Gents,

 

Back again after my 15th April post. Please accept many apologies for my delayed responses (“work-work” didn’t just call, it SHOUTED!) – especially for such a long-delayed response from me after I seemed to stir up a bit of a hornet’s nest (inadvertently, I do assure you all) .

 

But most of all, MANY thanks to those who have made so very many valuable comments & suggestions. Some sepecific responses to Q’s that some of you have asked follow:

 

For Versaboss (Hansruedi): My lathe is an “Einhell MTB 3000”. I have several pix which I shall try to post when I’ve finished this post. You’ll see (if my posting pix works) that it’s an “Asian-special Mini Lathe”, but after some checking with the Minilathe web site in USA it seems that this particular model comes from a company called Red Dog (true!), rather than the more common Sieg. As you’re in CH, you may like to know that it came from Coop DIY (on sale) “complete with” a 3 inch (75 mm) 3 jaw chuck and nothing else at all! So I made a special order thru Coop to Einhell which about a week later netted a set of 10 mm carbide tipped lathe tools, a fixed steady, and a faceplate. NOTHING else available! So all the rest (tailstock drill chuck; hard & soft centres; centre drills; several more chucks – 3 & 4 jaw; dog; etc, plus the QCTP; all came from LMS in the USA – whom I can heartily recommend BTW – usual disclaimers). I live just outside Liestal (NW Schweiz) so Pestalozzi was too far really, but Debrunner & Acifer are just down the road in Frenkendorf. I went there to buy some 5 mm, 10 mm & 15 mm silver steel (because I want to have a go at making some own lathe tools one day) expecting to get the metric equivalent of 13 inch lengths. To cut a v long story short (and for an Englishman my Schweizerdootsch is not too bad), I ended up having to buy a 2 metre length of each diameter as their minimum order. (So nobody needs to wonder anymore why I fancied trying to make a new toolpost stud out of 10 mm dia silver steel)!  And last point Hansruedi, in my set up the base of my toolpost is not sitting on a 10 mm nut – I’ve made a temporary “spacer” (until I can bore out the base of the toolposts) to give what I thought/hoped would be an adequate base area for the toolposst underside to rest on.

 

For circlip: Thanks for that. Noted, will do. 

 

For KWIL: Yes, thanks for the comment on the QCTP. I’ve had the same problem with “incompatible compatible QCTP”. Hopefully, if my posting pix goes OK, you can see my “problem”.

 

For gedeon spillet: Thanks for the tip about tigthening the tool into the (Chinese) toolpost. It’s obvious when one thinks about it (so why didn’t I see it before you pointed it out?). From now on I’ll tighten tools in the way you describe.

 

For Ramon Wilson: Now I’m really going to hang my head in shame!! I had checked all the gibs (on both the top and cross slides), but did it again anyway. But still the tip of my boring tool was visibly moving (about 1 mm) as the cut started. And no, it wasn’t carriage/ways slop either – as I say, hanging my head in shame, in the end I found a piece of swarf jammed between the underside of the toolpost and the (temporary) nut and spacer (see photo – if it works). What a dummy!!!!

 

Lastly, for MGJ: No I’m definitely NOT a dab hand with a grinder (I need to learn – and quite frankly it frightens me silly). So that’s the reason why I have carbide tipped (cemented or brazed) lathe tools (plus the fact that that’s what I got when I ordered a set from the lathe “manufacturer” – see above comment, addressed to versaboss.

 

OK, I think I covered all the points (until you all thread-drifted away to talk about mics, etc

 

Once again VERY many thanks to you all – especially for your patience. Tomorrow morning I’ll be in the shop trying to put all your good advice into practice.

 

Krgds

AES