# I just took the plunge ...



## Chthulhu (Nov 12, 2010)

... and ordered a lathe and tooling package, which I will pick up in Pasadena next Wednesday. Today I bought lumber and a new circular saw with which to build the bench for the lathe to sit on.

This is going to be fun.


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## bobjackson (Nov 12, 2010)

Welcome to the fun.


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## hilltopper46 (Nov 12, 2010)

I'm jealous. That looks like a nice setup.  Enjoy!!


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## alphageek (Nov 12, 2010)

Nice!   Can't wait to see what you make first.   BTW... I get a kick out of your avatar!  Cool trick!   Very geeky!


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## ctubbs (Nov 12, 2010)

My sincere condolances.  you have now entered the _Twlight Zone_ where time evaporates at a great rate and the money chases the time.:biggrin: Welcome.
Charles


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## Chthulhu (Nov 12, 2010)

alphageek said:


> Nice!   Can't wait to see what you make first.   BTW... I get a kick out of your avatar!  Cool trick!   Very geeky!



It'll be a little while before I make much of anything; I spent the budget on the machine itself, and will have to accumulate more before I can buy materials. 

I figure it'll give me some practice time making scrap; it's been a couple of years since I last used a lathe of any kind. <G>

Were you able to read my avatar?


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## Chthulhu (Nov 12, 2010)

Bob, Tony, and Charles, I went into this with my eyes wide open, and having warned my wife that this is unlikely to earn as much income as a full-time job. <G>


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## Dudley Young (Nov 12, 2010)

Welcome to the madness. You'll be hooked in no time.


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## alphageek (Nov 12, 2010)

Chthulhu said:
			
		

> It'll be a little while before I make much of anything; I spent the budget on the machine itself, and will have to accumulate more before I can buy materials.
> 
> I figure it'll give me some practice time making scrap; it's been a couple of years since I last used a lathe of any kind. <G>
> 
> Were you able to read my avatar?



Well have fun making scrap . I've never used a metal lathe but it's on my long te todo list for someday.

And yes, I scanned your avatar with my iPhone off the laptop screen...  Neat trick with the embedded URL.


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## Chthulhu (Nov 13, 2010)

Dudley, thank you. 

alphageek, I've only ever used metalworking lathes, but the freehand tool rest and drive center for this lathe are on my list of additional equipment, along with a set of turning tools. I'm after the combination of a metalworking lathe's precision and the freedom of expression of a wood lathe.

Glad to know the QR code is readable from a laptop monitor.


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## Chthulhu (Nov 16, 2010)

The bench is finished (about half an hour ago), rough and ready but solid!

The two little blocks sitting in the spotlight are my only scrap, and all that remains of twelve 2"x4"x8' studs. I have a half-sheet of 15/32" oriented strand board, and three-fourths of a sheet of 1/8" Masonite left. I found and added leveling feet for the bottom, necessary because the floor isn't level *or* flat. Underneath is my little air compressor and the case for my cordless tool set.

All the 2x4 lumber for the top and the legs is glued as well as screwed; everything else is just screwed together. The back board sits in a slot and is held with one screw at top center for easy removal.

All done with a circular saw, a cordless drill, and lots of coffee. <G>


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## glycerine (Nov 16, 2010)

Oh, wow!  Super cool!  And nice bench...


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## Chthulhu (Nov 16, 2010)

glycerine said:


> Oh, wow!  Super cool!  And nice bench...



Thank you! I love a challenge, and building this thing with such limited resources was DEFINITELY that. I'm satisfied with the results, though.


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## sgimbel (Nov 16, 2010)

Sorry I can't read anything in your avatar.


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## snyiper (Nov 16, 2010)

Mike send me your address and Ill put some starter stuff together for you. Least I can do to get you started!!!


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## Chthulhu (Nov 17, 2010)

Ahhhh ...


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## bking0217 (Nov 18, 2010)

Mike, maybe I'm just slower than everyone else, but I can't figure out your avatar. What am I missing?


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## markgum (Nov 18, 2010)

nice setup. welcome to the money pit..


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## alphageek (Nov 18, 2010)

bking0217 said:
			
		

> Mike, maybe I'm just slower than everyone else, but I can't figure out your avatar. What am I missing?



It's a 2d barcode.. They are on alot of things now, you can pack a bunch of info into them.


