开云体育

[ ... ]

vikki;
you mentioned that the part you were turning was wood. on a
typical length of wood, because of the growth rings, the density of
the wood fibers will be different. this could result in a somewhat
eliptical circumference. if by chance you took your two measurments,
90 degrees apart from each other, that could explain what has occured.
it's also possible that, depending on species, the grain, thus
density, could ghange along even a short piece of wood. just a couple
of outside the box thoughts that might explain what's gone wrong.

Something I hadn't even though of, but now that you mention it, it
makes much sense.

I wonder if a follower rest would help with that? Probably not as the
elements involved are probably spring rather than flex, right?

Thanks much for adding to my mental toolbox of problem solving tools!

Take care, Vikki (Who has SO much to learn, but having fun getting
there :-)!).

Here's a pretty good article on making the TS work properly.

<
ilstock/IndicatingBase/index.html>

Roy

--- In 7x12minilathe@..., "wrlabs" <wrlabs@...> wrote:

Hi folks,

Update...

I hath created a monster, I think :).

After loosening the socket head screw under the tailstock I

discover the

top of the tailstock flops in the X and Y axis. Raised section on

the

base and the slot in the tailstock itself are mismatched by (guess)

at

least 1/8", lotsa twist there.

Apparently that little slot head set screw on the back of the

tailstock

is for adjusting the Z (?rotational) orientation. If it was ever
tightened down, it worked loose over time.

I'm not sure what I am seeing here, but I get top and bottom of the
quill to read zero (top set as reference zero) but the front (toward
operator) and back are both around 13 (plus to front, minus to

rear),

depending on the tap of the moment.

I was using the dead center for this and I thought that it was
elliptical (flattened top to bottom). So, just to see what

happened, I

rotated the dead center 90 degrees expecting the top / bottom to
increase and the front / rear to decrease. Values did not

change ?!?

Tried this using the inside and outside of the quill and get the

same

kind of results.

I'm perplexed!

Putting this away for today, tired of cranking on that lock nut :-).

One another note. I was thinking it might be nice to have a place

were

folks could chat live, I put together a channel on

chat.freenode.net:

#vmmst

Standing for: Virtual Micro and Mini-Machine Shop Tavern :-).

Any IRC client will get you there set up for the network
(chat.freenode.net) and the channel (#vmmst).

IRC has gotten a bad rep for obnoxious jerks, but the exception to

this

I have found is freenode, my personal channel is there and I have

yet

(in years now) to have any problem with jerks.

Only rule I have for the channel is that folks treat it like my (or
your) living room and act accordingly. I do not and will not

tolerate

rude / obnoxious people. Enough said.

It's there if folks want a place to chat live, I'm there when I am

up

although I may be doing other things and not notice right away.

Thought it might be a nice resource.

It;s been an exciting day!

Take care, Vikki.

--- In 7x12minilathe@..., "steam4ian" <fosterscons@...>
wrote:

G'day Vikki et al.
Vikki by now you must be totally confused.

A bit less than yesterday, I think :-)!

There you have generated
much useful discussion.

Some very good material has come out of this from many people and it has
certainly helped me a LOT!

I forgot to answer one of your questions,
that relating to the shim between the centres. It has been answered
by others, the shim can be a razor blade even a thin steel rule,
something the points on the centres can't penetrate.

OK, understand now, thanks! I'd seen that idea suggested for aligning
tools to spindle center but had (somehow?) forgotten about it since I
made my little tool height gauge. It obviously has other applications
too, thanks, that one goes in my mental toolbox :)!

Out of all this two things come to light. Firstly you need to check
your tailstock centering every time you want to turn a long parallel
piece. This is good practice with any lathe even more so with old
lathes. Secondly your design should acknowledge that some taper is
possible. For example, I recently turned a shaft which was to have a
bearing near each end. As I turned and miked the shaft I discovered I
was turning a taper. To overcome this I turned the midddle section of
the shaft below the bearing diameter and then separately turned each
bearing section to the nominated diameter. I guess this good practice
anyway.

