You know RWS is having fun when you gotta remove the smoke detectors.....hahahah

[Runs With Scissors]

I finally got around to moving the lathe into place, but as you can see its kind of dark and the old "curly Q" light bulbs kinda suck. I think they get worse as they age, but it's one of those things that get worse "incrementally" so its hard to notice.

I did start to replace the "curly Q" style with the newer LED style below.

But even that was only marginally better.

The cold hard reality is that as I get older, my vision is "slipping" a little.

So whilst at "The Depot" I walked by these bad boys about 5 months ago and decided to give them a whirl. So while setting up the CNC plasma machine, I wired in about 12 of them.

It lit the area up like some sort of "alien landing craft" or something .......I was pretty happy.

You can "Daisy chain" 4 together I think (might be 6, cant recall exactly.


Now I prefer 4.5-5K light and these are only 4K but thats all they have and for 40 bucks a throw, I figured I will try them out and was glad I did.

It ends up they are working great. I can't really tell they are only 4K so I am pleased.

I decide to go get a "few every month" and "the main shop area" got the upgrade last week.

Even though that light is out you can tell there is a Yuge difference.

After I got them all installed, I was really quite pleased with the results.

I was going to just use those "screw in outlets" in the already existing bases, but found 3 or 4 "donor outlets" on the shelfs.

And this is exactly why almost all of my shelving is only 5 or 6 inches deep.

There is no way in hell I would have found them by "digging around" ....

Well now that I can see a bit better its time to "get at" the lathe and start making some chips.........

I did go around and trim off al the dangling attachment chains and "pull cords".

 

[PHPaul]

My "new" shop is all LED, most of my basement -especially the work areas- is LED and my woodworking bay in the garage is LED. I will eventually replace the fluorescents in the maintenance bay with LED.

I thought moving up from incandescent to low-temp fluorescent was a big improvement. LED is that times 10!

 

[D2Cat]

My well pump at the farm is inside an old chest freezer. I use a light bulb in a reflective cover for some heat. Just last Thursday I could not find an incandescent bulb it the local stores. Just wanted a 100 watter and none to be found.

 

[Runs With Scissors]

Now to start "playing with" the lathe.

I have had this thing for about a month now, with about 3.5K into buying it, moving supplies, fuel, incidentals and what not, and I still have no idea if it works.

So I am "chomping at the bit" to get started.

The shop is destroyed, money is flying our the window like I'm printing it in the other room, I have 239,770 projects all going on at the same time, but its eating at me like no ones business.

So here we are......The Moment of Truth is upon us.

I chuck up a piece of "mystery metal" and take a few passes........

Hmmm......something seems to be "off" ......I can only take like 5 thou off.

I try to take a .015 cut and it F'ing stops the machine ......Now I am getting nervous/pissed/concerned/worried/angry all at the same time.......This POS is making my Craftsman lathe look like a 8 HP Monarch or something......

I am not happy at this point.

Here are a few videos. I can actually "stop" the lathe by using a cloth and pulling on the "lead screw"


First video is the lathe set at 70 rpm, the lathes slowest speed, but it vclearly looks slower than 70 rpm.

https://rumble.com/v66g7j7-lathe-surprise.html


Second video is testing out the fastest speed of 1400 rpm

https://rumble.com/v66g8zp-lathe-surprise-2-shop-fox-m1112.html

Third is testing the "lack of power" by stopping the leadscrew with a rag.

https://rumble.com/v66gbzm-stopping-lathe-with-shop-rag.html



After stopping the lathe with basically "hand pressure" I am more than just a "little concerned" I figure for sure I got F$%^d.

For the life of me I can't understand why, #1 it's running approximately 1/2 speed (or less), and #2 How can I be able to stop a 2 HP lathe with my hand?

Now I get it, its not a 10 HP machine but there is no way in hell I should be able to grab the lead screw and stop it.....Thats insane.......AGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!




Ok this requires some more investigation........so i pop off the "gear cover" and the words "What the Fork?" (not fork though) came dribbling out......

Apparently the previous owner, for whatever reason, tried to "gear down" the lathe so it would spin slower.......I have no idea why or what reason.....but I am feeling "better" now that I have have a "obvious reason" that seems to be fixable.......and easily "un-done".....

