Which Least Expensive Bench Lathe ??

[ohiochuck]

I am interested in taking .22 Hornet new cases (WW) and turning the original rim thickness down on a lathe to 1.4 mm (.055") working from the chamber side not on the bottom side.
This would be for use in my 22 Vierling (5.6 X 35 rimmed) drilling.
Need an easy to use lathe, if there is such an animal
Thanks!
Jim

[country gent]

Ohio Chuck, the 7 x 10 Harbor freight mini would do the job and come with the tools to make the fixture and do it. But it will be a little more fiddling around. There is the sherline much smaller and more cost but a true accurate jewelers lathe ,

The easiest way I see to do what you want is to use a piece of .250 round stock turn a 1/4" under cut 120 back from the edge then set back to where the edge of the end boss is at the face of the chuck jaws Turn this end boss to primer dia and face back to where rim sits against jaws. Before making this make a dead center from 3/16" round 3 1/2 long. This will be held in the drill chuck to lock the case to the mandrel.

Will PM you with more info

[Scrounge]

I'd go with the HF 7x12 mini-lathe. They cost about the same, and sometimes less than the 7x10, and you actually get 7x14 if you turn between centers. The 7x12 is measured from the tailstock to the chuck. You can make a bunch of your tooling, and you can easily spend as much more as the lathe costs to get "properly" tooled up. Best to buy what you need, as you need it. A fairly basic setup would need the lathe itself, MT2 and MT3 Morse taper centers, a set of center drills, a 6" caliper, some 1/4" or 5/16" High Speed Steel lathe bits, a center punch, scribe, and hammer, permanent marker or layout dye, and a bench grinder or belt sander. Also a steel rule, or a combination square set, or both. Those will let you lay out parts, grind tooling to use in the lathe, measure stuff as you turn it, and get started. Drills, drill bits, a drill press, can come in handy, but for a lot of things, you can use the lathe as a drill press. If you already have a workshop, and tools for about any other hobby, you have already some of what you need, probably.
Get a copy of David Fenner's The Mini-Lathe, and Mini-Lathe Tools and Projects, Ted Hansen's The Complete Mini-Lathe Workshop, and/or Neil M. Wyatt's The Mini-Lathe. I have them in the order I got them. I like them all.

If you have a lathe, you can build just about anything else you need. The Brit model engineers have done some astonishing stuff with nothing but a lathe, though any tool freak like me will also tell you, you should also get a milling machine if you can... Frankly, it's an addiction. Just a lathe is a great start! "Try it! You'll LIKE it!"

The only problem with the lathes that Country Gent is telling you about is that they're small. And the Sherlines are a great deal more expensive, though they are very nice lathes. I'd get the HF. In fact, I did. Now I've got it, and an Atlas TH42 (10x24) lathe, and a Smithy CB-1220XL 3-in-1 lathe/mill/drill, and a restoration project South Bend Heavy 10L. Smallest is about 100lbs, largest is a bit over 1000lbs. A Sherline is smaller and lighter than the 7x HF lathes. For making tiny stuff, that isn't a problem. It can be for making larger stuff. Though I know a guy who made a Luger 9mm barrel on a Unimat, which tend to make the Sherlines look big. Once you have the tooling and experience, it won't really matter which one you get. It is easier to find info on running the 7x mini-lathes these days, because they have gotten really popular. But anything you can do on a small lathe you can do on a bigger lathe, and within their work envelope, the same in reverse. The major advantage to a bigger lathe is you can take deeper cuts, and take them faster. On a small lathe you need to take shallower cuts, and cut slower to get a good finish.

Just looked, the HF mini-lathes are both $699, I'd get the 7x12, you'll want the extra length, and the lathe weighs something over 100 pounds. The Sherline 8" basic lathe without a chuck is only $600, with a 2.5" chuck is $750ish. The whole lathe weighs about 25 pounds. The HF is cast iron, the Sherline is Aluminum. And really short. The HF lathes come with a 3" chuck, and the basic tools you'll need to assemble and adjust the lathe, but no cutting tools. The Sherline basic lathe has no chuck at all. With a chuck, they're more expensive by a few $ than the HF. You could use that money to get some cutters.