Makes sense once I thought about it, something to remember (so much of
that going on here) hopefully I'll be able to retain all this wisdom
that has been so graciously given!

There is an old saying "A poor workman blames his tools". Behind this
is the fact that a good workman keeps his tools in good service but
also knows and allows for their shortcomings.
The other old saying, "measure twice and cut once". It applies to
lathes.

Err, but..., but.., but I have cut it off THREE times already and it is
still to damn short ;-)!

Slowly I am learning my tools and once one knows the rules then one know
which can be broken. I strongly suspect the learning will never end,
which suits me just fine :-). This is all just so fun and even more so
when one starts really understanding things.

BTW. You can check you headstock alignment by taking off the chuck
running your dial indicator across the face of the spindle with the
DI mounted on the cross slide. I am yet to be convinced that
headstock alignment is a problem unless the lathe has been mistreated
in transport or similar accidental damage.

I'll save messing with the headstock for later, this whole tailstock
thing has been enough for just the moment :-). Other than the taper
turning issue, the rest of it ?seems? to be very good and better than
some folks get. Perhaps wishing hard for some color other than yellow
for the unit had some other results like getting the gods at Seig and
the shipping folks to grace me with a special smile? LOL.

You can't turn longer than
3 times the job diameter so a small angular misalignment is not going
to induce much taper. Anyway the spindle axis and the cross slide
axis are not meant to be precisely perpendicular. For instance
turning across a face should cause a slight concavitiy, only a few
thou, but the concavity must be there. If not, a faced surface will
not sit flat on a truly flat surface.

Now that is a perplexing though to consider for a bit.

Anyhow Vikki, the host of responses indicates your bower is working!

:-) must be :-).

Planning on looking at sinking at least one more screw in the back of
the tailstock today - need to look at it as placement with the ramped
way on the base is probably an important issue to consider. An
exciting mill project :-)!

I did order the tailstock cam lock kit last night, had quite enough of
turning that hold down nut rather constantly already :-).

Thanks very much for your help and patience with my denseness :-)!

Take care, Vikki (off to the shop!).

--- In 7x12minilathe@..., "wrlabs" <wrlabs@...> wrote:

Thanks to all that responded to this query.

OK, I am *totally* intimidated after going through some of the

websites

suggested :-(.

It is going to take a LOT more experience and especially more
understanding than I have before I start tearing down the lathe to

that

degree.

Of interest, I dug out that bolster bar I made out of the 1"

stainless

rod and measured that at each end (3") and it is only off by 0.001.
Chucked on one end, center drilled and supported by the live center

in

the tailstock.

Wonder if my problem is flex in the workpiece, as in I am hogging

it?

It would see that would make it off in the middle were it is

unsupported

though.

Yep, I am totally confused about what is going on here.

The item that was off the 0.015 was wood and I am now wondering if

the

centers being slightly off from the center marks (assuming they were
perfect) would cause that much difference? I would think that

turning

that down would result in it being symmetrical / consistent from

end to

end once it was turned down far enough?

Starting to think I really need a mentor or at least a decent course
about all this.

Thanks & take care, Vikki (The Massively Confuzed).

vikki;
you mentioned that the part you were turning was wood. on a
typical length of wood, because of the growth rings, the density of
the wood fibers will be different. this could result in a somewhat
eliptical circumference. if by chance you took your two measurments,
90 degrees apart from each other, that could explain what has occured.
it's also possible that, depending on species, the grain, thus
density, could ghange along even a short piece of wood. just a couple
of outside the box thoughts that might explain what's gone wrong.

The most common methods use something that expands into the HS bore,
attached to the actual handcrank. One style uses a diagonally cut
piece that expands into the HS bore when it's tightened; exactly like
a bicycle handlebar adjuster. The other style uses a double-
expanding concrete anchor to grip the bore. You'll want about a 6"
lever arm with some flavor of knob. If you can get one, an old valve
handwheel works nicely, as does a defunct ball joint in a piece of
flat stock.



