Winner Homemade Lathe Build Log

[Andre]

Here is today's progress. I'm not going to show all the center drilling, drilling, tapping, deburring, etc, as I'm sure you all know how fun that is. Yea, slow going.......

Drilled for the fixed female lower dovetail plate. And accidentally tapping all the holes crooked gives it that nice Harbor Freight look. I need to make a tap guide for these small taps.


Made a filing jig to file all these screws to the right length. Now they are all just below the surface.



Fits nice with the male dovetail. A relief.

 

[markknx]

Nice work! I will be following you. Not that I will be building a lathe anytime soon, but this is still interesting to me. (way more interesting than what is on TV) Also I follow these be cause I almost always learn some new tricks, or something. thanks for thinking of the rest of the forum as you are doing this build. Mark

 

[Andre]

Nice work! I will be following you. Not that I will be building a lathe anytime soon, but this is still interesting to me. (way more interesting than what is on TV) Also I follow these be cause I almost always learn some new tricks, or something. thanks for thinking of the rest of the forum as you are doing this build. Mark

Glad you can find this useful. I'm away for the next few days so I will probably not have updates for this week.
If you have any questions please feel free to ask.

 

[Andre]

Not too much work last week and won't be any more this week. Just too busy. But here is today's work. drilled and tapped the other side of the bottom slide (Z axis).

Turns out I drilled the top plate for the top slide in the wrong spot. I can make it work or hide it, or just remake it.

 

[strantor]

I like the dovetail made with no dovetail cutter. Very cool. How will you advance/retract it? (I assume this is the cross slide or compound) - where will the screw go? I have been tossing around ideas for a milling attachment, about the same size as what you've got there, and in my mind's eye, my milling attachment dovetail is thicker that yours to make room for a threaded half and an unthreaded half. Hard to explain, but you if you've ever used a taper lock bushing you probably can get the idea. The stationary (bottom) piece could have a half-moon channel milled down the center, with the channel stopping just short of the ends. A threaded rod would be cut to exact length and laid inside, so that 50% is below the surface and 50% is above. Then the mobile (top) piece would have a half-moon milled into it as well, but of smaller size (minor dia. of the threaded rod), and it would be threaded. I would probably accomplish this by drilling a long hole and tapping it, then filet the metal along the length of the hole. I think this would lend to a more robust cross-slide, as the threads would be engaged along the entire length of the cross-slide instead of just 5-10 threads engaged inside a puny brass nut, as it is in my lathe from the factory. Or i might be wrong; that design might just be asking for trouble, as the cavity collects shavings and they have nowhere to go but jam up the works. Only one way to find out...

 

[John Hasler]

I like the dovetail made with no dovetail cutter. Very cool. How will you advance/retract it? (I assume this is the cross slide or compound) - where will the screw go? I have been tossing around ideas for a milling attachment, about the same size as what you've got there, and in my mind's eye, my milling attachment dovetail is thicker that yours to make room for a threaded half and an unthreaded half. Hard to explain, but you if you've ever used a taper lock bushing you probably can get the idea. The stationary (bottom) piece could have a half-moon channel milled down the center, with the channel stopping just short of the ends. A threaded rod would be cut to exact length and laid inside, so that 50% is below the surface and 50% is above. Then the mobile (top) piece would have a half-moon milled into it as well, but of smaller size (minor dia. of the threaded rod), and it would be threaded. I would probably accomplish this by drilling a long hole and tapping it, then filet the metal along the length of the hole. I think this would lend to a more robust cross-slide, as the threads would be engaged along the entire length of the cross-slide instead of just 5-10 threads engaged inside a puny brass nut, as it is in my lathe from the factory. Or i might be wrong; that design might just be asking for trouble, as the cavity collects shavings and they have nowhere to go but jam up the works. Only one way to find out...

Interesting idea. I think that the top part might tend to rise up when you turn the screw, though. I'd also put a bearing at the far end so that the threads would not run against the bottom.

I'd make the channels by clamping two pieces together and then drilling and tapping along the parting line.

