So I got a lathe, what do I do with it?

[Any Cal.]

Picked up an Atlas 9x36 yesterday. It has a bunch of tooling, some rests, boring bars, etc., but the countershaft yoke has a broken ear, and I have to wire the motor to the switch. Has a 3 and a 4 jaw chuck. I won't have a place to set it up right until this winter, which is fortunate because I don't know much about it.

Are there any starter projects I could look into to start learning this thing? I am thinking smaller items with tolerances that aren't so critical, especially since it wouldn't be bedded properly just yet. I can do some heat treating and welding, as well as grinding and finish work. Any links or anything to some beginner stuff? Also, links to a manual for the machine would be helpful. Any tooling I should be on the lookout for or could start building?

Thanks.

[Longwood]

What are you into?

Gun smithing?
Reloading?
Swaging?
Casting?
Pan Lubing?

There are lot's of simple projects you can make to learn by and have a lot of fun doing it. Or,,,, you can start by doing the hardest thing there is to do with a lathe and get pretty discouraged in a hurry.
I would advise you to try making something with a few parts that cost's quite a bit.
I sometimes take another person's expensive idea and simplify it so this monkey can make it.

I love inventing stuff and would never be able to do what I do without the little lathe mill that I have.

Recently, I made a spring return, string pulled, powder measure attachment for a L'il Dandy measure so I could use it on a Loadmaster.

I am presently designing and working on a four station gang press that is operated with one handle and has two electric measures.

I patronize the local recycler, which is also a scrap metal buyer, for stock to make stuff with.
I have a three foot long piece of 3" and a 4" dia. piece about a foot long of aircraft grade aluminum that I got there for scrap aluminum price. Big is good, I can always make it smaller if need be.:-D

Machine shops and fab shops often have cutoffs and ends that are too short for their automatic machines that they will give you for scrap price or less. A local friend turns me on to a lot of nice material. He has over a billion bucks tied up in machinery,,, scrap he could care less about.

As for tooling and such,,,,,, Whooooeee, there is no end.
It depends a lot on how involved you want to get with your projects. I have been collecting stuff for fifty years and just bought another $120+ order but I have a list of stuff to be made.
All I need for now is a set of straight knurler wheels. The cross hatch ones I have will do just fine but dangit, I want some straight marks for a change.

It is like any other hobby,,,, start slow, don't go over board with gadget purchasing until you are positive you really need it, and most important, don't keep track of how much you spend, and you will have a blast.

[Any Cal.]

What are you into?

Gun smithing?
Reloading?
Swaging?
Casting?
Pan Lubing?


Yep. Check. Uh-huh. Sure nuff. Yeah, that too. No, I don't swage bullets...:D Well, and a few things that aren't on the list. That gets my brain working though. I want to make a ram extender for my press, and a drop tube so I can mount a perfect powder measure on my sizing die. Maybe some oversize expanders for cast boolits. Any little tools or gadgets, please mention them. I may have to build a little ball-peen hammer and a good stainless yo-yo...

-Edit- Oh, I try not to buy much of anything. I spent 2 hrs, a bunch of flux core wire, part of a wooden handrail, a chainsaw file, a hole saw, and a recipro saw blade to keep from buying a ladle. You should see my anvil...

-Edit again- Oh, and I need some Al pulleys to build a belt grinder with. Hmmm,... I can see this getting out of hand.

[Jeff Michel]

Check out Lindsey Publishing, they have a web sight. They will have about any book you could possibly want regarding how to do machining of all kinds not just lathes. Personally, to start, I'd suggest "How to run a lathe" by Southbend and there is another one that's similar that the Sheldon lathe company wrote. Atlas, Southbend, Logan, etc all operate about the same. Atlas made a pretty good machine for light work. As far as tooling find your self a good magnetic base and a dial indicator FIRST! The most accurate work you will do will be with your four jaw chuck. You need the indicator to make sure it's running true. When you set your machine up you will need a precision level to make sure the bed isn't bolted down twisted. You will probably find buying the lathe was the cheap part:) CDCO is another place you can find some tooling albeit mostly PRC stuff which will work ok if your careful with your setups. Get the critter set up and start making some chips, that is what will teach you the most of anything. Be careful, making stuff is highly addicting.