Roy

--- In 7x12minilathe@..., <gregorstransky@...> wrote:

Does anybody know a procudure how to make a handcrank? A while ago

I ran

across a procedure on one of the lathe/minilathe/machining

websites. But I

do not remember any more which website that was.
Thank you.
Gregor Stransky, San Antonio, Texas

----- Original Message -----
From: "roylowenthal" <roylowenthal@...>
To: <7x12minilathe@...>
Sent: Sunday, March 25, 2007 9:15 PM
Subject: [7x12minilathe] Re: Threading and using the Dial


The handiest threading accessory you can make is a handcrank!
Particularly on short, shouldered pieces turning the lathe by hand
gives more torque & much better control.

Hi David,

Thanks for that link. That saves me having to reverse engineer the
data format off the scope. A source of connectors would be nice.
Maybe I need to buy spare parts from a DRO maker.

Interestingly, I have calipers with two different connector
geometries. Both have the 4 gold-flashed PCB fingers but the
surrounding plastic differs. One is as shown at your link. The other
is more enclosed and clearly needs a differently housed plug. That's
what I love about standards - there's always such variety to choose
from!

John




--- In 7x12minilathe@..., figNoggle <david@...> wrote:

hi john-

<>

it was nice of the seller to provide extra batteries. going into a

local

drug store to buy replacements is very pricey.

hope this helps!
david



MetalWorkingFAQ.NET - Over 50 content sites!

<>

CNC, Plans/Kits, 8x12 Lathe, Mini-Mill, How-Tos

<>

Sieg X3/Super X3 Mill Information, HF/Enco Coupons

<>

On Mon, 26 Mar 2007, born4something wrote:

Hi,

Firstly, I should report back on the original topic. I followed

up

800watt on eBay and ordered several calipers from him. Yes, he

will

ship international on request. As people here said, his
communication is pretty terse and speed is not his forte.

The parcel took 18 days to get to me in Australia. But arrive it

did

and the calipers are fine. All 3 managed to turn themselves on in
transit as their hard cases allow enough movement to touch the
buttons on the protective foam - a nick with the penknife will

fix

that. They arrived with displays flashing indicating low

batteries.

However, each was packed with a spare battery and he threw in a
bonus strip of 5 extra batteries.


Now, who knows how to interface to the data port on these things?
They seem to take some sort of miniature 4-pin plug. What are

they

called - anyone got a part number? Anyone know the pinout and

data

format?

John



--- In 7x12minilathe@..., "born4something" <ajs@>
wrote:

Thanks,

Some of 800WATT's listings look pretty good - except he lists

as

US

only. :-(

Maybe I'll politely ask.

John


--- In 7x12minilathe@..., Druid Noibn

<druid_noibn@>

wrote:

Hi John,

Just two-more-cents-worth...

One might take a quick look on some of the eBay offerings.

For

example, a vendor "800WATT" sells the calipers item at good

prices -

watch the s/h charges however. Also, this vendor has a low

score

due to his poor communications style and often a bit long on
delivery time. I've purchased several items from him and all

worked

out well. I've also purchased a larger caliper from Australia

and

it arrived faster than the items from the US vendors.

Take care,
DBN


born4something <ajs@> wrote:


Hi,

I see lots of interest in cheap digital calipers -

presumeably

for

DRO

mods. Not sure if this helps but there are some at

ID=TD2081&CATID=&keywords=TD208&#92;

1&SPECIAL=&form=KEYWORD&ProdCodeOnly=&Keyword1=&Keyword2=&pageNumber=

&pr&#92;

iceMin=&priceMax=&SUBCATID=
<

ID=TD2081&CATID=&keywords=TD20&#92;

81&SPECIAL=&form=KEYWORD&ProdCodeOnly=&Keyword1=&Keyword2=&pageNumber

=&p&#92;

riceMin=&priceMax=&SUBCATID=> that may be of interest.

