Re: lathe advice
Posted: Mon Jul 16, 2012 11:37 am
I think that most people will get more usage out of a lathe and drill press, than a milling machine. I have an old, (1962), Bridgeport milling machine, a Jet 14X40 lathe, and an upright drill press. Of these, the only one my dad will use is the drill press, which he thinks is awesome. I barely touch the drill press, however, because the mill sits only a few feet from it. I believe that this is because I am well trained as a machinist, and he just wants to drill a dang hole now and then.
My point here is that I think you should size up your equipment with what you want to do with it. As previously stated, if you want to work on a flywheel, you'll need a pretty big lathe. Big lathes usually cost big bucks, if only to move them. Conversely, you can do work on a flywheel with a milling machine with a rotary table as well, whereas, drilling an off center hole on a lathe is much more challenging. Yes, yes, I know that there are attachments for the lathe that will allow for it to be a used as a milling machine, but these attachments are pretty expensive and usually put you back in a position of wanting something else pretty quickly. If you are looking to learn machining, honestly, take a class. They have already paid for their machines. If you are thinking of taking up machining as a hobby, buy a mid sized, or bench lathe, (8" lathe) and a benchtop milling machine, (4" x 16" for example). If you want to take on the occasional project for others, as well as make some cool stuff for yourself, invest in bigger machines. The tooling and electrical requirements for a bigger machine are pretty high though. Auctions are your best bet here IMHO, although used machinery shops sometimes have pretty decent options and prices. There are a few ways to get around a smaller milling machine table, but very few when it comes to the swing of a lathe. Grizzly is a pretty good resource for just about any size machine you might want.
As I, (and others), mentioned earlier, tooling costs can match or exceed the price of a machine, and quickly.
If you just want something made, send a message to someone on the forums, (like me), or a friend nearby with equipment that he decided that he could make money with. Alternatively, you could take your project to a machine shop. Most are reasonably priced, and will charge you less than the cost of a good set of drill bits.
I must stress the importance of safety if you're going to get a lathe and/or a mill. They can both be lethal. Especially a lathe, IMO. This safety extends beyond safety glasses to complete awareness of all the moving parts of the machine and the material being removed form the workpiece. I would also hesitate to run any lathe bigger than a bench lathe, that didn't have a brake on it.
I'm done rambling now.
My point here is that I think you should size up your equipment with what you want to do with it. As previously stated, if you want to work on a flywheel, you'll need a pretty big lathe. Big lathes usually cost big bucks, if only to move them. Conversely, you can do work on a flywheel with a milling machine with a rotary table as well, whereas, drilling an off center hole on a lathe is much more challenging. Yes, yes, I know that there are attachments for the lathe that will allow for it to be a used as a milling machine, but these attachments are pretty expensive and usually put you back in a position of wanting something else pretty quickly. If you are looking to learn machining, honestly, take a class. They have already paid for their machines. If you are thinking of taking up machining as a hobby, buy a mid sized, or bench lathe, (8" lathe) and a benchtop milling machine, (4" x 16" for example). If you want to take on the occasional project for others, as well as make some cool stuff for yourself, invest in bigger machines. The tooling and electrical requirements for a bigger machine are pretty high though. Auctions are your best bet here IMHO, although used machinery shops sometimes have pretty decent options and prices. There are a few ways to get around a smaller milling machine table, but very few when it comes to the swing of a lathe. Grizzly is a pretty good resource for just about any size machine you might want.
As I, (and others), mentioned earlier, tooling costs can match or exceed the price of a machine, and quickly.
If you just want something made, send a message to someone on the forums, (like me), or a friend nearby with equipment that he decided that he could make money with. Alternatively, you could take your project to a machine shop. Most are reasonably priced, and will charge you less than the cost of a good set of drill bits.
I must stress the importance of safety if you're going to get a lathe and/or a mill. They can both be lethal. Especially a lathe, IMO. This safety extends beyond safety glasses to complete awareness of all the moving parts of the machine and the material being removed form the workpiece. I would also hesitate to run any lathe bigger than a bench lathe, that didn't have a brake on it.
I'm done rambling now.