Lathe

[paddy]

I have been pondering a model makers lathe for a while and i am sure i have broached the subject before because i remember Chris posting pictures of his collet based watchmakers lathe. Its one of those things i struggle with as i am not sure i would get the value from it. It may present opportunities that create value that i haven't thought of and if its fun , it may not have to have a good output value I was looking at this but the details are sketchy so i have written to them to see if they have a user manual PDF that might throw some light on screw cutting pitch etc. Its a bit worrying if its a serious bit of kit that details like that are not included in the on line spec so lets see if they reply

Mini Metal Lathe 80W

Introducing a compact yet functional DIY mini lathe, where every component is crafted from premium materials using CNC machinery for maximum precision. This lathe is perfect for crafting detailed models and intricate parts, making it ideal for creating watch parts, jewelry, and other fine...

innocraftsman.com

I was also looking at the CNC lathe/milling machine but i dont think the Chinese have the reliability reputation to warrant the extra expense. Strangely i cant find any reviews of their lathe on the web either but i would guess even if it was faulty from the box you would have little redress.
The other problem with machine tools is.....i would guess that if the mini lathe is £500 then you would need another £500 to equip it to be usable....taps, dies, running centres, tools, steady, die holders etc .
I will update if i hear back from these people.

 

[Heavens Eagle]

I think you were thinking of my watchmakers lathe Paddy.

Picking a lathe that will do the work you "think" you might want to do is always going to be an issue. When I bought my lathe, I bought just about every attachment I could get my hands on in order to work on watches. That gave me a huge range of tooling to do things that were never in the original purpose. It isn't the lathe so much as what tooling it has that could do what you might envision. Good luck with the acquisition.

 

[paddy]

Yes sorry Paul i have no idea why i called you Chris ~?

 

[moon puppy]

I shopped around many different ones and got lucky to trade out for the old Unimat unit I got. It came in very handy on the Lee tank drilling out axel rods on a consistent center.
Building the scale you're in and with your machinist. I have no doubt you'll get a lot out of that thing.

That specific unit, I recall looking at it and saw some reviews that said it was more toy like than anything worthwhile, but I mean, we're building toys are we not?

 

[Heavens Eagle]

I don't think I mentioned it before, but the lathe is only the first part as you well know. I would suggest shopping by what tooling is available for it before deciding.

On my lathe there were two chucks that were the hardest to get without paying an arm and a leg. The first was a good 3 jaw chuck that wasn't trashed. The second was just super hard to find and it was a four jaw chuck that has independent jaws. I think I have used it only a couple of times.
I also had the opportunity to buy 3 different sets of something called wheel chucks. They are not used often, but have come in handy numerous times.
The good thing about my lathe is that I use the T rest for the cutting tools about 99% of the time. I have 2 cross slides to hold tooling like a regular lathe, but for the most part (especially for the hobby stuff) I just use the T rest.

 

[paddy]

I dont think i would need a 4 jaw but i agree it would be wise to make sure they are available should i decide to turn square stock top round I doubt these micro lathes would be capable of turning an interrupted cut anyway. I think i would need a bench grinder for tools, an interchangeable tool post , Running centre, selection of tipped tools including boring bars, die holders, adj carriage stop.
Unless i hear back from them in relation to screw cut capability its a non starter anyway. As Bob says its a bit of a toy and a mini lather would be streets ahead of a micro lathe but i dont have the space or the need really at this stage. I like the video of their CNC conversion however the only advantage i can see for CNC is repeatability and i think i would be doing 99% one off.

this is twice the size but still very small but a big step up in ability

PROXXON - PD 250/E

www.proxxon.com

 

[moon puppy]

Proxxon has a good reputation. They also have this smaller lathe

Precision Lathe FD 150/E

The right cutting speed for even the smallest pieces. For face turning, longitudinal turning, boring, taper turning, slicing and drilling. Complete with 3-jaw chuck and live center. Center distance 150mm (6"). Swing 55mm (2.2"). Height over cross slide 33mm (1.3").NO 34 150See full description...

proxxon-us-shop.com

 

[paddy]

Thanks Bob, the problem with the 150 is it doesnt have a powered lead screw so you can screw cut :-(

 

[paddy]

so this is my post from the FIAT 806 thread which i have re posted here to keep this thread up to date
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Well i fired up the micro lathe and no joy.
TBH its pretty useless for what i need.

no adjustment to centre the tail stock to the chuck except via the gibs but you need to use the gibs to lock the tail stock so even if you set it up it wont stay there if you keep tightening and slackening the gibs.
Although you would think boring would be a basic use of a lathe , on this machine if you mount a boring bar in the tool post the cross slide doesnt allow you to get the tool post far enough across to reach the centre of the work.
You need 2 hands to operate the chuck (no spindle lock) this means its very hard to hold the work in place while you tighten the chuck as it needs 2 hands to tighten ...... and a third to hold the work in position while you do so and i only have two .

I could go on and on so what is really the issue ?
Basically haven given it some thought having spent a life time building prototypes from peoples ideas in engineering, what they have done here is scale down a lathe so its still in proportion but this approach never works for example halving the thickness of something that is bent for strength reduces that strength x8
in the case of this lathe the tool post takes 8mm square tipped tools. a reduction of lets be generous and say 50% but things like the bed width and length have reduced by 80% approx. there is simply not enough room around the work for the tools but more importantly not enough range of movement on the tool post around the work.

long and the short of it is its now on ebay but i already feel sorry for whoever buys it unless they want to to alter it to suit their needs by making a much smaller bespoke tool post and their own custom small tools, i would suggest tool stock of no more than 5mm square, they will have the same problem i did.
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I have sold the Innocraftsman lathe on ebay, took 8 hours and lost about 15% which is ok. I see it as a bit of an escape to be honest.

so now the search starts again and i and looking at the proxon 250E but i want to see one in the flesh which is a problem because they are out of stock all over the ~UK...... maybe someone is trying to tell me something

I can see from the picture this has a tail stock clamp
A full size tool post which is on a keyway so is moveable. or changeable for a quick change system that would also be hight adjustable so no shimming of tools
A full size chuck
A screw cutting option
it also has a cross slide on the saddle so you can turn tapers

The point being in relation to my post above is that the working parts(chuck tool post and cross slide/saddle )are pretty much full size and they have reduced the overall size by giving it belt drive instead of a gearbox and a shorter bed, no swarf/ coolant tray (optional extra)
Its still very small but it looks to be more of a tool than a toy. ( and its 3x the price ...lol

 

[moon puppy]

So the shiny one is a toy. Gotcha

I've seen many a video of the Proxxon, that's what got my fascination started with Micro Mills and Lathes. I've got a Unimat lathe a while back and while I thought I'd be using it more than I have I do enjoy having the access to it. The only thing I've done with it drill out some axels for the M3. Nothing taxing for sure.
BTW, have you looked at the Sherline

8" Tabletop Lathe - Sherline Products

This 8" tabletop lathe can turn a part up to 3.5” in diameter over the bed or up to 1.88” over the carriage without riser blocks. With an optional riser block, parts up to 6” in diameter can be turned over the bed. The lathe has 8” of space between centers. The electronic speed control allows...

www.sherline.com