Thoughts on choosing workshop equipment

[Ruaidhri]

Looking at the number of times we have people asking about lathes, equipment etc - are we up for having a thread/s where we can collect a ton of input which I can then pin at the top of the forum?

 

Just a thought

 

Regards,

R

BTW - could probably be expanded at some stage to cover techniques, ancilliary equipt. etc

[Clydesdave]

Within the applications of Pen Turning there are two general types of lathes to consider; Woodworking Lathes and Metal Lathes. In elucidating the differences I hope to help the pen turner in search of equipment decide which of the two machines would best suit thier intent and philosophies.

 

Woodworking Lathes:

 

It might seem an obvious choice that a woodworking lathe would be required in pen turning, if the craftsman intends to fabricate pen bodies from wood, and under certain guildlines this would be a fine choice. Woodworking lathes are simple machines, consisting of a spindle, bed, tool rest, and tailstock.

 

As with either of these types of lathe, the spindle is the component that turns and by some means of holding the workpiece causes it to turn. In woodworking, the SFM (surface feet per minute) is usually quite high to obtain a smoother finish on the work. Keep in mind, as the diameter of the part being turned becomes smaller, the rpm (revolutions per minute) must increase to maintain the SFM. For this reason, woodworking lathes usually turn at much higher rpm(s) than metal working machines. Depending on the grain structure, hardness and diameter of the workpiece it is desirable to vary the SFM of the workpiece within a general range. Not all woodworking lathes have this capability.

 

The bed of a lathe is the "framework" of the machine on which the headstock (spindle), toolrest and tailstock are joined. Rigidity of this component is perhaps the most important feature to look for. In short, the more it weighs, the better it is. In woodworking lathes there is not much of a precision component here.

 

The tool rest on a woodworking lathe is a rail on which the operator references the gouge (cutter, chisle) they are going to touch to the rotating workpiece. Rigidity must be balanced with adjustability in this feature. Although it will not be necessary to adjust the tool rest while a part is turning, it will be adjusted often. Here, the functionality will be found in how comfortably the adjustment can be made, how versitle it can be and again, how rigid it is after the adjustment. Look for lathes that have a larger surface area where the tool rest is connected to the bed. In general, the more surface area the tool rest clamps onto, the more rigid it will be. The surface finish of this area (how smooth it is) is also a consideration; a rough surface does not contact, and thus offers less holding friction, with the tool rest.

 

The tailstock is perhaps the most important part of a woodworking lathe and will serve two purposes, making it a more complex component. It will be used as a drill and a center and must serve both purposes well. It must fit well on the bed of the lathe. In will have to slide in and out with relation to the spindle, over a great range, while maintaining concentricity and alignment with the center axis of the machine. Again, the adjustment needs to be done with comfort and ease while at the same time achieving good rigidity when clamped in place. Look for precision in the fit between the tailstock and lathe bed. It is helpful to have a wider contact area in the lathe bed under the tailstock to gain rigidity. The tailstock will be used as a drill by adjusting it close to the end of the workpiece and (fitted with a chuck and drill) extending the quill while the part is turned. Make sure the quill will extend far enough to drill the depth of holes you will require. It is generally not a good idea to slide the tailstock back and forth in lieu of extending the quill. The tailstock must be such that the center of the axis running through the tailstock is concentric with the center of the axis running through the spindle AND these two axis must be absolutely colinear. This may seem like a silly point to make, but if one is looking at a used machine, the tailstock may not be matched to the machine. Some tailstocks are adjustable to some degree for precision.

 

Woodworking machines are essentially a motor to turn a workpiece (very fast) and that's about it. The cutter is held by the operator. There are fewer guides, less precision and thus less constrictions. These machines are preferred to cut freeform shapes, curves and tapers in response to the artist's eye. These machines lend themselves to being more creative along these lines, and with practice can certainly be accurate enough to turn diameters to match glue surfaces such as those of kits where any threaded portion is supplied. The mechanics of the machine are designed to cut wood and that is some advantage over metal working lathes when woodworking is the intent.

 

Metal Working Lathes:

 

The intention of a metal working lathe is much the same as a woodworking lathe; a spindle turns the workpiece, there is a bed, a tool rest of sorts and a tailstock. From this point, it would be easier to write about the differences in the two types of lathes, and indeed difficult not to.

