My First Attempt at a "D-Bit" Bullet Mold

[DoctorBill]

OK...all you Lathe'rs out there !

Now that I am all Lathe'red up....what do you recommend I buy as tool
metal, etc that I should get for my new Lathe ?

Just try not to go completely APE on me !

I don't have a money tree growing in my yard.

DoctorBill

[longbow]

DoctorBill:

I use lots of scrap metal, some of which I find, some is given to me and some I buy.

I regularly use old Mazda MPV headbolts to me D bits and other tools (best use I have found for that Mazda ~ ask me why I have two sets of head bolts!).

Any old grade 8 bolts can be annealed, turned, ground/shaped then heat treated to make reamers and other tools.

My gas check maker is all made from old scrap: old single jack miners drill I found for the disk punch, old Suzuki shackle bolt for the male check forming punch and old Suzuki axle for the check forming die body.

Machine shops tend to have lots of left over chunks they will sell cheap.

Friends and family often have old vehicles that can be stripped for useful metal in the form of large bolts, axles, universal joints and other odds and ends. Also, wreckers and mechanics have buckets of scrap that can often be useful to you but garbage to them.

Point being, you don't have to spend a bunch if you look around. I do buy round bar steel and bronze for bullet moulds but most other smaller stuff has come from my or someone else's scrap.

Also, I said I would send some links. Here is what I have that is useful:

http://www.vintageprojects.com/lathe-milling-plans.html
http://www.green-trust.org/junkyardp...shopPlans.html
http://www.frets.com/HomeShopTech/hstpages.html
http://www.sherline.com/grinding.htm
http://www.lautard.com/
http://www.homemetalshopclub.org/news/article_sort.htm
http://www.americanmachinetools.com/...se_a_lathe.htm
http://www.littlemachineshop.com/pro...3514&category=
http://www.proshoppublishing.com/tips_proshop.html
http://www.myvirtualnetwork.com/mklotz/
http://www.metalwebnews.com/mr.html
http://www.practicalmachinist.com/
http://home.iprimus.com.au/stevor/Toolworks.htm

That should give you some reading material and some good ideas too. I may also have some old copies of manuals and such in pdf form. I will look and let you know.

I've been looking for seeds for a money tree myself... no luck so far.

Have fun!

Longbow

[Buckshot]

.............DoctorBill, Pretty sure all you'll need at first is HSS toolbits for your cutting tools, doing what you're planning to do at first. Things you'll need, some now, some eventually if you do much. These are are considered "Consumables". Some you need right now, some are simply 'nice & handy to have', and you know which is which.

Way oil
Spindle oil
Cutting oil (when cutting threads I use old fashioned stinky sulpherized dark oil.

*Note* If your lathe does not have way wipers, you should install them after cleaning off the preservative and before cutting metal. From the photo it looks like the saddle has them. The tailstock needs them too, and seldom comes from the factory so equipped. I'll try to remember to send some hard felt.

Oil dry (cat litter)
Sheet metal splash guard behind lathe
Handy paper towel (roll) dispensor.
3/8" HSS tool bits
Dial indicator (.001")
Test indicator (.0005")
Holders for the above. Can be bought or made for either, except for the dovetail clamp fo the TI which it should come with.
Magnetic base for the DI & TI.
Boring bars (to take square HSS bits)
Set of fractional drill bits (suggest Parabolics, 130 - 135º split point)
Set of Number drill bits (same suggestion)
Set of Letter drill bits (Ditto)
Set of Fractional chucking reamers
Set of Over-Under reamers

For additions to the lathe, assuming it comes with a 4 jaw in addition to the 3 jaw, and a faceplate (if you're missing any of these 3 items they would be a FOR SURE 1st & 2nd purchase) would be:

Clamping stuff for the faceplate (you can make easily enough)
Couple small (Ground finish) angle plates for the faceplate.
QC toolpost and holders (probably AXA size)
Toolpost milling vise(one for a 7" machine can be adapted)
If you do eventually get a milling vise, to hold endmills I'd suggest a MT3 (I think your spindle taper will be MT3) ER40 collet chuck. You can aquire collets individually as you need them. I've seen guys use a jacobs chuck for this but it's not optimal. The collet chuck requires a drawbar, but it's VERY simple to make.

A few photo's of some of the stuff I mentioned:



LEFT: Just as a fr'instance, indicating a beatup old Lyman 4C mould in the toolpost milling vice. RIGHT: Facemilling the mould. Notice the feeler guage sticking out?