Bill

[JimB..]

I probably wouldn’t drive it from the primer pocket, at least not on the first try. I’d cut a shallow rebate the size of the rim into a piece of stock that you’ve faced off, just enough to keep it from moving away from the cut. Then pin the case to that with a bar held in the tailstock chuck.

I’d also debur the inside of the primer pocket first.

That said, I’m a hack.

[rbuck351]

The 7x10 will do the job easily but If I were buying a new lathe I would go for the 7x14 as it will do a lot more for not a lot more money. Either should come with a live center for your tail stock. A 7x14 is part of my loading bench now and I wish I had bought one a lot earlier.

When I thin rims from the front I turn a 3" to 4" piece of round stock to just fit in the mouth of the case long enough to hit the inside base of the case. Then sharpen the end like a sharp screwdriver so it will turn the case without slipping. Deprime cases and slip one over the mandrel you have turned and push the live center into the primer pocket. Sharpen a tool and have at it.

[uscra112]

I probably wouldn’t drive it from the primer pocket, at least not on the first try. I’d cut a shallow rebate the size of the rim into a piece of stock that you’ve faced off, just enough to keep it from moving away from the cut. Then pin the case to that with a bar held in the tailstock chuck.

I’d also debur the inside of the primer pocket first.

That said, I’m a hack.

The "spud" with the primer-pocket nubbin will do it just fine. I also make a mandrel that Country Gent described, but with a center cut in the end so it can compressed with a live center in the tailstock. It's crucial that the tip of the mandrel have a "pin" formed to slip into the flash hole, to keep IT centered. I've done hundreds of cases this way. First it was .223 swaged down to .25-20 Single Shot, most recently .22 Hornet reduced to .25 Stevens rimfire dimensions. Lots of others in between. If you are holding the spud in a 3-jaw, recut it every time to make sure the nubbin is truly centered.

[uscra112]

As to choosing a lathe to buy. I'm not too sanguine about Harbor Freight. I'd look to see what Grizzly has. One thing about tools, "buy cheap. buy twice". Does Blue Ridge still have a small bench lathe? There's also LittleMachineShop: https://www.littlemachineshop.com/ where I often go for tooling and accessories. Quality stuff and fantastic support.

[8shot]

Some of those Chinese 750 watt units have 1.5" stock thru spindle diameter....which is nice for turning revolver blanks etc. Just a nice specification if you ever want to sell it. My 11" Rockwell lathe only has a 1-3/8" spindle bore....but comes in handy.

[Jedman]

One machine I own that I haven’t seen for sale used for years is a old Harbor Freight # 5980 multi-purpose machine that is a lathe, mill, and drill press all in one , the only thing it lacks for a hobbyist is power feed on the lathe carriage.
I bought mine new back around 2004-5 when it was on sale plus the 20 % off coupon and got it for under $ 400.
I have used it to make all sorts of gun parts and do things like turn case necks and rims similar to what the ohiochuck wants to do. I have 2 larger lathes now that I use for 90 % of my projects now but still use that old MP machine to do some things and it’s great for drilling and tapping barrels for scope mounts , and with the optional collets I have and end mills and a fly cutter you can do a lot of light milling jobs etc.
If you could find one of them used with some tooling for a reasonable price you would be far ahead of the small mini lathes unless you need to cut threads.

Jedman

[dverna]

Lathes are like tractors....not many say, “I wish I had bought a smaller one”

I got lucky and stumbled onto a one month old Jet 9x20 for half price. Although the smaller lathes do a good job for your current project, an older used lathe that has more capacity.

My first was a 6” Atlas....used it for a few years and made a bit of money when I sold it to upgrade.