 

The spindle on a metal working lathe usually turns at slower RPMs than woodworking machines. This is due to a few factors, the least of which is that metal requires slower SFMs than wood. Due to the high torque requirements of machining metal, the speed variations in a metal lathe are obtained through a transmission, rather than a variable speed motor, this is another reason that they limited to lower RPM. Yet another reason is that metal working lathes usually have a second transmission that drives other components having to do with feeds or threading synchronization of the cutter. In general, metal working lathes do not turn fast enough to give as smooth a finish on wood as woodworking lathes. Of course, this can be overcome with time and sandpaper, but that might serve as the first limitation to observe.

 

Metal working lathes are very different from woodworking lathes. A metal working lathe has a carriage that traverses the length of the machine on "ways" which are part of the bed. The carriage often has feed mechanisms within that are driven by driveshafts running the length of the machine alongside of and below the ways. These drive mechanics and the handles that allow the operator to manually move the carriage are housed in what is known as the "apron" which travels with the carriage. The carriage only travels along and parallel to the "Z" axis of the machine, that is to and from the spindle, between the spindle and the tailstock. On top of the carriage is another pair of ways, set perpendicular to the ways of the carriage, on which the "crosslide" travels perpendicular to the "Z" axis. On top of all this, the cutter is held rigidly in place (as opposed to the free and hand held gouge of a woodworking lathe). Metal working lathes are designed to deliver much more torque with much more rigidity than woodworking lathes. The carriage and crosslide, in perpendicularity, are the only axis of cutting allowed to the user and in general can only be operated one at a time. (Computer Numerical Controlled "CNC" machines are a notable difference to this.) The rigidity and mechanics of all this require a wider distance between the ways, and much more material comprising the bed. Metal working lathes weigh much, much more than a comparable woodworking lathe. Look for the greater distance between the ways for rigidity and massive bearings used in the spindle.

 

The two inflexible axis of a metal working lathe, being driven one at a time, practically eliminantes the free form cutting that the hand held tooling of a woodworking lathe allows. The slower spindle speeds will not give as nice a finish on wood either, so one might wonder why anyone would invest in a metal working lathe. The biggest advantage of a metal working lathe is precision and that (if it has the capability) they can machine threads and machine metal. Be aware, these are two different machines. Metal lathes will do things a woodworking lathe will not, but they have huge limitations of artistic expression. Woodworking lathes allow creativity, but will not machine threads or metals. The user needs to keep the differences in mind, either machine is a poor substitue for the other. One a final note; metal working machines are not designed to deal with sawdust. The ways of a metal working machine are precise and require constant oiling. Not only will the oil get on the workpiece (not good for wood) but it mixes with the sawdust and makes a non-lubricating paste beneath the ways and carriage, reducing the accuracy and shortening the life of the machine.

 

These are the basics of Metal Working and Woodworking lathes. Much more could be written on the topic, but with the intent of educating the beginning user, in search of machinery, this may serve as a good starting point. The author wishes you the best success and leaves you with this advice:

 

Measure a thousand times, and cut but once.

 

 

 

[richardandtracy]

Size of Lathe

 

When deciding what size of lathe to purchase a number of factors have to be considered:

1. 1) Lathes are big and heavy - particularly metal working ones. So check on the space AND access. There is no point in trying to get a lathe that requires 4 people to carry it up a steep & narrow staircase. A 20" between centres metalworking lathe will require 4 people to move it.

2) What size is the work you are going to do? Most lathes give a maximum swing (ie the largest diameter that it can cope with) and distance between centres. If you are only going to turn pens then you could just get away with a 3" (75mm) swing and 12" (300mm) between centres (occasionally known as a watchmaker's lathe). This size will allow you to turn a cap and barrel on a manderel & have some tooling too. This size is the absolute minimum. To give more versatility, a larger lathe would be better. If you have a metalworking lathe, the saddle eats into the maximum diameter that can be turned, so if you want to turn something 3" (75mm) diameter on a metalworking lathe, you will need a minimum swing of at least 6" (150mm), and more would be better.

3) Turning is addictive. You will want to do more, bigger & more complex turnings than you first expect. It's probably cheaper in the long run to get the biggest lathe you can afford.

4) As a corollary to 3), don't expect to turn a 2mm diameter, 15mm long pin with a 36" (900mm) swing/ 10ft (3m) bed lathe. The precision may be there with a metal lathe, but a smaller one would be more appropriate to the job. For example: the chuck on that huge lathe probably wouldn't be able to grip anything smaller than 1/2" (12mm).