LEFT: ER40 collet chuck on a MT3 adaptor.RIGHT: Ho'made boring bar. This one takes round bits (old drill shanks, or drill/reamer blanks)



LEFT: A TI and DI each using their home made clamps and rods. RIGHT: My Toolpost Milling Vice I used before getting a vertical mill. It's not clamped to the tollpost on the compound, but to a steel plate I have mounted on a dual toolpost cross slide I got on E-Bay. Designs details will be different but they gnerally all operate similarly. Light cuts are the watchword, but they do allow honest, and accurate milling to be done.

................Buckshot

[DoctorBill]

Gary and some of you guys told me this was "just the beginning" of spending
my money.

Well...here I go !



Gary, my machinist Guru, told me to get the magnetic base and a gauge and
I'd need the telescoping Gauges.

I am not sure that the Lathe comes with SQUAT, so I bought a set of various
bits at Harbor Freight.

I spied a set of inside cutting bits there for $15 and a box if 10 Carbide tipped Bits
for $15 (?) which I think I'll acquire tomorrow.

Most of this stuff was on sale ! Ask and ye shall receive !

Used the 20% off Coupon you find in every magazine of late.
Nice for penny pinching tight wads such as myself !
(I have more of them !) nyuck nyuck nyuck (Curly's sound - 3 Stooges).
Yoooo wooo woooo woooooooo!


Photo of my latest endeavors of making the Lathe table.
The wood and screws and bolts has cost me $41 so far.



DoctorBill

PS - I am wondering what my "Care Package" will be !

[FrankG]

A set of these come in handy too .
http://www.use-enco.com/CGI/INSRIT?P...&PARTPG=INLMK3

[Buckshot]

PS - I am wondering what my "Care Package" will be ![/QUOTE]

...............Wanna see that lathe sitting on it's drip pan on that fancy table!

..............Buckshot

[DoctorBill]

"....fancy table !" - - - - - - Fancy Table ?

Of course, you meant Excellent Table or High Quality Table....right ? !

According to ENCO, it left Georgia on Friday and will take 5 work days by Truck.

Then it will be brought to my house by the Hardware Store where it is being delivered
on a tractor-Fork Lift.

Then I have to get it into my house - 230 lbs.....THAT should be interesting !

It is snowing and 15° F out there at night. I am 69 years old.

The typical March weather is not cooperating.

It might interfere with my plans to make a Space Shuttle out of scrap Aluminum
by May first, using my trusty, new Lathe....

DoctorBill

PS - My machinist friend thinks that Tool Post Milling Vices are dangerous.
He says it is a good way to break something. He had one and gave it away.
I can't repeat here the words he used to describe them.
Merde ! I thought that would be a good way to Mill things w/o a Milling Machine.
He says - put in into the four jaw chuck and turn it down flat with a bit.

[SharpsShooter]

Hey Doc,

I'm following your odyssey into the world of machinist wizardry with great interest. Thanks for sharing with us.

SS

[Longwood]

One accident that is quite common with lathes, is caused by people not removing the chuck wrench from the chuck and turning on the lathe.
The stories are numerous.
Please get it into your head to never ever take your hand off of the wrench unless it is in it's proper storage place.
A piece of angle stock with a big hole big enough to easily stick the wrench in is screwed to the front edge of my bench just below the chuck.

[DoctorBill]

Yes !

My friend Gary has one also - never take your hand off the lever that engages
the Threading Feed when threading or cutting. Don't know the jargon yet.....

If you need to stop it quickly, you are NEVER fast enough to stop it before it hits the end of the run !

Then.....Big Badda Boom !

Am Skirting that "Fancy Table" with 2x6's when the battery pooped out - Typical !



Then I will Glue it once test assembled.
Then the bottom 2x4 ring, then the plywood back and sides.
You could rebuild a Big V8 engine on this "Fancy Table"....

DoctorBill

Hey SharpShooter - I hijacked your signature and enhanced it.
Liked it so much...

[DoctorBill]

While driving home, I got to thinking that this thread may have gotten way off
track from making PP BP Bullet Molds.

If so, perhaps it is time to terminate it.

I suppose the Moderator(s) should let me know.

With that in mind, I would like to ask all the "Lathers" who have posted
their comments to please inform me of any and all GOOD Lathe Machine Forums
that I might go to while wading thru the learning the Lathe operation process.

One's that will treat a newbie Lathe Owner like a human being - not some low
life squid.

I have seen some while 'surfing' the Internet, but many seem like a lot of
'good ol' boy' yuck it up and discussions of trivial stuff.