[Any Cal.]

I do have a mag base and a couple indicators. Been wondering why I've kept them around for so long, guess I know now...

[Jeff Michel]

If you are not to familiar with operating a lathe, one of the most trying things to learn (at least for me) was dialing in a four jaw chuck. A friend suggested that I quit using the three jaw and use the four jaw exclusively, thereby forcing me to learn how to do it rapidly. I probably fought with that blinking thing for months. Gradually, it became easier until I could do it in a couple of minutes or most times less. A three jaw chuck almost always has some run out and as a result you have built in concentric issues that are avoided with a four jaw. It is immediately a HUGE problem if you ever thread a barrel (yes, I've seen someone use a three jaw to thread a barrel) The gunsmithing term for this practice is "scrap" A three jaw definitely has it's place, but it certainly has limitations you have to keep an eye on. As your proficiently increases, consider a collet chuck. That's going accurate in a big way and very fast. The bad news is, if you buy one, It is going to hurt... Bad. The good news is there is a ton of plans available so you can make your own. And if you pay attention and can work to a half a thou it's a pretty straight forward project.

[Casting Timmy]

Smartflixs.com has videos you can rent and there are a lot of videos on youtube.com.......also check out half price books for lathe books. Read a lot and don;t be afraid to ask questions.

[L1A1Rocker]

What to do with a lathe? Why make a silencer of course - provided your state lets the mere people make such things.

Here's one of my projects on my Atlas 12 X 36: http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?t=109904

[MBTcustom]

If you are in Arkansas, shoot me a P.M.

[Any Cal.]

Well, I am not in AR, but thank you for the offer.

Yep, the silencer is definitely on my to-do list, right after I learn to use a lathe... :-)

Currently reading "Lathework for beginners" which I just downloaded off of Google books. Spent a bit trying to weld up the broken yoke. It kept cracking the weld, so I preheated it, then left the torch going while I welded it, then slowly turned the torch down over 45 mins or so. Didn't break when I beat on it, but will know shortly if it will work when I put the countershaft in it.

Keep up the replies... I may not know enough to know what they mean yet, but I will remember them.

-Edit- The weld was a no go, it let go when I started torquing the bolts that hold the countershaft. If I can find a manual somewhere I can go through more of the machine to see if it will need any other parts. I don't understand the pulley arrangement, so can't tell if the countershaft or headshaft are right. The headshaft has a pulley that seems to spin free on the shaft, the countershaft feels lke it needs tightened up, provided there are some cone washers or something in it.

-Edit again- After finding some info, I guess the pulleys are as they should be. There is no back gear, so the pulleys are set up w/ an idler or two for high and low speed range. Now if I could figure out if the gear on the end of the headstock was supposed to free wheel or not...

[MBTcustom]

A three jaw chuck almost always has some run out and as a result you have built in concentric issues that are avoided with a four jaw. It is immediately a HUGE problem if you ever thread a barrel (yes, I've seen someone use a three jaw to thread a barrel) The gunsmithing term for this practice is "scrap" A three jaw definitely has it's place, but it certainly has limitations you have to keep an eye on
Hold on there Cochise, there's more that one way to burn a wagon train!
As it happens, I prefer the three jaw for almost every thing that I make, including threading barrels. The thing is that its a centering 3 jaw. That is, it has four set screws located around its perimeter that allow it to be moved and centered slightly. It can only be offset about .030 but that's more than enough for most jobs. I like the centering 3 jaw because you get the benefits of a 4jaw, but you get the "feel" of the 3jaw when tightening the chuck. A 4jaw has a nasty habbit of scarring up the work unless you are really really careful.

[waksupi]

Don't forget the legal paperwork if you get into silencer manufacturing. Caesar demands to be rendered upon.

[Any Cal.]

Well, I wired the motor up, and it purrs. The pulley looks to have some wobble, but it should be alright for now. The gear on the headstock was missing a Woodruff key, but the keyway seems fine. I ran the compound? back and forth, and it seems good, at least for 26" or so. Some cleaning could help things considerably.

It looks like I can buy the broken part for $52, and there are $8 worth of misc. parts before I can get this running, at least enough to continue checking it out. I will probably fab a bracket out of steel to replace the broken one for now and make sure I won't need too many more parts.