 

Metal or Woodworking Lathe?

Metal working lathes are bigger, stronger, stiffer, heavier & more expensive for a given size of work. They are also more precise, versatile and can usually be used for threads.

 

Woodworking lathes, with hand tools, are much better for graceful curves. The precision and strength of a metal lathe makes free form shapes more difficult (note: NOT impossible).

 

If you are likely to want to make your own specialist tooling, a metalworking lathe is necessary, and - in the extreme - a woodworking lathe can be made with a metalworking lathe, not vice versa.

 

 

To Mill or Not to Mill

A number of smaller metalworking lathes currently have options to have a combined mill and lathe, and the price seems to favour getting one of these rather than two separate machines.

In straight pen making you don't need to mill anything, so the milling head is un-necessary.

If making tooling you may need to mill. I can speak from my own experience here and say that the milling head on a combined machine is not really stiff enough, and you end up smashing cutters as the milling head bounces around. So, get a separate mill if you can afford it. Failing that, get a combi lathe/mill and a shaper, which can be bought second hand for a comparitive song (well, much cheaper than a mill) and do almost the same work. The milling the shaper can't do, can be done on the mill head.

 

Where to get a Lathe?

I can only speak for metalworking lathes here, as I got one rather than going for a woodworking lathe.

You need to make a decision between new & second hand. Second hand is cheaper, but the lathe will be worn to an unknown extent and may not be set up correctly. If you have experience, go second hand, otherwise go for new (because then you won't be wondering if it's the lathe at fault when something goes wrong - you'll know it's your fault).

 

For new lathes or nearly new second hand:

European/US made lathes (Myford ML7, South Bend, Proxon etc) are good precision lathes, and you won't go wrong with them. They are also exceedingly expensive compared to the Chinese imports. The extra precision from having the European/US lathes may be your thing, but it isn't mine. I can get a precision down to 0.005mm (2 ten thousandths of an inch) with my chinese import lathe. That is adequate for my needs. The import lathes will not last as long in a production workshop, but I don't have a production workshop. An import lathe will do a lifetime for a hobbiest.

 

Sources of lathes (mostly Chinese Imports):-

UK: http://www.lathes.co.uk/ Clarke, MachineMart ( http://www.machinemart.co.uk/ ) and Warco ( http://www.warco.co.uk/ )

US: Grizzly Harbor Freight

 

I'd be tempted to avoid E-Bay for something as expensive and sensitive as a lathe.

 

My lathe is a Warco WMT300/1 ( http://www.warco.co.uk/shop.asp?catid=29&ProdId=133 ) and I have absolutely no complaints with it - apart from the milling head being too flexible. There are some things that I would class a 'Would be nice, but can live without', as listed below:-

1. 1) Half nut on the saddle to allow rapid movement up & down the lathe bed.

2) Re-settable zero on the feed dials (not having this is a nuisance, actually).

3) Powered lateral feed.

4) Variable Speed.

 

Regards

 

Richard.

 

[richardandtracy]

Other Workshop Tools

Good tools to have in the workshop in addition to a lathe are (in order of decreasing importance in my view):

1. 1) Drills - as wide a range as you can get.

2) Drill Press (can use a metal lathe as a drill press in the extreme, or an electric drill in a drill stand)

3) Bench Grinder

4) Punches of various sizes (can make on a metal lathe from odds & ends of steel)

5) Knock out block - make with drills & drill press.

6) Heat source (hot air blower/paint stripper)

7) Section pliers (water pump pliers can be adapted with gas hose)

8) Small hammer

9) Supply of HSS tool steel to make special tools with.

10) Slip stone

11) Micromesh polishing sticks

You will also need a vice. Or more than one. A 4" jaw vice is good, but for many pen related work a smaller 2" vice will do. Make sure that you get/make soft jaws (aluminium/plastic) for the vice, as hardened steel diamond pattern jaws leave diamond pattern shapes in whatever they clamp.

 

And the final tool you'll need is a 14lb sledge hammer for those stubborn little jobs that just won't do what they're told. The sledge will make you feel much, much better about life. It won't help the pen at all, but you will feel better about it.

 

The workshop tools listed above will enable you to do most jobs around the house too - just don't let on about it, otherwise you'll never have time to make pens.