I will finish up this thread with pictures of my new setup when the Lathe
arrives, then go to a true Lathing Forum to pick up whatever I can there.

So please guys, give me some leads to good Lathe Machining Forums that
YOU know are good.

DoctorBill

[HollowPoint]

DoctorBill:

You're starting to remind me of ME. I bought the Grizzly version of that same lathe. I also made my own stand out of 4x4 lumber. Even put some heavy duty casters on it so I could move it around to make room if need be.

Same lathe, same tools, same dreams, same learning process; it must be a universal theme if a guy wants to make their own stuff rather than pay someone to do it for them.

I look forward to seeing some of your future projects. Incidentally, there's a Yahoo 9x19 Lathe users group that I found extremely helpful whenever I've fallen face first into the manual-lathe-learning-curve.

You have to join the group but it's free; and you don't get alot of "Know-It-Alls" with snide remarks to make you feel like a fool for asking for help. You just get answers to your questions.

Like alot of the guys here, there are alot of guys in that Yahoo-9x19 Lathe users group with hands on experience with that particular style of lathe so the answers you may be seeking aren't extrapolations from other machines; they are answers for that exact machine.

HollowPoint

HollowPoint

[FrankG]

Doc are you going to skirt the bottom of legs with 2x's and put a plywood shelf down there ? Be a good place to store some stuff and at same time stiffen and add weight to it .

Heres a friendly place I visit . Not a full on machining sight but a lot of hobby machine work goes on
http://garagegunsmithing.com/

[DoctorBill]

HollowPoint - Can you give me a link to that 9x19 Lathe Yahoo Users Group ?

I tried to find it on Yahoo....I guess I am too dumb to find it !

Also - HOW in the world did you move the Lathe to a workbench ! ?
My crate will weigh about 250 lbs.
I am supposing I can take some parts off of it maybe down to 180 lbs...(?)

Can it be moved with a refrigerator or furniture dolly ?

DoctorBill

[HollowPoint]

Good Morning Dr. B:

I was able to drag the pallet holding my new lathe into my shop space. I had stripped all the other stuff off the pallet. (crate, tool box, Back Splash, etc. to lighten the load)

I then created a ramp out of blocks and plywood so that I could slowly get it to the height of the wooden stand. Took a long time but, I didn't have anyone to help me so I had to raise it about four inches at a time.

I had a sore back for a couple of days but it worked. I got it mounted onto my home made stand.

The link you asked about is as follows:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/9x20Lathe/

It's been some time since I've had to ask any questions there. The last time I visited was when I was trying to learn how to cut threads with my Grizzly lathe.

I think you'll find it helpful.

HollowPoint

[DoctorBill]

HollowPoint - So you dragged it in.

Hmmm.... There is snow on the ground and I have an old, fairly strongly
built plastic toboggan.

Then I have a Furniture mover with wheels on each corner.

I also have a BIG furniture dolly.

Then you raised it up on blocks 4 inches at a time.

Now you have given me an Idea !

Once in beside the "FANCY TABLE" (Shotgun), maybe I can use my
automotive floor jack and raise it up, then block it, then raise it again....

I'd be worried that it would tip over....

I also have a 24 year old son - maybe between us we can just lift it.

I don't want a screwed up back, however.

I suppose that if the Egyptians were able to move heavy blocks of stone
around without wheels or fork lifts, that I can move a small, poopy little
Lathe into my shop. Just gots ta think a bit.....harder to do of late.

What I really need are some slaves !

DoctorBill

[powderburnerr]

a sixpack of beer and a couple of your sons friends , is almost as good as slaves, maybe a pizza on the other side of the bench would also stimulate them ,

[DoctorBill]

Beer !

That is how one moves it !

I think the Egyptians had beer also !

Funny how you never read about the Egyptians making
the pyramids using "Beer Power" !

Beer has undocumented powers...and Cigars !

DoctorBill

[nanuk]

MMMM.... Beeeeeerrrr...

the Nectar of the Gods!

also known as Guinness

[HollowPoint]

"Dragging It In" makes it sound a little easier than it really was. Actually I inched it in little my little.

Once inside,I jacked it up exactly the way you've described; more or less. Minus the beer and the slaves.

I used a cheap harbor freight floor jack. I just lifted one end and blocked it, then went around to the other end and blocked it up; and so forth.

As long as you have one end supported evenly while you jack the opposite end up from the center. it shouldn't tip. Having one end supported by your son is even better.

When I took delivery of my Mill it was even harder. (around 800 lbs) I had to rent an engine hoist, take apart my shop door, and cuss alot just to get it inside.

HollowPoint