Thread: Lathe buying advice.

Don't buy a 6m centres you'll never get around to building the shed to fit it and it's a pain to store the pieces and the setup cost to align the beds was incredible.

I actually have a mill, always wanted a lathe until I got a mill. Wouldn't have a combo machine for quids though.

I have had an older hafco 1000mm 240v belt drive job for nearly 40 years and it has proved invaluable

If I was to buy new again I would get the present 1000mm geared head equivalent which has a 500mm swing (which will cover most requirements I could ever think of) - and it will have 4 & 3 jaw chucks. 3 jaw chucks are really only intended to be used for holding an already machined item but I think most hobbyists use them for more than that. You'll need to spend time learning to set up jobs in a 4 jaw chuck.

The spindle size will be adequate for any large long item that you or I should be turning - if it won't fit we would be well advised to take it to the local tame engineer.

here 'tis K036 | AL-340A Centre Lathe Package with Tooling Accessories | machineryhouse.com.au

Tipped tools are readily available for general turning, threading etc, but I still often use tool steel sharpened specific to the job - you can buy a milling slide (which will handle small jobs) for a centre lathe.

There are heaps of introductory books available, hafco sell one that I'm told is OK - if I were you I'd go to a tech college library for a look at what is available

Like all power tools, lathes can be very dangerous items of equipment for the inexperienced and will cause very serious injury if you were to get caught on a job which was turning or if the job came loose. It would be a very big plus to do a fitter machinist or even a hobby course (I don't think NSW tafe still has them), or if that isn't available, get an old tradesman to give you a thorough run down on hopefully more than one visit because even the basics (like leaving a chuck key in the chuck) are not always obvious to a newcomer.

A capstan lathe is usually used for repetion engineering jobs and few would be 240v -

I would leave the combo mill drills alone - I know I would be disappointed in one. There are reasonable 240v mills available although those with power feeds will cost more.

If you haven't had any experience with mills .... leave them alone till you get to know what you need it for (and then you'll need to do the training on it or it too will rip your fingers off)

No apologies for being a scare-monger; seen too many serious injuries from power tools





..........however - with 3D printers becoming a reality - it won't be long before we need neither mills nor lathes ... http://www.3d-printers.com.au/2012/0...3yr-old-woman/

A proper combo machine could be perfect... check out the screw cutting speed of this:
VIDEOS
But $5000 plus tooling and everything else...hmmm can buy a County for that money!

My first lathe was a an Emco Unimal SL which could also be used as a mill.





My current lathe is a very old and small Australian-made Argus which is similar to a Myford.

This is more what I'd be looking for. But may be well out of your price range. I too wanted a lathe for building racecar parts. Just never go around to buying one. There were some chinese lathes with simular specs at one stage for about half the price. Probably worth looking for.

https://www.machineryhouse.com.au/K036

Gary

This already posted is only single phase and I think would be ideal.

Metal Lathe HERLESS 160sk & Stand Excellent condition | eBay

Gary

That is a good basic lathe, they are well made and whats used in TAFES these days so they stand up to abuse well and more importantly you can get all the replacement parts for them.

I thought these were the best option for my needs. Not professional quality but good enough for DIY use, and quite modestly priced for the size:

New 36"X12" Geared Head Metal Lathe With Coolant Pump+Worklight+Stand Cabinet | eBay





I was after something single phase only, which this one was. Assembling it was a bit 'interesting' as it weighed over 500Kg. Needed an engine hoist to lift up the top section to put it on top of the blue stand.

Seller is reliable - I have bought many things from him (OzMeStore), and he has smaller/bigger ones of similar design. This one is at $1550-odd ATM, but would expect it to go a bit higher (+ $200-odd) before the end of the auction..

HTH
David