Dag nab it, I've got stuff to build. I want a checkmaker, a flash hider, some expander buttons, a ram extension, some custom reamers... And I'm not even to the form 1 stuff yet...

[Reg]

Slow down pilgrim, you have a very long ways to go.
First. Try to google the machine you have and get a owners/operators manual. Doubt if you find one for your machine but if nothing else, Craftsman ( Atlas) put out a good one and most things will apply. The South Bend Manual also applys. You need to learn how to properly set up, level and adjust your machine. Just like a computer, garbage in --- garbage out .
Try basic things. Grinding basic tools. Do basic turns, save single point threading for last.
Proper lubrication and adjustments are first on the list. If you do not want to learn how to do it properly, do yourself a favor and sell it before you make a complete fool of your self.
You will use more high speed steel than carbide on that machine. Learn how to properly sharpen, hone and center that tooling . What is it capable of--- really, what are you capable of?
I have seen master machinists take a completely worn out machine and work to .00005 ( yes, thats 5 places ) and have also seen cowboys not hold one quarter inch.
You have a whole new world at your finger tips. What you make of it is completely up to you.
Do your home work first then try to make a space shuttle. Get good enough at it and you too can write books and tell others how to do it.
It's a whole new world out there and you have a good machine to take you there. Be wise, learn, pay your dues. Welcome to the club.

[smokeywolf]

Any Cal,

As Mr. Malcolm said, don't give up on the 3 jaw chuck. If you aren't set up with collets, you'll be really crippled without using the 3 jaw. If you have or can afford a centering or "Adjus-tru" chuck you're all set. Otherwise, start looking for soft-jaws for your 3 jaw chuck. They are mounted in place of the hardened steel jaws on your chuck. You then have to load them with a small piece of material or use lathe cams, then bore them to fit the diameter of the part you want to chuck up. Check your machinist book(s) for the correct procedure to do this. Soft jaws will usually bring your run-out down to a couple of tenths (.0002) or less.

Welcome to machining,

smokeywolf

[smokeywolf]

One more thing, REMOVE the chuck key from the chuck BEFORE you start your spindle.

Keep ties, jewelry, long hair/beards away from the rotating spindle and work.

Never insert a finger into an I.D. (as in bore polishing) while the part is spinning.

Safety first.

smokeywolf

[Reg]

Tim
Quick word for you too.
Never sell short the 4 jaw chuck. It's the most accurate tool holding device that you have.
Get your self some pieces of .020 to .035 copper, whatever you can find. Size is not important. Cut four strips say, 3/4" by 2" long. This will vary, You soon get quite a collection.
In the trade, these are called "coppers".
You place the pieces of copper between the work and the jaws. Yup, sometimes takes a it of doing but it it doable.
By holding the work with the coppers in between, you do not scar or mark the work in any way and in fact it actually increases your hold on the work itself.
For light holding you can also use regular paper as a means of protection to the finished part. Not as good as copper but will do it just fine. Have also used aluminum strip but it crushes quickly and doesn't last as long.
Now other trick is when indicating in the four jaw with the coppers and applys to the adjustable 3 jaw as well is to get your reading next to the chuck then go out about 2 inches or whatever you can and re - indicate. Quite often you will find that even if it's running true next to the chuck, it's running out when you get out away from the chuck a bit.
This is where careful use of the lead, no blow, or plastic tipped hammer comes into play and will bring that outer dimension into what ever you need. Quite often need to do this several times as generally when you tap it in on the outer end , it will make the reading next to the chuck run out again. You bounce back and forth until you read what you want at each place.

Not trying to be a smart "rear end" here. You guys are taking over from us older guys. You have the right attitude and personally, I like your non fearing attitude. Thats what it takes to succeed. Just trying to prevent you from " re-inventing " the wheel.
Good luck.

[Jeff Michel]

Hold on there Cochise, there's more that one way to burn a wagon train!
As it happens, I prefer the three jaw for almost every thing that I make, including threading barrels. The thing is that its a centering 3 jaw. That is, it has four set screws located around its perimeter that allow it to be moved and centered slightly. It can only be offset about .030 but that's more than enough for most jobs. I like the centering 3 jaw because you get the benefits of a 4jaw, but you get the "feel" of the 3jaw when tightening the chuck. A 4jaw has a nasty habbit of scarring up the work unless you are really really careful.