Ignore the listed price. I can buy these at Qty 1+ $12.77

Qty 5+

$11.77

Qty 10+ $10.77 (10% GST not inlcluded). The prices are in

Aussie

dollars

which sit around the $US0.75 mark. I'd probably wear about

$AU12

in

freight to get a delivery to my door.

I haven't physically seen one of these so the catalogue

entry is

all I

have. Perhaps a 1-off retail purchase should come first. If

someone

wants to buy some I'm happy to act as middle man. If a few

people

were

closely located a bulk buy may be attractive. Contact me off

list

if

you'd like to explore details.

John
(not associated in any way with the supplier, other than as a

trade

customer).

--- In 7x12minilathe@..., "mrslushy" <MrFrost@>

wrote:

--- In 7x12minilathe@..., "rancerupp" rupps@

wrote:

Chris,

You're not the only one that missed it. However I am

about 2

weeks

away

from ordering. I missed the $16 dig. caliper too.

Rance (sittin & watching the prices)

LMS currently has 6" digital caliper for 14.95.....check it

out.

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]






---------------------------------
No need to miss a message. Get email on-the-go
with Yahoo! Mail for Mobile. Get started.

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Thanks Ian. Great idea. I'd rather spend my time making more fun stuff
(like a ball turner, etc.). I particularly enjoy using 'things' for
other than their intended purpose. I just measured what I need. Minimum
of 30" long, and 15" (or bigger) in width is a good start.


--- In 7x12minilathe@..., "steam4ian" <fosterscons@...>
wrote:

G'day Rance

--- In 7x12minilathe@..., "rancerupp" <rupps@> wrote:

"I'll just make my own pan,.."

"...I can modify one for the ball valves."

That's the spirit. However you may find a vehicle drip tray is

cheaper

than buying the sheet metal.

One good turn deserves another.
Regards,
Ian

Hello Bruce,

Thanks VERY much for you comments here, after a night to think on the
problem and your comments as well as some from other folks here, I have
a much better head space :-) on the problem!

--- In 7x12minilathe@..., "Bruce Leo Hartmann"
<goodsnout@...> wrote:

Vickie,

Not being very bright ot talented, I (correctly) figured I could
never get my headstock and tailstock in perfect allignment But I
figured that even though not understanding all (or any) of the various
published methods of achieving perfection in this area, I could get
close enough (via perseverance and dumb luck) to do acceptable work.

That seems to be where I am at :-).

I lucked out in the first instance by getting a really well made
old style Homier. The old style Homiers and Cummins lathes use two
rear set screws instead of the one central set screw used on the Seig
machines. This difference alone makes the allignment MUCH easier
provided that these set screws are immediately replaced with 6mm
SHCS's. On a seig machine, holes would need to be drilled and taped
for these invaluable "adjustment" screws.

Just went in there and looked at the back of the tailstock and that idea
makes so much sense as to be staggering. I have some 6-32 stainless
screws that I think will work for this and may put this idea into
practice today! Smacking the tailstock back and forth with the jewelers
hammer is an exercise in frustration and does nothing for the paint :-).

Out of PURE frustration (and sore wrists :-), I ordered the cam lock kit
last night from LMS. Cranking that bolt tight and loose is far more of
a job than I want to do constantly in this process (now or in the
future). I'd read in a great number of places that the cam lock is one
of the best mods one can make and I now understand *exactly* why that is
:-).

This mod also looks like a really wise idea for a number of reasons:



With the addition of two screws spaced out on the back and the tailstock
adjuster life should be a LOT easier.

The first step is to get the
allignment "close."
[ ... ]

Rather than commenting (cluelessly :) on the rest of this, I copied it
out and printed it for inclusion into my Shop Notebook to study while I
go through this and future reference. Utterly excellent!

I'm sure this is NOT the professional or approved method of
alligning the head and tailstocks but it has worked very well for me.

As I have heard somewhere, if it is stupid and it works, it is not
stupid :-).

The good news here, I think, is that I am getting over the aversion to
doing anything to the lathe, sorta like the new car syndrome :-).