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## Chthulhu (Nov 18, 2010)

alphageek said:


> bking0217 said:
> 
> 
> 
> ...



Specifcally a QR code; you can download a reader for your phone or computer that will decode them. Mine contains just the URL for my paper models site, the same URL that's in my signature.


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## Chthulhu (Nov 18, 2010)

markgum said:


> nice setup. welcome to the money pit..



Thanks, Mark; I'm still in the process of deciding just where on the bench I want the thing, at which point the rubber feet and spreader bars will come off and I'll bolt it down.

I have a list of suggested mods for these machines gleaned from various places around the Web, and this version seems to have a bunch of the already incorporated. That'll save me some time and money.


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## alphageek (Nov 18, 2010)

Man that thing is pretty!   I would just LOVE to get one of those someday.


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## Chthulhu (Nov 18, 2010)

alphageek said:


> Man that thing is pretty!   I would just LOVE to get one of those someday.



It's a variant on the SIEG SC-2 machine, like the Harbor Freight lathe and a flock of others. This one had several advantages for me, not least that its source was within a reasonable driving distance (round trip: 214 miles) and did *not* come from Harbor Freight.


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## Chthulhu (Nov 26, 2010)

New addition: in the first image is a little 5-speed Taiwanese drill press that my father-in-law gave me yesterday (he had two, couldn't get the chuck to stay in on this one, and I had repaired some fluorescent lights for him).

The second image shows why I'm not out there now, and why the garage door isn't up for better light. I know it's colder where a lot of you are, but this is southern California! <G>

The third image is my first attempt at a pen, from a Slimline kit sent to me as part of a "Welcome Wagon" package from Snyiper (thanks again!). After some careful measurement of kit parts, and omitting the center band, I took a nice, shiny piece of 11mm OD plated steel rod (salvaged from an Epson printer), bored it to fit, and put it all together. It's pretty heavy at 35 grams, of which only 15 grams is the kit.

In the process I learned several things: the "7mm" pen tubes in this kit are actually 6.82mm OD and 0.250" ID; the various press-fit parts have different ODs where they fit the tubes, and a thick-walled steel tube isn't as forgiving as a thin-walled brass tube wrapped in wood or plastic when pressing them into place; the difference between "press" and "interference" fits; and that I need to align my tailstock.

I had fun, though.


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## mach9 (Nov 27, 2010)

Welcome to The Hotel California. You can check out, but you can NEVER leave! Good luck with your turning. You're going to have a blast.


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## Chthulhu (Nov 27, 2010)

No doubt!


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## Chthulhu (Dec 2, 2010)

I was asked elsewhere to share my experience with the lathe, and thought I would duplicate it here as well:

It's been two weeks since I acquired my HiTorque 4100 mini-lathe from LittleMachineShop.com in Pasadena, California.

To begin with, the lathe came in a wooden crate, secured by two screws  and fender washers through the bottom of the crate and into the base of  the lathe. I discovered AFTER the two-hour drive home that one of those  screws and washers had torn through the bottom of the crate at some  point in its journey from Shanghai to Pasadena, and the lathe had been  moving around in the crate, causing minor damage to the bottom pan and  some rub marks on the paint of the change gear cover. Nothing to be  overly concerned about, but had I been aware of it while still at the  LMS shop I would have asked for a different machine (they had quite a  few of them in stock).

I started up with the lathe sitting on its rubber feet and spreader  bars. The bars aren't drilled symmetrically, and the manual makes no  mention of which way they should be installed.

Once I was happy with the placement of the lathe on my bench, I removed  the rubber feet, flipped the spreader bars over and reinstalled them on  the bottom of the lathe, then bolted the spreader bars to my bench with  1/4" lag screws since the underside of the bench is not conveniently  accessible (that required dismounting the control box and the motor in  order to reach the lag screws, but it was easier than getting to the  underside of the bench!). This is working nicely so far, but I have  suitable bolts on hand for the next time I CAN get to the underside of  the bench. The spreader bars add enough height to make cleaning under  the machine considerably easier.

The machine came oiled rather than coated with protective grease as  stated in the manual. There were also dribbles of paint just about  everywhere there should only have been bare metal and oil.

