hello,
i'm looking into getting a mini cnc lathe. I want to make cones (click the link below) and the base would be abut 4.5" diameter and around 6" in length. I would also have to hollow it out. Would a mini lathe work for this? if not, what machine would? if it would work, what would be a good choice and would i need any special programs to run it?

I'm interested in just the cone part
http://www.dmcustomcycle.com/AIRCLEANER/TS-7900-SCH.JPG

Thanks, Luke

a 7x12 mini lathe won't work for that kind of work, just to big. However a 9x20 may suit you much better. Sounds about the right size, although if your looking for a pre built cnc 9x20 I don't know of any. Either you can make one, or buy one on here from someone I imagine, and yes you would have to write a program, but it should be fairly simple from the looks of your part.

Sean

Luke, you would be better off having a mold made and then casting these, other options for casting in aluminum would be to use "lost foam" casting.

Hollowing out that much volume is rather time consuming and costly.

Once the parts are cast you could then finish them (flatten the mounting base and cleaning up the bolt holes).

You would them polish them and have them plated (for chrome) or anodized or even powder coated...depends on the finish you are looking for.

thanks for the responses. it seems that getting a small lathe wont really work out unless i get a pretty big one. i've heard if i create my design on autodesk inventer or a program like that and just give it to a machine shop it will cut the cost down alot. is this true? does anyone know how much a piece like this will cost to get machined?
Thanks, Luke

Depending on the wall thickness of the material you requaire, you might also look into metal spinning. It's a process where you take a flat metal disk and using something similar to wood lathe tools, you form the shape around a spinning form that is usually made from wood. A real spinning lathe resembles a wood lathe.

do you know any website about metal spinning? do they have cnc ones or is it all manual?
Luke

Luke, I think you'll be chasing an even more elusive part with metal spinning.

If the parts you want have a wall thickness of greater then 0.125 then casting is your least expensive option.....if the wall thickness is in the 0.032 to 0.100 then your next best option is stamping or draw forming.

Check out http://www.bonnydoonengineering.com for information on some draw forming that's reasonabily priced.

Metal spinning requires most pretty heavy duty equipment.

Luke, I think you'll be chasing an even more elusive part with metal spinning.

If the parts you want have a wall thickness of greater then 0.125 then casting is your least expensive option.....if the wall thickness is in the 0.032 to 0.100 then your next best option is stamping or draw forming.

Check out http://www.bonnydoonengineering.com for information on some draw forming that's reasonabily priced.

Metal spinning requires most pretty heavy duty equipment.

I'd disagree. I've made some small vessels & towers for carburators on a metal spinning machine. We're talkng ~1/16" max wall thickness. The machine was no bigger than your typical wood lathe. AIf you need a wall thickness greater than that, then casting is going to be your best option.

Check out this link and see if it suits your idea.

http://www.aardvark.co.nz/pjet/spinning1.shtml

http://www.jamesriser.com/MyLathesSm/ForSpinning.html

A 15 page .pdf Tutorial (http://prl.stanford.edu/documents/pdf/spinning.pdf)