Thanks VERY much and take care, Vikki.

G'day Rance

I have seen many examples of people installing a chip guard on their
lathes to deflect chips from the ways and leadscrew. I really liked
the idea of using a bellows rubber sheet as fitted to the mini mill
,but I cannot find a supplier here in the UK.
I am aware that The Little Machine Shop sells this but is out of stock
and anyway with import costs the price would be unattractive. Then it
dawned on me that I could make my own, from materials that are easily
available ,namely lamination sheets.
Using an A4 lamination sheet of 125 microns I passed it through the
laminater without any insert, and then by scoring the sheet with the
back of a hobby knife across every 1/2 inch and turning the sheet over
with every score , finally fold on all the scorings to produce a
viable bellows sheet. If the sheet is ever damaged or wears out it can
be easily replaced . The resultant film is strong enough to fix
directly with screws to the travelling steady fixings on the
crossslide.I have also made one with a sheet of coloured paper in the
lamination this works fine but is slighty stiffer and more difficult
to fold , but not impossible !

G'day Vikki et al.
Vikki by now you must be totally confused. There you have generated
much useful discussion. I forgot to answer one of your questions,
that relating to the shim between the centres. It has been answered
by others, the shim can be a razor blade even a thin steel rule,
something the points on the centres can't penetrate.

Out of all this two things come to light. Firstly you need to check
your tailstock centering every time you want to turn a long parallel
piece. This is good practice with any lathe even more so with old
lathes. Secondly your design should acknowledge that some taper is
possible. For example, I recently turned a shaft which was to have a
bearing near each end. As I turned and miked the shaft I discovered I
was turning a taper. To overcome this I turned the midddle section of
the shaft below the bearing diameter and then separately turned each
bearing section to the nominated diameter. I guess this good practice
anyway.

There is an old saying "A poor workman blames his tools". Behind this
is the fact that a good workman keeps his tools in good service but
also knows and allows for their shortcomings.
The other old saying, "measure twice and cut once". It applies to
lathes.

BTW. You can check you headstock alignment by taking off the chuck
running your dial indicator across the face of the spindle with the
DI mounted on the cross slide. I am yet to be convinced that
headstock alignment is a problem unless the lathe has been mistreated
in transport or similar accidental damage. You can't turn longer than
3 times the job diameter so a small angular misalignment is not going
to induce much taper. Anyway the spindle axis and the cross slide
axis are not meant to be precisely perpendicular. For instance
turning across a face should cause a slight concavitiy, only a few
thou, but the concavity must be there. If not, a faced surface will
not sit flat on a truly flat surface.

Anyhow Vikki, the host of responses indicates your bower is working!

