New lather - chips in sight glass

[NevNZ]

Hey guys, I'm a complete newbie. My new lathe arrived today. Before starting it I noticed the feed screw sight gauge had some chips in it. I was able to move them by running a magnet around the area.

Is this normal for a new lathe ? The instructions do say to change the oil after the first few hours. I'll attach a photo below. Any advice appreciated.

 

[cathead]

If it were me, I would take off the top cover and see what there is to see in the gear box, maybe even probe around the bottom
with a magnet. Also see if you can disassemble the sight glass and clean in there. It's not worth returning the lathe over
something that minor. I have to admit it is a little disconcerting to see something like that on a new machine right out of the box though.

 

[RJSakowski]

The chips could be the result of poor cleaning prior to assembly or they could be an indication of a more serious problem. If it was my lathe, I would want to take a closer look at the chips. That would mean disassembling the gear box which isn't a trivial task although it probably is a good idea anyway as you don't want stray bits getting into the gears or bearing journals.

In any event, I would document it well and contact the seller for advice on how to proceed as it may affect future warranty claims.

 

[markba633csi]

On a different topic- I noticed your lifting tackle- I hope you protected the ways under that green metal bar?
A piece of cardboard I hope? (cringe)

 

[f350ca]

As suggested above I'd remove the top cover, drain the oil and look for more cuttings.
A number of years ago I bought a 16x80 lathe from Summit. Made in easter Europe. Very good fit and finish. When I changed the oils after the initial break in the horizontal oil filler hole on the headstock was full of what looked like the cuttings from threading. They probably filled it with oil before putting on the top cover. Couldn't find another cutting anywhere after removing the top cover. The pickup screen for the pressurized oiling was spotless.
Your problem could be similar, but I'd sure check it out.

Greg

 

[Provincial]

I see that it is a German machine. I would at least contact them and show them the photo.

If I was Optimum, I'd want to know about something like this. Not telling them keeps them from correcting problems.

 

[pontiac428]

That's like finding syringes in the sandbox. Optimum is a premium import dealer, I'd let them know about it while trying to remove the chips with a magnet. It's probably nothing, but keep an eye on things.

 

[mksj]

Optimum machines are made in mainland China supposedly with German oversight, I had one of their BF-30 mills and it was a nightmare of problems. Looked nice on the outside, but the QC was poor and some issues never got rectified. I would contact the distributor that you bought the machine from first before you start dissembling anything, rather than dissemble the gearbox I would remove the sight gauge and drain plug and run some oil through it, maybe use a magnet attached to a stick to run it along the bottom. My BF-30 had a magnet on the drain plug (which I would recommend), when I pilled it for the first oil change there was a lot of metal chips attached to it, the oil was black.

 

[pontiac428]

I would expect a little bit of metal on a rare earth magnet in a new import machine. All those gears have to wear in, that's bound to create some dust. But if it looked like that on the second oil change, I'd have to loosen my published tolerances!

 

[NevNZ]

On a different topic- I noticed your lifting tackle- I hope you protected the ways under that green metal bar?
A piece of cardboard I hope? (cringe)

The warehouse set up the lifting strap in this manner. It was clamped with a large eye bolt and a supporting piece under the ways. I'll take a close look and see if there's any scrapes - thanks.