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Re: Taper - I think I have a problem?!
G'day Vikki.
Looking at the comprehensive readings you have taken it appears as if you tailstock is 8thou to the front, this would account for the 15thou taper you were getting. Your quill alignment is good, IMHO i wouldn't do anything with that until you have used the lathe for a while. BTW this is very good for out of the box. IMHO generally it is unwise to get into tuning up the lathe first off short of cleaning up and making general adjustments eg gibs. Use the lathe to allow surfaces to bed-in. The longer you leave it the more time the bed has to normalise and stress relieve. Ultimately you will get sick of working around the alignment inaccuracies and then it is time for serious tuning. I note that you mounted the DTI in the 3 jaw chuck. It is not safe to assume the chuck is truely concentric, they are OK for general work, but precision work should be either turned between centres or mounted in a 4 jaw chuck with careful centering. Here in Ox we have a bird called a Bower Bird. The male builds a bower out of grass and twigs and then collect shiny objects to place in the bower. When complete he invites females in to see his collection, a bit like inviting girls back to see his etching. Your colection of "shiny things" reminds me of that. Is your bower working? I am impressed by your site. One good turn deserves another. Regards, Ian --- In 7x12minilathe@..., "wrlabs" <wrlabs@...> wrote: travel traversand clamp it. Run the dial indicator along the side and top of the youindicating that the quill is not parallel to the bed axis. Unless ishave spent time working over the tailstock you will find that it up totoo high by up to 20 thou and the the quill alignment is out by lookthe same amount.That was the easy part :). Spent most of the evening working at pretty good, Up by 0.001 in the back and toward the rear of thelathe by 0.0025 (closest to the tailstock, front of quill was used aszero). 10I spent yesterday finally getting my tailstock to severalmonths of intermittent effort.I can understand that after tonight :-). Made the measurements different ways and many different times and got somewhat differentthe results. I tried it using the quill end (just get the ball up onit) and got a different set of values:touching as in the pix referenced above:zero. Ball back resting on front of quill, dial front......: -0.008 / -0.0085 Ball back resting on bottom of quill, dial down..: -0.0035 / -0.004of the work closer to the front of the lathe which would cut theworkpiece thinner than the front (chuck end).challenge to get them all working the right way. Starting to think thislittle 7x12 is rather amazing for as good as it is out of the box afterbeing shipped halfway across the planet!theI moved the clamping screw from underNeed to figure out how to do that one, not clear to me why it is on bottom in the first place, just seems wrong to me. So far whattapers I needed were short enough to do the math and set the compoundwill gettingnot effect the job. If the tailstock quill is not aligned then theWith it having been fully extended to get space to work, I was all it has to give :).themKeep up the work on the laser centre and edge finder, it looks aProblem with using cheap laser pointers to do that is that NONE of (that I have tried so far) project a decent dot, if a dot at all.One can get a donut pretty easily, but that requires better eyeballsthan I have to use. I looked into decent laser modules (Digikey, IIRC)and the folks offering them for $40-$60 are one fantastic deal. Of the 5 Ihave tried so far, none was significantly better than the first one I didthere, I have been unable to locate them :-(. |
Threading and using the Dial
I tried to cut my first threads, but couldn't get synched up for
additional cuts. I figured out the dial needs to be adjusted to begin with to even get it to start turning, but it stops turning when I engage the lead screw nut. Doesn't it need to turn the whole time, even when I move the tool back to the beginning of the cut? If so, how do I adjust this thing to keep it turning? Ed |
new homier
hello, seems like a few of us got a new machine this week. just a note
to them. I thought a neat little thing to start with would be a mt3 fly cutter, so i looked up the dems, set the compound to 5 and started cutting. must have done that wrong too cause mine don't make chips. just tiny fine curls. anyway the mt3 don't fit. looked it up again and sure enuf, it says 5. what it don't say is that it's 5 total. not 5 from center line. an old hand could have spotted that right off, but that's OK. I can start a fire with just a couple of sticks. fri... |
Re: Micromill vs Minimill .... Now milling attachment
G'day gavin Andy, Steve et al.
