Hi folks new bloke just started out.

Hello!

Thanks for letting me add myself to the site.

Not done any of this sort of thing before really. My hands on metal-bashing ended in the second year of my Grammar school 1968.

I bought a cheap Chinese 8 x 14 lathe 2 Xmas's ago and have sorted out many of its in-built foibles to make it almost usable (many more to go I think).

I also bought a second hand "micro-mill" and some "stuff" that came with it (mostly boring tools, hold-down tools and assorted bits).

I don't really want to make steam engines or air-driven Wig-Wags or the like, my interest is in making custom "bits" for my Cycle building hobby.

I have had some success in this regard making bits you cannot just "buy" and that's justification enough for me.

I am hoping to be able to pick the community's brains on things like "can you?" and "What's the best way to?" type questions.

I hope this will be OK.

Many thanks.

Dan.

Hi Danny welcome to the forum. Ask away we are very helpful on here. Perhaps you may be helpful to others as well on certain subjects. Just ask.

David

Welcome to the Forum.

There is a lot to be learned by reading the various threads.

It woiuld help if you gave your location.

It may be possible that someone close by could help by providing face to face advice and demonstration.

My first advice would be to buy a book or two to start learning the basics, before cutrting metal.

You will need a set of Zeus Charts. Still using my grubby, dog eared ones from 1958!

The "standard" used to be L H Sparey "The Amateur's Lathe"

Other usedul booksn could be

Stan Bray "Basic Lathework"

Harold Hall "Lathework"

David Clark, Dave Fenner and Neil Wyatt have all written bookls on the mini lathe. (All are former editors of Model Engineers'Workshop. )

Neil Wyatt is the current editor and has also written a book on his experiences with the Sieg SC4 lathe.

Both Stan Bray and Harold Hall have written books on Milling.

You might find Ian Bradley "The Amateur's Worksho" a useful guide to workshop practices in general.

You are dealing with machine tools, so do be careful. The machines will cut metal, so skin and bone will be easy!

Even a mini lathe could injure you, so do be aware of safety.

Remember that a small pisto;l drill will snatch out of your hands if the drill grabs

OIne of the first skills to learn is how to provide a steady consistent feed as yoiu rotate the handwheels on your machine. Too fast and you will procuduce a spiral. A good finish requires a slow consistent feed.. But the inital roughinbg cuts can be fed faster.

My advice would be, initially, to concentreate on the lathe, and to gain experience and confidence . As a beginner, I would advocate usinbg High Speed Steel tools, and learning how to grind them, rather than carbide tips. carbide tips have their uses but are easier to chip!.

Do not rush into projects, but make small simple things to learn the trade. It took several years to train a skilled turnewr, so it will take you time to get the hang of lathe operation

Having learned how to grind tools, it is important that they are mounted so the cutting edge on centre height. If they are not, they will not cut properly, or maybe not at all.

A tool at centre height, will leve no pip when used to face the end of a bar..

A 3 jaw chuck will not hold work ABSOLUTELY concentric. It is likely to run slighgtly eccentric. (When you see the construcyion of the 3 jaw chuck, you will realise that with all the clearnaces between the jaws, scroll and body there is bound to be some eccentricty (Which might vary according to diameter being held )

When you graduate to using a 4 jaw independent chuck you will need extra measuting equipment.

Tou will need measuring equipment anyway. A digital calliper , is a good starting point (You could use a Dial Calliper, or a Vernier calliper, but they need a little more skill to use, where a digital reads directly, and can be changed from Imperial to metric, at bthe touch of a button )

Do not have delusions of precision. If you can, eventually work to 0.012 mm you will not be doing badly.

That is a fifth of the thickness of a human hair, or less than a third of the thickness of a sheet of 80 grm paper.

As examples, a shaft running in a plain bearing has a clearance of about 0.025 mm!

A press fit on a 25mm diameter shaft will be about 0.012mm interference.

You can gain experience, and confidence, by making simple tools that you can use for years more.

My hobby horse is a Centre Height Gauge. This will aid setting tools for many years into the future.

Then you can try maling a Tap Wrench (There are books available on making simple workshop tools and workshop devices ),

Makinbg a sliding Die Holder, and slidinbg Tap Holder, to mount in the tailstock will be useful, and can avoid sripping fine threads bwhen they are being cut.

