Mini lathe

[Farmall m farmer]

I just bought a black and decker nwa valve grinder and now I want to get my feet wet in machining what would be a good brand I have seen some on Amazon for $300 or harbor freight for $700 or other ones for $1500 do you have any recommendations for a mini lathe for a guy trying to start learning machining skills but I don’t want a full size lathe right now I don’t have room in my shop

 

[Pete in Holland MI]

Watch the used market for an older one. Study up on what a lathe can do, so that you make sure you have all the necessary attachments & tooling when you buy. Buying piece by piece can be expensive.

 

[Janicholson]

Ebay
An atlas, Clausing, Logan, South Bend lathe would work. This one I found on Ebay! Not mine.
Make sure it has reasonably small backlash in the cross feed and compound rest, As noted, get tooling with it. Jim

 

[wp6529]

Unless your only interest is in building models in aluminum, brass, plastic and the like no "mini" lathe (or mill) will be satisfactory. As noted you need to look for a used larger quality machine in reasonable condition. Any the big WARNING - Tooling will cost you many times what you pay for the base machine.

 

[charlie n]

Do some research on YouTube. Also check Little Machine Shop. I'm gettin one of these delivered tomorrow. Up grading from a Grizzly. I have a Grizzly drill press that's a good machine. As far as the lathe, I've seen beer cans with better quality control. Good Luck.
precisionmatthews.com/shop/pm-1022v-pm-1030v/

 

[Farmall m farmer]

Ok I think I will keep my eye out for a decent priced used one from all the other tools I’ve bought old almost always seems better built

 

[Gary Reif]

All the above advice is good. I guess I don't understand if you want to get into machining why you would buy a valve grinder as your first machine especially if you don't have a lot of room. Unless your planning to get into engine rebuilding, and as has been said above tooling cost can exceed the price of the machines.

 

[Farmall m farmer]

All the above advice is good. I guess I don't understand if you want to get into machining why you would buy a valve grinder as your first machine especially if you don't have a lot of room. Unless you’re planning to get into engine rebuilding, and as has been said above tooling cost can exceed the price of the machines.

The reasons I bought a valve grinder first
A it was $55 at an auction and I thought it was a good deal and it came with all stuff like the stone dresser and the thing to grind the bottom of the valves with and a bunch of other stuff I’m still figuring out what they do
B I’ve already rebuilt enough engine I could have paid for the machine 2 or 3 times over and I don’t plan on slowing down with the engine rebuilding

 

[farmersamm]

I don't mean to discourage you............but the last thing you want to do, is buy a used lathe if you've never run one before. You simply won't know what to look for in terms of useability, wear, etc. It's a prescription for disappointment. I went this route years ago, and it's the reason I went out and bought a new one..........it was simply too expensive to bring the used one up to snuff.

If you have a buddy who runs them, you'd be good taking him along to look at it.

9" x 19" Bench Lathe

Over 60 years in the business, with warehouses located in Warren, Michigan and Tulsa, Oklahoma. Place your order now via phone, fax, or the web at www.wttool.

www.wttool.com

9" x 19" Bench Lathe

Over 60 years in the business, with warehouses located in Warren, Michigan and Tulsa, Oklahoma. Place your order now via phone, fax, or the web at www.wttool.

www.wttool.com

These are larger than the mini lathes, and closer to something that will be of service.

My 13x40 lathe came from this outfit, and they were very good to deal with. I had issues, and they paid for the required parts to get everything squared away.

Used vs. new. The idea is to make parts, not fix machines...........often requiring another lathe/mill to make the parts to fix the used machine. Just something to think about I guess.

 

[Butch(OH)]

I just bought a black and decker nwa valve grinder and now I want to get my feet wet in machining what would be a good brand I have seen some on Amazon for $300 or harbor freight for $700 or other ones for $1500 do you have any recommendations for a mini lathe for a guy trying to start learning machining skills but I don’t want a full size lathe right now I don’t have room in my shop

Yes, my recommendation is to buy once with no regrets but that would require you to forget the elcheapo mini lathe. First thing is that the practical size you can machine in a lathe is approximately 1/2 the the machine size. You cannot machine anything close to 9x12 in a 9x 12 lathe. Swing over the cross slide is more important on 90% of lathe work, NOT swing over the bed. The second thing is the quality of those lathes is crap. Plastic gears, soft metal parts. A12x36 size lathe will sit on a sturdy work bench and is 10 times more versatile in a farm or home workshop. Used USA or quality import is a debate I won't get into but the 12x36 far east lathes are a LOT better quality then the minis.