There is some good advice here, but! I don't have a mill and am not seriously looking at present. What I have seen is that the micro mills and mini mills are quite limited when it comes to drilling. Larger diameter drills have morse taper shanks, also they are generally. A micro/mini may not have enough Zaxis to allow large drills and the drive may not have enough grunt. Regarding lathe attachments, the standard attachment is a large fraction of the price of a micro mill, as Andy says it does not seem a wise investment. The exception may be the Taig attachment which appears quite flexible (use wise) and better value for the money. For me, if I had twice the money to invest and twice the space I would have purchased a much larger lathe with a decent milling attachment rather than two limited machines. As an alternative an erzats milling attachment could be made with a piece of steel or aluminium angle (not my comments on not using Aluminum). Here is Oz you can get 80 x 80 x 6 Ali angle. A cheapy drill press vice, the type with mounting slots along the sides, could be fixed to the angle. Adjustment would not be easy but what can you expect for AUD$30. (63mm drill vice AUD14 + AUD10 for Ali angle + nuts and bolts = AUD30). There are other options which use the compound slide to provide the Y axis adjustment (see Varmint Al's site). Some of these options may be rough eg MS or Ali angle may not be exactly 90deg. but if this is important we have files or a cutter can be put in a 4 jaw chuck and a pass take over the surface. Building an adaption of the Varmint Al approach is my next major lathe project, in the mean time I have a cross drilling atachment which needs the finishing touches. Summary of my opinions, The micro & mini mills are limited but a better investment than the purchased milling attachment. One good turn deserves another. Regards, Ian --- In 7x12minilathe@..., "Gavin McIntosh" <gavinmc3@...> wrote: speed. You will not be able to mill with the smaller bits which will needhigher speeds.milling theattachment slide. Ittopslide and fastening it down to the "swivel disk" in the cross- vise) to thewould have been better if it had T-slots to fasten jobs (or a arrangement.front of it, rather than that big, overhanging, "toolpost" use of itsCheck if your cross-slide will wind far enough over to make full cutter in2.7" (approx) width. To adjust the depth of cut with a milling enough;the chuck (or collet), the carriage handwheel isn't nearly precise of theyou will need a handwheel and graduated dial on the outboard end into aleadscrew. As I've previously remarked, I wish I'd put the money ProductID=1681&category=1mini-mill fund. milling too,A friend has one, he is happy doing basic work, but he said it can dowon't fit doinghave a DVDfrom Chronos UK that shows a Taig/Peatol attachment (with a fewminor mods)being able to fit the 7x10/12. Has anyone any experience of also do athis? Ifso, what's the max capacity for milling? Find outstandalone milling machine for approx ?550 (UK Pounds). Is thisbetter thanthe equivalent mill from Seig? prizes.more at the Yahoo! Mail Championships. Plus: play games and win 2Ecom%2Eau%2Fclickthru%2Fclickthru%2Eact%3Fid%3Dninemsn%26context%_________________________________________________________________ 3Dan99%26locale%3Den%5FAU%26a%3D25448&_t=754951090&_r=meet&_m=EXT |
Re: Indexable bit holder for cummins mini lathe
G'day all.
Well said John. Shimming and packing of work pieces is one of the skills of the job. Fellow groupies will know by now that I am not a fan of QCTPs. I am a cheapskate! But I do have 5 standard tool holders all set up with a range of tools. That is equivalent to a QCTP with at least 10 holders. Theoretically you could put 4 tools on each standard holder but two tools is the minimum. My advice, get used to shiming, any piece of flat scrap will do, iron, brass or aluminium (don't use aluminum it is too soft!); tuna tins are a good source, failing that brass sheet can be purchased from a hobby shop. One day I will build a QCTP just for the sake of it but at the moment there are too many things to turn my hand to. One good turn deserves another. Regards, Ian --- In 7x12minilathe@..., "born4something" <ajs@...> wrote: are crap. Other than practice the only reason for putting them in the |
Re: Anybody know what this is?
Hi Steve,
The tangential has steeper than normal back and side rake - this causes it to cut more easily (using less power) than regular tools but also causes self-feeding on material like brass and even on some aluminum and plastic when taking deep cuts. I expect that packing the front of the sharpening jig up to reduce the back/side rake would reduce the self-feed tendency but I infrequently cut brass so I haven't tested this yet. The other thing about the tangential is that the finish is generally better cutting from left to right (or facing from center out) but the cut must be shallow, 2-4 thou or chatter can occur. Roughing cuts are done right to left, where I routinely cut up to 70 thou per pass in steel. Glad to hear you found other interesting gadgets on my site. John --- In 7x12minilathe@..., "cedge11" <cedge@...> wrote:
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Re: My 8x12 is here :) (Cleaning it up)
G'day Rance.
