# Please Review My Plan



## jbmauser (Oct 18, 2016)

I have a SB48 lathe,  a steel bar 1 1/2 in. Dia.  that is to long to cut down for working stock with the tailstock in place.  I am going to chuck it up and support it with the steady rest and cut it in half.  I saw a video on youtube and the guy was doing exactly what I plan to do but he was cutting a hollow AL tube.  he ran his cut off tool behind the rest and handled the cut off stock by hand.  this bar is heavy and I am sure it will sag as the cut nears the center and it will bind on the tool,  (my estimation anyway)  I think I will support the stock and cut inside the rest on the chuck side and cut it in thirds or even quarters and balance the waste side and perhaps place support on the ways so the waste will stay level as it is cut free.  Or I could cut to 1/2 in. and move to a hacksaw.   My concern is binding on the tool and having a bit of excitement I don't meed.  This bar is salvage from a yard for the purpose of cutting nothing in particular, practice, do dads and what nots.


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## FLguy (Oct 18, 2016)

I'd use a hack saw or if you have one, horizontal band saw.


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## Tozguy (Oct 18, 2016)

Sounds like a 100% hacksaw job to me.


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## jbmauser (Oct 18, 2016)

I only have a hand hacksaw.  Bandsaw is for wood speed.  I would have to reach out for a metal bandsaw .  A hand hacksaw sounds like a real chore.


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## brino (Oct 18, 2016)

I would not attempt cutting that long bar in half on the lathe....wrong tool for the job.

+1 for hacksaw. Yes, that'll be some work.

I would also consider doing it with an 4 or 5-inch angle grinder. Wear your glasses, if the cut-off disc gets jammed in the cut it's coming apart.......

-brino


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## jbmauser (Oct 18, 2016)

Ok, I have an angle grinder with a cut off wheel.  Just a thought .... how about turning it on the lathe and cutting 1/2 way then dismount and apply hacksaw?


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## Tony Wells (Oct 18, 2016)

Plan b is fine. Steady rest in normal position. Just keep an eye on the far end and plunge until you see it wiggle a tiny bit. Back the part off tool out, stop the lathe, and get to working the loose end back and forth. It's called "worrying" the piece in two.


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## Tozguy (Oct 18, 2016)

My bet is that a good manual hacksaw, a good blade, the right lube and technique and it is the quickest route.
It might be old school but it works and with good hand tools you would be surprised how little effort is required. Plus, exercise is good for the operator


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## jbmauser (Oct 19, 2016)

Looking for plan C or to just retire this unknown steel and buy some known stock.  I did not cut 1/8 into the shaft with a new Starrett hack saw blade and it quite cutting.  lube and all.  This metal is very hard.  I think I will order some AL stock to start and work on developing a feel for the lathe then move on to stock of known material.  Thanks all but I am out of tools.


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## Subwayrocket (Oct 19, 2016)

angle grinder , cutoff wheel


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## Falcody (Oct 20, 2016)

jbmauser said:


> I have a SB48 lathe,  a steel bar 1 1/2 in. Dia.  that is to long to cut down for working stock with the tailstock in place.  I am going to chuck it up and support it with the steady rest and cut it in half.  I saw a video on youtube and the guy was doing exactly what I plan to do but he was cutting a hollow AL tube.  he ran his cut off tool behind the rest and handled the cut off stock by hand.  this bar is heavy and I am sure it will sag as the cut nears the center and it will bind on the tool,  (my estimation anyway)  I think I will support the stock and cut inside the rest on the chuck side and cut it in thirds or even quarters and balance the waste side and perhaps place support on the ways so the waste will stay level as it is cut free.  Or I could cut to 1/2 in. and move to a hacksaw.   My concern is binding on the tool and having a bit of excitement I don't meed.  This bar is salvage from a yard for the purpose of cutting nothing in particular, practice, do dads and what nots.


I'd find someone in the metal trades with a bandsaw or a torch and slip him a 6- pack.


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## Tozguy (Oct 20, 2016)

jbmauser said:


> Looking for plan C or to just retire this unknown steel and buy some known stock.  I did not cut 1/8 into the shaft with a new Starrett hack saw blade and it quite cutting.  lube and all.  This metal is very hard.  I think I will order some AL stock to start and work on developing a feel for the lathe then move on to stock of known material.  Thanks all but I am out of tools.



