New hobby lathe for retired engineer?

[Fred Bloggs 3Participant @fredbloggs3]

Posted by Brian G on 06/05/2020 12:21:31:

Posted by Fred Bloggs 3 on 06/05/2020 07:49:53:

Thanks Jason B, I need a 250mm radius to bore the yokes which I see thse days is considered 500mm swing. Very clearly I am not going to get a machine that will do that. My understanding has come a long way the last 24 hours.

FB

If you buy a machine like a Warco WM 240 or Chester DB10 with a t-slotted cross slide you could bore the yokes (and perhaps even cylinders) with a between-centres boring bar.

Brian

That's exactly my train of thought now, Brian. In fact boring to 54mm max, but only to a depth/thickness of 25mm max in alloy, I could in fact turn such a machine into a pseudo boring machine. The boring bar would be short enough and stiff enough to be carried in the chuck only? In fact, I'd go so far as saying a slotted cross slide is now essential.

FB.

Edited By Fred Bloggs 3 on 06/05/2020 12:30:25

Edited By Fred Bloggs 3 on 06/05/2020 12:31:09

[Howard LewisParticipant @howardlewis46836]

At the risk of going off topic, a slotted cross slide will allow the use of a rear toolpost to improve parting off, when required.

Howard

[Fred Bloggs 3Participant @fredbloggs3]

Posted by Howard Lewis on 06/05/2020 12:43:55:

At the risk of going off topic, a slotted cross slide will allow the use of a rear toolpost to improve parting off, when required.

Howard

Thanks Howard, this information is gold dust to be honest. I had never imagined slotted cross slide would be so useful but it is the perefect answer to not having enough swing over the bed. My use of such boring jobs is seldom bit very, very useful. A set of custom made bike yokes is around £500 give or take if you buy them. The material cost is about thirty quid at a guess. Brilliant to be able to make them. That Chester DB10 is a budget buster for me, but what a capable piece of kit it would be. I wonder if I can look out for an ex-demo or something similar machine?

FB

[JasonBModerator @jasonb]

As I said early this morning using teh lathe as a horizontal borer works well, the ali clamps holding this job are about teh size of your yoke hole sand were bored in situe then the 300mm long cylinder bored, a between ctrs boring bar is more rigid and likely to give closer to parallel bores.

But you can use a boring head in the Morse taper lathe spindle which is easier to adjust for size.

Just really comes down to how inventive you are with clampng methods

[Fred Bloggs 3Participant @fredbloggs3]

Thanks JasonB, yes, you have given me great ideas on how to tackle my boring jobs with relative ease as long as I buy the right machine. Boring a set of bike yokes is easier than those jobs you posted in yor last post. The yokes are slotted with pinch bolts onto the forks so massive precision capability is simply not needed. +/-0.05mm is amply adequate. Right now, the Chester machine looks favourite, though at list price it's well blown the budget.

FB

[Mick B1Participant @mickb1]

Posted by Hopper on 06/05/2020 09:49:29

…

But looking at a YouTube video of the CL430 I see it is comparable (ish) size to a Myford but with the common Chinese trick of lifting the spindle up a couple of inches to increase the swing. This results in that skyscraper tailstock and the very thick carriage with thick toolpost perched up on it. Result is a narrow bed relative to tool height.

…

That may've been the case with the old-design Clarke machines, but it most certainly isn't with the more recent Warcos.

[Author]

Posts