My Lathe Project Status .

[digitalmdj]

This is a picture of my lathe as I am putting it back together. My lathe table is almost finished. Also some tooling I bought. ER 40 chucks for the headstock, mill and tail Stock with collects up to 30mm. A laser center finder. Quick change tool post Phase II Wedge style. Also a headstock alignment bar with a m4 taper. The ways have been lapped and the X Axis is smooth. The Y Axis still needs to be lapped and the Tail Stock needs some work on the height issues. I will have to shim up the head stock a few thousands to fix the issue. Shoptask did not help any during this project and does not deserve any credit for the work I have done. This machine was junk when I started.

[Ira]

Looks nice, thanks for the pics. I'm new to the forum, and have recently purchased a Patriot machine, please don't flame me with negativity digitalmdj, I get it, you dislike shopmaster products. I hope you have luck with your rebuild, sounds like you're making a pretty bad ass machine with ER40 spindles. I'm expecting a decent machine in the Patriot, but it's still a budget machine that I assume I'll need to rework to get better precision. I've bought Chinese tools that I thought were reputable i.e. Jet woodworking tools, and except my wood lathe, I've needed to improve them quite a bit to make them acceptable. Although, at the end of the day (maybe a month or 6) I have a really nice precise tool that was very cheap for what it can do.

My question is, if you're putting ER40 spindles into junk castings, aren't you destined to end up with very expensive junk? Why not throw the whole thing out, save up and buy something else? Or build your own machine out of engine blocks. Really, I know you're heavily invested in your project, but why not scrap the shoptask, and let it go. It's not a wash, you've learned a ton. Anyway, I'm just a NOOB to CNC machining I've only handed over a dwg and collected my beautiful parts. I've done some manual milling, and I love the precision of metal working over woodworking tools.

[banctecbobn]

Your right, I was just giving you a hard time.

I'm not much of a Shoptask fan but the machine or I should say the machines are what they are....a hobby 3n1. If I had to buy another 3n1, I would buy a Shoptask. I beleive they are the best in their class, but then again I would never buy another 3n1.

[digitalmdj]

I have made sure that all my tooling can be transferred to another machine . I have fixed most of the problems with the mill gearbox and I will post a picture shortly. The ER40 stuff can fit alot of different machines so I am never out of options. My VFD drives will work on any machine up to 1.5 hp and its portable . You can see by the pics I just posted the mill coll um posts are 5" taller. The left one is the original. Also a lift motor will be installed. This takes time to do on a buget and machining is very expensive if you can get someone who will do it. I make sausage and salami as a side hobby. It happens the retired machinist likes to barter. So this week he is getting honey cured bacon for work on my tool post base. Several machinist in Fresno want my beef Jerky so I told them we will barter . They like to be spoiled but try to pay for it and it will never get done. The way to get it done is through their stomachs. I make a pretty good Canadian beacon that a local restaurant try's to get me to do every so often also.

[digitalmdj]

Here is a picture of my mill spindle gearbox complete. We bored the bad holes out and installed bushings we made out of A2 tool steel. As the picture shows the holes were poorly machined from the factory and put together so you cant see the problems until you pull the machine apart to inspect it. The bevel gears had to be shimmed and the side of the case milled so the manual feed would work with the original style thrust bearings. The backlash was so bad the gears were skipping teeth. I replaced the bushing between the thrust bearings with a ball bearing . Now the hand feed shaft no longer binds up . I added a ball screw and custom made nut. I added a flange bearing at the bottom of the power feed shaft to support the shaft better.

[jalessi]

Digitalmdj,

Please post more pictures and part specifications of the modifications that you are doing so other members can benefit from your years of machining experience.

Reading a productive or instructive thread is awesome.

Jeff...

[digitalmdj]

Here are some more improvements I have done to my Shoptask . I bored out my tail stock end bushing to fit a bearing now it feels smooth and a vast improvement over the steel bushing.. I also added bearings to my X and Y axis lead screws. The bushings just made everything bind up. Now they turn freely and are a far improvement from the steel bushings that were installed. Also I cut down my riser block to fit my BXA 200 tool post. The T nut had to be drilled and taped to fit the larger securing bolt

[smallblock]

Here are some more improvements I have done to my Shoptask . I bored out my tail stock end bushing to fit a bearing now it feels smooth and a vast improvement over the steel bushing.. I also added bearings to my X and Y axis lead screws. The bushings just made everything bind up. Now they turn freely and are a far improvement from the steel bushings that were installed. Also I cut down my riser block to fit my BXA 200 tool post. The T nut had to be drilled and taped to fit the larger securing bolt

I agree on the bearings. My Patriot has bearings in all those places, and you can really tell the difference from my old sShoptask which had the bushings as well. Looks like you will end up with your own version of the Patriot when all done. In your old posts, you had painted it red- why the change to green?

[Bloy2004]

Here are some more improvements I have done to my Shoptask . I bored out my tail stock end bushing to fit a bearing now it feels smooth and a vast improvement over the steel bushing..

That bushing takes the thrust load from any drilling operation using the tailstock. That full load is transferred to the little setscrew holding the bushing in. Try it....remove that little setscrew and turn the handle while loading up the tailstock. the assembly will push out of the tailstock tube. This load causes the bushing to "cant" and sometimes bind on the tailstock drive. My solution was to take out the dial and drill three end holes to receive/secure an endplate which evenly distributes the pressure around the bushing. My picture just shows a mockup washer not actually used for the end plate.

Your bearing inner race will get the full force(or maybe not) of any drilling operation unless you added an internal plate to share forces with the outer race. Are you still using the setscrew to put pressure on the outer bearing race? I'm not sure how you are securing the bearing into the tailstock tube.

[smallblock]

That bushing takes the thrust load from any drilling operation using the tailstock. That full load is transferred to the little setscrew holding the bushing in. Try it....remove that little setscrew and turn the handle while loading up the tailstock. the assembly will push out of the tailstock tube. This load causes the bushing to "cant" and sometimes bind on the tailstock drive. My solution was to take out the dial and drill three end holes to receive/secure an endplate which evenly distributes the pressure around the bushing. My picture just shows a mockup washer not actually used for the end plate. Your bearing inner race will get the full force of any drilling operation unless you added an internal plate to share forces with the outer race. Are you still using the setscrew to put pressure on the outer bearing race? I'm not sure how you are securing the bearing into the tailstock tube.

The Patriot machine uses the original bushing which is bored out to accept a caged needle bearing. A torrington bearing takes the horizontal load between the screw and the bushing. The bushing is held in place by 3 set screws placed 90 degrees apart, and each set screw has a jam nut to prevent it from loosening. The 4th 90 degree position is for the button oiler. A roller bearing would be fine with the retainer plate.

[Bloy2004]

A torrington bearing takes the horizontal load between the screw and the bushing.

Ah! I think I will add that(thrust bearing) sometime in the future. I don't mind the bushing as a "support" for the screw shaft, but i don't like the flange on the screw shaft actually rubbing/loading on the bushing.

[digitalmdj]

I am going to add two more set screws also . I can see that one will not do. I was considering a thrust bearing in front also but I will have to put some more thought into it. Also Smallblock show us the pictures of these improvements your machine has. You keep telling us but no picture to verify any of this. It's just talk and not proof of any of this being factual.