My new lathe and first product

spi said:
If a Taig is big enough to handle what you need done, I would recommend them. I've never used one of the Taig lathes, but I do have the mill. It's a tight little unit, and Kurt is excellent to deal with.
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NavyShooter said:
The Sherline 4400 is a bit more reasonable in size. Gives me 17" between centers, and a 3" swing. The Taig is a little small.
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Both Spi and NavyShooter are correct about the Taig. The biggest pieces are ~3 x 9 inches. Additionally, the tailstock limits travel on the Z axis when used. The through hole on the spindle is only 3/8" so you won't be re-crowning barrels on it either...

That said mine has been wonderful for what it can make. Light cuts and slow speed are the key- So much so I'm converting mine to CNC so as not to spend as much time making boring repetative little cuts. CNC will also give me the ability to thread, something lacking in the stock setup. All I have to do is find a reasonably priced servo (oxymoronic I know) to drive the spindle and the rest should be easy.

I would recommend the Taig if your needs are small, room is limited, or your wallet is relatively empty. I got mine for ~$300 sans motor. It has paid for itself in small parts made for others (auto related). I've sold almost 20 pieces to reduce shifter throw at $20 a pop, with a material cost of $1.75 ea. I don't obviously count my time but it has been worth it to buy it for those alone...Besides it gives me something to do while drinking beer instead of just watching TV.:D

Svt-40, great thread! Hopefully you can find a way to fix/replace your machine soon. Good luck.
 
Max Power said:
That said mine has been wonderful for what it can make. Light cuts and slow speed are the key- So much so I'm converting mine to CNC so as not to spend as much time making boring repetative little cuts. CNC will also give me the ability to thread, something lacking in the stock setup. All I have to do is find a reasonably priced servo (oxymoronic I know) to drive the spindle and the rest should be easy.
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Sweet! Keep us posted on how that turns out. I would love to have a desktop size CNC mill.
 
Matt_S said:
Alberta is good.Not all of Sask is good,I'm working for a shop in the Potash capitol of the world so there is a good demand here.I lived in Nova Scotia my whole life until last year.Just to give you an idea,as a journey man machinist with 7 years CNC experience I was making 16.00 an hour back home.i'm making 22.00 here.
I did recently turn down a foreman position in Grande Prarie for 35.00,only cos the guy wanted me to worl 12 hrs a day 7 days a week,and also there's no place to live in Grande Prarie.

Bonus:CFO's in Sask are much more liberal here than NS..and I don't mean Liberal as in Liberal party of Canada:D
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My brother took his machinist course at the community college in Moncton NB and couldn't find a decent paying job anywhere in NB,NS.
He's spinning wrenches now for DOH.
 
Actually here I have to agree with Buckbrush. I lucked out buying my first lathe used, I had two very knowledgable machinists to help me with the purchase not to mention a meticulous machinist selling the lathe to me that was more than fair from the start and helped me on many points with the machine and tooling well after the sale. If I had not had these guys, I am not sure I could have picked this lathe from a real lemon as I have no experience. I lucked out to get a beautiful old lathe with lots of frosting left on the ways and excellent condition that I can see as I gain experience and read. I wouldn't have known this in the beginning. But, if you do have access to a machinst friend and advice, the used market holds lots of great machines. And I don't think all lathes for sale are worn out. Especially now with CNC machines replacing the good old machines. For various reasons, great machines hit the market and now maybe like never before. If you can access a good machinst and gunsmith to help you, the used market holds some deals still. Those old Brit and American machines are a thing of beauty.
 
mini-lathe

svt-40........interesting:D .........just bought one last month. Been having a ball with it. Unfortunately we had moved and the spot where I had my 'bigger' machines was unheated......soooooo, miniaturized and went to the basement furnace room. I do miss the size of the bigger units but at least I can keep my hand in.

mini-lathe.jpg


Here's a great link to a mod site for these little guys. I've done a couple of them....and some to go. Makes for something to do on these cold Sask. winter nights.

http://www.varmintal.com/alath.htm#Milling_Attachment

Anyways.......enjoy:D

Cheers - Gus
 
Picking up the lathe this coming Saturday from Busy Bee. They claim it's just the belt skipping, which they adjusted (said I was supposed to do, but I thought that I am not supposed to open machinery still on warranty, go figure).
Mayhap it was, I dunno. I'll give them another chance. They absolutely refused to provide a refund, despite their warranty, which is indeed a bit confusing, but did mention a refund. I just have neither time not desire to take them to the small claims court.
 
