how to make a lathe.

[prostockmodeler]

hey guys.. i am on a tight budget but i want to build a lathe. a lathe that i can machine plastic and brass on or even aluminum. I am getting tired of trying to use my dremel or my mighty expensive power drill. so any one know how to make on or even have suggestions?

thank you guys!

[LDO]

Find a good deal on a used Sherline or Taig. Seriously- I'm not trying to sound like a jerk, but in addition to the incredibly difficult task of building a machine tool that will hold reasonable tolerances...even for static models...anything you make will have to have one-off, custom made accessories. Sherline and Taig have all kinds of accessories from the factory and from aftermarket suppliers, along with kits and plans on building your own accessories.

[my80malibu]

Buy a Taig lathe. It's way less money than a Sherline and is good quality made in the USA.

[LDO]

This looks like a smokin' deal: http://cgi.ebay.com/Taig-Tools-1017-2-Lathe-Package-2-/320678089911?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item4aa9e754b7

And it's brand new. No worries about getting someone else's problems. I've bought from this company, too.

[prostockmodeler]

i so would if i had that kind of cash. i found an old mini lathe that i am going to get.. but for now i am going to use my old ryobi drill and it has a huge chuck on it so i might be able to do what i need with it. for a lil while at least.

[DRG]

It would seem to me that the difficulties in making a lathe for precision work would be numerous.

1- Making the bed of the lathe solid enough to eliminate twist.

2- getting the ways of the bed in line and perfectly straight.

3- Getting x acis to be square to z acis would be another problem.

And then last but not least would be assuring proper tool height.

[Howard Cohen]

Why would you want to make a lathe when buying a proper one is probably much less expensive and safer? It would be like buying a car one piece at a time...the sum of the parts far exceeds the cost of the whole.

Check your local surplus stores...

[Art Anderson]

  On 4/2/2011 at 6:37 PM, prostockmodeler said:

i so would if i had that kind of cash. i found an old mini lathe that i am going to get.. but for now i am going to use my old ryobi drill and it has a huge chuck on it so i might be able to do what i need with it. for a lil while at least.

Good idea, frankly. As others have stated, to "make your own lathe" necessarily will require even more machine tools to accomplish. I've a Sherline lathe that I bought in 1981, and even for as early a model as it is, there's a ton of machined parts in it: The motor uses a lathe-turned pulley which in itself drives another lathe-turned pulley by means of a Gilmer Belt. The headstock is a milled piece, with very precise bearings in it, turning a hollow steel shaft which in itself was also precision ground on a lathe. The 3-jaw chuck is a combination of both lathe-turned steel, with spiral grooves inside it which serve to move the jaws inward or outward (forget about using a Jacobs chuck--like your electric drill has--no way are those all that precise), the jaws themselves were produced on a mill. The ways are a long milled part, very precise angles and very straight--otherwise the "saddle" or cross-slide (the part to which tool posts of various types are secured has the same set of angles INSIDE, all done on a mill as well. Then there are the threaded drives, for both the saddle lengthwise (X Axis) and crosswise (Y Axis) which are calculated to match the knobs (cranks if you will) so that each "notch" on their dials equals .001" of movement, either lengthwise or crosswise. The tool posts available are all milled pieces, cut to very precise angles which correspond to the cut end of the lathe cutting tools.

In short, it will take more than a "Half-vast idea to make such a vast project" all on your own, and ultimately, even if you are successful, the cost to do so will in all likelihood be far more expensive in both money and time than if you just saved up the $$ to buy one.

I know what it means to have to wait, to wish that "If only I had a lathe" so I could make some of those projects I saw others accomplishing. But in the end, that waiting, working toward such a goal is, in my never-to-be-humble opinion, worth it. Of course, unlike 1981, today with such websites as eBay, used miniature lathes and other miniature precision, even machine, tools show up very frequently.

Art

[RyanSilva]

I was in your shoes last year, I needed a lathe to make masters for my wheels. I ended up buying a Taig and loved it ever since.

Because it goes hand in hand with my resin casting, my lowly sum of 400 bucks to buy my taig has paid for itself the first month I bought it!

[Doughnut]

Keep searching and hunt around. After all, sometimes the thrill of the hunt is quite fun. I kept watching and stopped in a Harbor Freight one day and sure enough, there was the micro-lathe on clearance for $109. It was missing the allen wrenches that normally came with it, so the manager knocked off another 10%. My friend went to another Harbor Freight and got the same deal. While it's not the best out there, it does the job.

[my80malibu]

Start visiting your local Pawn shops,You may get lucky.