I agree up to a point.... A set-tru back plate is not a run of the mill on a three jaw chuck. You probably paided as much for the back plate as you would for an imported chuck. My reference was for an average run of the mill three jaw. I have an 8" yuasa with zero run out, I still wouldn't want to thread a barrel with it. In my experience, things are very seldom round and run out is a common situation, even in high end barrels. And to further exacerbate the exercise, barrels aren't very straight. I use a center fixture to center a barrel (three point contact) on the outboard side of the headstock and center the barrel shank to -0- at the chuck. By using copper or half hard brass pads, I avoid any scarring issues. Our friend, (IMO) is at the start of the learning curve, like we all were at one time. Machining can be a bit frustrating even after thirty years of wrestling with it. I remember when I started, I couldn't distinguish machining from magic. I have managed to learn two important facts. That accuracy should be a primary goal and the is absolutely no one way the perform a given machining task. Our difference in techniques is an excellent example.

[GT27]

Make a hydraulic .223 Military brass decapper,then sell it to me,so I can quit breaking decapping pins!!:coffeecom

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FskNx4UBZvc This is a neat, simple tool!

[Any Cal.]

Woo Hoo! Change of plans, I have a new part on the way to replace the broken one. I found a manual, but it is rather spendy at $50ish shipped, so not sure if that is going to happen. Downloaded a couple more e-books to be reading on. Hope to get the missing parts over the next few days, and have the thing operational in 10 days or so.

I appreciate the tips! I have done some metal and fab work, so some of the practices aren't totally foreign to me, but others I didn't even know that I didn't know... :D. I have a sort of relative/acquaintance that might be able to give me a hand, but it would just be a one-time sort of deal, so am soaking up whatever I can.

-Edit- Went through the countershaft assembly, I think I know why the yoke broke now... All the grease was more like asphalt, the roller bearings looked like bushings... It swamped the shaft itself on one side. I cleaned everything up and regreased, it shouldn't self destruct for a little while. I am hoping it lasts long enough for me to learn how to repair the shaft.

Cleaned up the 3 jaw chuck so it moves freely.

Also figured out that the handwheel is cracked on 3 of the 4 spokes. If I can get one for a reasonable price, I will, otherwise it will get a Mad Max repair job. I still need to make sure the screwthread apparatus is alright. The reversing lever shifts and reverses, but I haven't opened it up to make sure there are no cracked or broken teeth.

I might have a deal in the works as part trade for a manual, will see how that goes.

[Goatwhiskers]

Any Cal, you have gotten some great advice, it takes time to learn machine work, especially on a well used machine. You're gonna find slack in a lot of places, some of which you can adjust out when you find out how, some of which you learn to live with. My 12x36 has a lot in the cross slide operation, but it don't bother me. I'm very surprised that you don't have a back gear, mine does. One other thing, when you get around to anything to do with barrels or anything that starts out with a hole down the center, you center the work to the bore, not to the outside, holes are not always concentric to the outside. Goat

[Any Cal.]

It has a low range, but it is all done by belts, no gears. More of a backBELT...

[Bent Ramrod]

You might check this out, if you haven't already:

http://www.lathes.co.uk/atlas/page2.html

I've had much better luck brazing the broken cast iron parts back together. Some people say they can weld them, but I sure can't.

[MBTcustom]

A mistake that is commonly made when setting up a barrel in any form of vice is over tightening the chuck (be it a three or four jaw) and inducing runout into the barrel. You can have the cahmber end securely aligned and the crown end also, and have both running true within .0005 but if you put your indicator in the middle of the barrel right between the two, you can have enormous run-outs. This is why I chamber in a steady rest, most guys put the barrel through the headstock and have no clue what is happening in the middle of the barrel. The adjusting three jaw gives me a light feel, I use the chuck without the jaws to get a solid hold with no "twisting" from the removable jaws. I set up the barrel and indicate in with only enough pressure to twist it in the steady, and keep indicating the middle and the chuck side alternatively until I get the perfect run-out. Most guys would never see this and I am positive that many barrels are chambered with the middle of the barrel doing the hoola inside the headstock.
Four jaws are nice, spiders are better, but the ultimate is a 6jaw centering chuck.
At the end of the day, accuracy is accuracy. Learn how to get it and do whatever it takes to keep it throughout an operation. Don't assume anything and don't take anything for granted if you want it right.