 

Regards

 

Richard.

Edited November 5, 2008 by richardandtracy

[effrafax]

This is most excellent, as I've been thinking about pen turning for a while. But for those of us who didn't do any metalwork at school (not an option where I went), and only basic woodwork, perhaps a glossary of terms would also be useful. For instance, what is the difference between turning and milling? What is a mandrel?

 

Yes, I am that ignorant of these things, but I suspect I'm not alone ...

 

I hope I'm not alone!

[Beechwood]

This is most excellent, as I've been thinking about pen turning for a while. But for those of us who didn't do any metalwork at school (not an option where I went), and only basic woodwork, perhaps a glossary of terms would also be useful. For instance, what is the difference between turning and milling? What is a mandrel?

 

Yes, I am that ignorant of these things, but I suspect I'm not alone ...

 

I hope I'm not alone!

 

 

You are not alone. the only things I turn are pancakes and over.

[richardandtracy]

A little Glossary of terms:

 

3-Jaw Chuck. A chuck, usually on a lathe, designed to centre the work/tool along the axis of the chuck as it's tightened. There are three 'jaws' which grip the work. This type of chuck has problems with non-circular/hexagonal work holding.

4-Jaw Chuck. A chuck that can cope with irregular shapes as each of the 4 work holding jaws is moved independantly. It's more fiddly to use than a 3-Jaw chuck, but more flexible in the range of work it can hold. It can also be used for eccentric turning.

Blue Stone. Normal grinding wheel on a bench grinder. Only grind steel with these wheels. Aluminium and brass will clog the pores in the stone and may cause it to glaze or (in the extreme) explode.

Bore. Make an accurate size hole. Usually with a lathe along the axis of spin.

Boring Tool. A tool that can usually be adjusted in diameter to produce an accurately sized hole. Usually used in a lathe, but can be put in a milling head. Boring tools are usually single point cutters.

Brazed Tip. HSS tools wear fairly fast. Tungsten Carbide can be brazed to a tool made from a cheaper type of steel to make the end harder so that it will last longer. The cutting is done by the Tungsten Carbide, but it's brittle and can chip badly. The WC tips can be re-sharpened with a green stone. They must not be used on a blue stone.

Brazing. Like soldering, only brass is used as the 'glue'. The work must get up to at least 1100C for brazing to be successful.

Carbon Steel. A high carbon content steel (1.5-2% C) that can be heat treated to make it stronger and harder. This is done by heating until it's red hot and no-longer magnetic, then quenching in water to freeze the grain in an unusual crystal form (Martensite or Bainite). This can be very brittle, so it is tempered by heating it up to a lower temperature and quenched again. The tempering allows the creation of more shock resisting crystal patterns in the steel, which are a bit softer & weaker, so hardness and strength are traded for shock resistance. The tempering temperature is indicated by oxide colours on the surface of the steel as it heats up - eg 'Temper to light straw' for hard cutters, or 'Temper to dark blue' for hammer heads - this is the subject of numerous books.

Carbide Inserts. HSS lathe tools are one piece of steel. If an indexible insert is used, a pre shaped piece of Tungsten Carbide is used as the tool tip and screwed to a toolholder. The advantage of this is that the insert is cheap, ready shaped and needs no operator skill to get the correct cutting shape. When one point is damaged, the insert is rotated to present another cutting point. Inserts are hard, long lived and can run at high temps. Disadvantages are that they can chip, cannot be re-sharpened and only come in a limited range of shapes. Available for lathe tools and milling cutters.

CNC. Computer Numerical Control of a machine tool. This means that the machine tool can be programmed by a computer to follow a predetermined cutter path.

Collet Chuck. A method of holding work concentric to the axis of a lathe.The collet is a a tapered piece of metal with a number of slits in it. The centre of the collet is drilled out, and the outside has a shallow taper and fits into a tapered socket. The collet is clamped into the chuck and squeezed into the chuck to deform the collet onto the work. This is much more repeatable than a 3-Jaw chuck.

Compound Slide Travel See Tool Slide Travel.

Cross Slide Travel This is the distance the lathe saddle can move perpendicular to the lathe axis.

Cutter. The tool that actually does the metal cutting on a piece of work. Usually refers to a milling cutter. They may be single point cutters (like a lathe tool) or multi point cutters (such as twist drills or end mills).