Heres video showing how "Loosey Goosey" the belt was

https://rumble.com/v66gaj4-lathe-surprise-3-problem-found........html


Now I just need new belts.......Hopefully.....

 

[Runs With Scissors]

My well pump at the farm is inside an old chest freezer. I use a light bulb in a reflective cover for some heat. Just last Thursday I could not find an incandescent bulb it the local stores. Just wanted a 100 watter and none to be found.

I am pretty sure that our "Big Brother" at .Gov, in their infinite wisdom, has "outlawed" them.

 

[Runs With Scissors]

Well I got the manual for the lathe and in the back they spec'ed out a 4L32 or 4L320 (can't remember exactly) automotive V belt, so I called "Oriellys" and they had them.......for 25 bucks each....

It's tough and many of you understand the problem. I would like to support the "local guy" but it's difficult to pay 50 bucks for 2 belts, when you can order them on the Big A for $8.95 each......So I ordered them.

In the mean time I was "noodling around" and discovered these "linked belts" and remembered my Craftsman lathe has one on it, and I have been very happy with it.

So I ordered some and even though it was more money, I have had great luck with mine, so I decide to try them out.

I removed the "Mickey Mouse gearing" and installed my new "linked belt"

then the 2nd one.

Now to tighten her up.


The "flat rate mechanic" in me, always tries to remove as little as possible whenever I do basically anything, but these adjustment bolts are well buried.

So I try to reach them through the hole I cut for the splash guard

What the hell am I doing?

I mean really man, its 2 screws and Bam its open and easily accessed.

Ok now it's time to make sure the belt is "aligned".....at least the best I can do for now.


So I grab out my "precision level" LOL....JK but its the best I have for now.

I figure it should be good enough to test for now.

so I measure the "main pulley's angle"

Then the motor pulley.

after some "jockeying" I get it "good nuf" for testing the lathe......again.

 

[Runs With Scissors]

OMG, this thing is awesome!!!!!!!!

This is my 1st facing cut and it's almost 'mirror' smooth.

Then I start 'testing"

I kept increasing the depth of cut and speed until the finish got worse.

I think this was at 1400 rpm and .070 DOC

This baby blows my Craftsman away!!!!!!

Then, in my excitement, I add some cutting fluid...... and thats why we can't have nice things!!!!!!

The smoke starts pouring off the piece and quickly sets off the "smoke alarm"

Now the really funny/bad/sad part is that even with all the smoke pouring off this thing and alll the detectors blaring, my wife doesn't even flinch, or ask me if everything is "all right"


Can't stop now though....I'm having a blast, so I do the only logical thing I can think of.....

Just remove the F'ing thing.

And place it "out of harms way"

 

[Runs With Scissors]

Now for some steel.

This is where things get tough.

According to my amazon account this is A36 CRS but I can't get a "really good" finish to save my life.

I keep trying to adjust my speeds, feeds and DOC, but I'll be damned if I can get a 'nice' finish.

At some point, I take a real deep cut with an aggressive feed rate; it generates a little smoke and stops the machine.

This is where it starts biting me in the a$$.

Now I stop, back it off, then hit the insert with a stone to "freshen" the cutting edge and go at it again; But for some reason I start "breaking HSS inserts" as soon as I touch the cutter to the piece.

I am not sure if what happened, but it appears as if I "work hardened" the test piece by taking too aggressive of a cut?

Anyone ever heard of that?

I ended up going through most of my inserts, and at 11 bucks a pop, I need to figure this out quick.

Here are some pics of whats happening to my inserts as soon as I touch them, and it sounds like a "rhythmic thudding" noise after it breaks the tip off.

I wasted 3 inserts in very short order, so something is up for sure.

I only had 4 to start with so it's off to Arthur Warner to get some replacements I guess.

 

[Sidekick]

That stink will get up in the house and soon your wife will kick you out on the street. Once it absorbs into the wood it will never go away. Get a fume extractor so 2 months from now you don't wind up homeless .

 

[Lil Foot]

Glad your detective work paid off.