[MtGun44]

Make round stuff.

Bill

[uscra112]

Don't try to weld anything that's cast iron, and most of that lathe will be. Brazing, or even silver soldering, will do wonders. More work to prepare - cleaning, fluxing, etc. but a good braze repair is a lifetime repair.

[John 242]

I like the Machine Shop Tips on Mr Pete's YouTube site. He uses a small Atlas/Craftsman lathe for some of his projects. Good videos.
http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLBC69869E8CB708F2&feature=plcp

Project pages bellow-

http://homews.co.uk/page10.html
http://www.projectsinmetal.com/
http://www.bedair.org/9x20camlock/9x20project.html

Varmint Al has some reloading related projects towards the bottom of his page-
http://www.varmintal.com/alath.htm

Not exactly a project video, but I really like this guy's set up and enjoy the videos on barreling, chambering, etc.-
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XIEk-aEPYTA&list=UUyikBF6Tklx_dP8ENRFhRYg&index=10&feature=plcp

Machining instruction/info-
http://www.nmri.go.jp/eng/khirata/metalwork/index_e.html
http://mmu.ic.polyu.edu.hk/modules.htm
http://www.micro-machine-shop.com/
http://www.kanabco.com/vms/library.html
http://www.astronomiainumbria.org/advanced_internet_files/meccanica/easyweb.easynet.co.uk/_chrish/techindx.htm

College of Engineering, University of Wisconsin Madison
Introduction to machining on the lathe video-
(Sharp 16x40 with a DRO)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BzgYeR5x74s&feature=related


Again, Mr Pete's got some really good info on bit grinding about halfway down the page. He's uses blocks of wood as training aides and explains tool bit grinding so even a potato like me can understand.
http://www.youtube.com/user/mrpete222/videos?sort=da&view=0&page=3
Begins here-
Part I
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hrDr4rYLiAk&feature=plcp
Part II-
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dRyqIm5JR5s&feature=plcp
Part III
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HTQ46NMMc88&feature=plcp

These videos from MIT aren't bad but mostly focus on the Bridgeport Mill.
http://techtv.mit.edu/collections/ehs-videos/videos

An 18 minute video by South Bend on how to run a lathe-
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9O-9_3rc6VE&list=PL4F5EA31713885847&index=8&feature=plpp_video

Duke University videos including lathe and mill operations-
http://www.youtube.com/user/dukestudentshop/videos

Although for Sherline lathes and mills, there's a lot of info at the bottom of the page-
http://www.sherline.com/



I have the 1958 version of South Bend's 'How to Run a Lathe' manual on PDF. I could try to figure out how to e-mail it. It's kind of a big file.

How to Use the Lathe TM from the US Army-
http://www.scwmetalclub.com/tooltips/how_to_use_the_lathe.pdf

This is the old US Army Lathe correspondence course.
http://www.hnsa.org/doc/pdf/lathe.pdf

US Army TM for a South Bend lathe-
http://vintagemachinery.org/pubs/detail.aspx?id=3677

US Army TM for a larger lathe- I don't know what kind-
http://atw.vannatta.com/atwco/atw-pacemaker-general-army-manual.pdf

Various manuals for many different lathes and machine tools-
http://www.hobby-machinist.com/downloads.php

1937 Atlas Lathe Manual.
http://www.scribd.com/doc/34415359/Manual-of-Lathe-Operations-and-Machinists-Tables-Atlas-Press-Co

Tried to find a more recent Atlas lathe manual for free, but no luck.
Anyway, there are tons of them on the web for a few bucks.
Rumor has it that Clausing still sells Atlas lathe manuals for about $25.

[paul h]

I highly recomend Guy Lautards book series the Machinist Bedside Reader, also the first couple years of the Home Shop Machinist is well worth getting.

And another vote for learning to use a 4 jaw chuck. More often than not I'll use my 4 jaw as with practice it really doesn't take that much time to set up, for one off jobs, you have 33% more grip strength on the part, and I like to dial in my parts as close to concentric as possible.