 

[Mark-Ia]

A lot of used Metal Lathes on Marketplace right now.

 

[BarnyardEngineering]

A lot of used Metal Lathes on Marketplace right now.

Yeah, and they're usually someone else's mistake.

 

[M-MAN]

Sounds to me like you just want to get your feet wet and learn how to do a little machining on a lathe. I was in the same boat around 10 to 15 years ago. The options weren't as plentiful then.

I bought a Microlux 7X20 from Micromark. It is made by Seig just like all the rest of the mini's. It is one of the better quality lathes though. Same basic machine is sold by everyone. Price point decides quality. I have been very happy with mine. Turned brass, aluminum and steel from 1/4 in to 3 1/2 in. I have done a lot of upgrades including a 5 in chuck. Lots of fun doing those and the internet is full of how to's.

Don't believe the naysayers that tell you you are wasting your money on anything other than a $5,000 American made lathe. Sure it's faster and you can turn larger pieces but that's about it. Since this is a tractor board consider this. For the most part these newer high horsepower tractors are doing the same job as our old 20 - 30 hp tractors from 70 years ago. The difference is they can take bigger cuts and do it faster. When you're playing and learning who cares???

 

[wp6529]

Sounds to me like you just want to get your feet wet and learn how to do a little machining on a lathe. I was in the same boat around 10 to 15 years ago. The options weren't as plentiful then.

I bought a Microlux 7X20 from Micromark. It is made by Seig just like all the rest of the mini's. It is one of the better quality lathes though. Same basic machine is sold by everyone. Price point decides quality. I have been very happy with mine. Turned brass, aluminum and steel from 1/4 in to 3 1/2 in. I have done a lot of upgrades including a 5 in chuck. Lots of fun doing those and the internet is full of how to's.

Don't believe the naysayers that tell you you are wasting your money on anything other than a $5,000 American made lathe. Sure it's faster and you can turn larger pieces but that's about it. Since this is a tractor board consider this. For the most part these newer high horsepower tractors are doing the same job as our old 20 - 30 hp tractors from 70 years ago. The difference is they can take bigger cuts and do it faster. When you're playing and learning who cares???

The difference is that you can fit and work on your tractor parts in a "real" lathe and you cannot in a "mini" lathe, and that's before you get into the issues of power and rigidity that will prevent you from machining the materials used for your tractor part or the issue of change gears/QC change box/available inch/metric thread pitches which can prevent of seriously hinder your ability to thread your tractor parts.

 

[M-MAN]

The difference is that you can fit and work on your tractor parts in a "real" lathe and you cannot in a "mini" lathe, and that's before you get into the issues of power and rigidity that will prevent you from machining the materials used for your tractor part or the issue of change gears/QC change box/available inch/metric thread pitches which can prevent of seriously hinder your ability to thread your tractor parts.

I think you're missing the point. The op wants to LEARN how to operate a lathe and make stuff. He can do that on a mini lathe and do it precisely.

There are many tractor parts you can make on a mini lathe. Bushings, pins, shafts, press fit tubes. Those are just some things I have made. Tools to install them also. There is no material I can't handle with mine. Hardened steel? I have a toolpost grinder for that as well. Full set of change gears to cut standard or metric along with variable speed for different materials and sizes.

It's true I can't weld up a 4020 axle and turn it back to size BUT who in their right mind would attempt it while LEARNING to operate a lathe? Big stuff goes to the machine shop and the other 90% you do yourself.