 

[Andre]

BIG UPDATE: Homemade Lathe Build Log

I like the dovetail made with no dovetail cutter. Very cool. How will you advance/retract it? (I assume this is the cross slide or compound) - where will the screw go? I have been tossing around ideas for a milling attachment, about the same size as what you've got there, and in my mind's eye, my milling attachment dovetail is thicker that yours to make room for a threaded half and an unthreaded half. Hard to explain, but you if you've ever used a taper lock bushing you probably can get the idea. The stationary (bottom) piece could have a half-moon channel milled down the center, with the channel stopping just short of the ends. A threaded rod would be cut to exact length and laid inside, so that 50% is below the surface and 50% is above. Then the mobile (top) piece would have a half-moon milled into it as well, but of smaller size (minor dia. of the threaded rod), and it would be threaded. I would probably accomplish this by drilling a long hole and tapping it, then filet the metal along the length of the hole. I think this would lend to a more robust cross-slide, as the threads would be engaged along the entire length of the cross-slide instead of just 5-10 threads engaged inside a puny brass nut, as it is in my lathe from the factory. Or i might be wrong; that design might just be asking for trouble, as the cavity collects shavings and they have nowhere to go but jam up the works. Only one way to find out...

Sorry I missed that, I've been busy this week.

Good question, I will have a little block screwed down to the underside of the male dovetail that will act as a nut, and make a bracket on the female that reaches down and holds the screw. Hopefully that makes sense. You'll see it later, good luck on the project! Keep in mind though if you use plates to make a segmented dovetail, if your machine is off any when machining your going to have to take that out during hand fitting. Not a big deal, but just make sure you have the time to do so, and if you don't I suggest using a dovetail cutter. They can be made with a radial arm saw and old lathe headstock, like I have done here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mEeALuKCSfI





**********************UPDATE**************************

I've been doing a lot of work on the project yesterday and today, but just too lazy to post an update.

I will take a break on the cross slide, because when you see angles aluminum plates and small brass screws in your sleep somethings wrong! LOL

Before I left for Ohio, I PAD (Pencil Aided Design, thanks to DonB for the name) sketched a draft for the headstock and round bed.



Now to start work on the headstock,

Center and drilled for the spindle. I'm drilling a hair larger than the spindle, yet smaller than the OD of the copper bearings. So when I bore for the bearings they will press into a shoulder. I also drilled it in between, so I would have an oil reservoir covering the spindle, so it can slowly drip out through the bearings lubricating them.



Boring for the bearings using my homemade boring head (I finished it, yet need to update the thread). Kinda looks like a UFO.



Here you can see the bearings installed. They will be adjusted by a setscrew in the bottom. You can see how the oil will pool in the headstock (between the bearings), flooding the spindle. Oil will b​e motor oil, and filled in the top through a small hole. I will make a plug for that hole on the lathe when it's done to keep chips and dirt out.




Now I cut the piece off at 2" leaving me with a center height of 1" and a 2" swing (swing in American terms.)
Always do machining before you cut the part, so if you make a mistake you only scrap what you messed up on not the whole part like you would if you cut it first. It also makes workholding easier.

BTW, Plans are in 2:1 scale.



Worm outside....(*F)





Now I mill down the saw-cut edge and drill and ream the blind hole for the 3/8" round bed. It will be a very light press fit and held in place with a setscrew. I will keep the bed removable because the setscrews for bearing adjustment are in a hole that runs "through" the bed. I guess I could drill a crosshole through the bed for the hex key, but I probably won't.

Looks like I'm having alu-spaghetti for dinner.



I cut the spindle from a piece of stainless steel printer rod. The bearings are copper pipe, and the bed is some axle or something from something, it's 6" long. That clamping collar was in the junk pile and fit perfectly. The front bearing will be longer than the headstock to rub against this collar to act as thrust bearing surface for cutting force.




Here is everything temporary assembled for picture purposes. I'm having a second wind thinking this may actually work.



Still have to drill for the bearing adjustment set screw holes, tap the bed locking screw, file down the rear of the spindle for a pulley, drill for a oil fill hole, make a stand, and finish the cross slide and toolpost, and make it look pretty of course.

 

[12bolts]

Nice work, good to see it moving along

Cheers Phil

 

[Andre]

Nice work, good to see it moving along

Cheers Phil

Thanks, Phil! An update later tonight and will make it look pretty tomorrow.

 

[Pat of TN]

This has become quite the endeavor. You ought to be proud of what you've done so far, Andre. What's really neat is how it's made from an assembly, from the dovetail to the cross slide screw.