Dead Center A dead centre is a double ended cone. One end will have a standard taper to go into the tailstock (or headstock) and the other end has a cone with a 60degree included angle. It is most commonly used to support the end of long, thin work. A dead centre needs to be lubricated as there is sliding motion between the rotating work and the unmoving dead centre.

Distance Between Centers The maximum distance between the points of a lathe centre put in the headstock and lathe centre put in the tailstock. This is a measure of the longest item that can be turned in the lathe. It should be noted that as the maximum is approached it becomes more difficult to turn the tailstock end of the work.

Dividing. Rotating a workpiece through a known angle with the aid of discs with holes drilled in them at known pitches around the circumference of a circle. For instance there may be 36 holes drilled so that the work may be rotated in 10 degree steps.

Drilling. The act of making a hole. Usually with a twist drill. Twist drills can wander and vibrate making larger, non straight, not completely circular holes. If you need an accurate hole, bore it.

Drill Press. A drill that has an extending quill to alow for the vertical movement of the drill chuck without moving the drill body or the work.

Drill Rod. US designation for Carbon Steel with high enough carbon content to be hardened & tempered by the user into cutting tools.

Eccentric Turning. Making a circular section that is not on the normal centreline of the work. Steam engine valve timing cams are usually turned eccentrically.

End Mills. Similar to twist drills in that they have helical flutes, however they are able to cut on both the downward movement and any lateral movement of the cutter head. Commonly of small diameter (up to 25mm) with 2-4 flutes.

Face Mill. A milling cutter designed to cut a large area to make a flat surface.

Green Stone. Green coloured grinding wheel on a bench grinder. For very hard materials, so only grind hardened steel or Tungsten Carbide with these wheels. Mild steel, aluminium and brass will clog the pores in the stone and may cause it to glaze or (in the extreme) explode.

Headstock. The left hand end of a lathe, where the chuck grips the work. This is the stiff end of the lathe, and is the preferred area to work for maximum accuracy.

HSS. High Speed Steel. Tool Steel Used for tools where the wear or temperature of the cut are too extreme for Carbon Steels tools. Holds its temper and hardness almost to red heat.

Indexible Inserts. See Carbide Inserts.

Jacobs Chuck. The usual type of key operated chuck found on a drill. It does not often get the drill bit completely co-axial with the axis of rotation. Repeatability of positioning is relatively poor too.

Lathe. A machine tool that causes the work to turn about an axis and a comparatively stationary tool is applied to it to cause a cut in the work.

Live Center Like a Dead Centre, only the 60 degree cone is mounted on bearings so it can rotate with the work. Costs more than a dead centre and can be more flexible (dependant on quality) so the depth of cut may have to be reduced. Due to the extra size, it may be more difficult to face off the tailstock end of the work.

Longitudinal Travel This is the distance the lathe saddle can move up and down the axis of the lathe.

Machine Tool. A powered machine (usually electrically powered) intended to modify an item of Work.

Mandrel. A piece of tooling that holds a piece of work concentrically along a particular axis. This may be because the work is fragile, or is more conveniently held using extra tooling.

Mill. A machine tool that spins a cutter, usually a multi tooth cutter, to modify a stationary piece of work. The cutter can usually be fed up/down, left/right and front/back. Mills come in two variants, horizontal or vertical mills. Horizontal mills tend to be old fashioned, heavy duty machines.

Quill. Extending tool holder that may be found on a Drill Press or Vertical Mill. The outside of the quill does not rotate, but the rotational drive in the middle of the quill does.

Quill Travel The distance the Quill feeds into the work.

Rotary Table. A workholding device that allows the work to be accurately rotated through a known angle.

Shaper. An old fashioned machine tool that uses a reciprocating arm and a lathe tool to make flat surfaces. Similar in effect to a mill, but uses an entirely different method of working. Very slow, and mostly obsolete.

Shell Mills. Cutters for horizontal milling machines. Usually of large diameter with many teeth.

Silver Steel. UK designation for Drill Rod. Silver Steel is not as easily machined as Drill Rod.

Sledge Hammer. Workshop stress relieving toy. To be used only when workshop staff are getting seriously frustrated.