When cutting threads upto a shoulder, or into a blind hole, you mighgt find a Mandrel Handle a good accessory to have made.

When are more familiar with your lathe, and its operation, you can study books on Milling and begin to learn how to make simple things before launching into serius projects.

Hope that all this rambling helps

Howard

I would recommend you joining a local Model Engineering club and wandering round few car boot sale and Auto jumble sales where you might pick up a bargain. Clubs often have bits for sale and some times clearing a deceased members workshop. Follow the sound advice given by Howard above also Neil Wyat book on using a small lathe is full of explanatory pictures, is worth having. John

Dan, I bought my first lathe and then a mill for similar reasons to you. The second job I did was to make a new handle for the freezer, that I had broken several years earlier.

I understand why you don't want to build a series of little engines etc, but a making couple of them would be good teaching exercises for the processes and techniques that you will use in the future. This way enables you to learn them in your own time, with projects that don't matter, using replaceable materials instead of one offs that are needed now. That's the real reason for many of the frequently touted 'beginner's projects'; a complex centre-height gauge isn't that useful compared to the time it takes to make one, but the various parts teach how to make things that work as expected and how you need to think about appropriate fit&finish.

Welcome Dan, Reading and joining a club will help you to gain knowledge and skill, and then you will find you have lots of friends you never knew you had, Oh can you just ! Best wishes and Good Luck. Noel.

+1

I'm not a modeller either, but the experience I got from building a few small engines was invaluable: reading drawings, spotting drawings errors, cutting characteristics of Brass, Aluminium and Steel, threading, accurate turning, drilling, boring and lapping, maybe knurling, then fitting, finishing, and then getting it to rotate on compressed air.

Lots to learn and all of it useful. Plus there's a solid adrenaline buzz when an engine you made yourself fires up!

Dave

Welcome to the forum

H

Many thanks to all of you for the very warm welcome , it is much appreciated.

For clarification, You-Tube has been my friend and I have done many of the "standard" improvements from the stock machine.

I removed the 4-tool post that it came with and put a wedge type QRTP on in its place.

I ditched the 3-jaw thing wit the 5-Thou runout that came with the lathe and put a 100mm Sanou 4-Jaw on in its place.

I have dial gauges and I am now quite adept at dialling things in to 1-thou or under, which I think is good enough for most of the things I do.

The biggest problem I have is the lack of rigidity on this little machine for parting off operations. My only successful way to part-off is by putting a blade upside-down at centre-height and running the lathe backwards.

I have made parts and adapters from raw stock and successfully cut 24TPI threads.

Here is a 2WD unit for a trike made from 2 standard freewheels and 2 home-made adapters.

Drive either one of the sprockets and BOTH half-shafts turn equally. Turn a corner and the freewheel ratchets on the unit allow the faster outside wheel to outrun the other one. Simple and effective.

And here is a simple conversion of an 8-Speed Sturmey Archer hub to provide an intermediate gearbox function for driving the 2WD unit.

So I'm not totally inept (so far), but I do find the coarseness of the Chinese contraption and the amount of backlash on the slide screws (even when optimally adjusted) to be pretty awful.

I have thought about purchasing a more solid British made Lathe but while this one still turns out my little parts I am saving my pennies.

Thanks again for the warm welcome I will look to see if there is a club on my locality (Benfleet, Essex).

Dan.

If you can make and fit a rear toolpost, with an inverted parting tool, the job should be esier.

My preference is for a 4 way front toolpost, mounting tools with as little overhang as possible, to maximise rigidity.

Ditto for the parting tool in the rear toolpost.

Again, perhaps oddly, I do not grind top rake on a parting tool, just leave it with front and side clearance only.

Ny belief is that zero top rake lessens the risk of digb ins.

Howard

Cheers Howard!

No chance for a rear tool post on this lathe I am afraid.

I will give that tool profile a try.

Cheers,

Dan.

My mimi lathe does not have a T slotted Cross Slide.

But I have made, and fitted, a rear toolpost. It carries a parting tool and a 1/4" toolbit, ground ate ach end for front or back chamfering..

Seems to function satisfactorily on brief tests

Like the lathe, it won't see much use, but a "nice to have"

Howard