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Chris Trice23/10/2010 10:47:01
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1376 forum posts
10 photos
And before anyone suggests that I'm sizest, I also have a Cowells lathe which by contrast is superb and has a powerful motor although it still struggles with anything above small and won't remove metal at anywhere near the same rate. I therefore reiterate, it's best to go for the largest lathe you can accomodate in your situation.
Stub Mandrel23/10/2010 12:00:15
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4318 forum posts
291 photos
1 articles
Mini Lathe.
 
6" x 4" x 1 1/4"
 
Nuff said?
 
Neil
 

Howard Jones23/10/2010 13:02:28
70 forum posts
112 photos
Hey Stubs
....sorry ....Sir Mandrel
dont you know that you dont open a suitcase with a lathe.
there are two little clips on the top and then the lid hinges.
 
 
(well you posted the picture of the suitcase stuck to your faceplate   )
Ian S C24/10/2010 00:45:01
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7468 forum posts
230 photos
Super Adept, used mine just the other day, wanted a small bit turned and did'nt want to unload the big lathe, just the thing, keep the tool sharp and take small cuts. Ian S C
John Olsen24/10/2010 04:20:36
1294 forum posts
108 photos
1 articles
Each size of lathe actually has a range of sizes that it is suited to. Jobs that are too large or too small tend to get difficult or impossible. I still have my Unimat 3, although I also have an ML7, and find that both have their place. As supplied the Unimat is let down a bit by those stupid rubber bands. Mine has had a decent toothed belt drive for about 25 years now and recently I replaced the motor with a small three phase motor with an AC controller...overkill really but the range of speed control is lovely. Since I don't need the full power of the motor, I have arranged the controller to run the motor up to 100 Hz, this gives half the torque but lets me reach the sort of speed that is useful on a small lathe. (About 4000 rpm max at the spindle.) I can also go much slower than the standard setup, which would be more useful if it actually had screwcutting facilities. I didn't buy the hob setup, that is a bit of a makeshift.
 
regards
John
Axel24/10/2010 15:21:20
126 forum posts
1 photos
turning a 1" peice of SS is very rare for most hobbyists, most work in cast iron and free cutting steel or brass. My Sherline can cut a 1" peice of SS but its slow, I can remove .2mm each pass on that size I guess, even tho I havent worked in SS, I have turned that size in material from very hard old bolts. There´s a few film clips on Sherline´s home page demonstrationg the capabilities.
 
It´s a case of Money Vs. Time, what do you have most of? I estimate small machines (table top) can do 90% of all jobs I see in ME!
 
I think its a good idea to start with a Emco 3 or 4, or preferably a Sherline,  
Stub Mandrel25/10/2010 19:30:22
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4318 forum posts
291 photos
1 articles
Sorry to keep plugging mini lathes, but I turned a shaft in mine yesterday using the 3-jaw chuck, extending it three times. I cleaned the jaws very carefully between re-settings and on the final one at 4 1/2" the run out was barely visible on my DTI which read to 0.5 of a thou - so less than a tenth of a thou! Phew!
 
I videoed the perfomance, just for proof!
 
Neil
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