Soldering. Joining two metals with a metallic 'glue' that is melted into place. An alloy of tin and lead is usually used as the filler metal. The work must get up to at least 350C to for good soldering to occur. An acidic flux is used to etch off any oxide created as the work heats up. Silver Soldering is similar, with a silver alloy being used as the 'glue', in this case the temperature needs to get to to 750C or more. Silver Solder is stronger than Tin/Lead, but weaker and easier to do than brazing. Special solders and fluxes are needed for Aluminium due to its propensity to create an oxide layer.

Spindle Bore This is the diameter of the hole down the headstock of the lathe. If you have a long length of bar and don't want to waste any, you will turn the end of the bar and create your finished item on the end of the bar before parting it off. However, the length of the bar may well be longer than the maximum length of the lathe, so.. if the bar is smaller diameter than the spindle bore you can slide the excess length up the bore in the spindle and work close to the headstock.

Spindle Taper The spindle usually has a taper at the chuck side of the spindle bore. This allows you to get collets and put them into the spindle to centralize the work easily. There are several standard sizes, Morse Tapers are the usual type of taper. The Morse Tapers are given numbers from 0 to 7, MT1 is the smallest common size and is seen on quite a few woodworking lathes. MT2 and MT3 are the sizes most commonly seen on home metalworking machines. The biggest size, MT7, has a 3.27" diameter socket - a truly industrial size. The bigger the size, the more expensive are the bits that fit in the taper. MT2 & MT3 are usually pretty similar in price.

Steady Rest A piece of equipment that can be put on a lathe bed to support the centre of a long, slender item that's being turned. It reduces the flex on the work and pemits more accurate turning. Without a steady rest the work is significantly likely to turn a taper. On work that is too slender it can prevent disasterous whipping of the work under cutting loads which may (in the extreme) throw the work out of the lathe. You probably need a steady or travelling rest if the length to diameter ratio exceeds 40:1 with steel or 30:1 with aluminium. The cutting forces with wood are much lower, so, depending on the way it's cut, you do not necessarily need one.

Swing Over Bed The distance between the centreline of the lathe and the bed of the lathe. This limits the maximum diameter of the blank before it is turned. There are two usages of swing over bed. The North American usage specifies the maximum diameter of work than can go on the lathe, and the rest of the English speaking world which specifies the maximum radius that can be turned. Confusingly, the UK is currently using both usages as the North American designation gives lathes with more impressive statistics - so be certain which one your lathe supplier is using, else you may get a shock after paying heaps of money.

Swing Over Gap Some lathes have a relatively short gap in the lathe bed so extra large diameter items can be turned on the headstock. The gap usually can be filled by a removeable section so that when it's replaced the saddle can run up to the headstock of the lathe. See Swing over Bed for the note on North American/Elsewhere about the dimensioning, which may be a radius or diameter.

Swing Over Saddle On a metalworking lathe the toolpost is held on a saddle which travels up and down the lathe. The saddle rests on top of the lathe bed, so it takes up space and so limits the diameter of the work to less than the Swing Over Bed. As a result the Swing Over Bed is really only applicable for short work that can be held on a faceplate and worked from the tailstock end only. If the saddle is unable to go under the work, turning the outer faces of the work is considerably more difficult. See Swing over Bed for the note on North American/Elsewhere about the dimensioning, which may be a radius or diameter.

Tailstock The end of the lathe that supports the right hand end of the work for long and/or slender work.

Tailstock Taper Like the headstock/spindle taper, but in the tailstock.

Temper. The hardness state of a metal. In steels it is created by heating to red heat, quenching and then re-heating (see Carbon Steels entry). In most other metals it's created by deliberately (or accidentally) deforming the metal by rolling, bending etc - the process is 'Work Hardening'. The 'temper' is destroyed in most non-ferrous metals by heating to red heat and air cooling or quenching. If a non-ferrous metal over-work hardened, it will crack. Nib straightening can occasionally require a nib to be partially softened (or annealed) so it won't crack before it reaches the desired shape.

Through Chuck Capacity The hole in the back of the lathe chuck on the headstock is sometimes smaller than the spindle bore, so that limits the diameter of bar that can go into the spindle bore.

Tool Slide Travel This, in UK usage, is also called the Compound Slide Travel. When cutting a taper on a lathe you can do it with one of two common ways. The first is to set the tailstock over and turn the taper as if it's a straight bar. This method is a real pain to set up. The other way is to use a compound slide, where the tool holder is set at an angle and the compound slide is used to create the taper. The compound slide travel limits the length of the taper as it's very hard to match a taper if the saddle has to be moved at the end of the compound travel.