You might want to pick up some delrin rod scraps off of ebay. The upside of machining plastic is you'll graphically learn weather or not your bits are sharp, and if you mess up and dig in, you won't be damaging your lathe. A small lathe is not designed to hog off large amounts of metal in a pass, 0.010" is a good place to start on your infeed until you learn speeds and feeds.

The question shouldn't be what can you make with your lathe, more like what can't you make.

[KCSO]

Before you do anything on the lathe get a copy of "How To Run A Lathe" and read it through at least twice. That will save you hours and dollars believe me. Seems like I got my copy from a vendor on the Atlas web site, also a good place to hang out for a while.

[John 242]

Atlas 9-inch lathe parts guide-
http://vintagemachinery.org/pubs/detail.aspx?id=1922

10-inch parts list-
http://vintagemachinery.org/pubs/detail.aspx?id=3454

This is pretty cool, but for a 10-inch. Has info about threading-
http://vintagemachinery.org/pubs/detail.aspx?id=3455

[Any Cal.]

Wow! Thanks for all the links John. That should give me something to chew on for a bit. I like to get the major principles in my head to start with, so it is easier for me to get things figured out later.

I will get ahold of some Delrin and PVC, sounds right about my speed. Wish my part would hurry up and get here.so I can get started...

[Char-Gar]

I hope you have lots of fun with your lathe. I won't get into the debate of which church is best. I have a three jaw scroll chuck and a four jaw independent chuck and would not want to be without either one.

As you know, lubrication is the life blood of any machine. I always oil and lube my Logan before I tension the belt and reach for the "ON" switch. It is almost a religious ritual for me.

[izzyjoe]

i think you'll have fun with you're lathe, i just bought an atlas 10", and i've had fun learning to make little stuff. i've been using brass to make things out of, it's soft and easy to work. i'm gona take my time and work up to the bigger stuff. good luck and have fun!

[John 242]

Wow! Thanks for all the links John. That should give me something to chew on for a bit. I like to get the major principles in my head to start with, so it is easier for me to get things figured out later.

I will get ahold of some Delrin and PVC, sounds right about my speed. Wish my part would hurry up and get here.so I can get started...

No problem.
I don't know how much of that you'll find useful, but I hope it helps.
I know that there are a lot of people that lurk on these forums, looking for information but sometimes reluctant to ask. Well, there's a lot of info in those links. Last summer I didn't know the difference between a head stock and a tail stock.
Everybody has to start somewhere.

[L1A1Rocker]

Well? have you done any "starter" projects yet? I remember my first threading I tried. I cut some beautiful 1/2 by 28 threads. . . left handed - OOPS! Oh well, it was just practice on some re-bar that I cut down smooth to 1/2 inch. It's a real fun hobby but safety is paramount.

[Longwood]

Watch out with Rebar,,,, it is made from non-refined scrap.
One piece may be mild, while the next piece may be as "Hard as a Whores heart".

[Any Cal.]

I have a couple projects. I need to build a new countershaft, so I am hoping that I can do one with a 10-22 barrel that is laying around. Maybe also make some .22 LR accurizers out of it. Also want some bullet sizing dies, so picked up a 1" weightlifting bar at the dump, and am hoping it will work for stock.

The replacement countershaft yoke is in the mailbox, hope to get the other parts over the next day or two. I think I have a fix for the cracked handwheel, so look for some random, useless, funny shaped objects by the end of the week! :D

[Longwood]

[QUOTE=Any Cal.;1733215]
so picked up a 1" weightlifting bar at the dump, and am hoping it will work for stock.

/QUOTE]

Good going.
Free stock is every where,,,,, grab it when you see it.
All metal is getting to be much more valuable as the Dollar collapses. I almost fainted at what my last small purchase of steel cost.