The manual stated also that the cross slide handle needed to be  reversed, but it already was. The manual did not state that the spinner  knobs for the carriage and tailstock would need to be installed, but  they were loose in the box. After installing them and playing a bit, I  found that the carriage and cross slide handles are much too close  together for my large hands; I worked around this by removing the  spinner handle from the carriage handwheel and paying close attention to  where my knuckles are. I've considered extending the handwheel an inch  or so out from the apron, but there's not much support there and I'll  need to fabricate a bracket and an extension for the pinion shaft. The  handwheel could also use some reference marks; again, later.

The gears in the apron were not lubricated; I corrected this. I also  rotated the handwheel to put its set screw in a different position on  the pinion shaft, away from the little dimple in the shaft; this let me  take up most of the slop and end play. I put some grease on the back of  the handwheel's hub as well.

I removed the bottom pan and slotted it to fit around the lathe's feet  so I can pull it out and dump it easily. I also slotted the three  mounting holes and added flat washers under the screw heads for the back  guard for easier removal. I'm considering cutting the back guard at its  corner behind the headstock, bending the longer back part out maybe 30  degrees, and extending it up and to the right. It will be more effective  at catching chips, and allow more room for the cross slide, for my  knuckles on the tailstock handhweel and lockdown lever, and for using a  hack saw for rough parting. As it is it's just too small and often in  the way. Extending it to the right will make clearing the chips out if  it a lot easier as well.

The electrically-interlocked polycarbonate shield over the chuck was  useless and was removed. I'm using it as a pan to catch chips brushed  out of the back guard.

The chuck was stiff, so I disassembled, cleaned, and lubricated it. The  chuck had 0.005" runout, but I rearranged the jaws and got it down to  0.001" runout.

Each of the chuck jaws in the second set was very tight; careful  polishing corrected this. I don't think SIEG gets the concept of  deburring; lots of sharp edges on this little machine!

All six carriage strap screws were loose; I adjusted the straps and tightened the screws.

There are two set screws on the top of the left ends of the carriage,  presumably lubrication points, but unmentioned in the manual. Oil put in  the forward hole does end up atop the prism, but oil put in the rear  hole doesn't seem to go anywhere. I'll have to take a closer look when  next I have the carriage off.

The tailstock was off by several thousandths away from the operator. The  tailstock base and body were "glued" together with paint, and both  locking screws were overtightened, damaging the base casting. The screw  on the bottom needed a flat washer to distribute its pressure, and the  set screw needed a larger diameter dog point to prevent it from digging  into the base casting. I added the flat washer and replaced the set  screw with a much-more-convenient socket head cap screw with just the  threads turned off for the 0.100" at the end and the end faced. I also  found that the right rear corner of the base casting wasn't touching the  ways when the other three corners were. A bit of work with a stone and a  diamond file got it sitting flat. Afterward I was able to align the  tailstock to within about five ten-thousandths.

The tailstock quill lock lever "parks" when tightened in a position that  interferes with the tailstock lockdown lever. I added a flat washer  under the quill lock lever's hub to change its position.

The cross slide was loose. I disassembled it; deburred the gib;  lubricated the lead screw, gib, and ways; reassembled; and adjusted the  gib.

The compound was also loose, and its handle harder to turn at the  retracted end of its travel. I disassembled it; found that the bracket  was mounted off-center (too high), causing the lead screw to bind. I  reamed the bracket's mounting holes a bit at a time until the binding  stopped. I cleaned, lubricated, and reassembled the compound, and  adjusted the gib.

The two screws that lock the compound in position atop the cross slide  are located beneath the compound, which must be retracted to the end of  its lead screw in order to expose them fully, causing the lead screw to  come out of its nut. Would it have hurt to make the lead screw an inch  longer?

The manual states that the two end bushings for the power feed lead  screw have oilers. They do not have oilers, or even oil holes; the  right-hand bushing was not lubricated, and the left-hand bushing had  some white lithium grease in it. I oiled them up well, and will see  about drilling some oil holes later on.

Why is the power feed selector lever on the back of the headstock instead of the front?

The tooling package I bought along with the lathe included a  quick-change tool post and tool holders made my A2Z CNC; these had their  own problems:

The quick-change tool post is nice, but the mounting bushing is made  from aluminum. It's made from a SOFT aluminum that's already beginning  to mushroom. I'll be making a mild steel replacement (the whole shebang  is aluminum except for the bolt, but this is a high-stress part and  should be more durable).