Travelling Rest Similar to a Steady Rest, but attached to the saddle of the lathe so it remains a fixed distance from the cutting tool. It reduces the flex on the work and pemits more accurate turning. Without a rest, long slender work is significantly more likely to turn a taper. On work that is too slender, it can prevent disasterous whipping of the work under cutting loads which may (in the extreme) throw the work out of the lathe. You probably need a steady or travelling rest if the length to diameter ratio exceeds 40:1 with steel or 30:1 with aluminium. The cutting forces with wood are much lower, so, depending on the way it's cut, you do not necessarily need one.

Turn. Make a circular item on a lathe.

Twist Drill. A steel rod with two spiral flutes and a conical end. When spun on its axis and fed into work, it makes a hole.

Welding. Use a gas flame or electric arc to melt metallic work so that two separate bits will solidify as one. A compatible filler wire is used to add extra metal to build up the joint.

Work. The item being modified with a machine tool.

 

I hope this short glossary may be of use to someone.

 

Regards

 

Richard.

Edited January 20, 2009 by richardandtracy

[Ruaidhri]

Thanks gang

 

Dad's condition continues on its course and Ciara is expecting our next grandchild next week (14th) so you'll see why I may appear to have lost interest!

 

Nothing could be further from the truth.

 

Regards to all,

Ruaidhrí

[effrafax]

A little Glossary of terms:

 

...

 

I hope this short glossary may be of use to someone.

 

Regards

 

Richard.

 

That's great, thanks Richard. Much appreciated.

[Siv]

Richard (or someone else), can you please explain what these terms mean when talking about a lathe:

 

Distance Between Centers

Swing Over Bed

Swing Over Saddle

Swing Over Gap

Spindle Bore

Spindle Taper

Quill Travel

Longitudinal Travel

Cross Slide Travel

Tool Slide Travel

Through Chuck Capacity

Dead Center

Live Center

Tailstock Taper

 

I have a idea for some but they are guesses really. I would like someone who really knows to translate!

[richardandtracy]

Siv, I've amended the glossary.

 

Regards

 

Richard.

Edited January 20, 2009 by richardandtracy

[drunken spider]

What a fantastic introduction to the terminology and needs of lathework.

Thank you for your effort

[D Armstrong]

I thought I might chime in, although a bit belatedly on this thread.

 

I've been running a Taig mini-lathe for about seven years now. One of it's biggest strengths is that it has attachments for both machining metal, and for wood turning. Which also means that you can use the wood gear for metal (think aluminum and brass) and the machining bits on wood (think threads and excruciatingly exact tenons.)

 

For a look at the works, see: My linkhttp://www.leevalley.com/en/wood/page.aspx?cat=1,330&p=50260

 

That way, the whole issue of 'which are you going to do, machining or wood?' can be put to rest, all in one rig.

[sanyalsoumitra]

I use a metal lathe and use a 3 mm wide parting tool to do almost all works-all other tools that I bought are virtually left un-used!

 

I do not have the set of wood chisels I mean those large handle ones. Instead I have one set of mini wood chisels which are about 8 inches long including the handle and another still smaller set about 5 inches long including the handle. Have not used them as I do not have a tool rest.

 

I am curious , why these long handle large chisels are required at all- is it to do with leverage ?

 

I saw an advertisement about a wood tool-rest for metal lathes- wondering if it is any good investing in that ?

How should be the shape of the rest edge of the wood tool rest ? Should it be round or should it be flat ? I have found a 1 inch thick aluminum channel, almost like a straight-edge- will it work well as a tool rest ?

 

One more question- it metal lathe , the cutting edge of tool should centre with the vertical middle of the jobpiece or perhaps a slight up. In a wood tool-rest and chisel/gouge scenario, where should the cutting edge touch the jobpeiece- the vertical middle or on the top [ as if to effect a tangential cut ] ?

 

Kindly help me clear these doubts. Thanks.

Edited February 1, 2015 by sanyalsoumitra

[darrin1200]

The tool rest you saw would be a good investment. You can make your own, but I wouldn't recomend aluminum for a tool rest. A piece of "L" angled steel welded to the top if a post should work fine.

 

Which length tool you use, depends on the work that your doing. If the only thing you do is pens, then the small chisels will be fine, but you can also use the larger tools.

