Build Thread- 7 x 10 project started

[yang_cnc]

Blades:

impressive mod and neat. I especially like the idea of removing all underlying stuff of the carriage block(if my term is right)

one question, so did you throw away the old leadscrew?

[NEATman]

yang cnc-
Are you in need of a leadscrew? I've just removed one from my "speedway" (blue 7x10 or 7x12) lathe. It is the exact model on page 6 of this user guide:

http://www.littlemachineshop.com/Inf...UsersGuide.pdf

I have also removed the front apron (broken handwheel, good halfnut), cross slide screw & nut, change gears & Mount, end cover, thread dial, etc. I have no use for any of it, as I am replacing them with ballscrews on both axes.

Keith

[Farasien]

Hey Blades-

Did you have a print of where the holes need to be drilled in the end of the lathe bed to line up the screw where you have it? I was working on making the same setup as yours, but had a few other ideas for the end mount...

Thanks-

-F

[blades]

No buddy, I sure don't. I mounted the motor to the plate and then clamped up the plate to the end of the lathe bed, then transfered the holes once I had it positioned exactly where I wanted it.

I hope to be back on this project in another month or so. I am in the process of moving, and have a laundry list of stuff to get done before I can focus on this again.

[blades]

A bit more done today: mounted the flatpanel to the back of the lathe. Now I need a chipguard over the monitor. Still waiting to order the ever-elusive G540. Thought I was going to get it a few weeks ago, but other stuff came up. Most likely within the next couple months I'll be able to get it.
Down side is that I'm being sent to San Antonio for the next 6 months for work (Toyota). Unless I take the lathe with me, I won't be able to finish it until I get back.
Don't really think I'll have room to take it down with me.


I know not everyone (or even anyone?) will like the idea of the flat panel mounted like that, but recall that one of my primary requirements was a small footprint, which means no external monitor. We'll see how it works out when the lathe is complete. I'm only planning on turning wood/acrylic/etc. for pens. My workbench and lathe are now located in our craftroom (2nd bedroom in our 2 bedroom condo), so it would be highly impractical to do any type of metal turning there.

[Teyber12]

beautiful

[UNISA JECS]

Nice work! I plan on doing the same to my 93212 HF 7x10, i've never done any kind of work on a lathe before but im learning, had mine for about 3 weeks now and have completly broke it down and put it back to gether to get familiar with it.

[lam90]

"Down side is that I'm being sent to San Antonio for the next 6 months for work (Toyota). Unless I take the lathe with me, I won't be able to finish it until I get back.
Don't really think I'll have room to take it down with me. "


Lots of luck with your new assignment in San Antonio, we all will be waiting till your return and you can finish this project.

Best regards,

Larry

[bodysnatcher]

Very Nice Job...Kudos to you....

Yep real nice...

[blades]

Thanks guys, appreciate the kind comments! Not much more I can do until I get the G540.

[dustin1706]

I know blades isnt around to work on this right now, but I have to say... SICK! so simple and clean, but looks very functional.

I have a 7x12 that I would like to do the same thing to. I love this design and hope you don't mind terribly if I copy it almost completely.

I do have a few questions for you, or anyone else for that matter. Forgive me if they are ridiculous, but I`m a CNC Newb.

On the Horizontal screw, is there any reason you drilled, split and used a collar on it instead of just using a $15 acme-1/4" coupler?

Also, it doesnt look like that acme nut is of the "anti-backlash" variety. Will that be an issue? And, I wonder if the "anchor" for the horizontal screw will be stable enough. The only time you need high speed movement will be for threading applications I suppose, but then it is fairly critical I would think.

[blades]

Hey Dustin, thank you for your kind comments! I must say, I am extremely happy myself with the simplicity of the design, it's just how I roll.
I also did a stupid-simple 2-axis conversion on an X2 mill, there's a thread buried somewhere in the bench mill forum here.

Your questions most certainly are NOT rediculous in the least, they are very valid. I will try and answer all of them.

Regarding the method I used to attach the screw to the motor, I did it mostly for simplicity and cheap cost: the split collar was only about $2.00. It required very minimal machining and was simple. Also, I was not aware of the coupler you described... would love to take a look at it though. I didn't use a traditional coupler because I needed to eliminate any possibility of backlash in the assembly, and I felt a direct clamped assembly would best serve the purpose. But the adapter you mentioned may be just as effective as the method I used.

No, the nut is a simple Delrin ACME nut I got off ebay, which is another important point: my intended use for this will be making custom pens out of various hardwood or acrylic. This type of machining will result in extremely low forces on the leadscrew. If you plan on doing any kind of steel turning on your lathe, you will really want to consider incorporating thrust bearings to stabilize the screw. Again, my intended use does not require this as the motor itself has no measurable end-play in the shaft, even with pressure applied. I suspect the motors I got from Keling have built-in thrust bearings, as I have never seen a zero end-play motor without them. If I were converting an 8x14 or larger lathe, I would most definitely use thrust bearings.

CRAP I wish I could have brought the lathe with me!!!

EDIT: Found the thread for my ghetto-cheap 2 axis mill project.
http://www.cnczone.com/forums/showthread.php?t=50277