[Noisebridge-discuss] Mill / Lathe

Shannon Lee shannon at scatter.com
Mon Mar 30 23:33:06 UTC 2009


Hi Noisebridgers,

I've just gotten back from Lick-Wilmerding High, where I had a look at the
lathe/mill in question.  Specifically, I gut a guided tour from Gary
Goddard, who (like, aparently, everyone else in the Bay Area) is a friend of
Mitch's, and the shop teacher there.

I brought up our concerns, and he agrees that, yes, the combo machine is
awkward, and that the only real reason you'd want it was for dealing with an
enclosed space; that said, he's also a little flexible on the price (we
didn't get into actual numbers), and is willing to throw in quite a lot of
tools, vices, etc. as well as access to their "parts machine" -- one of the
same model of lathe/mill that doesn't work anymore -- for the next couple of
months.

The machine's footprint is 44" by 25", plus a little overhang on the lathe
run, which is about the same size as the table on the far wall of the shop.
If we were willing to give up that work space in exchange for the machine,
we could certainly make it happen.

It does have an quick change leadscrew thing for cutting threads -- Gary
just flipped a switch, and the lathe started to travel.

Altogether, this doesn't seem like a terrible deal, if we want one of
these.  Timeline is associated with the end of school, so we don't have to
make up our minds *this second.*

--S

On Fri, Mar 27, 2009 at 10:37 AM, William OConnor <wtoconnor at gmail.com>wrote:

