70 replies to this topic

[havlicek]

I'm looking at maybe getting myself some machining capability over the winter, and want to start with a mini/micro lathe.  So the question is, what's out there that's fairly capable and compact.  The Micromark 7x16 would be on the top end of my budget , although there are what seem to be "good deals" on the used market.  Proxxon doesn't seem to offer any real reason to spend that much money, and there are some considerably less expensive ones (Harbor Freight and similar with different branding) and even smaller "micro" lathes.  Shop Fox 6x10 and similar seem as though they'd be sufficiently sized for the kind of stuff I most likely would want to do.  

 

So there's my price limit, and of course the "general capabilities" for the hobby are a given.  So without too much thread drift and what not, how about some suggestions?  In the words of the immortal Joe Friday..."just the facts".

 

-john

[Steve Deiters]

I bought a couple of Unimats on eBay a couple of years ago, but I notice prices have gone up in recent years. Supply and demand I guess. You have to move fast on the bidding and keep track of what is unfolding.
 
Plenty of spare parts, references, and sources on the internet for support.
 
There is also that old cliche'. They don't make them like they used to...

[Phil Hackett]

Be sure to buy **quality**. Money shouldn't be the limitation if a few hundred more buys a superior machine.

 

Sonic Started with a Unimat but I quickly found out its limitations (mainly size) and in the 30+ years of buying equipment I can say I have **never** regretted buying a bigger machine than was required. In **almost** every case where I bought a machine that was "right-sized" I was very unhappy with it.

 

You should also check to see if normal sized tooling can be used with the equipment you're planning on buying. Example: Sonic once bought a small VMC that had a very short Z-axis (Google these terms if unfamiliar) that made it impossible to use ordinary shop tooling under the spindle without a major modification to the machine. We eventually replaced that machine with a very large VMC (relatively) that makes it very easy to tool and program. The smaller machine also locked us into using the tooling from the machine maker because of the size requirements. The larger machine uses industry-standard tooling available from just about anywhere.

[chaparrAL]

John, for grinding stacks on arms and making custom size arm slugs and can slugs from aluminum a Unimat  3 is just the right size.

A 7 x 16 is heavy and may need a sturdy bench that will take up floor space. A bit big and heavy for your application. 

My Unimat is attached to a 7 x 15 inch piece of wood with rubber feet underneath on the corners, so it is portable and goes on any workbench. 

There in the NY metro area you may find one on Craigslist.

[Dennis David]

 

Model 4000 (4100) 3.5" x 8" lathe and standard accessories PLUS:

 

• 1041 2.5" 3-jaw self-centering chuck
• 1072 1/4" tailstock drill chuck w/ key, #0 Morse arbor, #1 Morse arbor with drawbolt
• 1074 Steady rest
• 1191 Live Center
• 3002 Cutoff tool and holder
• 3007 1/4" HSS 3-piece cutting tool set (RH, LH, boring)
• 3020 Sherline 5/32" T-driver
• 3021 3-piece center drill set

 

$850.00

[John Streisguth]

You may also want to check out the "Nano Lathe 4x4" from littlemachineshop.com

 

Don't know much about, but I came across it while researching small lathes for myself.  It's more along the lines of a jeweler's lathe

[Craig]

John,

 

A couple years ago I found a 4x8 Prazi MD 200 mini turn lathe on ebay for $230.00.  It is proving to be a very nice machine.

 

 

Also look for the 100 which is a tick smaller than the 200 and the 300 which is the largest with mill attachment

[havlicek]

Good info guys...please keep 'em coming.  The "watchmaker-sized" or "micro" lathes do have appeal from a size standpoint, but I'm not at all sure they'll have the power and capacity to do whatever I might come up with.

