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Lathe and tap and dies for begiiner to purchase

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Colin Jacobs 121/02/2011 20:16:47
69 forum posts
2 photos
Is the Chester Conquest Lathe 90mm Centre height Lathe suitable for a beginner? also what is the best Tap and Die set for beginners please?
 
MTA

Gray6221/02/2011 21:34:28
1058 forum posts
16 photos
Hi Colin,
Tha t is a very broad question.
What kind of models are you intending to make.
If you are making model engines, then BA and metric would be the best choice for Tap and Die sets however, it really depends on what you intend to make.
 
The Chester Conquest is a very capable machine for its size, that said, if your budget allows, I would recommend you look to a larger machine.
 
From past experience, I started with a Cobra 3 in 1 having been out of engineering for over 20 years and thinking, I would never build anything larger than the machine could handle.
 
I now have a 1.5 tonne turret mill and a lathe that can swing 13" over the bed and 30" between centres.
 
I got caught by the engineering bug and rekindled my apprentice roots.You never know where this hobby/passion will take you.
 
My advice is to evaluate what you want to achieve/build and then buy something that is capable of machining something 50% larger.
 
That way, you will never push your machine to its limits.
 
regards
 
CB
Daniel Robinson21/02/2011 22:52:41
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51 forum posts
23 photos
I second what CoalBurner has said.
 
I only wanted to do a bit of turning and milling to finish a project that had been eating me for 13 years. I'm not quite in the same league as coalburner but it was handy to have a pallet truck and converted engine crane to get the machines into place.
 
I picked up a couple of second, third, fourth hand machines, fortunately I had local engineers to help me choose the machines from dealers such as GandD tools as the second had market is full of duffers that should only be used as spares.
 
I would also defiantly NOT recommend eBay unless you can go and see the machine before you buy. photos never give you the feel of the machine and how badly it's been abused.
Peter G. Shaw22/02/2011 13:51:53
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1531 forum posts
44 photos
I would second the comments about lathes, and would add that for taps and dies, it is probably best to buy individually when you know what you need. Buying a set can result having a number of taps and dies which will never be used. How do I know? I will leave you to work that out for yourself.
 
Another point is to consider carbon or HSS. According to Tubal Cain, carbon steel taps and dies are actually sharper and better than HSS, but they are much more easily damaged by overheating. Only this morning has a friend and I done some screwcutting with a die only to find the die getting rather hot, hot enough I think to have damaged carbon steel.
 
Also, I would suggest buying well known makes - Presto & Dormer are two that come to mind. Buying a cheapish set of unknown and most likely unmarked equipment may have a number of problems, eg blunt to start, not cutting square, carbon not HSS.
 
I have nothing against carbon provided you are aware of the heat problem, and for a one-off job may well be adequate. They will certainly be cheaper.
 
Regards,
 
Peter G. Shaw
magpie22/02/2011 17:42:06
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508 forum posts
98 photos
Hi Colin
i bought a Chester DB10GVS lathe, and a Champion 20V mill last september, and have no problems with either. I would try to go to the show at Harrogate in may if you can make it, where you can see all the main suppliers,and get some good advice from lots of guys who realy know what they are talking about ,most of them will offer advice on this forum, but it is never quite the same as a face to face chat.
 
Cheers Derek
Wolfie23/02/2011 21:40:34
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502 forum posts
I bought a micro lathe sold under various different names by Axminster, Chester etc etc, for two reasons. One I'm not very rich and two I'm pushed for room.
 
So far I'm managing although adapting a vertical slide for milling has been a challenge.
 
I would like to upgrade though. At the moment my horizons aren't very broad so I don't feel the need to upgrade very far. Mind you I didn't think I'd need anything bigger than the one I had now year ago.

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