Mine would wind 1" rebar into a coil spring at 71 rpm.
I was stumped until you showed how loose the belt was, as cutting the speed in half should have made it more powerful, not less.
I'm guessing PO wanted to do some very large part or an imbalanced part or wanted to take a massive cut in something hard.
Maybe, if this was the result, that is why they sold it.

On the plus side, your gear box is much quieter than mine.

As for work hardening, absolutely.
Depending on the material, heating or dwelling can absolutely cause work hardening, and sometimes hardening just in spots. (sounds like your symptoms)

When I worked in production machining, we had an alloy called Ni-Span-C Alloy 902 that would work harden if you took too light a cut, too heavy a cut, cut without coolant, or dwelled on the part. (or looked at it cross-eyed)
Once work hardened, it would eat diamond inserts.
The only way to proceed was to cut the material off & start over.

A mod you might consider:
Bend up a piece of light sheet metal to shield the belts from grease/oil slung off the gears. My belts were ruined when I got it, saturated with oil. It's an easy , cheap fix for a big return.

Glad you are making progress!

 

[jyoutz]

My well pump at the farm is inside an old chest freezer. I use a light bulb in a reflective cover for some heat. Just last Thursday I could not find an incandescent bulb it the local stores. Just wanted a 100 watter and none to be found.

You can always buy a red incandescent poultry heater lamp at TSC. They do get pretty hot so make sure there’s no fire risk.

 

[lynnmor]

My well pump at the farm is inside an old chest freezer. I use a light bulb in a reflective cover for some heat. Just last Thursday I could not find an incandescent bulb it the local stores. Just wanted a 100 watter and none to be found.

You might want to lay in a stash of heat lamp bulbs, Home Depot has them on line. Maybe they will have a better life span and make more infrared heat.

 

[Lil Foot]

but these adjustment bolts are well buried.

.
You're not kidding there.
I think I used this:

https://www.harborfreight.com/14-in-38-in-drive-long-reach-dual-flex-head-ratchet-67994.html?_br_psugg_q=1%2F4+3%2F8+ratchet

 

[lynnmor]

Now for some steel.

This is where things get tough.

According to my amazon account this is A36 CRS but I can't get a "really good" finish to save my life.

I keep trying to adjust my speeds, feeds and DOC, but I'll be damned if I can get a 'nice' finish.

At some point, I take a real deep cut with an aggressive feed rate; it generates a little smoke and stops the machine.

This is where it starts biting me in the a$$.

Now I stop, back it off, then hit the insert with a stone to "freshen" the cutting edge and go at it again; But for some reason I start "breaking HSS inserts" as soon as I touch the cutter to the piece.

I am not sure if what happened, but it appears as if I "work hardened" the test piece by taking too aggressive of a cut?

Anyone ever heard of that?

I ended up going through most of my inserts, and at 11 bucks a pop, I need to figure this out quick.

Here are some pics of whats happening to my inserts as soon as I touch them, and it sounds like a "rhythmic thudding" noise after it breaks the tip off.

I wasted 3 inserts in very short order, so something is up for sure.

I only had 4 to start with so it's off to Arthur Warner to get some replacements I guess.

Work hardening is a rare phenomenon that is often used when a machinist is confused. My guess is that you are using cheap steel inserts and should be using carbide to get the speed and finish you are after.

60 years ago I was serving an apprenticeship in a basement shop. The lady of the house was real fussy, the kind that didn't even allow use of the living room. A skilled machinist was hired part time to run a lathe and he used cutting oil that smoked a lot. The lady came down (something she rarely did) and complained about the smoke. The lathe guy then kept oil on all the hot chips as well as the actual work piece.

 

[Lil Foot]

Work hardening is a rare phenomenon that is often used when a machinist is confused.

 

[Runs With Scissors]

Glad your detective work paid off.

Mine would wind 1" rebar into a coil spring at 71 rpm.
I was stumped until you showed how loose the belt was, as cutting the speed in half should have made it more powerful, not less.
I'm guessing PO wanted to do some very large part or an imbalanced part or wanted to take a massive cut in something hard.
Maybe, if this was the result, that is why they sold it.

On the plus side, your gear box is much quieter than mine.