The tool holders are a very sloppy fit onto the tool post's dovetails,  making center adjustment awkward. The tool holders have knurled brass  thumb nuts for height adjustment and steel hex nuts to lock them. Very  little of the thumb nuts projects over the top of the tool post, and on  the part-off tool holder it barely touches the tool post because the  adjusting stud (a long 10-32 set screw) is further from the dovetail for  some unknown reason. I'm making much larger diameter thumb nuts, and  may convert to 1/4"-28 adjusting studs for greater rigidity if there's  enough room.

Along with the QCTP and its tool holders were some Chinese-made  indexable-insert turning tools, of which one (AR) was poorly made: its  insert location is rotated clockwise by nearly 10 degrees so that the  left face of the insert has its heel further to the left than the point.  I'm compensating by turning the tool post for the time being, but will  be requesting a replacement from LMS.

Okay, I think that does it for problems and complaints and confusions.  All in all I'm quite satisfied with the machine based on my expectations  and experiences with other Chinese-made machine tools, particularly the  low-end torque available from the 500 Watt brushless DC motor. I still  plan on buying a four-inch, four-independent-jaw chuck, and eventually  an ER-32 collet system, but I can do what I want with what I have. Well,  almost: I still need some more tooling, mainly single-point threading  bits.

I won't be turning any more wood on this machine until I have a dust  collection system set up, but I played with turning a couple of blanks I  was sent by Snyiper (thanks again!), turning between centers (I turned a  small dead center from some scrap steel rod in the three-jaw chuck and  left it there while I was playing), and made lots of sawdust with the  chipbreaking carbide inserts. I cobbled together a rough Oland tool  using my E ("neutral") insert tool holder and found a piece of stainless  steel angle (salvaged from an old flatbed scanner) that would clamp  onto the compound for a tool rest. This told me that I would be better  off with either a round carbide insert tool, or a high-speed steel bit  ground with a radius: the 1/64" radius on my inserts is just too small.

I need a LOT more practice, but will wait for some better freehand  turning tools. In the meantime it will be metals and plastics only. When  I decide to do wood again, I'll pull the entire carriage off the  machine and make a tool rest to clamp onto the ways; that will keep the  sawdust out of the slides and gibs. 

Addendum:

Planning ahead a bit, I thought about obtaining a spare drive belt and  possibly some spare spindle bearings. The bearings are pretty  straightforward as the listed 80206 is a common 6206-2Z bearing  available from many sources. The belt has no number listed in the parts  table, but is stamped "1.5X100" which didn't get me anywhere with  interchanges. As it turns out it's a JIS metric specification of "module  1.5 X 100 teeth" which is more commonly applied to gears. No luck so  far finding an aftermarket equivalent, so if I want a spare I'll need to  order it from LMS.

In the process of getting TO the belt, I found that the two socket-head  cap screws that hold the mount for the power feed selector, tumbler  gears, etc. were loose; I'll be spending some time with the entire  geartrain very soon.

Addendum: 

It's amazing how much quieter the power feed geartrain is with just a wee bit of lithium grease on all the gears.


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## Rfturner (Dec 2, 2010)

welcome, congrats and your are now trapped in a deep money vortex much like a whirlpool. 

It also looks like we have another Skippy in the making. (see Skiprat)


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## ctubbs (Dec 2, 2010)

Golly Gee Whiz Mike, why didn't you just buy some steel and build your own from scratch?  I would have given up way back and hauled the whole thing back to the store.  You must have the patients of a saint.
Charles


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## Chthulhu (Dec 2, 2010)

ctubbs said:


> Golly Gee Whiz Mike, why didn't you just buy some steel and build your own from scratch?  I would have given up way back and hauled the whole thing back to the store.  You must have the patients of a saint.
> Charles



Well, as I mentioned, I have some experience with Chinese machinery, and actually expected more problems than I've found. I had to repeatedly deal with an SMTW (Shanghai Machine Tool Works) OD/ID grinder that would eat the bearings in its ID spindle about once a month. The bearing set ran a couple hundred dollars, and I swear the thing was *designed* to fail. The drawings that came with it were appalling, and eventually I was able to convince my supervisor to let me rework the thing so that the bearings *would* live longer.

The grinder also had a random mix of US, British, and JIS metric threads, and *all* the set screws (there were many) were slotted, apparently with a hack saw.

This little machine is pretty good in comparison.


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## Chthulhu (Dec 4, 2010)

Duh: the two tapped holes with set screws in them on the spindle side of  the carriage are for mounting an optional follower rest.


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