk. The older pre-China takeover Taiwan machines (mostly the JET, but DoAll used them for their product line too) have hard chromed ways and tight R8 spindles. I have an mid eighties JET benchtop mill in my garage right now, along with an old 10" Southbend lathe. Both are in tough shape, but can turn out some nice work when the setup is carefully done. The key is not to take too big a cut, and make sure your work and setup is secure. Bluzm and Kenny, Cedarberg Industries in Mendota Heights Minnesota makes both rotary phase converters and 3 phase inverters (there is a difference) and their pricing is pretty reasonable. I don't currently own one, but have had good luck with their products. http://www.cedarberg.com/phaseconvcat.htm | ||
| Kenny_gilgore |
Scrounger, That is good to know that phase converters are that inexpensive. At home your only going to run one machine at a time so you do not need a very big one. Kenny G | ||
| Bluzm2 |
Thanks Steve, I'll keep that in mind. |