As for work hardening, absolutely.
Depending on the material, heating or dwelling can absolutely cause work hardening, and sometimes hardening just in spots. (sounds like your symptoms)

When I worked in production machining, we had an alloy called Ni-Span-C Alloy 902 that would work harden if you took too light a cut, too heavy a cut, cut without coolant, or dwelled on the part. (or looked at it cross-eyed)
Once work hardened, it would eat diamond inserts.
The only way to proceed was to cut the material off & start over.

A mod you might consider:
Bend up a piece of light sheet metal to shield the belts from grease/oil slung off the gears. My belts were ruined when I got it, saturated with oil. It's an easy , cheap fix for a big return.

Glad you are making progress!
View attachment 145687

Thanks man!

I am pretty sure I "work hardend' it.

I was just playing around with the machine kind of "getting my bearings" type thing, but I need to look/study more closely about turning speed and feed rates.

That "grease protector' will be #1 priority this weekend. Great job and thanks for posting that.


The funny thing is that I put a dab of grease on my gears and experienced the same "slinging" phenomena.

Then I ran it for a few seconds......

Your "grease slinging protector" is a great idea.



I would like to add that my gear box was pretty loud after I got the belts installed, so I used a "trick" that I learned from watching that guy "Mr. Pete222" (aka Tubalcain) on YouTube.

If anyone is interested, he shows how he uses an "index card" to space his gears. I just used a piece of regular 8.5 x 11 piece of paper to shim mine. Its at about the 4:38 mark.

This is the 2nd time I have used this "trick", and it really does a nice job quieting the gear train down.




And as far as this goes.

"
Maybe, if this was the result, that is why they sold it. "

I think is was more likely because he died.

 

[Runs With Scissors]

Work hardening is a rare phenomenon that is often used when a machinist is confused. My guess is that you are using cheap steel inserts and should be using carbide to get the speed and finish you are after.

Yep, that describes me pretty well.

As a "hobbiest" I pretty much 'learn as I go".

I am considering ordering that "Machinery's Handbook" to try and have a "reference" .

Or they also sell an "abbreviated version" that might be handy.

And I am not sure what the "industry" considers cheap, but I get/got my HSS inserts from Arthur Warner. I am having a hard time finding anyone else that makes them.

Is there a better place to get them?

 

[lynnmor]

Yep, that describes me pretty well.

As a "hobbiest" I pretty much 'learn as I go".

I am considering ordering that "Machinery's Handbook" to try and have a "reference" .

Or they also sell an "abbreviated version" that might be handy.

And I am not sure what the "industry" considers cheap, but I get/got my HSS inserts from Arthur Warner. I am having a hard time finding anyone else that makes them.

Is there a better place to get them?

I never used steel inserts, always carbide. I use a variety of suppliers, MSC, Travers & McMaster are the usual ones. Of course shop around if you have the time.

Machinery's Handbook is fine but I haven't opened it in more than 20 years, most information can be found on the web and some of it is actually useful.

 

[Lil Foot]

For years (decades?) I have used brown paper (picture paper grocery bags) to set gear clearance, it was recommended in one of my early machine manuals. (Atlas?)
I think I will try standard paper for less clearance, Thanks.
I find that RED & TACKY grease slings a little less.
I should have guessed that running at half speed would produce less noise. Duh.

 

[Lil Foot]

I also have never used steel inserts, always carbide or diamond.
I make a list of the inserts I need, and occasionally surf eboy for deals.
I often find partial packs for pennies on the dollar.
I find there are a vast variations of the same insert, (different manufacturers, different grades of carbide, different corner radii, different coatings, different chip breakers, etc) but for home use, just about anything will do.
Do you really care if the more expensive insert will make 165 production parts vs 150 parts for the cheaper insert?
I tend to buy inserts with the smallest corner radii, as they cut with less pressure.
But I have large radii inserts also, they are generally a lot tougher & more forgiving in hard materials, heavier cuts, & interrupted cuts.

I have 4 or 5 Machinery's Handbooks (inherited, gifted, bought with other stuff) and although virtually every bit of machining data you might ever need is in there, it is often a real chore to dig it out. (newer versions are better than early ones)
So, as lynnmor said, it is usually quicker & easier to get it off the web.