IMG_1221.JPG

Rennugliat - here is a photo of my shop under construction, as of Monday. Upsizing, rather than downsizing. Heavy stuff will be downstairs. Had to get a 16" South Bend down a flight of stairs once, won't ever get involved with that again. Can't get 3 phase here, but will have 220 single.
 
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I was over to Busy Bee in Barrie a couple of weeks ago. They had a couple of lathes on "store sale", well under the flyer price. Not the small ones like you had problems with, though. I think they were returns. The saleman was saying that people had trouble with them because the gear trains need to be broken in. They should be run no load in every gear for 10 minutes before doing any work. I don't know.
 
Sounds odd to me, but who am I? I used only real production lathes in the past, that had tons of miles on them. Tons of tons of miles. Their belts never came loose too for some reason.
 
rennugliat said:
svt-40........interesting:D .........just bought one last month. Been having a ball with it.

Cheers - Gus
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Gus: I just picked up the lathe from Busy Bee. They tightened the belt and it worked for... another 10 minutes. Then I figured out what is causing the belt to skip (that's what it is): the motor is held in place with two threaded pins and two small machine screws. They are located in about inch and a half from each other. The torque from cutting is such, that the pins and bolts budge and don't hold the motor in place anymore.
The simplest solution is to shim the motor against the frame above it with a piece of wood or plastic about an inch wide, two inches long and 1/4-1/3 inch thick. Remove the green cover on the back and you'll see right away how much space is above the motor. That's where you need to shim.

tiriaq said:
I was over to Busy Bee in Barrie a couple of weeks ago. They had a couple of lathes on "store sale", well under the flyer price. Not the small ones like you had problems with, though. I think they were returns. The saleman was saying that people had trouble with them because the gear trains need to be broken in. They should be run no load in every gear for 10 minutes before doing any work. I don't know.
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So they DO accept returns?
 
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That was the impression that I had, but I cannot say for certain. Are you dealing with the Barrie store?
 
Oldies but good enough to learn on

Have been fortunate enough to acquire 2 older small lathes and both have proven to be reliable and accurate.
Here's a couple pics
1st is an Atlas 6 Mk1 (used to be sold by Sears)
atlascraftsman1.jpg

With a little tinkering runs at 1 thou runout!
2nd is Myford ML10 and is in process of refurbishing and tuning
myfordML10.jpg

Once I learn the basics will be looking for full size lathe for rifle barreling.Managed to talk a few local old time masters to teach me some basics.
Point I'm making is some of these older machines are quite excellent when you get lucky enough to find one for sale.
 
Question to the gurus: my BusyBee lathe, like most mini lathes, has graduation in degrees on the front of the compound. But oddly enough, there is no zero marking on the saddle. How do I return the compound to zero after using it at an angle?
 
You could use a very dependable square and set the compound to a right angle. Mark the saddle with a scratch over the '0' or '90' whichever it may be.
Look on the other side of the saddle for a mark. Really, there should be one somewhere but is very easy to do it yourself.
 
I just touch the compount on the jaws of the machine. Quick, easy and dirty. Best way is what Ripstop said though. Using tools to set it if it needs to be accurate. :)

Your not using the taper attachment so its not like its too important what angle it is execpt for threading. Actually I keep my compound when I'm using a lathe at the 30 Degrees for threading when I'm general turning as well unless ofcourse the job at hand requires me to set it differently to get in where I need too. :)

Dimitri
 
svt-40 said:
Question to the gurus: my BusyBee lathe, like most mini lathes, has graduation in degrees on the front of the compound. But oddly enough, there is no zero marking on the saddle. How do I return the compound to zero after using it at an angle?
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Adjust it close to where you think it's at zero,then dial it in from there.
 
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