Questions for metal lathe owners

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Blind_Squirrel

Blind_Squirrel

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I have a few questions for those of you that own a metal lathe

What brand/size do you own?
Would you buy this lathe again or recommend it to someone else?
If you had $1000 to spend on a metal lathe would you buy this lathe or another lathe?
If another lathe, why?
Thanks! :)
 
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1) Cummins 7 x 12 (best value including accessories)
2) Yes
3) This one - I would spend the rest on materials and accessories

There are those who I'm sure will say stretch and get a bigger one. I've had mine for at least 8 months and there is nothing pen related that I have wanted to do and can't. A more expensive, bigger lather will make things easier and maybe faster so if this is more than hobby, get the bigger one. There is plenty to learn on the small ones and if you do decide later to go larger/better you will have a better idea of what your needs are. When I got my lathe, I bought a video from Little Machine Shop. In a professional's hands, some incredible things can be done with these. Some have already demonstrated that you can even do multistart threads on these with some practice and ingenuity.
 
Scott, I've only had mine for a few weeks but it came highly recommended as far as mini lathes go. I got the Micro Mark 7X14.
The minis are pretty much all the same but the MM has dials that are calibrated in the inch scale and all the others are metric. That was the main selling point for me, no conversions to worry about. Keep in mind that although I've been a metalworker my whole life I've never used a metal lathe so I don't have any frame of reference to comment on if it's any good or not. I do know tools though and any lathe you get is only going to be as good as the tooling and accessories you get for it. If you have $1,000 to spend and you blow it all on the machine then you won't have anything left for tooling and accessories. The MM is about $675 shipped so that leaves $325 for accessories. Believe me, $325 goes fast. You'll need a live center, Jacobs chuck, tap and (round)die set, machinists protractor, center drills, screw machine length drill bits( not absolutely necessary but recommended), die holder and I HIGHLY recommend a quick change tool post. The tool post that comes with the lathe needs to be shimmed every time you change tools so for the beginner it's just one less thing you have to worry about.
As far as tooling, if you get the QCTP you can use 3/8" and that's better than 1/4" for the stock toolpost. I'd get about 10 cutter blanks and be prepared to learn how to sharpen them. It's really not that hard and they're only $1.25 each. Check out Mini-Lathe.com and the Little Machine Shop for ALOT of good FREE info.
Would I buy this lathe again? If I only had $1,000.....you bet.;)

One more thing. I put a short piece of drill rod in the chuck and measured the runout. My dial indicator reads to .001" and the needle didn't even get to half way to .001". I think less than .0005" runout is acceptable.:D:D
 
Mine's a 10 x 22. Chinese clone from Chester Lathes ( DB10VS ). I love it.
I think it may have been Bruce Boone that pointed out that you want to remember to allow for tools like chucks in both ends, plus drill bits etc when buying. You could end up with very little space for the work piece. Mine is metric, but now that I know a little more, I'd get an imperial one next time.
Whatever you get, try to get one that will accept other brands of add-ons. You don't want to modify it before the warranty expires.;)
 
I own an Atlas 10 x 36 and a Atlas 6 x 18

Absolutly, Parts needed are not always easy to find

Yes,If I could find the Right deal. otherwise I would pick-up on from Grizzly
 
I have a Grizzly 9 X 20 and its an ok lathe for what it is and yes I would buy it again. You need to check out he Yahoo group for the 9X20 there is a lot of info on there about different brands of lathes. The deal breakers for one brand to the next is the assy that come with it. They are all about the same even good old HF
Jay
 
I've been tempted by the mini metal lathes wonder about a few things.

From what I understand, the 7x lathes all come from the Seig factory and thus have many interchangeable parts. Due to the popularity and commonality of the 7x parts, there are lots of aftermarket parts for these lathes from folks like Little Machine Shop.

Does the same thing apply for the 9x lathes like the Grizzly G4000?

All of the 7x lathes are VS with 2 speed ranges, the 9x seem to be a few fixed speeds with quick change gear boxes like I used back in high school too many years ago to clearly remember.

Is VS as discriminating feature for metal lathes as it is for wood lathes?

It has been so long since I used a metal lathe that I worry about differences in safety procedures between metal and wood lathe work. There is no shortages of woodturning classes in my area, but no metalturning classes.

Does anyone have any good books to recommend? I have been considering "The Complete Metalsmith : Student Edition" by Tim McCreight or "Home Machinist Handbook" by Doug Briney.

And finally, can one safely use a woodworking bandsaw to cut metal? I have the Grizzly G0555X, could I swap in a metalcutting blade, or would I really need to get one of the small 4x6 metal cutting bandsaws?
 
Originally posted by holmqer

Does anyone have any good books to recommend? I have been considering "The Complete Metalsmith : Student Edition" by Tim McCreight or "Home Machinist Handbook" by Doug Briney.
Click to expand...

Based on the above tip from Bruce, I went to the Little Machine Shop web site and found a slew of videos. http://www.littlemachineshop.com/products/product_search.php?critFast=video I am going to pick up one or two then progress from there as my skills and confidence grow.
 
holmqer, you can cut metal on any bandsaw that has a slow speed, 2 or 3 speed bandsaws with the right tooth count. Clean the saw dust out from inside the bandsaw so you don't have a fire.
Bob
 
I currently have an late model blue Atlas that has a 6" x 18" capacity and a complete Taig set-up. I have added a treadmill motor and controller to the Taig so it now has infinitely variable speed and I can change the belt to different pulley steps to get a huge range. I would prefer to go to a 12" x 36" but that's not going to happen for $1000.

If I were to go the route of buying one for about $1000, I would highly recommend the Taig - if you did not need threading capability.

If you go to a Chinese made, I'd go with the one Micro-Mark sells as it already has the english set-up instead of metric. The Sherline is okay, but way too pricey for what they offer.
 
13" South Bend. Bought used at a local school auction for around $1100. MANY schools discontinuing "shop class". If you plan on much metal work, decent tooling cost will likely exceed your lathe cost...at least eventually:)
I'm happy with it. There are probably more parts, accessories, internet forums, etc., etc., on South Bend than any other lathe.
 
7X12 homier Speedway. same as the HF mini metal lathe. More than big enough for the tiny stuff I work on, and that would be my only warning to anyone wanting to get serious with a metal lathe, otherwise.
Would I buy this lathe again? Yes, never a moment of regret, I also did my homework and new what to expect.
Would I recommend it to someone else? Would and have several times.
If you had $1000 to spend on a metal lathe would you buy this lathe or another lathe? I would buy this one again as as mentioned above spend the rest on add ons. You can burn through $1000 pretty quick on metal lathes.
If another lathe, why? As I said above my only reson to have bought a different lathe would be to have a larger capacity in my turnings. Since the longest thing I have ever turned was under 5 inches, this has never been an issue.
 
I have the HF mini metal lathe (7x10), have made a lot of Titanium pens with it, worked fine. However, the size is pretty small, especially when using a jacobs chuck when drilling the blanks. If I had to do it again, I would go with a bigger one. I hear a lot of good things about the Micro Mark - they are actually only a couple of miles away from where I work.
 
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