Yep. The manual posted by OneBarfly is about as good as you can find for a 3in1.
IMO, a lousy pick for a first machine tool. Sorta OK as a lathe, though the slowest speed is too fast, esp. for a beginner, and a lousy excuse for a drill press or mill, even though they CAN be used for those purposes. Most of the guys that I have known that had any level of success with them, already had a great deal of experience with machine tools, had a huge sense of humor, and more than their share of patience, allowing them to work through the limitations of these machines.
Best thing I can suggest, since the two best books I know of have already been mentioned (How to Run a Lathe ($10, Lee Valley Tools) , and The Amateur's Lathe ($22, Busy Bee)) would be to turn the milling/drilling head around so it is not in the way, and start learning to use it as a lathe.
Forget about preground carbide tools for now, and forget about carbide insert tools. Get a couple 1/4" High speed Steel tool bits and learn to grind them.
Get some maple dowel, for your initial set-ups and tries for turning. Some aluminum round stock, or some brass round or hex stock, should be high on the list of things to acquire, too.
Learn to use the lathe, then play with the mill/drill.
Talk to the high school shop teacher. Even if they do not have a metal shop, he/she should be able to give you some pointers.
If you can find a copy of Machine Tool Technology, by Krar, it's a good reference book too. It's a standard High School/college level metal shop text. Get an out of date copy if you can. The new ones don't contain anything you need to pay $75 for.
Don't bother tracking down Machinery's Handbook. Great book, but it's not a how-to book, more the mother of all wall charts. Again, buy an older copy ($5-$20, vice $70 or so for the latest) if you stumble across one, but don't go out of your way.
You want to get on the mailing list for Busy Bee Tools, KBC Tools, and probably a few others. Catalogs are good!
Your location? Maybe someone close that can give you a run through.
Cheers
Trev
IMO, a lousy pick for a first machine tool. Sorta OK as a lathe, though the slowest speed is too fast, esp. for a beginner, and a lousy excuse for a drill press or mill, even though they CAN be used for those purposes. Most of the guys that I have known that had any level of success with them, already had a great deal of experience with machine tools, had a huge sense of humor, and more than their share of patience, allowing them to work through the limitations of these machines.
Best thing I can suggest, since the two best books I know of have already been mentioned (How to Run a Lathe ($10, Lee Valley Tools) , and The Amateur's Lathe ($22, Busy Bee)) would be to turn the milling/drilling head around so it is not in the way, and start learning to use it as a lathe.
Forget about preground carbide tools for now, and forget about carbide insert tools. Get a couple 1/4" High speed Steel tool bits and learn to grind them.
Get some maple dowel, for your initial set-ups and tries for turning. Some aluminum round stock, or some brass round or hex stock, should be high on the list of things to acquire, too.
Learn to use the lathe, then play with the mill/drill.
Talk to the high school shop teacher. Even if they do not have a metal shop, he/she should be able to give you some pointers.
If you can find a copy of Machine Tool Technology, by Krar, it's a good reference book too. It's a standard High School/college level metal shop text. Get an out of date copy if you can. The new ones don't contain anything you need to pay $75 for.
Don't bother tracking down Machinery's Handbook. Great book, but it's not a how-to book, more the mother of all wall charts. Again, buy an older copy ($5-$20, vice $70 or so for the latest) if you stumble across one, but don't go out of your way.
You want to get on the mailing list for Busy Bee Tools, KBC Tools, and probably a few others. Catalogs are good!
Your location? Maybe someone close that can give you a run through.
Cheers
Trev
