Warco WM180 Autofeed Speed

[southernchapParticipant @southernchap]

There’s a video by “We can do that better” (very nice German chap) on YouTube where he takes a standard “7×14” Chinese mini lathe and manages to add further reduction with the making of an additional shaft (a bit like a T-bolt) to fit into the banjo, and then makes an extension to the leadscrew at the headstock end.

Now the WM180 is a bit different to the standard “7×14” mini lathes so this might not be applicable, but it might be worth considering.

Oh and I’ve done a poor job of communicating the concept, so here’s a link to the video:

 

[Neil AParticipant @neila]

That’s an interesting video on reducing the self-feed speed and is well worth looking at. The only issue with the WM180 is that it does not have a reverse tumbler for the lead screw. The introduction of an additional gear reduction pair rotates the lead screw the wrong way, needs to be thought about. I tried to work out an additional reduction that preserved the correct rotation, but it was very complicated, so I didn’t pursue it any further.

The real issue here is not so much the actual speed of the self-feed, but the surface finish that it produces. The slowest self-feed with a tool with, say, a tip radius of 0.04mm will produce a surface finish that is visually good and sufficient for most non running surfaces.

For a running surface in a bearing, this may not be good enough. The asperities in the surface may be great enough to break through the oil film thickness, leading to premature wear and probably eventual failure. There is the option of increasing the radius of the cutting edge to reduce the height of the peaks, or as we probably all have done, polish the surface with a strip of abrasive cloth.

In one of the books I have on Stirling Engines, the author has included drawing for internal and external laps for fine finishing the machined surfaces. Another option to consider.

The ELS idea is the ultimate solution provided that it produces the surface finish that you need. Lots to think about. Just consider what you are really after.

Neil

 

[Michael GilliganParticipant @michaelgilligan61133]

Excellent video

… Thanks for sharing it, southernchap

MichaelG.

[southernchapParticipant @southernchap]

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[southernchapParticipant @southernchap]

On 3 October 2026 at 13:32 Neil A Said:

 

The ELS idea is the ultimate solution provided that it produces the surface finish that you need. Lots to think about. Just consider what you are really after.

 

Neil

 

Yep, an ELS would be the gold standard solution. There are two that I know of easily accessible this side of the Atlantic.

 

One from a French fella, and one from a German chap.

 

Oddly, despite normally preferring German engineering over French, having looked into this a little bit, my preference would be the French product.

 

French: https://electronicleadscrew.eu/

 

German: https://www.rocketronics.de/shop/en/

[JasonBModerator @jasonb]

Plenty of bolt on kits are available too for many of the Chinese lathes with all the brackets, pulleys, belts, motor, drive etc for less than the offerings above plus other parts needed..

[DurhambuilderParticipant @durhambuilder]

Many years ago my first lathe was an emco maximat 10, the 1950’s version. This had an official looking fine feed attachment where the lead screw was driven by a pair or bevel gears driving a worm and wheel. I recall it gave a very fine finish.

[southernchapParticipant @southernchap]

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[southernchapParticipant @southernchap]

On 3 October 2026 at 18:26 JasonB Said:

 

Plenty of bolt on kits are available too for many of the Chinese lathes with all the brackets, pulleys, belts, motor, drive etc for less than the offerings above plus other parts needed..

Could you link to some?  Might be useful and I’d be interested too?

[Author]

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