One good turn deserves another.
Regards,
Ian

Vickie,

Not being very bright ot talented, I (correctly) figured I could
never get my headstock and tailstock in perfect allignment But I
figured that even though not understanding all (or any) of the various
published methods of achieving perfection in this area, I could get
close enough (via perseverance and dumb luck) to do acceptable work.
I lucked out in the first instance by getting a really well made
old style Homier. The old style Homiers and Cummins lathes use two
rear set screws instead of the one central set screw used on the Seig
machines. This difference alone makes the allignment MUCH easier
provided that these set screws are immediately replaced with 6mm
SHCS's. On a seig machine, holes would need to be drilled and taped
for these invaluable "adjustment" screws. The first step is to get the
allignment "close." This entails centering a perfectly round rod
(printer rod, shock absorber rod or drill rod, etc.) in a collet or
four jaw chuck. The rod only needs to be 3 or 4 inches long with one
inch protruding. The tailstock is then removed and the bottom locking
screw is loosened and the tailstock is replaced on the bed and locked
down. A jacobs chuck (with open jaws) is then firmly inserted. Next
you unlock and slide up the tailstock until the rod enters the jacobs
chuck and your head and tailstocks "kiss." You then lock down the
tailstock and tighten the jacobs chuck. You then loosen and retighten
the tailstock locking nut (or camlock if you have one). You next
loosen and snug up the two rear (6X1mm) adjusting screws. During this
process the tailstock quill may be locked or unlocked. It will be
locked if you want things to be (near) perfect when turning or
unlocked if you want things to be (near) perfect when drilling. (I
used the unlocked method). You next carefully remove the tailstock
(relying on your two rear adjustment screws to hold everything
together) and tighten the bottom lock screw. Then remove both chucks.
Put a #3 morse center in the headstock and a #2 morse taper in the
tailstock. Bring up and lock the tailstock base and use the razor
blade method to see how close to perfect you are. Using a razor blade
(or something similar) held between a #3 morse center point in the
headstock and a #2 morse center point will show how close to perfect
allignment you are. If everything is "perfect" the blade will be
perfectly perpendicular to the points, both up and down and side to
side. The blade will show you if your tailstock is too high or low and
if it's too far forward or back. In my case my height was perfect and
I was slightly too far foward. All I had to do was slightly tighten
the front adjusting screw and very slightly loosen the rear screw (you
always finish by making sure both adjustment screws are tight). You
are now perfect right where you are at. This will constantly change as
you use different chucks and the tailstock is locked and unlocked at
different spots with different quill extensions and as things wear
from use. No one adjustment lasts forever. Generally the things I make
don't have to be absolutely perfect. When I made new over sized
(better fitted) compound and cross feed lead screws, I wanted them to
be perfect. This was pretty easy to do. When I cut a new cross slide
lead screw it took all of my bed length. After chucking my drill rod
and taking a few light surface cuts, I miked the ends and discovered
that the tailstock end was .0015" larger than the headstock end of the
rod (soon to be screw). By very slightly tightening the front
tailstock adjusting screw and very slight loosening of the rear screw
(followed by several more light test cuts) I was able to get a
perfectly straight cut with absolutely no measurable taper. It should
be noted that these ultra fine adjustments are made without loosening
the base nut or bottom locking screw (i.e. the tailstock can be
"tweeked" into perfect allignment even though the upper part of the
tailstock would seem to be solidly affixed to the lower part of the
tailstock and the lathe bed. Any time you need a perfectly straight
cut, this method of "on the fly correction" can be employed. I can't
imagine why seig machines only have one central rear set screw when
having two opposing (opposite side) screws makes adjustment SO much
faster and easier.
I'm sure this is NOT the professional or approved method of
alligning the head and tailstocks but it has worked very well for me.

Bruce

--- In 7x12minilathe@..., "Steve Claggett" <790racer@>
wrote:
I appreciate you trying to find that. I want to turn some 20" small
dowel like wood that could be fed through the headstock and turn 2 to
3" at a time then move it out and do it again. there wouldn't be much
pressure against the tail stock.

Can you just use a steady rest? Perhaps with custom modified fingers?
I'm thinking something like rubber pinch rollers from a couple old
cassette players or VCRs or something rather than hard bearings.

hi john-

<>

it was nice of the seller to provide extra batteries. going into a local
drug store to buy replacements is very pricey.

hope this helps!
david



MetalWorkingFAQ.NET - Over 50 content sites! <>
CNC, Plans/Kits, 8x12 Lathe, Mini-Mill, How-Tos <>
Sieg X3/Super X3 Mill Information, HF/Enco Coupons <>

Commercial sheet pans can be had in 18 x 26 inches, here is an example eBay # 160020141890

I'm not sure what I am seeing here, but I get top and bottom of the
quill to read zero (top set as reference zero) but the front (toward
operator) and back are both around 13 (plus to front, minus to rear),
depending on the tap of the moment.

That indicates that while you have the tailstock pretty well centred
properly up and down, it is either not pointing straight at the
headstock, or it is off centre. Most likely it's a bit of both. If
you extend the quill further, you'll probably find that difference
will drift one way or the other. Think of in in the extreme - think
of what the indicator would read if the tailstock was pointing 10
degrees or so off centre.

