HF 7x12 mini lathe

[jeremy0203]

Hello to all the find cnczone folks, name is Jeremy, currently living in GA and am looking to become a machining hobbyist =D.

i currently have some parts i have machined that i sell as part of my business. would really love to be able to do some stuff on my own so after countless hours of youtube videos and forum posts I have bit the bullet and bought the 7x12 from HF using their thanksgiving 25% off, came to around $460 shipped. I know there are a lot things suggest to upgrade out of the box, been looking at that all day.

So I dont mind throwing 200-300 more at it here in the near future. So what I was wondering is what essential upgrades do you think I should go for first, along with what blades should I get to start with. I was thinking of getting this from LMS, good to have?

LittleMachineShop.com - Tooling Package, Mini Lathe

I look forward to your guys' suggestions, becoming a part of this awesome forum and learning from everyones wisdom. I hope to also one day do a CNC conversion on it once I get used to the ins and outs of manually using it.

Happy Turkey Day everyone!!

[drmico60]

Hi Jeremy,
Congratulations on aquiring a minilathe.
I would warn you against buying cheap brazed carbide tooling. My initial experiences with my minilathe were not good-see here:
Initial experiences. - mikesworkshop
Two very useful initial mods are a carriage lock and adding a camlock to the tailstock:
Carriage lock - mikesworkshop
Tailstock modifications - mikesworkshop
You will find many other modifications on my site.
I also suggest you look at
GadgetBuilder's MiniLathe Site and mini-lathe.com home page
Mike

[jeremy0203]

sounds good, thanks for the info. so where would you suggest buying my cutting tools from and what would be the best ones to start off with.

looks like im gonna have to get a benchtop grinder and eventually a mill so i can make all these modifications i am seeing

[drmico60]

Hi Jeremy,
I cannot really help regardig where to by tools from since I am on the other side of the pond. However, Littlemachineshop has a very good reputation and you would probably be alright sourcing from them. I would suggest that you buy some HSS steel blanks and a grinder as soon as possible and learn to grind your own tools. This is a cheap solution, the blanks should only cost a dollar or so each, and they can be easily resharpened. HSS tends to provide a better finish than carbide tooling. The alternative is to buy tools with replaceable (indexable) carbide tips.
I hope this helps.
Mike

[jeremy0203]

been looking at your site all morning. love all your modifications you have done to your machine, looking forward to following your site and doing some of those as well.

yeah i will definitely get a grinder and learn to grind my own tools. would the tools included with this kit get me by to start tinkering with the machine? the countless sites i read say that the QCTP is also an essential upgrade.

LittleMachineShop.com - Tooling Package, Mini Lathe

Hi Jeremy,
I cannot really help regardig where to by tools from since I am on the other side of the pond. However, Littlemachineshop has a very good reputation and you would probably be alright sourcing from them. I would suggest that you buy some HSS steel blanks and a grinder as soon as possible and learn to grind your own tools. This is a cheap solution, the blanks should only cost a dollar or so each, and they can be easily resharpened. HSS tends to provide a better finish than carbide tooling. The alternative is to buy tools with replaceable (indexable) carbide tips.
I hope this helps.
Mike

[drmico60]

Hi Jeremy,
The starter kit from LMS looks quite good and should get you going fairly quickly.
Mike

[blades]

drmico is right I believe, that the LMS kit looks like a great place to start, although I am confused as to why it comes with a drill chuck. My 7x came with one. I do have to politely disagree with buying HSS blanks and a grinder, unless you go big with the grinder, or small with the tool bits. Grinding a cutting tool from a blank requires a grinder with balls, and a larger grinding wheel will serve you well.

I personally think the indexable tools that come with the LMS starter kit are junk, but it's a place to start.

[jeremy0203]

drmico is right I believe, that the LMS kit looks like a great place to start, although I am confused as to why it comes with a drill chuck. My 7x came with one. I do have to politely disagree with buying HSS blanks and a grinder, unless you go big with the grinder, or small with the tool bits. Grinding a cutting tool from a blank requires a grinder with balls, and a larger grinding wheel will serve you well.

I personally think the indexable tools that come with the LMS starter kit are junk, but it's a place to start.

thanks for the reply blades, it was actually your awesome CNC conversion thread that tipped the scale and made me go through with the purchase.

as for the drill chuck i guess i will wait to see if i get one with it. so you are saying that i should just buy preformed HSS tools? what would be the best/most cost effective ones/place to get them.

as for the indexable tools, instead of those what/where would you suggest for those also?

thanks for the tips guys, keep em coming. very excited to get this thing and start tinkering with it

[blades]

Thanks for the props Jeremy!
I'm afraid I can't point you in any specific direction to find pre-ground HSS bits, as I've never seen any. But as knudsen reminded me last night when I was talking to him, one company makes HSS inserts for indexable tool holders.

The problem I have with the indexable tool bits included with the LMS starter kit is that some years ago I had experience with an identical set like this, but on a full-size lathe. The carbide was sub-par and lost it's edge rather quickly, and the clamping screws were extremely small, making it impossible to keep the inserts adequately tight due to having to use such a small allen wrench. *DISCLAIMER* that's IF the ones from LMS are the same as the ones I previously used. Again, they look the same, and LMS sells the tool bit set alone for $32. A really decent indexable tool holder would cost more than that for just 1 holder.

Now these bits would presumably be more suited to a 7x lathe than they were to a full-size lathe, but back then I considered them to be junk. To be honest I have not really looked that seriuosly into higher quality indexable tooling just yet, but I need to pretty soon.

I really do like the quick tool change holders and boring bar set though. Those items look pretty decent. I would seriously consider this set myself, but I'm working on a vertical 4-tool indexer and won't have any need for the quick-change tool post if this little side project works out.

[WaveDude]

That LMS kit is a great start--highly recommended.

[eartaker]

I have the exact LMS kit and use every part of it. The QCTP could be designed a little better but it gets the job done. This will get you going on cutting but don't forget your measuring tools....

[jeremy0203]

I have the exact LMS kit and use every part of it. The QCTP could be designed a little better but it gets the job done. This will get you going on cutting but don't forget your measuring tools....

what would you recommend. i have digital calipers, was thinking of getting a dial indicator.

should i get a center gage and angle gages