If that steel is too hard for a quality hacksaw blade then you will definitely not have much fun turning it especially with HSS tools. Bear in mind that all aluminum alloys are not equal in machinability either. Some are very gummy to cut. 
Your idea to buy some known steel that is easy cutting sounds like the best option to get you started.


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## jbmauser (Oct 20, 2016)

What steel would you recomend?  Any vendors to recomend.  I was looking at a Enco cat.  6061 AL and something called 
Decarb-free steel rounds  whatever that is.  I thought I would order this http://www.ebay.com/itm/350859959807?_trksid=p2060353.m1438.l2649&ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT


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## Wreck™Wreck (Oct 20, 2016)

6061 Aluminum is easy so you will not learn much, the most common steel material that you will end up turning is 1018 because it is the least expensive. It is often difficult to achieve a nice finish with 1018 yet learning how will teach you a good deal, free machining steels will also not teach you much, as an experiment buy a piece of plain old 1018 CRS/A36 HRS and a piece of 12L14 of the same size and turn them one after the other using the same set up, this will give some idea of what "Free Machining" means.

Today's awful job, two parts from 6" Dia. X 1/4" wall steel tubing 64" long, the OD finishes at 5.870-5.875", this means it is only 3/16" wall at the finish cut, this was chatter waiting to happen and it did. I had to finish a 90 RPMs, .012 DOC and a .009 IPR feed rate using a TIN coated 321 triangular insert. This took roughly all day.

64" / .009 feed per revolution is 7111 revolutions, 7000 revolutions / 90 revolutions per minute is 79 minutes for the finish cut, the 3 roughing cuts were a bit faster.

On the bright side the finish was better then I had expected when turning so slowly.





Good Luck


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## Tozguy (Oct 20, 2016)

All my purchases come from a local metal supplier or from left overs at local machine shops. Fortunately our town is big on metal fabrication and machining.
It sounds like you are just starting out so the 6061 or the 12L14 would be good confidence boosters.
Once you have a bit of practise and have made a few do-dads and what-nots successfully then maybe cutting a less cooperative metal won't be so frustrating to figure out.


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## mardak001 (Nov 15, 2016)

no hacksaw ....... sawzall...$20 HF...... then true up the end on lathe


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## jbmauser (Nov 15, 2016)

Thanks all for the replies.  I took the piece to a man who knows about metal and tools.  He told me the shaft is hardened and it was the piston rod of a hidrolic uy  cylinder.  It gave me 50 lbs of cut offs and told me to buy a HF portable band saw and then order some quality blades which I did.  I hope I am good to go and I am working on drawing up some projects.  Thanks again.


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## DaveInMi (Nov 16, 2016)

My thinking is, If it is too hard for a hand hacksaw, I don't want it ruining my bandsaw blade.  I use abrasive cutting for hard stuff.


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## Christian Poulsen (Nov 16, 2016)

jbmauser said:


> I have a SB48 lathe,  a steel bar 1 1/2 in. Dia.  that is to long to cut down for working stock with the tailstock in place.  I am going to chuck it up and support it with the steady rest and cut it in half.  I saw a video on youtube and the guy was doing exactly what I plan to do but he was cutting a hollow AL tube.  he ran his cut off tool behind the rest and handled the cut off stock by hand.  this bar is heavy and I am sure it will sag as the cut nears the center and it will bind on the tool,  (my estimation anyway)  I think I will support the stock and cut inside the rest on the chuck side and cut it in thirds or even quarters and balance the waste side and perhaps place support on the ways so the waste will stay level as it is cut free.  Or I could cut to 1/2 in. and move to a hacksaw.   My concern is binding on the tool and having a bit of excitement I don't meed.  This bar is salvage from a yard for the purpose of cutting nothing in particular, practice, do dads and what nots.


Yes, I see too hard anyway so sounds like you're on the right path now for just practicing and using for whatnot...I recommend Ledloy (if yoose' are wanting steel)
PS Your original plan though, even if the bar was soft, was an accident looking for a place to happen!...
...Saying that: If the bar was softer, maybe shorter, you would part shorter pcs. off on the tailstock side of the steady rest while holding/supporting (catching) the shorter part with your right hand while feeding the crosslide with your left hand  (NOT the chuck side!)