You must start by setting the tailstock straight - what John
(gadgetbuilder) calls angular alignment. Then you know the error
you're seeing with the DTI is all parallel alignment and you can
adjust to correct it.

For setting the straightness, I extend the quill about 1.5"-2", lock
it down, set the indicator in the toolpost and measure along the
outside body of the quill. For maintaining centre, this should be
adjusted so there is no variance along the length.

----

As a side note, with most folks mini-lathes there comes a point where
aligning the tailstock becomes a trade-off. Often, the tapered part
of the quill is not quite concentric with the outside barrel. So you
reach a point where you're deciding to go for taper straightness
(better for drilling/tapping/reaming) or for barrel straightness
(centre remains on centre no matter how far the quill is extended).

On my minilathe, the taper mismatches the barrel by about .002 per
inch. I have the tailstock adjusted for barrel straightness. With 5"
of chuck and drill bit sticking out of the tailstock, the tip of the
drill bit is .010" off centre. This causes it to drill oversized and
tapered holes. But the benefit is if I turn something between
centres, it'll not be tapered no matter how far the quill is extended.

Aligning the tailstock with the DTI-in-chuck method will cause you to
setup the tailstock for taper straightness. To setup for barrel
straightness you need a centre-drilled test bar and the DTI mounted in
the toolpost. Use RDM (Rollie's Dad's Method) on both ends and adjust
'till equal.

----

Aligning the mini-lathe tailstock can be very frustrating, even with
the various aids people have created. I like John's (gadgetbuilder's)
one best. Using shims rather than pushing against a set-screw makes
things a lot more repeatable, and dialing in the last .0005" is much
easier by torquing down a screw "just a bit tighter".

Finally, there's no point in going nuts about tailstock alignment if
the headstock hasn't been aligned yet. Eventually you'll want to do
that and it'll throw your tailstock alignment out (and all your hard
work!). For a quick an dirty alignment, setup the headstock and
tailstock with centres. A live tailstock is fine if it's a decent
one. Then bring the points together with a thin piece of metal
between them until they just touch lightly - you don't want to crush
them. Use a thin razor-blade or thin shim: the thinner, the more
easily the error will be seen. If the tailstock is well aligned, the
shim will be held square to the rest of the lathe. Adjust as
necessary, then check it again with the quill extended to get
straightness. Go back and forth until you get it acceptable at both
ends. Your tailstock is now aligned.

I hope this is of some help. If something seems to be confusing, I
find it's best pictured mentally if you think about it in the
extremes. Somehow it seems more obvious that way.

Good luck,

-Paul Moir

Thanks for the info. I'll just make my own pan, just wanted to know
if it was missing. Their packing list leaves a lot to be desired.
Same for the manuals. But that's just part of this cheap-lathe-
game. :D

I already got a couple of the cheap oil cans from HF. I can modify
one for the ball valves. Thanks again guys.


--- In 7x12minilathe@..., andrew franks <andyf1108@...>
wrote:

Under a baby lathe which I own, I fitted a ?2/$4 baking tray to act

as a chip pan. At 14", it wouldn't be long enough for the 8x12, but I
wonder if bigger ones are available for commercial bakeries.

Andy


Druid Noibn <druid_noibn@...> wrote:
Hi,

The 8x12 does not come with a chip pan and HF doesn't sell one.

As for the oil valves - HF does have a small pump oiler - I picked

one up at the local store a couple of weeks ago. I'll have to find
the # and post it.

Take care,
DBN

--- In 7x12minilathe@..., "Gavin McIntosh" <gavinmc3@...>
wrote:

G'day Gavin,
No problem with the drill press, mine is bench mounted, I would get a
pedestal one if buying now.
Unless you pay a lot of money the average drill press is just that,
average, certainly not of tool room precision, doesn't even match the
minilathe out of the box. Try getting repeatable centering as you
change the work piece height to accommodate different drill lenghts
and then there is the run out and the slop in the spindle. Hence my
comments about the mill.
A precision drilling machine is virtually a mill without the
traversing table and some with tables are sold as drill/mill
combinations.
For cost comparison purposes in Oz; a pedestal drill (average
quality) sells for AUD350 and the Sieg milling attachment sells for
AUD220 total AUD570 The current eBay price for a X1 mill is AUD655,
only AUD85 more. (AUD1.0 = USD0.75 = S40P).
Interestingly a milling attachment suitale for a larger lathe over 9"
sells for about AUD250.
I agree a drill press and a decent grinder are essential home
workshop items, even ahead of a lathe,
I had better finish before we finish up OT.

