A crazy thought and potential project.

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Squatchhhammer

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I was looking around for machines and looking at a couple of resources for said companies of the machines, I want to try something probably incredibly costly and time consuming but I am a person that likes to tinker. I am also someone that likes big and involved projects. The idea I had was to try to make at least a bench lathe from scratch. From cast parts to machining most of the components that I can. Granted this will cost more than purchasing one from the cheap asian imports but with a better chance of higher quality. Maybe if everything goes well, I might look into making full size machines to say "yes I built my own machines to work on". I want to look at what I would need, NOT how impossible it would be. I understand this is a HUGE project to do but I would like to see the results of it.
 
Go for it! Other than some money and time, what do you have to lose?
Maybe 10 years from now, there will be a forum category for those of lucky enough to own one of the new Squatchhhammer lathes!
 
If you Google "The Gingery Lathe" you will find everything you need. David Gingery has a series of books that begins with how to build a backyard foundry, then cast the parts, and build a lathe. Many people have done it. The learning experience would be invaluable.
Search YouTube as well.
Good luck, great project!
Larry
 
I'd recommend getting your hands on the Gingery lathe book. Even if you don't plan on building one to his designs, he has a very thorough description of methods for building a machine with very minimal tools. To me, the two hardest things are going to be building a spindle that runs true, and ways that are straight. Both are doable with care, each is a project in it's own right.

last but not least, there is a very long thread over an CNCZone about "polymer concrete", otherwise known as "epoxy granite" or "mineral castings". Basically the mass of the machine is cast from an epoxy/quartz mixture, and then mechanical parts are bolted on (like linear slides instead of ways). Last time I read through, there were a couple people that had actually produced working mills, don't recall any lathes, but in practice, a lathe is simpler.
 
The Gingery lathe would be excellent, though I cannot say that from my own experience. I do have some of the other Gingery books however, and they are all excellent projects, well thought out, and well written.

I saw something quite a few years back where someone built a lathe from scrap. I do not recall how they built the bed, but the headstock and tailstock were built from truck engine pistons. They published a how to book about it. Does anyone else remember that??

I also saw something in the last couple of years where a fellow used some engine blocks to build a milling machine and created a website covering the build. I'll dig around and see if I can find it.

UPDATE: Found the milling machine, actually they call it a 'multi-machine' as it can be used as a mill or a lathe. Details about it can be found at www.opensourcemachine.org.
 
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New forum member Gadget has built a Gingery shaper & it is awesome, he has some online videos of it in motion.
 
Squatch, There is currently conversation on another forum, I'm not sure I can mention it by name but it focuses on metal casting. They have a volunteer to cast the Gingery lathe parts in cast iron, but they are looking for a volunteer to machine and finish it. I think that would meet their needs as well as yours, and give you a much more robust lathe than a standard Gingery machine. Depending on what machining capability you have or can get right now, I can recommend some things that would greatly improve the stiffness of the lathe bed, if you decide to go the Gingery route. Whatever you decide, enjoy, and I think I speak for most of the folks on here, we would love to see the progress.
 
That is something I was looking into. Also I was wondering if High carbon steel would work just as well for rigidity vs cast iron. On top of that, I am looking into what paint to use. I've seen people use Sherwin-Williams metal paint but I was also wondering what paint did the beaten metal look. I've seen some machines with it and I would like to use that style of paint.
 
Hi
Have you looked at the www.lathes.co.uk website, they appear to have details on 8 different home build lathes.
I would do a large amount of reading before i started anything.There have also been stuff in the UK model enginering mags, ME and MEW and prob EiM.

Mike
 
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