Save me from myself (tips for beginner)

[hal9000]

Thanks Don. I've started looking through those youtube videos and they're very helpful. The tool shaping videos in particular answered a lot of the basic questions I have. I'm going to put some hours in watching those for sure.

Thanks again for all the tips everybody.

[hal9000]

I just got back from picking up the new (to me lathe). My donor buddy didn't realize the ID tag was on the back side of the lathe. It's a model 101.07383... Early Craftsman 12" with babbitt bearings if I'm not mistaken. I've got a few cheap cell phone pics I can post, but apparently I have to go open a photobucket account first....

Anything anybody can tell me that I sould look for in terms of problems, or do in terms of immediate or long term maintenance aside from oiling the bearings? Anyplace I should look for a PDF of the original manual? I don't remember if the lathes.co.uk site had manuals... Guess I'll head there in a few minutes to check.

EDIT: Here's the photos of the lathe. Sorry for the low quality shots. My real camera is dead. The motor in the corner of the first shot is a spare that came with the lathe. It also came with a full set (I think) of reversing gears for threading (err, is that what they're called?)...





Maybe not the best lathe ever, but not bad for a free lathe (I traded a jewelry/dental casting burnout kiln that was given to me. I've got another anyway).

[gfphoto]

Maybe this was mentioned...I found a Quick Change Tool Post (QCTP) to be very helpful. Like the ones here.
My tools are a hodge-podge of sizes and profiles and I had been shimming them and still not always getting the height just right and so often getting crappy results. I don't generally have all that much time so anything that wastes it is just frustrating. With a QCTP you put the tool in the holder and adjust a knurled wheel to get the height perfect and then lock it down with a lever or wrench. The angle is also easy to adjust. If you need to switch to say a parting tool and then back and have a couple of holders it's really simple and fast.
Gary

[hal9000]

yeah, I'm watching fleabay and craigslist for tooling including QCTP's. Don't want to spend a bundle on anything right now. It's kind of turning into a game to do things on the cheap for the moment.

I've built a wooden workbench on casters that the lathe will be going on. Old 2 drawer hutch/cabinet and a solid core door to create a larger counter top. Between the cabinet/door (which I got at our prop. surplus dept), casters, and enamel paint, I'm about $20 deep on the whole project so far

BTW, I've found PDF copies of the OEM Parts list, "how to run a lathe" by South Bend and "Lathe operation and machinist tables" by Atlas for free online. If anybody happens to know where I can get a copy of the actual owners instruction manual that would be cool.

[Chuck K]

Congrats on your new lathe. The best thing you can do, aside from getting a QC tool holder, is learn to grind hss bits. There's some satisfaction in watching c's and s's falling from your bit when you get it just right. You might want to check chaski....

http://www.chaski.org/homemachinist/...p?f=44&t=75969

Lots of good info on grinding chip breakers and selecting the proper grinding wheel for the job. Good Luck

[J. Randall]

I just got back from picking up the new (to me lathe). My donor buddy didn't realize the ID tag was on the back side of the lathe. It's a model 101.07383... Early Craftsman 12" with babbitt bearings if I'm not mistaken. I've got a few cheap cell phone pics I can post, but apparently I have to go open a photobucket account first....

Anything anybody can tell me that I sould look for in terms of problems, or do in terms of immediate or long term maintenance aside from oiling the bearings? Anyplace I should look for a PDF of the original manual? I don't remember if the lathes.co.uk site had manuals... Guess I'll head there in a few minutes to check.

EDIT: Here's the photos of the lathe. Sorry for the low quality shots. My real camera is dead. The motor in the corner of the first shot is a spare that came with the lathe. It also came with a full set (I think) of reversing gears for threading (err, is that what they're called?)...





Maybe not the best lathe ever, but not bad for a free lathe (I traded a jewelry/dental casting burnout kiln that was given to me. I've got another anyway).

Hal, not a bad lathe to get your feet wet on, I started out on an old 10" Atlas with babbit bearings, if you like it you will probably start wanting to upgrade in a yr. or two. Your lathe has a backgear built in, but no quick change gearbox, so the set of gears you are referring to are probably the change gears.
James

[Don Young]

That Atlas manual you mentioned seems to be what came with all Atlas lathes for instruction. I think Sears made minor changes and included it with with their Atlas made lathes. So I don't think you will find anything that gives much more specific information on your lathe.

Congratulations, that lathe looks like it would give you long and faithful service! Just recognize that it is a workshop lathe, not intended for high volume heavy duty production work.

[hal9000]

I'm not planning on doing more than make items to support my other hobbies so low volume is fine with me.

You're right that the spare gears are change gears. I couldn't remember while I was writing that last post what they were for...

So after checking the lathe over, I've noticed that two of the smaller gears in the gearbox are worn to points, but all of the larger gears are still nice and square. I'm assuming this is not unusual. Are replacement gears available anywhere? Also, there's some play (maybe 1/64" to 1/32" up and down play) in the axle that carries the large v-belt pulley (intermediate pulley? It's the one between the motor and the gearbox). There's no adjustment so I think the only fix would be to install a set of bushings or a larger axle. I just don't know if it's important enough to address at this time.

Other than that everything looks good. The babbitt bearings are nice and tight, The compound and tailstock seem to be in good shape, though are definitely in need of cleaning and adjustment, and the stays look pretty good.

Here's a photo of it mounted to the bench. I still need to wire a decent on/off switch, but it's basically done. Now I just need to hunt down some tooling. Probably most of it will be off ebay since I'm in a small town and the local pool of resources is very small.

[mickeyf]

I've heard that the craftsman lathes aren't super rigid and you have to keep the tool relatively close in to the tool holder

With the best lathe in the world it's still best practice to keep the tool stick-out as short as possible.

As mentioned, making sure the tool is exactly the correct height can make all the difference between frustration and satisfaction. One simple way to set the height is to lightly pinch a piece of shim stock or (carefully!) your 6" rule between the tool and the workpiece. If the shim is dead vertical you are on center, if the top is leaning towards you, the tool is too low; if away from you it's too high.

[hal9000]

I wouldn't have thought of that trick! Thanks. I'm sure I'd have ended up measuring tool height from the stays for a long time.