Add: Remember when parting off in a manual lathe, once you get your spindle speed and your feed "dialed in" (slower), and usually with coolant or squirting/brushing on cutting oil in the ever deepening slot, keep going once you get the chip peeling and don't stop until you have cut it off (or finish cutting the last 1/4" or less with a hacksaw)


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## Big Bore Builder (Nov 17, 2016)

Ahh, the 'ol parting tool.    Misuse will maim or kill.

I have had lathes and mills for over 50 years but the best addition to the shop was a big Wells Metal Band Saw that will cut up to a 9" X 18" cross section.      New cost was $14,000 with a hydraulic feed 20 foot table.

I obtained it for $250 from a Machine Shop that was abandoned and being torn down.    My best find ever.  It did not run when I found it:   A set of fuses and it was off to the races.  It is 3 phase but I already had 3 phase power in the shop.  Hydraulic feed up and down.  Pressure coolant.


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## Big Bore Builder (Nov 17, 2016)

Wreck™Wreck said:


> 6061 Aluminum is easy so you will not learn much, the most common steel material that you will end up turning is 1018 because it is the least expensive. It is often difficult to achieve a nice finish with 1018 yet learning how will teach you a good deal, free machining steels will also not teach you much, as an experiment buy a piece of plain old 1018 CRS/A36 HRS and a piece of 12L14 of the same size and turn them one after the other using the same set up, this will give some idea of what "Free Machining" means.
> 
> Today's awful job, two parts from 6" Dia. X 1/4" wall steel tubing 64" long, the OD finishes at 5.870-5.875", this means it is only 3/16" wall at the finish cut, this was chatter waiting to happen and it did. I had to finish a 90 RPMs, .012 DOC and a .009 IPR feed rate using a TIN coated 321 triangular insert. This took roughly all day.
> 
> ...




I love it.

Back in my younger years I worked in a shop with a big Niles:    Around 100" swing and I think  60 feet centers.

When I had an all day cut on 4140 I chuckled  at the folks that walked by and commented:   "Sitting on your butt again!"  as I sat on a stool watching the cut.


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## Christian Poulsen (Nov 17, 2016)

Big Bore Builder said:


> Ahh, the 'ol parting tool.    Misuse will maim or kill.
> 
> I have had lathes and mills for over 50 years but the best addition to the shop was a big Wells Metal Band Saw that will cut up to a 9" X 18" cross section.      New cost was $14,000 with a hydraulic feed 20 foot table.
> 
> ...


No kidding (nice find/buy!!)....I have a new smaller cheapy I bought from (I know I know!) Harbor Freight (but it seems to work OK for what I need)...it also came with a little table that I am reworking (adding too to make it a little bigger) as yoose' can swing the saw up vertical to use as a band saw.


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## Big Bore Builder (Nov 17, 2016)

Christian Poulsen said:


> No kidding (nice find/buy!!)....I have a new smaller cheapy I bought from (I know I know!) Harbor Freight (but it seems to work OK for what I need)...it also came with a little table that I am reworking (adding too to make it a little bigger) and yoose' can swing the saw up vertical to use as a band saw.




For sure life becomes much more pleasant in the shop the day a powered metal cutting band saw shows up!

If you do not have a coolant system on your saw rig something up.   Blades last much longer with coolant.


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## Christian Poulsen (Nov 17, 2016)

Big Bore Builder said:


> For sure life becomes much more pleasant in the shop the day a powered metal cutting band saw shows up!
> 
> If you do not have a coolant system on your saw rig something up.   Blades last much longer with coolant.


Yes no doubt...For my "garage" Harbor Freight (actually the brand is Central Machinery) and for my home use, I just rub on a hunk of saw wax a couple of revolutions a few times during cuts (almost constant during tool steel cuts and 3" to 4" or so takes a while and then the blade (cheap) needs replacement after a few of those, but still OK for my limited, retired use lol)...Note: You defiantly got the better saw for the same price!

Note: Back on the job we switched to some spray mist systems on our big saws but we went back to "flooding" with the "coolant" (seemed to work better, blades lasted longer)

Another note LOL...Believe it or not: Cutting off composite Hockey sticks to length are just as hard on a blade, if not moreso, as cutting off tool steels!


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