Bill M's Pm1340gt Setup

Yup, Z is the the bed/ carriage, X is the cross slide but universal/mill DRO displays are almost always labelled X, Y.
 
That is awesome on your motor Bill. Matt has done good by me and although I only had one issue with a damaged part on my mill, he sent it out the day after I contacted him and three days later it was in a FedEx package on my doorstep. Great customer service.

Mike.
 
Hey John, you mean the long scale? That is Z in lathe parlance. Your crosslide is X. I think. Don't ask...I'm just repeating what I was told. :)

Tomorrow I'm going to attempt to tackle the installation of this EL400 2-axis DRO for the lathe. Then the Dorian, then the Pratt. Busy weekend planned.

Yeah, I have read the 'discussions' of different lathe axis.
The shop I worked in, back in the dark ages (1970's), did it the way I mentioned (this was before CNC arrived at that shop):
Moving the cairrage left to right (from and to the chuck) is X... and
Moving the cross slide in and out (moving across the diameter of the chuck or part) is Y.

I am sure I am gonna start a firestorm... however I suspect there are folks who do it different ways.
 
Yeah, I have read the 'discussions' of different lathe axis.
The shop I worked in, back in the dark ages (1970's), did it the way I mentioned (this was before CNC arrived at that shop):
Moving the cairrage left to right (from and to the chuck) is X... and
Moving the cross slide in and out (moving across the diameter of the chuck or part) is Y.

I am sure I am gonna start a firestorm... however I suspect there are folks who do it different ways.

Doesn't really matter as long as the user knows what's what. :)

As I mentioned, on a universal/mill DRO display, the axes are usually labeled X & Y, X on top for the cross slide, Y on bottom for the carriage on the display. I have a lathe specific DRO display & they are labeled X & Z, again X on top, Z on bottom. On lathe specific DROs, they usually have a button that allows you change from radius & diameter modes, this only works for the X axis. Universal/mill DROs can be set in the parameters to display either radius or diameter for each axis but I have seen a few with the radius/diameter button.

The way I learned it is the axes are in relation to the machine's spindle being Z.

Lathe
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Vert mill
vertical-mill.jpg

Horiz mill
horizontal-mill.jpg
 
I see what you are saying Will... to standardize one would want the axis of the spindle (moving in line with the spindle) the same letter.

I suspect this came along when CNC became widespread... because back in the totally manual days (at least at the shop I was at)... On a lathe what you are calling Z... was X. And what you are calling X... was Y.

This reminds me of something I saw happen in remodeling and home improvement: A double door (two doors hinged at the far ends with the swings meeting in the center, and with 15 windows on each door) was always called a 'French Door'... until HD came along, and renamed it a '15 lite double door'. Now it does not matter if one goes to HD or an old timey mill shop... nobody knows what the term 'French Door' means.

Funny how things change... Personally, I prefer stability in terminology... but I know I am in the minority and being an 'old foggie' with that attitude.

THX for the heads up on axis... however I think for now I am gonna stick with what I am used to. If I ever get a CNC lathe... then I will learn a new trick... :)
 
As I mentioned, doesn't matter as long as you know what's what. But to add, I wasn't speaking in relation to CNC. I have no experience with CNC. Whether or not NC machines played a role in this, what I posted is what I was taught for conventional machines. But then again I am much younger than you. :)
 
Some CNC lathes today also have a Y axis typically for use with live tooling heads. Speaking of which, my brother just purchased a 6 tool live tooling head, holds 3 tools for the front spindle and 3 tools for the rear spindle...just the live tooling head was $8,000 :eek:
 
So today I managed to get both scales installed on the lathe. I had to make a drill extension out of a piece from my 'spares' box to drill the bolt holes for the cross slide read head mount. I covered the cross slide scale but I can't figure out how I would do this for the Z axis scale as the mount for the head is in the way. Oh well, it's a magnetic scale anyway so it shouldn't be an issue. Will: do you have a cover on your Z axis scale?

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FYI for those considering the DroPros EL400: the 8x40 kit fits perfectly. No scale cutting required.

Tomorrow I will mount the display and check the stock 3 jaw specs. Question? If the headstock is not parallel to the ways, how do I know which end of the headstock to tweak? And how many of the headstock screws should I loosen to tweak it? Or should I not even bother with this until I get the Pratt mounted?
 
Regarding the Z scale cover...don't hate me...but move the Z scale up, mount the scale read head on top of the bracket not below it. (ducking)

That's a nice looking lathe by the way, I can't believe how flat the back of your casting is mine was all BOING bowed.
 
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