Show us your lathe?

[pete-blen]

Its probably still dodgy for a boilermaker to have a lathe but they are handy.
The Rong Fu mill/drill and 3 in 1 mill lathe from page 3 are still in storage in NZ (7 years this month) then I got another 3 in 1 when I was in Darwin (left nearly 4 years ago) which was left at my brothers workshop.

I got another Chinese lathe the other month, AL320G.

https://www.machineryhouse.com.au/Centre-Lathes

Fine for the money and powered cross feed along with reversible travel.
Getting used to it with so many years out of practice, its no Mercedes Benz but you get what you pay for.
First job was converting a Kubota alternator for the Sunbeam which got a M78 - 1 mm pitch left hand thread.
I ripped into it and noticed to late that setting it for a 1.25 mm pitch actually cuts a 1mm pitch.


Next will be a HM-46 mill/drill.
https://www.machineryhouse.com.au/Tu...lling-Machines


I'm not sure in the big scheme of things cheap everything and quality to match is a good thing but does make these sort of things more accessible compared to 20 or so years ago.
A medium size knee mill with CNC conversion is still on the list, one day.....

I have both of those... AL320 lathe & HM 46 mill...
As said for the prise there are ok.... the lathe gets better with use..
Mill is better built than the lathe...
like you both of mine have been in storage in blen for the last 2 years
I will get them down to ChCh one day....

[Imagineering]

I got another Chinese lathe the other month, AL320G.

Next will be a HM-46 mill/drill.

A medium size knee mill with CNC conversion is still on the list, one day.....

I've just installed your Lathe's 'Big Brother', the AL336D. Good Lathe but let down by the OEM QCTP which is being replaced by Mach House in NZ.

Thanks for the Heads-Up on checking the Change Gears before committing to a cut.

Before committing to the HM-46, have a look at the SIEG SX3 which is an easy and cost-effective way of getting into CNC Conversions. Do a search on the Web, as there are a number of 3 Axis Kits available for this Mill.

[bogan]

I've just installed your Lathe's 'Big Brother', the AL336D. Good Lathe but let down by the OEM QCTP which is being replaced by Mach House in NZ.

Thanks for the Heads-Up on checking the Change Gears before committing to a cut.

Before committing to the HM-46, have a look at the SIEG SX3 which is an easy and cost-effective way of getting into CNC Conversions. Do a search on the Web, as there are a number of 3 Axis Kits available for this Mill.

Funny you mention the QCTP, mine just started getting a bit stiff so I bored out the cam system a bit to fix it. Would have been an easy job if the cam could be holding the tool and in the chuck, G-clamp and super shallow cuts got the job done though.

SX3 do steels and get a decent finish on ali? Seems most of the little/hobby style CNCs struggle with metal a bit.

[Surly Rubec]

Black and Decker bought as a teenager 50+ years ago.

[Imagineering]

Funny you mention the QCTP, mine just started getting a bit stiff so I bored out the cam system a bit to fix it. Would have been an easy job if the cam could be holding the tool and in the chuck, G-clamp and super shallow cuts got the job done though.

SX3 do steels and get a decent finish on ali? Seems most of the little/hobby style CNCs struggle with metal a bit.

The Lathe I wanted was only available with the QCTP, 2 Axis DRO and LeadScrew Covers.

The QCTP/Toolholder interface was so sloppy I could move the Toolholder 20 degrees when unlocked. In the locked position I had a Parting Tool destroy itself due to lack of rigidity.
The LeadScrew cover is a great idea but limits the travel of the Carriage so I can't use a Collet Chuck in the Spindle.
I would prefer 3 Axis DRO, which sounds a bit strange on a Lathe, but a separate Scale can be mounted on the Compound Slide and summed with the Carriage - very handy.

The SX3 munches Alloy quite well but a bit slower with Steel. You just need to play with Speeds & Feeds to suit. Really handy piece of Kit though.


.

[Ocean1]

Black and Decker bought as a teenager 50+ years ago.

Shit, that's high tech.

For the lobe grind on my old XL I just used a 4" disc grinder, a cardboard template and an oilstone...

[TLDV8]

Thanks for the Heads-Up on checking the Change Gears before committing to a cut.

I have to admit to doing a very light first cut so it would have been easy to check the pitch even with verniers, lucky it wasn't that important but still a silly mistake.

Somewhat off topic, I have a piping calculator for work (LNG plants) and picked up their machinists version a while back, quite handy.
It was quite miraculous to cut a thread following proper numbers and it actually screw together, instead of my just a bit more technique.

http://www.calculated.com/cat4/Handh...l#.VDuktxYfhEM

I will order a HM-46 mill/drill this week, based on what I can unload, the lathe was a story in itself based on access.
It has a reasonable distance to the table and the tilting head should be good for removal of valve guides.

[TLDV8]

Might be something dicky with the change gears? 32 driven instead of 40 sort of thing? My lathe from them had something along those lines that needed changing.

But yeh, their stuff is decent quality for the price and makes things so much more accessible.

