Is there a Small Benchtop Metal Lathe

[theamcguy]

I got to thinking that a small bench top metal lathe maybe useful to have around. What got me thinking about this was a small metal lathe I saw in a flyer from HF a few years ago but they were never available for order. Do they exist? If so where?

 

[Rickenbackerman]

How small? Something like a unimat maybe? Or is that too small?

 

[daveroy]

start here:
http://www.mini-lathe.com/

 

[Thunderbisciut]

I have a 7x12 Cummins that I've modified a bit to get more as well as smoother travel. I put a Phase II quick change tool post on there, and it's good enough to make non precision items. The above linked site is a great place to get started tweaking them to a usable state.

 

[fomocoforrester]

Something like this maybe?.....

http://www.grizzly.com/products/9-x-19-Bench-Lathe/G4000

 

[oldtools]

http://www.harborfreight.com/7-inch-x-10-inch-precision-mini-lathe-93212.html

 

[WILD-BILL]

I have an older Atlas MKII 6" lathe. I put a QCTP on it from littlemachineshop.com and that made it a 1000% more usable.

 

[SteveL]

I have a 24" long Sherline that I use a lot. Not a big swing but will anything up to 3" dia. If I had it to do over I would get something a little bigger.

 

[Tjc]

Sorry, but does a lathe just spin wood?

 

[Murphy4570]

Sorry, but does a lathe just spin wood?

No, there are metal lathes as well. The ones being discussed in here are metal ones.

Wood lathes are generally not nearly as accurate or precise as metal ones.

 

[WILD-BILL]

Sorry, but does a lathe just spin wood?

A wood lathe would.

A metal Lathe could do both if you have the proper attachments.

 

[Shadowdog500]

Do you have a pic of the lathe you wanted?

I currently have aCummings 7"x12" mini lathe and really like it for small stuff. It is the same late as the one HF sells but the bed is a couple inches longer.

Once you see how useful a lathe is you may want bigger. Im planning to get a 10" lathe eventually.

That mini lathe website is pretty good, but you will see from that site that a few mods have to be done to these lathes to get them to work well.

Chris

 

[hofferwood]

Here's mine 7x10 HF

Now 7x14
Bed ext. from here
http://littlemachineshop.com/products/product_view.php?view=classic&ProductID=1928

4' chuck from the same place

Chuck

 

[Bobhdus]

I have a Sherline with the long bed. The I like it but it does not hold very large stock in the chuck. You can get riser blocks (or make them) to increase the swing over the bed. You really have to decide how large of a project you want to do. A large lathe takes large power and room. Small lathe has less capacity. If it's going to sit most of the time take that into consideration with price you pay, floor space and payback (with projects).

 

[PECVD2]

I had a TAIG for many years.
I would call it a micro lathe (USA made).
I made many a bushing and other parts on this little tool.
If your just begining or making small plastic or aluminum parts this would work for you.
Lots of online community support and upgrades
www.taig.com

 

[ArkTinkerer]

The HF/import ones are often called "kit" lathes. Yeah, you get all the parts but your first 4-5 projects are to fix all the loose stuff on the lathe. Professional machinists really disparage them but its sort of like having chinese wrenches or snap-on. If you need a wrench its better to have one even if its cheap ****. Similarly, depending on where you live and how much space you are willing to devote, you can often pick up some decent old iron with tooling for about the same cost as an outfitted import. Similar story with the combo lathe-mills. Lots of stuff devoted to how to improve these lathes is on the web.

 

[Beaumont67]

I have an older Atlas MKII 6" lathe. I put a QCTP on it from littlemachineshop.com and that made it a 1000% more usable.

WILD-BILL ^^^^ I have a 1940 version of your Atlas lathe.
Just would like to know, what specific Quick Change Tool Post did you order ?? (and thanks in advance)
http://littlemachineshop.com/Info/qctp.php

 

[Cedge]

Art is right where 7x12 imports are concerned. Seig, the chinese company who builds all of the small lathes you'll see, builds them on a sliding quality scale. The importers specify what they want to meet their target retail price and Sieg supplies that and no more. HF, Cummings and a lot of other retailers pay the least possible and the machines show it.