Yes the larger tools do provide more leverage as well as more stength, because the metal is usually thicker in the larger tools. When you are turning a large piece of wood, such as say a 6" spindle, the length and strength become very important.

 

The positioning of the cutting edge, depends on which tool you are using. The angle of the tool when approaching the wood is very different than with a metal lathe cutter.

 

I would recomend that you find a local wood turner, that could show you some basics. If thats not possible, then i would recommend a couple of "How To: " books and a few Youtube videos. There are some good tutorial videos out there. You can look look for them based on the names of the tools ie:

Gouge

Spindle gouge

Detail gouge

Bowl gouge

Skew

Scraper

Parting tool

 

These tools will be a great asset to your pen making. Once you realy start playing with these tools and seeing the free flow forms that you can add to your work, you will really enjoy them.

 

Darrin

[sanyalsoumitra]

The tool rest you saw would be a good investment. You can make your own, but I wouldn't recomend aluminum for a tool rest. A piece of "L" angled steel welded to the top if a post should work fine.

 

Which length tool you use, depends on the work that your doing. If the only thing you do is pens, then the small chisels will be fine, but you can also use the larger tools.

Yes the larger tools do provide more leverage as well as more stength, because the metal is usually thicker in the larger tools. When you are turning a large piece of wood, such as say a 6" spindle, the length and strength become very important.

 

The positioning of the cutting edge, depends on which tool you are using. The angle of the tool when approaching the wood is very different than with a metal lathe cutter.

 

I would recomend that you find a local wood turner, that could show you some basics. If thats not possible, then i would recommend a couple of "How To: " books and a few Youtube videos. There are some good tutorial videos out there. You can look look for them based on the names of the tools ie:

Gouge

Spindle gouge

Detail gouge

Bowl gouge

Skew

Scraper

Parting tool

 

These tools will be a great asset to your pen making. Once you realy start playing with these tools and seeing the free flow forms that you can add to your work, you will really enjoy them.

 

Darrin

Darrin, thanks very much for this reply, I am finding this helpful. Also , your mention of the L-shape of the tool-rest confirms that in wood lathe style turning the tool touches the job piece much above the centre-line, almost near the top and effects a shaving like cut. Thanks, this cleared a big doubt for me.

Edited February 5, 2015 by sanyalsoumitra

[darrin1200]

Where the tool contacts the wood depends on the tool and the diameter of the wood.

 

If you are turning something say 8" dia, the gouge will only be cutting a little above center. However the skew wil be closer to the top and the scraper will be at center.

 

If you are turning something small like a pen, all the tools will seem high, but in actuality the will becat "relatively" the same points as I noted above.

 

One thing to note, is that the tool tip should never be below the level of the tool rest. In other words the back end of the tool handle should always be lower than the point.

[sanyalsoumitra]

Where the tool contacts the wood depends on the tool and the diameter of the wood.

 

If you are turning something say 8" dia, the gouge will only be cutting a little above center. However the skew wil be closer to the top and the scraper will be at center.

 

If you are turning something small like a pen, all the tools will seem high, but in actuality the will becat "relatively" the same points as I noted above.

 

One thing to note, is that the tool tip should never be below the level of the tool rest. In other words the back end of the tool handle should always be lower than the point.

Thank you again , Darin- for the vivid details, I can clearly visualize now. For someone with only metal lathe experience, the wood lathe methods is a new learning. I can now confidently try some contour stuff!!

[R-Camlin]

I would like to note that, while metal lathes are not quite as "free-form" cutting capable as wood lathes, intricate designs and contours can be achieved by grinding your own form tools, as well as manually controlling the cross and compound slide wheels while manually controlling the carriage wheel or engaging the x-axis autofeed.

Edited December 4, 2018 by R-Camlin

[Jeffrey Garrett]

I use both metal and woodworking lathes in my shop. I decided it would be nice to add the versatility of freehand shaping to the metal lathe. The main issue being making that tool for the metal lathe, height adjustable as well as being able to use a variety of tools rests sizes. I can now use my woodworking tools to freehand shape on the metal lathe.

 

This is what I made .....

 

 

 

This makes the metal lathe very versatile for freehand working. I made it because the type of work I produce requires accuracy, as far as concentricity is concerned. My little Jet lathe, even using collets, could not give me the performance I needed.

 

I do have more photos and general information about how this is made, and what it is made from. Too much to post here.

 

Regards,

 

Jeff