 

[bmaverick]

I just bought a black and decker nwa valve grinder and now I want to get my feet wet in machining what would be a good brand I have seen some on Amazon for $300 or harbor freight for $700 or other ones for $1500 do you have any recommendations for a mini lathe for a guy trying to start learning machining skills but I don’t want a full size lathe right now I don’t have room in my shop

For awesome accuracy from the small to large size benchtop units, Grizzly lathes are highly rated. The pricing is attractive too.

https://www.grizzly.com/search?c=Metal Lathes&t=Metal Lathes

My workplace has 14 of these machines. They tossed out the Harbor Freight units that were priced similarly.

USA made in Springfield, MO with 'some' parts sourced globally.

 

[bmaverick]

I just bought a black and decker nwa valve grinder and now I want to get my feet wet in machining what would be a good brand I have seen some on Amazon for $300 or harbor freight for $700 or other ones for $1500 do you have any recommendations for a mini lathe for a guy trying to start learning machining skills but I don’t want a full size lathe right now I don’t have room in my shop

If you are starting out, once you have the lowest priced lathe, you will be in a pickle sooner than later for a project needing a longer lathe to do the work.

Here are the bottom ended sized Grizzly's, but for real practical work, their $1,550 priced unit would be ideal for starting out.

Making a tractor splined 4WD shaft is simple on these lathes, but a 19 or 22 inch lathe to fit the work piece is a must.

These smaller units here could make small gears, but why when we have McMaster-Carr and direct shipping?

 

[wp6529]

I think you're missing the point. The op wants to LEARN how to operate a lathe and make stuff. He can do that on a mini lathe and do it precisely.

There are many tractor parts you can make on a mini lathe. Bushings, pins, shafts, press fit tubes. Those are just some things I have made. Tools to install them also. There is no material I can't handle with mine. Hardened steel? I have a toolpost grinder for that as well. Full set of change gears to cut standard or metric along with variable speed for different materials and sizes.

It's true I can't weld up a 4020 axle and turn it back to size BUT who in their right mind would attempt it while LEARNING to operate a lathe? Big stuff goes to the machine shop and the other 90% you do yourself.

If the OP purchases an undersized lathe to learn on, he also needs to purchase a lot of undersized tooling for it, a significant investment that will be somewhat wasted when he graduates to a bigger lathe and nothing can migrate with it.

If on the other hand the OP purchases a decent larger used lathe, even one a bit worn, he can purchase tooling for it and when he graduates and decides it is time to upgrade to a nicer lathe pretty much all of that tooling investment can migrate as well saving considerable cost.

I started out with an "inherited" 60's? Atlas/Clausing 12x36 lathe, and all the tooling I purchased/acquired over a number of years (except chucks, but I didn't buy any anyway) transferred right over to my quite nice 2009 Sharp 13x40 lathe that I also purchased used. If I had purchased any chucks as long as I purchased backplate style the chucks would readily transfer with just a new $99 backplate from 1 1/2-8 threaded to D1-4 camlock.

So there is real benefit to starting out in the correct machine size range even if it's a clapped out $250 Craigslist unit to start learning on before spending a few $k for a really nice machine in the same size class.

 

[wore out]

I just bought a black and decker nwa valve grinder and now I want to get my feet wet in machining what would be a good brand I have seen some on Amazon for $300 or harbor freight for $700 or other ones for $1500 do you have any recommendations for a mini lathe for a guy trying to start learning machining skills but I don’t want a full size lathe right now I don’t have room in my shop

I have a Black and Decker valve grinder, as well. It isn't as HEAVY as a Sioux, but has worked for me for many years.

As to metal lathes, I have these two and a Chinese lathe and an old Atlas lathe sized in between those two.

 

[zuhnc]

I have one of the Harbor Freight mini-lathes. It did what I needed it to do prior to my obtaining the 11" South Bend. I still use it for small parts where the larger lathe is overkill. The mini-lathe has its limitations, and needs serious going-through when first purchased. Quality control and factory adjustments are not high on the list as sold. Accuracy is decent for what I do.

I was able to fabricate an emulsion tube for a carburetor with it, so not too bad.

It all depends on what you are going to do with a lathe. A larger lathe will enable you to do larger jobs; cleaning up and fabricating parts for equipment and implements, that the mini-lathe can't handle. As a starter, it is OK, and one can learn the basics.