Grizzly and Micromark pay more and their machines come with a better fit and finish, along with added features. That isn't to say they're perfect right out of the box. any 7 inch lathe is, as Art said, pretty much a "kit". To get decent performance, they require tweaking such as lapping the gibs, chasing out the backlash and a lot of red grease removal. There is a huge community on line devoted to modifying and extending these little machines capability and once the machines are dialed in, they have a devoted fan base.

I started learning the black arts with the Micromark mini lathe and mini mill. Many of the early projects were devoted to improving them and increasing their accuracy. As I got more comfortable, I moved to making tooling and eventually to building small steam and IC engines. It didn't take long before the small size of these machines became a handicap, but with the limited space I had to work with, large American iron was simply not an option.

Travers Tool proved to have the option I was looking for. At the time, they were the only ones offering the Seig C4 lathe and the Super X3 mill. I dropped by their place and they let me play with these two machines. Both are bench tops, but they are a quantum leap in quality, weight and accuracy over the 7 inch machines. I've been amazed at their performance as have some of the ********* advocates of American iron.

I still have the Micromark machines for secondary work or when a project can't be torn down for a quick job. It's almost nostalgic when I have to fire them up, these days. We spent a lot of long nights together as I conquered the learning curve and they gave me all they had.

Here are a few examples of what these machines can do in determined hands. At the end of the day, it's more about the skills of operator than the machines, but good equipment sure makes it easier.



Steve

 

[Davefr]

Here are a few examples of what these machines can do in determined hands. At the end of the day, it's more about the skills of operator than the machines, but good equipment sure makes it easier.

Steve

Wow, those images are very impressive!!

 

[oldtools]

http://www.practicalmachinist.com/vb/machinery-sale-wanted/wtb-mini-micro-lathe-206766/

 

[Cedge]

Yeah... the PM guys are pretty much anti anything other than heavy American industrial iron. Not very hobbyist friendly either.

Thanks Dave. I'm still a rank novice compared to some of the real metal magicians, but I do have just as much fun.

http://www.modelenginemaker.com/index.php
http://madmodder.net/index.php
http://www.homemodelenginemachinist.com/
http://bbs.homeshopmachinist.net/forum.php

All of the above are good hobby machining communities, although HSM can be a little rough on the newbies. The other 3 are very user friendly and have quite deep knowledge bases, along with highly experienced people willing to give the new guy a helping hand.

Steve

 

[WILD-BILL]

WILD-BILL ^^^^ I have a 1940 version of your Atlas lathe.
Just would like to know, what specific Quick Change Tool Post did you order ?? (and thanks in advance)
http://littlemachineshop.com/Info/qctp.php

Actually, what I bought was the whole tooling package here as I wanted it all

http://littlemachineshop.com/products/product_view.php?ProductID=3514&category=

If all you need is the QCTP and don't need the tooling and chuck then order this....

http://littlemachineshop.com/products/product_view.php?ProductID=2486&category=-419988835

I did however make my own T slot nut as the one supplied leaves a little to be desired as far as holding strength and rigidity.

What I made is really nothing more then a piece of 1/8" thick steel that I drilled and tapped a 1/4x20 hole into and then used a piece of all thread and a nut to hold the tool post.

I did use my 4 jaw chuck and the lathe to get the hole dead center though

 

[Bobhdus]

Check out http://www.sherline.com. They have lots of cool tooling and a great how-to section and free downloads.

 

[harvey29]

Here's mine 7x10 HF

Now 7x14
Bed ext. from here
http://littlemachineshop.com/products/product_view.php?view=classic&ProductID=1928

4' chuck from the same place

Chuck

How is the quality of hf lathe

 

[Shadowdog500]

This thread is over a year old. Wonder if the OP ever bought one.