[skimmerhead]

if you need to weld cast iron you can use monel welding rods and you'll be amazed at the strenth of the weld. we've been useing that to weld broken winch housings and many other things that are cast here in the marine industry. also if that is an atlas and you need parts for it there available from clausing, a lot of times cheaper than used parts on flea-bay. i was lucky enough to find a pratt burnerd 6" set rite chuck new in box with all papers and a back plate with a 11/2"x 8 thread new. it did not have the hub in the center for the chuck so i made one. i bought the whole thing for 300.00 bucks. photo's of it are posted in gonna buy a lathe thread. i put that chuck on my 12x24 atlas. it was a little bit of work to machine the backplate but it was well worth it. set it and forget it. that thing is awesome, accurate, and repetable.

skimmerhead

[theperfessor]

I've welded cast iron with "Nirod". Expensive as all get out but my dealer will sell it by the stick. Seems to have a softer arc than regular steel type electrodes. Machines pretty good too.

[Frank46]

Start cruising the local junkyards for brass bars. I used to get some from a local boat yard also.
For a martini 577/450 I made up some loading tools
Pin punch and decapper base
primer seating tool using a rcbs shell holder
And a bore saver to protect the crown and start of the rifling at the muzzle.
Just simple projects and it was done on a 6" atlas.
Frank

[Any Cal.]

Well, it lives! Today I picked up three bolts, two belts, two Woodruff keys, and an oilcan. After wiring in the switch and motor, bolting on the motor and yoke, and cutting one of the keys down to the proper size, it was ready to go.

I turned down the OD of some iron pipe and put some shoulders on it, but haven't put in the change gears yet, so it is all manual. Next chance I get I will see how those go. Let it run for an hour or so, and nothing died yet, so I might be Ok. My repair on the handwheel leaves something to be desired, but seems to be holding up.

Is there supposed to be a wick in the oiling cups? What type of oil should I be using?(babbitt bearings)

Frank, I was just looking at some decapping tools and thinking they would be fun to make. I will be keeping my eye out for stock.

[Stephen Cohen]

Make a hydraulic .223 Military brass decapper,then sell it to me,so I can quit breaking decapping pins!!:coffeecom

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FskNx4UBZvc This is a neat, simple tool!

I just sit water filled case on a shell holder and use a snug brass punch down the neck of case, one hit and your done cant get more simple than that.

[Frank46]

Here is a tip. For the decapping pins used rcbs decapping pins. Drill the hole for the pin and on one side drill and tap for a small set screw. Or set in place with epoxy. Leave a top hat or section on the top of the main body so it does not burr over. I use a small leather mallet/hammer to prevent this. Lots of goodies at the junk yard. Only limited by your imagination. Frank

[Any Cal.]

Tried out the changegear set up and power feed, and both seem to be working, along with the reverse for the leadscrew and the halfnuts? On the apron. I don't know enough to tell how much backlash I have in those systems yet, guess I'll find out soon enough.

Any thoughts on the oiling yet?

[Longwood]

Tried out the changegear set up and power feed, and both seem to be working, along with the reverse for the leadscrew and the halfnuts? On the apron. I don't know enough to tell how much backlash I have in those systems yet, guess I'll find out soon enough.

Any thoughts on the oiling yet?

30 wt with about 5 to 10 percent STP stirred up in it works well.
30 or 40 wt works OK.

[nanuk]

has anyone ever used a 3 jaw held in a 4 jaw and trued up using a known round bar?

I read about that somewhere, and thought it was an interesting addition meant to save time, but how much, I"m not sure.

I too may have found a lathe that I can afford, and may actually work..... Sigh... TOYS!

[Frank46]

Here is another tip. Get some wire rope spray lube. Spray the gears with it to provide lubrication. Works better than regular grease. Do not get it on your clothing so wear something
old. You are gonna need more than one oil can. I keep three. One for lubing the lube points on the lathe, one for thread cutting oil, and the last for lubing the ways on the lathe. Frank

[Longwood]

I use Lucas assembly lube sometimes.

[Any Cal.]

Alright, I am absorbing this. Thanks! So far I have just been using Kroil for everything, but I did get a small pump oil can with 80-90 in it that I used on the bearings at first. I know I was supposed to have some random useless stuff done by now, but I've been reading lathe books and shooting instead.

Oh, I need a way to drill in the lathe. I am considering a MT2 Jacobs 1/2" keyed chuck. Is this a good idea, bad idea? Right size, wrong size? Is there a good, better, or best way? I hate to spend the money on it, but I could fork over $50 or so. Is there anything I should be aware of or look out for? Better options?

Thanks.