[RIKA]

Okay, a question with no jokes attached. How did you get your machinist training? From books, from working with a machinist, trade school or how.

Second question. Where did you get your used lathe from and how much did you pay? Used equipment shop, individual, estate sale?

Heres a chance to offer useful information. Thanks.

RIKA

 

[andy]

Worked in a factory for 6 years, but learned more from a book and HAVING a 6"Atlas lathe in a couple of weeks. There are yahoo talk groups about ANYTHING, which can help you.

 

[RIKA]

Thank you. Can you tell where you picked up the lathe so cheaply.

RIKA

 

[andy]

I paid too much, actually, considering all the parts and accessories that were missing, didn't work right, etc. Just hang a post about wanting one at such talk groups, you'll get replies. Get a 12", with a transmission setup, for gear changes, and PAY the extra $300,you won't regret it. The 6" is too short for working on rifle barrels. One of the modern Grizzly lathes, bought on time-payments, is probably a better deal, for somebody who doesn't know how to repair a lathe, or who doesn't want to waste months LEARNING how to do so, running down the parts, etc.

 

[RIKA]

Again I thank you. Do you know that if you would treat others as you have treated me just now, you would be treated with respect in return.

RIKA

 

[andy]

I've tried it, and no, it's not true of pos's like garnad, djetace, who is just another name for Deaf Smith, Stillwater, and a dozen other scumbags.

 

[Garand]

Gunkid, look in the mirror and you'll see your worst enemy!

 

[41mag]

Raider,it might not hurt to contact your local high school metal shop teacher or vocational tech college.There are some lathes out there just sitting in schools that have not a thing wrong with them other than age.CNC has replaced manual action in a lot of the schools.You might find a good one that way & not have to pay to ship it in.

 

[Rich Z]

Shipping and handling can be a concern for any large piece of machinery. I have a moderate sized mill/drill that I had to pay a moving company to bring if from the loading dock of the shipping company and put it into my work room. They were ill prepared for the job, and this was only an 800 pound unit. But I had already paid for the thing and there was no backing out now.

If you do decide to get one, make sure you can find someone who knows how to handle it and get it to where you want it.

BTW, I got my mill/drill from an outfit called LatheMaster. The guy gave me a real good price on a unit and has been a lot of help with after the sale assistance. But I don't think he has any of the bigger machinery. Enco has been a good source of machine tooling as well as MSC. Bear in mind that after you get the lathe, unless you stumble on a real deal with tooling in a package deal, you could wind up spending as much on tooling as you did for the lathe itself.

 

[andy]

The 6" Atlas is pretty handy, one strong man can easily pick it up and walk up a set of stairs with it. It should really, however, be mounted on a 3/4" thick sheet of steel or aluminum. If the latter, the same man can still carry it by itself, the motor has to be dismounted tho. The Atlas uses belts and a "counter shaft" setup, that while a bit of a PITA, it's also a saftey factor for novice operators. You can screw up quite a bit, the belt will "slip" and save your face, hand, or the workpc, that you got "caught", due to your clothing, hair, jewelry, too heavy a "cut", etc.

 

[Rich Z]

I've got one of those little Emco Compact 5 lathes...

You can usually find these on Ebay.

Pretty handy, but I don't really do anything large with it. Wouldn't mind getting a larger lathe sometime in the future, but first I need a bigger work room. Or else clean up my present work room and throw out most of the junk that has accumulated in there.

 

[andy]

BEWARE, if you want to work on pcs more than 10" or so long, you can't get them between the centers, or in the steady rest, and still use the toolpost to machine them, on many of the little Asian lathes.

 

[Garand]

So gunkid, why don't you work as a machinest now?

 

[Rich Z]

BEWARE, if you want to work on pcs more than 10" or so long, you can't get them between the centers, or in the steady rest, and still use the toolpost to machine them, on many of the little Asian lathes.

Actually the Emco is made in Europe, but yes, this is true for all small lathes. Better to over spec what you buy, rather than under spec it.

 

[andy]

6" Sears-craftsman Atlas lathe, you can work on lengths up to 14" or so, and there is a "bed extention" that lets you work on pcs up to 20" in length. TAke the 12" Atlas off of its stand, and 2 good men can carry it up a stairs, and repeat with the stand. It offers a transmission for changing gears. the 6", you have to manually swap the sprockets. The 12" usually came with Timken roller bearings, too, a FAR more durable-accurate setup than the bronze bearings of the 6" Atlas. A modern small lathe is better in some ways, inferior in others. A used one, tho, with all the extra tooling, to include steady rest, faceplate, tail dogs, 4 jaw chuck, follower rest, etc, for $500 or so, is a great buy, IF it offers enough length for what you want to do with it.

 

[Garand]

So why don't you work as a machinest?