Chris

 

[Shadowdog500]

How is the quality of hf lathe

IMHO The bed is too short on the HF lathe.
I have the Cummings version which is 2 inches longer. The quality of the lathe is a little rough out of the box. Some point out it is seen as a kit to turn into a fairly inexpensive fairy accurate hobby lathe, partially because the runout in the spindle is so good for such a cheap lathe.

The other thing I like is that I can get tooling, parts, accessories, and hot rod kits so cheap for this thing and it is just a click away at the little machine shop.

My lathe has done everything I ever asked it to do, but to be quite honest you will need a bigger lathe if you plan to do big projects with it, and anything with quick hand gears would be a godsend after using this lathe.

Here is a video of mine after I bought the little machine shop tooling kit. I put a carriage lock, carriage stop, metal reverse gears, and lever lock tailstock on it since this video was made.

Chris

 

[Beachside Hank]

IMHO The bed is too short on the HF lathe.
I have the Cummings version which is 2 inches longer. The quality of the lathe is a little rough out of the box. Some point out it is seen as a kit to turn into a fairly inexpensive fairy accurate hobby lathe, partially because the runout in the spindle is so good for such a cheap lathe.

The other thing I like is that I can get tooling, parts, accessories, and hot rod kits so cheap for this thing and it is just a click away at the little machine shop.

My lathe has done everything I ever asked it to do, but to be quite honest you will need a bigger lathe if you plan to do big projects with it, and anything with quick hand gears would be a godsend after using this lathe.

Here is a video of mine after I bought the little machine shop tooling kit. I put a carriage lock, carriage stop, metal reverse gears, and lever lock tailstock on it since this video was made.

Chris

Absolutely agree 100% with that Chris. I have the Micromark 7x16 mini and went through and "detailed" it according to most of the info out there to maximize it's performance envelope. Many U.S. made tools from the past also benefited from such ministrations as very few were indeed ready to go without some user intervention and tune-up. Take a hand plane by say Stanley; to get the best it was capable of you’d first take it apart, lap the sole and possibly the sides for flatness and square. Next you’d detail the fitment areas with a file to ensure intimate contact of mating parts, then you’ spend some time polishing the iron’s backside to mirror finish, followed by honing the cutting edge to shaving sharp. Also too, when reassembling you’d reset the frog, if so equipped, to take the type of shaving thickness you’d like. Finish with a bit of paste wax and there, done- in about an hour or two depending on experience. Just for grins I took an import plane(H.F.) #33 bench plane, gave it the same treatment, and honestly cannot say it was any less as fine a tool than one of my American made Stanleys or Sargents, except that with coupon it only cost about $8.00.

All in all, if a person can look at these tools with an unbiased eye and a modicum of mechanical skill, many diamonds are in the rough just awaiting to be uncovered.

 

[Thumper68]

What do you guys think of this one?

http://www.grizzly.com/catalog/2014/Main/561

 

[Bobhdus]

Owned a Smithy 3in1 a few years back and although I love the concept, mill/ drill/ lathe combos are a pia to work work. Their always needing the work to be moved around so its hard to get a job done accurately and quickly.

 

[Bobhdus]

Sherline is USA made and affordable and the tooling is easy to get and they having tooling to do everything....

 

[Bobhdus]

Most of what I machine is within a 6"x 6"x6" area. I use the sherline stuff for Locksmithing business. Fits nicely on a van bench and works with my inverter. I bought it used with the CNC package on Craigslist.

 

[Rookie2]

unimat sl 1000

 

[sasquatch12]

Wild Bill, and 67 Beaumont i have the same A2Z holder on my 618 atlas, very happy with the quality from "Little Machine Shop".
Service was good and shipping was great.

 

[Danglerb]

Something to buy used, lots of people like them, but when its time to sell finding a local buyer makes them go cheap at least some of the time.