If Andy is right regarding the purpose of your mystery screw then my advice differ from his! This screw is important unless you want your tail stock to crash to the floor and break the handwheel and bend the screw. It is too easy to run the saddle back or push the tailstock back to get more working space only to end in an oops! I haven't done it myself simply because the stop screw is in place. If your lathe doesn't have a way of preventing the tailstock inadvertently sliding off the bed then I recommend you use the spare screw for that purpose, it can be your first customisation. One good turn deserves another. Regards Ian --- In 7x12minilathe@..., andrew franks <andyf1108@...> wrote: lot of use, really, unless you set up your lathe on a steep hillside. AI decided to go ahead and disassemble the cross slide, compound, andtailstock for the cleaning. Since the parts were away from the lathe, I justafter it with some 400 grit and that was that. A bit of it was on theunder side of the cross slide but I think it will be ok. It was at thevery end.the screw on the compound. If you don't get it juuuuuuuust right, thewith that later.rings and the one on the 'other' end of the spindle has a threaded nut.Any one know of a reason I shouldn't remove these for cleaning?looking closer to my new toy was to see all the oil ports with the checkI need to oil those things? Is there a special fitting on oil cansfor those?screw rolling around underneath the lathe. During the cleaning process,the only place I could see where a threaded hole did not have a screwis at the TS end of the bed. There's a hole in the casting below theTS. However, I can't see where it would make a difference whether itwas installed or not.underneath it.for the encouragement that has gotten me this far in metal turning.storage with All New Yahoo! Mail.
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Re: Army manuals on CD ROM
Bill
Another source, if you have access to the newsgroups, is:
alt.binaries.e-book.technical These military manuals show up frequently along with a lot of info that may or may not be of any use. 'Course, there's a ton of spam to weed through as well, but where do you really get away from THAT? Just make sure you've got some space on your hard drive, you'll probably grab more than you might expect! Bill --- In 7x12minilathe@..., "Charles E. Kinzer" <ckinzer@...> wrote: have no connection with this item). The title says 7 manuals, but it seems there are 8. Pages_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQcategoryZ26197QQitemZ130093099816QQrdZ1 worldwide
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Re: [mini-mill] Army manuals on CD ROM
Chris Bailey
Not to rain on anyone's parade, but there are a LOT of manuals online for free.
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Charles E. Kinzer wrote:
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Army manuals on CD ROM
Charles E. Kinzer
I happened to see this on ebay when looking for something else. (I have no connection with this item). The title says 7 manuals, but it seems there are 8.
The description says: These high quality manuals have been moved to CD ROM They are in PDF Format and can be viewed Adobe Software If you don't have Adobe it is a free download from their site Easy to move to your Hard Drive or Open to View You can print these on your printer if you want a hard copy These are NOT viewable on your TV style DVD Player They are Recent Manuals not old or vintage EIGHT US ARMY MACHINIST MANUALS ON CD ROM Band Saw Operations Lathe Operations Machine Shop Calculations Metal Properties, Characteristics, Uses and Codes Milling Machine Operations Precision Measuring and Gages Principels of Drafting and Shop Drawing Shop Safety The pricing says: $6.95 and $5.25 shipping if to U.S. or Canada, but they ship worldwide Chuck K. |
Re: Anybody know what this is?
cedge11
John
I had the pleasure of building a Tangential cutter based on the description on your web site. While it's not much for working in brass, I find it winds up mounted on my QCTP far more often than any cutting tool in my collection. I really love using it for turning and facing steel, aluminum and even the odd bit of stainless. It still amazes me at just how agressively it will cut when everything is nice and sharp, yet it will do the finest of cuts with ease. It's not all that difficult of a project and the results are quite rewarding. After several months trial use, it's definitely a tool I'd miss now that I've owned one. I've "duplicated" a couple of the other tools shown on your site and each added to the fun of operating my lathe, especially the tool post mounted ball turning tool. Steve --- In 7x12minilathe@..., "John" <John@...> wrote:
cheaper. nomral typeholder for the home shop and use small HSS tool bits. |
Re: Bed extention for a micromark 7x14
Steve Claggett
I have seen a few sites, guys cutting and adding a bed extention. I
can't find my bookmarks right now, I'll keep looking. I think I would upgrade to a 8X or 9X if I needed a longer bed than 14 inches. --- In 7x12minilathe@..., "thornappleboots" <thornappleboots@...> wrote:
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Re: Taper - I think I have a problem?!
