Atlas 101.21400 used w/accessories, $1,500, plan to buy... thoughts?

[Doug Gray]

Your off to a great start. You'll have a ton of fun.

 

[mmcmdl]

Learn all the safety aspects of a lathe before you go bigger would be my advise . Have fun learning , and forget about what you spent if you're having fun .

 

[Aaron_W]

Welcome to the rabbit hole, the carrots are over there.

Start figuring out how to make more space in your shop. It is inevitable that you will start wanting to add machines to support the lathe, bandsaw, bench grinder, milling machine etc.

Personally I wouldn't start picking out your next lathe just yet. Sure do some window shopping so you know what is out there, but use what you have for awhile (6 months, a year) then pick out what it is doing well for you and where it is falling short. Problem with selecting its future replacement right away is "the new shiny" may cause you to look for problems that really aren't a big deal to support getting something new, and you may overlook issues that don't support that particular choice of lathe.

This is a great site to learn about older lathes that you may run across.

http://www.lathes.co.uk/


Was the tool chest part of the deal?


You will get used to the small handwheels, with practice it is not hard to maintain a fairly consistent rate.

Emery cloth or sandpaper cut into strips is a better choice for finishing on the lathe than steel wool. It keeps your fingers back from the turning bits and held between a finger and thumb tends to pull out of your grip rather than pulling your hand in. Don't wrap it around your fingers. Sand paper has an additional benefit of tearing if snagged.

WD40 is a nice, cheap and not terribly stinky cutting fluid for aluminum.

 

[Larry$]

That is one very nice set! It would take a fair amount of $ to buy all the things you got with it. Having the 3 chucks is great. Did you get the set of collets for the collet chuck? I really like using my collet chucks and will choose them over the jaw chucks whenever I have collets that will fit the work. You will be very happy to have gotten a QCTP and all the tool holders. Really speeds tool changes. Make yourself a tool height gage. I think the uncoated inserts are for aluminum but will likely work, sub optimally, on steel also. I see the hex bar is marked 12L14, good choice of steel. Very nice collection of material to get started with. The L stands for leaded, making it turn much nicer.
Like has been said: learn all the operations on this lathe before you get thinking you need a bigger one. I think as you've just proven, good used lathes are available so you don't have to spend on a new one. Save that $ and get a mill (and all the accessories and tooling that are also needed!)

Even though it is a very small lathe it can be dangerous! Learn to use safely! Always safety glasses!!! BE SAFE!

 

[skcncx]

Welcome to the rabbit hole, the carrots are over there.

Start figuring out how to make more space in your shop. It is inevitable that you will start wanting to add machines to support the lathe, bandsaw, bench grinder, milling machine etc.

Personally I wouldn't start picking out your next lathe just yet. Sure do some window shopping so you know what is out there, but use what you have for awhile (6 months, a year) then pick out what it is doing well for you and where it is falling short. Problem with selecting its future replacement right away is "the new shiny" may cause you to look for problems that really aren't a big deal to support getting something new, and you may overlook issues that don't support that particular choice of lathe.

This is a great site to learn about older lathes that you may run across.

http://www.lathes.co.uk/


Was the tool chest part of the deal?


You will get used to the small handwheels, with practice it is not hard to maintain a fairly consistent rate.

Emery cloth or sandpaper cut into strips is a better choice for finishing on the lathe than steel wool. It keeps your fingers back from the turning bits and held between a finger and thumb tends to pull out of your grip rather than pulling your hand in. Don't wrap it around your fingers. Sand paper has an additional benefit of tearing if snagged.

WD40 is a nice, cheap and not terribly stinky cutting fluid for aluminum.

Thanks and yes, I need time before I really know if/what would be next lathe and what features are critical.

Tool chest not part of the deal, it's just a top box to a rolling case I use for my welder... but I am planning on buying a large one on casters with all the drawers of tooling and accessories right there for this lathe and bench grinder next to it... For cost comparison those are $400+... so everything is just expensive. I'm transitioning into metal working.... already have table saw, 30" x 40" CNC for wood working, drill press, bench grinder, band saw for steel, welding table, aluminum multi process welder... so I just get very creating on how to make the space I have functional, about 500 sqft... one being, EVERYTHING is on wheels and easily rolled around as necessary. Light and infrequent tools are taken up to attic (via stair case).

My first turning, no cutting fluid... didn't even think about it... I'll try WD40, I've seen elsewhere that's great for aluminum.

I like the manual turning to start... I could easily tell when I was too slow, or too deep of cut... was getting feedback... automated no so much.... so I think that is a great way to get a sense of the capability... and then lean on the power feed stuff.

 

[skcncx]

That is one very nice set! It would take a fair amount of $ to buy all the things you got with it. Having the 3 chucks is great. Did you get the set of collets for the collet chuck? I really like using my collet chucks and will choose them over the jaw chucks whenever I have collets that will fit the work. You will be very happy to have gotten a QCTP and all the tool holders. Really speeds tool changes. Make yourself a tool height gage. I think the uncoated inserts are for aluminum but will likely work, sub optimally, on steel also. I see the hex bar is marked 12L14, good choice of steel. Very nice collection of material to get started with. The L stands for leaded, making it turn much nicer.
Like has been said: learn all the operations on this lathe before you get thinking you need a bigger one. I think as you've just proven, good used lathes are available so you don't have to spend on a new one. Save that $ and get a mill (and all the accessories and tooling that are also needed!)

Even though it is a very small lathe it can be dangerous! Learn to use safely! Always safety glasses!!! BE SAFE!

I did not get any collets, but it's an ER20 collet holder which is the same size as my CNC so I already have a few.... but, I may opt for an ER40 collet adapter from http://www.mymachineshop.net. It would just thread onto the 1" 10 TPI spindle nose.... then I can go up to an inch and use hex collets, etc...

Seller did say the 12L14 was the easiest steel to turn... now I know what the marking is... one thing about this and getting into welding aluminum is you learn about all the different alloys of metals and pros/cons of each. Yes, on the be safe... for sure, something I'm very conscious of... safety glasses/shield for starters... and where and when I should never put my fingers... just some good practices to follow, I'll be asking a lot of questions and training here, on the net and some close friends who have lots of experience.

 

[wachuko]

Congratulations!! And do not second guess the purchase. To me, this is the best therapy in the world!

And please, never let your guard down. Do a mental check before turning anything... is the chuck key out, manually turn the chuck to confirm nothing hits before you turn it on... with everything off, move the cutter the travel of the cut to make sure nothing hits.... finding this out when everything is turning is not fun!

Looking forward to your updates and photos as you go on this journey.

 

[FOMOGO]

I think you did fine on the purchase, and will learn a lot on the little Atlas. I started out on a 12x54 Atlas that started out as a pile of parts, and still use it today, though I've moved on to much larger machines. Will look forward to your progress, and welcome to the site. Mike

 

[pkemner]

Congratulations!
I was seriously considering this one too, but it was on the small end of what I'm looking for, and it's 100 miles away and harder to schedule a trip.
I don't think you paid too much for the condition and goodies. It's a mystery why metal lathes are on the higher end here. With all the industries around after WWII, and machinists having a lathe at home, you'd think there'd be a surplus. I've looked on and off for years, and the cheap ones are either industrial monsters, or look like they just came out of the Titanic Machine shop.
Kudos on getting it set up and running.

 

[Cadillac STS]

You did not pay too much.