> I would contribute to a fund.
>
> I would tend to agree with Noah.
>
> There is a space issue and an accessory issue.
>
> The Harbor Freights are nice. But all the accessories cost the same for a
> mini lathe as the bigger ones (Since they are the same parts). By the time
> you make the equipment usable you will spend almost as much on accessories
> (vise, parallels, indicators etc) as the lathe/mill cost. The one advantage
> of the mini over the Sherline (IMO) is that many of the accessories would
> work on a larger lathe if that ever occurred. The Sherline would fit in the
> space however.
>
> For the most part I think my interest would be in making relatively small
> parts for projects.  Either would work for that.
>
> On Mar 27, 2009, at 2:05 AM, Noah Balmer wrote:
>
> Sherlines are nicely made,relatively light, and they are easy to make into
> cnc machines.  They are not as rigid and solidly built as the common harbor
> freight/grizzly/others mini mill and mini lathe.  I'd go with the harbor
> freight style myself because they're a bit cheaper and seem a bit better for
> larger workpieces, but the sherlines ain't bad.
>
> If you buy any of these be sure to budget a bit more money for a decent
> vise, end mills, parallels and such.  The cost of the small-but -important
> accessories can add up.
>
> A separate mill is much nicer than a milling attachment for a lathe.
>
> On Thu, Mar 26, 2009 at 9:25 PM, Shannon Lee <shannon at scatter.com> wrote:
>
>> Wow, Ian, it sounds like you know a lot more about this than I do.
>>
>> I agree with all your points that I'm qualified to have an opinion on.
>> I'm certainly not wedded to this particular tool, but it's always easier to
>> get everybody's attention with a specific action suggestion, rather than an
>> abstract question :)  But maybe, in this case, establishing a fund and then
>> letting it accumulate is the right way to go.
>>
>> Actually, having a "Noisebridge Tool Fund" is not a bad idea; it means
>> that tools are not competing with rent for resources.
>>
>> In addition to the Grizzly machine that you and Bill pointed out, I've
>> also looked at similar machines from Busy Bee (http://busybeetools.ca/);
>> they all seem about the same to me, but the one we're looking at here on CL
>> retailed for a lot more new...?
>>
>> Also, I've been looking at the Sherline desktop lathes and milling
>> machines; they don't have a combo (although the lathe can do double duty
>> somewhat, aparently), but the machines are compact table-top models that are
>> pretty cheap (in the $600 range).  http://www.sherline.com/
>>
>> Ian, would you by chance be free to come along on Monday and see the
>> device?  I certainly wouldn't know how to check for excessive wear.
>>
>> --S
>>
>>
>> On Thu, Mar 26, 2009 at 3:02 PM, ian <ian at sonic.net> wrote:
>>
>>> That looks like an okay machine, but it does also seem a little
>>> physically large for NB.  Also, I'd be a little wary of a
>>> high-precision machine that's been used at a high school.  When I've
>>> been in the market for used machine tools, I've tried to buy them from
>>> machinists.  Students are hard on things, and high school students
>>> doubly so.
>>>
>>> Machines like this come up used on craigslist pretty often, and
>>> sometimes include a bunch of tooling as well (this one has a vise,
>>> centers, and collets, but no tooling).  If people want a lathe/mill,
>>> it might make sense to establish a fund for it, and keep an eye out
>>> for something that would better suit Noisebridge.
>>>
>>> Along those lines, Grizzly sells some really decent machines new, for
>>> a similar price, that take up considerably less space:
>>>
>>> http://www.grizzly.com/products/category.aspx?key=465000
>>>
>>> It all depends on how large the things are that people intend to make...
>>>
>>> There are also some things you'll miss with a combo machine:
>>>
>>> - They lack a quick-change gearbox for driving the leadscrew, which
>>> makes them a pain in the ass if you want to cut a lot of threads.
>>> Only matters if you care about thread-cutting, though.
>>>
>>> - They don't have a knee for the mill, which means you only get about
>>> 3-4" of vertical travel.  After that, you have to reposition the head
>>> and you lose alignment with the workpiece.
>>>
>>> These are the main compromises with an all-in-one tool as opposed to a
>>> separate lathe and mill.  Like I said, it all depends on what you want
>>> to make.
>>>
>>> -Ian
>>>
>>> On Wed, Mar 25, 2009 at 9:00 PM, Shannon Lee <shannon at scatter.com>
>>> wrote:
>>> > Hi Noisebridge,
>>> >
>>> > There's been discussion on and off about getting a mill and a lathe for
>>> the
>>> > shop.  Today on Craigslist I saw this:
>>> >
>>> > http://sfbay.craigslist.org/sfc/tls/1088127089.html
>>> >
>>> > ...which is both a lathe and a mill, and nice and compact.  It's at a
>>> local
>>> > private high school.
>>> >
>>> > I'd like to get it, but I'm not, at the moment, able to shell out $1000
>>> for
>>> > it.  I'd be willing to pitch in a couple of hundred, if others also
>>> think
>>> > this is a good enough investment to kick in...?
>>> >
>>> > --S
>>> >
>>> > --
>>> > Shannon Lee
>>> > (503) 539-3700
>>> >
>>> > "Any sufficiently analyzed magic is indistinguishable from science."
>>> >
>>> > _______________________________________________
>>> > Noisebridge-discuss mailing list
>>> > Noisebridge-discuss at lists.noisebridge.net
>>> > https://www.noisebridge.net/mailman/listinfo/noisebridge-discuss
>>> >
>>> >
>>>
>>>
>>
>>
>> --
>> Shannon Lee
>> (503) 539-3700
>>
>> "Any sufficiently analyzed magic is indistinguishable from science."
>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> Noisebridge-discuss mailing list
>> Noisebridge-discuss at lists.noisebridge.net
>> https://www.noisebridge.net/mailman/listinfo/noisebridge-discuss
>>
>>
> _______________________________________________
> Noisebridge-discuss mailing list
> Noisebridge-discuss at lists.noisebridge.net
> https://www.noisebridge.net/mailman/listinfo/noisebridge-discuss
>
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> Noisebridge-discuss mailing list
> Noisebridge-discuss at lists.noisebridge.net
> https://www.noisebridge.net/mailman/listinfo/noisebridge-discuss
>
>


-- 
Shannon Lee
(503) 539-3700

"Any sufficiently analyzed magic is indistinguishable from science."
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://lists.noisebridge.net/pipermail/noisebridge-discuss/attachments/20090330/bf0d5048/attachment-0003.html>


More information about the Noisebridge-discuss mailing list