One good turn deserves another.
Regards
Ian

If you want to drill holes then a floor standing drill press is

better and a

good home shop should get one before the mill.

Gavin

Unclerabid can take care of your questions and fix your board.

Hi,

Firstly, I should report back on the original topic. I followed up
800watt on eBay and ordered several calipers from him. Yes, he will
ship international on request. As people here said, his
communication is pretty terse and speed is not his forte.

The parcel took 18 days to get to me in Australia. But arrive it did
and the calipers are fine. All 3 managed to turn themselves on in
transit as their hard cases allow enough movement to touch the
buttons on the protective foam - a nick with the penknife will fix
that. They arrived with displays flashing indicating low batteries.
However, each was packed with a spare battery and he threw in a
bonus strip of 5 extra batteries.


Now, who knows how to interface to the data port on these things?
They seem to take some sort of miniature 4-pin plug. What are they
called - anyone got a part number? Anyone know the pinout and data
format?

John



--- In 7x12minilathe@..., "born4something" <ajs@...>
wrote:

Thanks,

Some of 800WATT's listings look pretty good - except he lists as

US

only. :-(

Maybe I'll politely ask.

John


--- In 7x12minilathe@..., Druid Noibn <druid_noibn@>
wrote:

Hi John,

Just two-more-cents-worth...

One might take a quick look on some of the eBay offerings.

For

example, a vendor "800WATT" sells the calipers item at good

prices -

watch the s/h charges however. Also, this vendor has a low score
due to his poor communications style and often a bit long on
delivery time. I've purchased several items from him and all

worked

out well. I've also purchased a larger caliper from Australia and
it arrived faster than the items from the US vendors.

Take care,
DBN


born4something <ajs@> wrote:


Hi,

I see lots of interest in cheap digital calipers - presumeably

for

DRO

mods. Not sure if this helps but there are some at

ID=TD2081&CATID=&keywords=TD208&#92;

1&SPECIAL=&form=KEYWORD&ProdCodeOnly=&Keyword1=&Keyword2=&pageNumber=

&pr&#92;

iceMin=&priceMax=&SUBCATID=
<

ID=TD2081&CATID=&keywords=TD20&#92;

81&SPECIAL=&form=KEYWORD&ProdCodeOnly=&Keyword1=&Keyword2=&pageNumber

=&p&#92;

riceMin=&priceMax=&SUBCATID=> that may be of interest.

Ignore the listed price. I can buy these at Qty 1+ $12.77 Qty 5+

$11.77

Qty 10+ $10.77 (10% GST not inlcluded). The prices are in Aussie

dollars

which sit around the $US0.75 mark. I'd probably wear about $AU12

in

freight to get a delivery to my door.

I haven't physically seen one of these so the catalogue entry is

all I

have. Perhaps a 1-off retail purchase should come first. If

someone

wants to buy some I'm happy to act as middle man. If a few

people

were

closely located a bulk buy may be attractive. Contact me off

list

if

you'd like to explore details.

John
(not associated in any way with the supplier, other than as a

trade

customer).

--- In 7x12minilathe@..., "mrslushy" <MrFrost@>

wrote:

--- In 7x12minilathe@..., "rancerupp" rupps@ wrote:

Chris,

You're not the only one that missed it. However I am about 2

weeks

away

from ordering. I missed the $16 dig. caliper too.

Rance (sittin & watching the prices)

LMS currently has 6" digital caliper for 14.95.....check it

out.

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