Your lathe does not have a gap bed. One other thing is to buy a revolving center and forget the dead center you have with the tool kit. They are cheap an worth every cent. A lot of feed for the cutting speed. Again I would buy a set of tip tools rather than use HSS. They do a tip for alloy that looks like chrome (also good for plastics) and the finish it gives is second to none. Flea Bay is your friend. The other thing is the power feed on this model is rather course, so be careful as you can hit the chuck if you are a little late with the feed lever. The knob on the lower right with A B & C on it is the power feed speed selector (or rather a thread cutting selector) I have marked mine with a M above the A for medium, F above the B for fine and S above the C for standard. Dont us the knob next to it for direction change unless you stop the machine first. Look in your manual for centre height setting for the tools as this is very important. My old mentor always used a steel rule that was positioned between the tool point and a piece of round bar. Wind the tool in very gently till it just pinches the rule which is held vertically. If the rule is perfectly up and down the center height is about right. If the rule is sitting with the top towards the back of the lathe, then the tool is too high. If its sitting with the bottom then the tool is too low. Old stuff but it works. If you decide to go for HSS tools you should read up on rake angles for different materials. This is why i go for tip tools these days. Hope this helps.
All you guys are making me jealous. Now I want one more than ever. Don't know what I would do with it or where to put it but I still want one.
Yeah, all get right on that. Don't know if a lathe alone could but a lathe/mill combo sure could (as long as it's belt driven from an outside source of power).
FadT - By "revolving center" do you mean live center? I have one of those. I was looking at the replaceable tipped tools just from the learning curve side of things. I'm a loooong way from grinding my own HSS tools!
Listen to Fad T Also, don't run lathe w/oily hands, and if you are using H.S. tool bits (usually w/o chipbreaker) watch out for long(hot metal) ribbon wrapping around control handles (any machine). If this happens when you are coming up to chuck under power feed and you are watching the part you will be forced (in a mili-second) to decide whether to "**** or go blind". Ask me how I know, your only salvation is the foot break and many machines are not so equipped. Work Safe
Yep. live center. sorry different time, different teachers. If you go the way of 'compe***ive' priced tip tools make very sure they can supply replacement tips. Caught that cold before. Above advice fromn DDDENNY is probably the most important you can take on board. The FIRST thing we did in cl*** (45 years ago), was to get some 1/4" bar and bent it to a handle with a foot long straight and a slight bend on the other end. This was used to pull swarf away from the cutting area and meant that you would NEVER have to get your hands near the chuck, swarf or tool. The slight bend would hook the swarf but was shallow enough to give way if the chuck took hold of it. Swarf is a razor blade in disguise. Even if the machine is stopped pulling it away can result in loss of fingers. SERIOUSLY.
Katuna-- The advent of carbide inserts is right up there with the invention of the flush toilet, but you will find that many times you can't get an insert with the tool configurations (form) you are faced with on a daily basis(hobby or career) and carbide form inserts as well as their dedicated holders are real spendy. Keep in mind that with cemented carbide tool blanks (w/integral shank) and an imported(much smaller cost than U.S. made) carbide grinder w/green stone and a diamond finishing wheel, you can get pretty creative. Even today with carbide; grinding your own HSS tool bits should be part of your "learning curve".
Have to agree, grinding HSS tools for form tools or just to sharpen them was a right to p***age.. but http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/5pc-Mini-...122?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_3&hash=item43c0850dca http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Lathe-Too...565?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item19fbf033fd Also the BEST parting off tool I have ever used is a tip tool. Tip is held in with friction and the laws of leverage, not a screw. Brilliant
Your life as you know has been now changed forever and what fun you will have......a foundry and a new lathe don't get any better........now you need a mill!!!
Used ISCAR for years. Katuna-- your missing out if you have never seen the parting operation under power feed. I'll admit; at first you kinda "pucker" up waiting for things to turn ugly, and it will if you have a dull insert, but it's like poetry in motion when all is right with the world. fadt Have you done much plate trepanning under power, that's where the real labor cost savings are.
Thanks for all the input guys, it really helped. And a special shut out and much love to Saltflats for the Atlas book. A ton of info in there. Even though it's 78 years old the principals all still apply. Saltflats-I'm afraid if I make you a keychain it'll just be a chunk of 1/2" round stock with a chattered up turn down on one end with a hole drilled on the other end with a zip tie. I've got a way to go yet.
The Jalopy Journal