Steve Claggett
Vikki
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Here is some more tail stock info. This can be a bit mind boggling at the start, just keep reading and learning. Mr Kruger's pages help me a LOT. My TS is repeatable to .0003 after 8-10 hours of work (head scratching). --- In 7x12minilathe@..., "wrlabs" <wrlabs@...> wrote:
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Re: My 8x12 is here :) (Cleaning it up)
andrew franks
I think that screw is supposed to stop the tailstock sliding. Not a lot of use, really, unless you set up your lathe on a steep hillside.
A rancerupp <rupps@...> wrote: Well, I just dove in with both feet to get it cleaned up. I decided to go ahead and disassemble the cross slide, compound, and tailstock for the cleaning. Since the parts were away from the lathe, I just used paint thinner for cleaning. I didn't find much more than a little protective layer of grease, really not much. Oh, I did find some surface rust on the cross slide. I bit the bullet and got after it with some 400 grit and that was that. A bit of it was on the under side of the cross slide but I think it will be ok. It was at the very end. Got it all put back together lubricating with Mobil 1 as I went. It seemed to go back together well. I had to tinker with the nut for the screw on the compound. If you don't get it juuuuuuuust right, the compound gets tight at one end of travel. Maybe I shouldn't have removed it for cleaning. No big deal. I may have to fiddle more with that later. I still have to degrease the pullys on the HS before crankin it up. I'm thinking that removing them would be prudent. Two have clip rings and the one on the 'other' end of the spindle has a threaded nut. Any one know of a reason I shouldn't remove these for cleaning? One thing I was pleasantly surprised with when I first got to looking closer to my new toy was to see all the oil ports with the check balls. However, could someone tell me what kind of oil can or spout I need to oil those things? Is there a special fitting on oil cans for those? Lastly, during the unpacking from the crate, I found one loose screw rolling around underneath the lathe. During the cleaning process, the only place I could see where a threaded hole did not have a screw is at the TS end of the bed. There's a hole in the casting below the TS. However, I can't see where it would make a difference whether it was installed or not. Oh, and lastly #2, could another HF 8x12 owner tell me if it is supposed to come with a pan underneath the lathe? I knew it did not have a back splash but thought it DID have a pan that goes underneath it. Thanks to all of you for the information you have provided me and for the encouragement that has gotten me this far in metal turning. Rance --------------------------------- Inbox full of unwanted email? Get leading protection and 1GB storage with All New Yahoo! Mail. |
Re: Wood driving center for chuck!
Vikki wrote.....Got an idea and tried it out and it seems to work pretty well. Not sure it would stand up to serious hogging, but worked out well turning down a about a 1/2" square stick to a dowel :)......
A great idea. Very similar to the 'safe' driving centres available. If enough pressure is applied with a rolling centre in the tailstock, should cover most turning needs and if anything catches, it just allows the material to stop before any serious damage is done. HTH Ellis |
Re: A FEW MINUTES TO SPARE
Hi Ian,
Yep, what Vikki said - pictures! Actually, I keep promising myself to rig up a little travelling chip tray. I thought your lathe came with skirts & wipers or is that my memory playing tricks? John --- In 7x12minilathe@..., "wrlabs" <wrlabs@...> wrote: wrote: the front,house to clear my head. No! not a hangover. the cut20mm fold down at the rear and a 20mm fold up at the front. I 5mm oversize front anPICTURES PLEASE! PICTURES PLEASE! :-). |
Re: Micromill vs Minimill .... Now milling attachment
wrlabs
--- In 7x12minilathe@..., "Steve Claggett" <790racer@...>
wrote:
A friend has one, he is happy doing basic work, but he said it canYep and the base price for it is about half that for a Micro-Mill on sale. Micro-Mill is FAR more useful IMO. I did think about this for awhile, but bit the bullet and got the uMill instead and think I have a lot more capability with it over the milling attachment. YMMV :-). Take care, Vikki. |
Wood driving center for chuck!
wrlabs
Hi Folks,
Got an idea and tried it out and it seems to work pretty well. Not sure it would stand up to serious hogging, but worked out well turning down a about a 1/2" square stick to a dowel :). Took very little time to make. Can probably be improved but until I see a need for it... Hope it helps someone. Take care, Vikki. |
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