Nice project. I rebuilt one of those a short while ago. It's a very serviceable little lathe. I'm learning a lot on mine.
I mentioned this on another thread, but if you need a chuck, Taig Tools has 1"x 8tpi scroll chuck's on clearance. It's the standard Taig chuck, but they ran a custom batch with this threading and got stuck with them. Now they're on clearance a $20 each. They come 3 jaw or 4 jaw, 3-1/4" diameter. It's a good size for this lathe. I have one of each - very good quality with replaceable aluminum soft jaws (also available from Taig should you need more). If you're interested, check their website. It's a small family run US company. I have no affiliation, just a satisfied customer who has one of their manual bench top mills and various tooling bits and pieces.
I've always wondered how well the 3d printed change gears work. The originals were Zamak (zinc, aluminum, cadmium alloy, if i recall) - not as strong as steel, but seem to work just fine on a small lathe like this. The plastic is soft too, but then again, it's only a 6" lathe. The forces aren't that great.
Yep - what others have said about over tightening the headstock bushing clamp screws. My lathe came with a broken headstock due to cranking it down too much. Luckily, i found a replacement headstock casting for little money and got it up and running quickly and easily. Once the casting breaks here, there's not much you can do to fix it. Replacement is the best practical option.
The one other thing you might want to keep your eyes open for would be a spare set of half nuts for the lead screw assembly. They're often available on ebay, but often are very worn. Look for ones that are new or still have crisp, non rounded threading.
This is my first lathe, and i'm using it to learn on and support my other hobbies making and fixing things. Depending on the work you'll be doing with it, you might want to make some tooling or accessories of your own. The first thing i made was a carriage stop with a 2" travel dial indicator on it. I also got a set of ER25 collets and an MT2 collet chuck for the spindle. I did make up a quick drawbar for that chuck, but will soon make an ER25 chuck that threads onto the spindle so that longer pieces can extend through the hollow spindle. The MT2 taper chuck won't allow that. I also picked up an OXA sized quick change tool post to replace the rocker/lantern stock tool post. This machine is not really designed around using carbide tooling, but there's plenty of HSS tooling that fits the qctp tool holders. Also, the HSS tooling is cheaper, and i can sharpen it with my standard bench grinder - no special sharpening equipment needed.
I also think i'll make larger cross feed dials that are easier to read. The stock ones are very small, and the markings on mine are difficult to read. And, i'll very likely make a mount so that i can attach my rotary tool to my compound and use it like a tool post grinder. I have a little Proxxon model with a 20mm ring machined on the casting near the spindle. This could work really well. I've seen others set up a mount for a Dremel flex shaft that would work the same way.
You might want a chip tray once you start using the lathe. Cafeteria trays work well if you get one the right size. I picked up a tray at IKEA for a few bucks that works perfectly.
Have fun with you project. Keep us up to speed with your progress.
paulh