Good luck!

[john.k]

If all thats needed is to trim the rims of cases,then a far cheaper device could be made to do that for a few dollars.....There is no need for a cross slide,as many early lathes used a pivoted cutter to advance the cut ,instead of expensive sliding mechanism.

[midnight]

I used Craigs list to find a lathe near my home since shipping a lathe can get expensive. I found an old Logan 10 x24 made in 1945 fifty miles from my house. A 10 x24 is not too big. There are times I wish it was even bigger. If you have a choice, always go bigger.

Bob

[Char-Gar]

To each their own, but cheap works like a cheap lathe and lasts like a cheap lathe. Once you have one, you will find uses for it, you never thought of before. It won't take to long before the cheap shows up.

I have a 9 X 18 Logan 400 made in 1947. It is still a very accurate lathe and will outwork and outlast any XXXX from China.

[uscra112]

To each their own, but cheap works like a cheap lathe and lasts like a cheap lathe. Once you have one, you will find uses for it, you never thought of before. It won't take to long before the cheap shows up..

Lathes are like tractors....not many say, “I wish I had bought a smaller one”

Good advice.

[porthos]

i would look around for a while and get a 9x20 or bigger if its in your budget. if you do go small, go with grizzly at least.

[Scrounge]

As to choosing a lathe to buy. I'm not too sanguine about Harbor Freight. I'd look to see what Grizzly has. One thing about tools, "buy cheap. buy twice". Does Blue Ridge still have a small bench lathe? There's also LittleMachineShop: https://www.littlemachineshop.com/ where I often go for tooling and accessories. Quality stuff and fantastic support.

LMS is a great source for tooling and accessories. If you have a bit more to spend, they're great for better set up and more powerful machines, but about double or more if the cost for the basic machine from HF. OP asked for least expensive, and LMS machines aren't that. HF is about the cheapest machine you can get some technical support and repair parts from the seller.

If you can afford the more expensive machines, you should also check out the MicroLux machines from MicroMark.com, another seller of high-end mini-lathes. They have a 7x16 Mini-Lathe on sale now for $1099, usually $1500. True inch dials, more powerful motor, and a pretty long bed for a mini-lathe. They aren't cheaper either, and IIRC LMS has competitive machines as well, plus an upgrade kit for the shorter 7x lathes like mine. Cheapest is the way I went because I literally couldn't afford any more. At the time, anyway. There are better options for folks who don't have to go cheapest available.

Nobody has mentioned Taig lathes, either. I looked hard at their machines too, but not the right choice for me.

Bill

[Scrounge]

i would look around for a while and get a 9x20 or bigger if its in your budget. if you do go small, go with grizzly at least.

Grizzly has about the same problem LMS & MicroMark have. Not cheap. That can be a benefit, if you've got the money.

I would have loved one of their 10x22 machines. Just couldn't scrape the coins together at the time. They are another decent source of tooling and accessories. My surface plate came from Grizzly, among other things.

Bill

[uscra112]

That $1099 MicroMark lathe has been backordered for many months. I've had a "notify me" set with them since forever. I don't think they intend for it ever to come back into stock, especially at that price.

A thing to know about Asian almost-anything: As a U.S.A. retailer you buy from "trading companies", not from a manufacturer directly. These trading companies have what we might call "quality grades". Harbor Freight will buy the lowest grade, so they can undersell everyone. Corners will be cut. They don't care because they don't intend to provide support. LMS/Grizzly/MicroMark will buy better, because their clientele expects support, and will get it. While I don't know from personal experience re: small lathes, I have played in that export/import sandbox, and seen how it works. The worst actors are Amazon/evilBay sellers. Buy one lot of xxxx cheap, sell until it's gone, then fold the tent and pop up as someone else.

[GregLaROCHE]

I found my mini lathe to be very useful for a lot of things.

[country gent]

Shars als as decent tooling but is geared to bigger machines. But they do have for the smaller too