LMS 7350 arrived today with Questions

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rixstix

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Jan 10, 2007
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Questions for the group since LMS is backlogged in returning phone calls for a day or so...
Cross slide has play that goes clank, clank when shoved back and forth. There is no movement in the handle. Assume cross slide nut backlash needs a tune-up. Hint/Pointers. Manual is sparse. Gotta find the box the movers packed the metric allen wrenches to fit the screws.

How does thread dial function without any apparent physical connection to the lead screw? The gear just hangs in thin air.

I did save myself the embarrassing moment of calling with a DOA problem with the lathe not powering up. Manual doesn't say anything about chuck guard having a power disable switch built in and the FWD/OFF/REV switch is actually a FWD/REV without a middle position... the Chuck Guard is the OFF position.

I expected everything to move smoothly with 2 fingers to turn handles but I assume a little use will loosen things up.

InTheBox.jpg
 
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Dalecamino

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There is a lever under the carriage on the right side. Push the lever down to engage the lead screw. (If that's the thread dial you're referring to) There is a lever on the back of the gear housing that has three positions. Forward-Neutral-Reverse, with Neutral being in the center position. My old lathe doesn't have the F-R switch, but I can see the lever on the back of yours in the photo.

There are lots of videos on youtube about these lathes. How to adjust the cross slide etc. Frank Hoose comes to mind. Hope you find your wrenches.
 

rixstix

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Jan 10, 2007
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Canistota, SD USA
TNX for the reference.

The thread dial (my terminology may be off), the little indicator that goes round & round when the half nuts are disengaged for threading. The gear beneath the dial has 1/8" air gap between lead screw & I dont see any linkage? I could be blind & snakebit though.
 

rherrell

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Aug 22, 2006
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Pilot Mountain, NC
The thread dial "pivots" so you can engage it only when needed. There should be a screw on the side that allows it to pivot. Make sure the lathe is on and the lead screw is turning when you engage the dial, that way you can "feel" when it's engaged correctly.

The cross slide has a "gib" that probably needs adjusting.

Take the lathe apart as much as you can and clean it real good, the imports are famous for sand and grinding dust everywhere.

PM me if you need more help.
 

randyrls

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Feb 2, 2006
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Harrisburg, PA 17112
Rick; About the cross slide (CS) "clank". Does it occur when pushing and pulling on the CS wheel or when moving wheel side to side?
If pushing and pulling, this is backlash in the CS leadscrew. Check out YouTube videos on how to adjust this out.
If side to side, it is the gib set screws that need adjustment. Looking at the end of the CS you should see a dovetail. Beside the dovetail is a small metal parallelogram (called a gib; like a rectangle but with angled sides). Make sure that gib is there! It is very important! The set screws (4 or 5) on the side of the CS remove play in the CS. There isn't any guide for this, just adjust them one at a time while turning the CS wheel until there isn't any lateral movement, but the wheel doesn't have too much drag. There are many video on YouTube. MrPete222 has a ton of good videos on metal lathes.

Hope this helps.
 

rixstix

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Joined
Jan 10, 2007
Messages
615
Location
Canistota, SD USA
The thread dial "pivots" so you can engage it only when needed. There should be a screw on the side that allows it to pivot. Make sure the lathe is on and the lead screw is turning when you engage the dial, that way you can "feel" when it's engaged correctly.

The cross slide has a "gib" that probably needs adjusting.

Take the lathe apart as much as you can and clean it real good, the imports are famous for sand and grinding dust everywhere.

PM me if you need more help.
Thanks Rick,

Advertised "ready to use" but there must be a great difference in my definition and the marketing dept definition. My Jet 1014 moves more smoothly. My probably unrealistic expectations was for handwheels to turn using 2 fingers instead of having to turn like a hosebib faucet handle. Not sure about the tool holders. The sealed plastic had been cut open on all of them and the tool holders in the box didn't match the list.

Oh, so it is a manual thing. The docs make it sound like it engages/disengages automatically.
Threading Dial
When cutting screw threads on a lathe, you must make multiple cutting passes
to cut the threads to full depth. The threading dial helps you align the cutting
tool with the emerging thread before you start a cutting pass.
The gear on the bottom of the threading dial's shaft engages the lead screw.
The dial turns when the half nuts are not engaged with the lead screw. When
the half nuts are engaged, the carriage moves and the threading dial stops
turning.

Cross slide gib seems solid. Cross slide screw (from what I can determine) seems to be the culprit. Cross slide clanks front/back when push/pull on the cross slide. Wheel never moves, only the slide. That must be a tricky thing to adjust. Either clanks or freezes the wheel when I adjust on the 3 screws.... after finding a metric allen to fit them. I think I found a more detailed process than the 'just fiddle with them'

NO red cosmoline to clean from the LMS machines.
 
Last edited:

rixstix

Member
Joined
Jan 10, 2007
Messages
615
Location
Canistota, SD USA
Rick; About the cross slide (CS) "clank". Does it occur when pushing and pulling on the CS wheel or when moving wheel side to side?
If pushing and pulling, this is backlash in the CS leadscrew. Check out YouTube videos on how to adjust this out.
If side to side, it is the gib set screws that need adjustment. Looking at the end of the CS you should see a dovetail. Beside the dovetail is a small metal parallelogram (called a gib; like a rectangle but with angled sides). Make sure that gib is there! It is very important! The set screws (4 or 5) on the side of the CS remove play in the CS. There isn't any guide for this, just adjust them one at a time while turning the CS wheel until there isn't any lateral movement, but the wheel doesn't have too much drag. There are many video on YouTube. MrPete222 has a ton of good videos on metal lathes.

Hope this helps.
Clank when pushing cross slide front/back. No touching CS handwheel. Handwheel has no play. Cross slide itself moves. I think I may have been turning those 3 screws out of order and had the crossslide in the wrong position for beginning the adjustment.

Thanks for the reference to videos.
 

rixstix

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Joined
Jan 10, 2007
Messages
615
Location
Canistota, SD USA
Got things figured out. Somehow, in the trip between China and LMS warehouse, most likely, a used lathe got put onto the pallet. LMS just takes the boxes off the pallet and ships without breaking the factory, metal strapping.

LMS is shipping a new lathe tomorrow, after they uncrate and test all functionality.
  • rust on the ways
  • handwheels that turn like a garden hose bib instead of with 2 fingers
  • Un-alignable cross slide nut. Backlash cannot be removed without freezing the screw/handle.
  • Package of each tool holder previously opened
  • Tool holders in the crate were different from those in the product description
  • DRO needing to be removed and reinstalled
Nothing can be done about mixture of metric and imperial screws and nuts. Lathe is metric. Toolpost and holders are imperial.

Thanks to everyone for the comments. I have learned more than I expected in the past 24 hours.
 
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