In theory if the 1 mm pitch is off so will the 2mm, I need to have another look, maybe setting it to the 1mm change gears cuts 1.25, I guess based on the lead screw and gears it could be calculated.
The powered cross travel and reversible feeds is a new luxury, I have to admit removing the top cover to see if there was oil in there, it sounds like a Bedford bus at times and drove like a Lada first use but have come to like it.
Agreed for the outlay they are good.

Even being able to make simple mandrels for pressing bushes in is great.

[Imagineering]

In theory if the 1 mm pitch is off so will the 2mm, I need to have another look, maybe setting it to the 1mm change gears cuts 1.25, I guess based on the lead screw and gears it could be calculated.
The powered cross travel and reversible feeds is a new luxury, I have to admit removing the top cover to see if there was oil in there, it sounds like a Bedford bus at times and drove like a Lada first use but have come to like it.
Agreed for the outlay they are good.

Yep, the Gearhead does make a bit of noise. I have a Mate who has had his 336 for a year now and it is definitely quieter than mine. The Gear changes are a lot smoother as well, I've got a whole lot of 'false neutrals' in mine.

It's recommended by Machinery House to run the Lathe for a Month or two and then dump the Oil from all three Sumps, replacing it with '46 Grade' Hydraulic Oil. Oil Level in the Headstock Sump is very important as the Gears are splash fed and the Main Spindle Bearings are fed via a Collector Channel cast into the Headstock under the Cover. If there is not enough Oil to splash around, it won't reach high enough to splash into the Channels.

I'm still awaiting my new QCTP so I can't play at the moment.

M.

[TLDV8]

Hired a iLoad for the morning for the drive down to Sydney (80 kms) to pick up a HM-46 and accessories.
Good advice on the oil I will see what I can find and change it for something of known brand for peace of mind.

[Ocean1]

Hired a iLoad for the morning for the drive down to Sydney (80 kms) to pick up a HM-46 and accessories.
Good advice on the oil I will see what I can find and change it for something of known brand for peace of mind.

While you've got the tops off rattle a magnet around in the corners, you might be surprised what's lurking around in there.

And a magnetic plug ain't a bad idea either, just like the bike eh?

[pete-blen]

Hired a iLoad for the morning for the drive down to Sydney (80 kms) to pick up a HM-46 and accessories.
Good advice on the oil I will see what I can find and change it for something of known brand for peace of mind.

did yer get the power feed kit ?... wish I had....one day..

I had to shim the column forward & aft on the two rear bolts to get
the quill 90* with the table...

[Akzle]

any KBers in ohakune, or near enough?
ones that know what a manual belt lathe should feel like?

five bucks and a box of brown fizzy stuff if you can go give this a turn (pun might have been intended... you decide)

[TLDV8]

did yer get the power feed kit ?... wish I had....one day..

I had to shim the column forward & aft on the two rear bolts to get
the quill 90* with the table...

Hare and Forbes have one listed but it is quite expensive at AU$759 due to needing a transformer.

http://www.machineryhouse.com.au/M230

I see this one on eBay for $439 (no transformer) so might go that cheaper route, it would be good with fly cutters.
The head on the Sunbeam would be the first test.

http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/201193935...84.m1423.l2649

Off topic of lathes but came across this where a similar mill/drill was converted to CNC.
The mechanic's of it seem very do-able but the electronics are another thing.

http://www.graetech.com/index.htm

While you've got the tops off rattle a magnet around in the corners, you might be surprised what's lurking around in there.

And a magnetic plug ain't a bad idea either, just like the bike eh?

Funny you mention that, the CNC link has a section where the gearbox bearings were replaced due to casting sand when the machine was still low hours.
I got a rotary table off Chevpac long ago and stripped it from new, cleaned the casting sand out of it, cleaned, lubricated with good grease and it gave reliable service for years (in storage now)
When I got the AL320G I removed the compound for that same reason (hadn't turned it on prior) there was casting sand that could be dislodged and would have dropped down onto the screw in use.
Cleaned it out but now wonder about the gearbox on both,mill and lathe, the HM-46 is in place but haven't plugged it in yet.
Having a look is looking like a good idea for sure.

[328FTW]

I picked up a 1972 USSR lathe, big ol beast. All in metric, 3 phase. Haven't measured between centres but I'd define it as "heaps bro". Removable bed section, picked it up for $700 not working and spent about a day cleaning rust and setting up the wiring for it to not be a birdsnest of fire then clacked it into gear and works like a charm. A mechanical engineer owned it for quite some time so it's not abused aside from sitting in a shed for years unused, the bed hasn't been smashed into the spinning bits a heap of times like some of the lathes I've used in shops that train people.






Haven't got a pic of it all cleaned up but it's all shined up now with no rust. I've used it just about every weekend since I bought it a few months ago, machining bushings and small projects mostly. But I'll need to run a few threads and stuff on it soon so I'll have to figure out what I'm doing with feed speeds. I've been using the compound head to do some tricky taper jobs though and it made an immaculate job of machining from my engineering drawings, I even met the specs for surface finish straight from the carbide bit no sanding or fine cut required; stoked as.