 

-john

[Milkman]

 

Model 4000 (4100) 3.5" x 8" lathe and standard accessories PLUS:

 

• 1041 2.5" 3-jaw self-centering chuck
• 1072 1/4" tailstock drill chuck w/ key, #0 Morse arbor, #1 Morse arbor with drawbolt
• 1074 Steady rest
• 1191 Live Center
• 3002 Cutoff tool and holder
• 3007 1/4" HSS 3-piece cutting tool set (RH, LH, boring)
• 3020 Sherline 5/32" T-driver
• 3021 3-piece center drill set

 

$850.00

 

I have his and cannot be more happy.  I've had it for about 30 years now and still can get parts and accessories.  Its rugged and well made.  I had looked at a Unimat back then but felt the Sherline was more solid.  Look at their site as they have many options available including CNC.

[Dennis David]

Al Penrose recommended the Sherline Lathe to me.

[Dennis David]

I think I'm in love ... LOL

 

[Rick]

Machines are like garages, no matter what size you get, you always want a bigger one......................

[John Streisguth]

Ah, I see you found that mill they sell 

 

BTW: the nanolathe can be converted to a mill

[Jeff Buyer]

John, I've been happy with my Taig lathe. Here's a link: http://www.taigtools.com/mlathe.html

[John Miller]

John,

 

Here is a great source from the little machine shop page.  Notice that these brands are all made at the same factory and the parts are interchangable.

 

 

http://littlemachine...the_compare.php

 

 

[SlotStox#53]

Look forward to seeing what machining you will be doing John

have no experience with lathes etc but I do know Rick T loves his Sherline lathe & has done some wondrous slot parts with it!!

Good luck in finding the right machine ,looks like everyones got you covered

[John Streisguth]

FYI: there is a older "classic" Unimat for sale on ebay in Brooklyn NY.  $550 buy it now

[Duffy]

We gotta remember, we're looking for a real high degree of precision, concentricity, and rigidity - and, like any short list, we might get one or two of our wants but each item we want raises both the price and the risks. I've played with a lot of these lathes, and Most of 'em will deliver two of the three, if you treat them well. (Oh yah: I forgot durability. Add a zero to the price tag.)

 

I very much liked the Taig & Sherline products for roundness and runout tolerances, as well as the older Unimats. On all of these, the leadscrews for X and Z feeds are too simple to be real accurate and require a lot of care and good work habits to get repeat results, but you can hone good habits.

All these machines benefit from a good tear-down and set-up/tune-up. There are whole forums devoted to this subject, and they are good resources.

No small scroll-type chuck will repeat well, but you can plan out your operations to achieve concentricity where you need it. You'll quickly amass a collection of mandrels and pots to hold workpieces in tight operations. Here's another place those discussion forums will come in handy.

None of these small lathes will perform well with the tougher metals and larger diameters, and you can very quickly beat them down if you try to push them past their structural limits. Once again, treat them well.

 

I'll be an even bigger buzzkill: what'd be great is if you could score a good Hardinge chucker on Ebay, and then find a patient machinist to build you exactly the sort of saddle you need for your work; then you could easily turn out Duffy DamnSerious JigWheels in 316 Stainless*. Yah, like that's gonna ever happen.

 

Duf

 

 

*see "Duffy's Digs" for further, non-hijacking, updates

[John Streisguth]

Speaking of those jigwheels....

[havlicek]

All good info guys, and this is turning into a nifty little resource right here.  I'm thinking that a 10" would be fine, even with drilling larger holes in longer materials.  The Taig and Sherlines look fine and, from what I see, most people find them good value machines (obviously, buying quality pays for itself with tools almost more than most other things but...).  I've seen a fair number of negatives about the newer Unimats, so that's a concern.  For the money, the Harbor Freight seems like a good deal (!) and people seem to like them with some reservations.  Like I said at the top, the Micromark seems also to be a good machine as well, and priced similarly to Sherline.  Anyone else???

 

-john

[Half Fast]

See also the

Grizzly G8688 Mini Metal Lathe, 7 x 12-Inch

Sold on Amaz0n

 

Cheers

[slotbaker]

Not sure if you have one of those Grizzly lathes Bill, but it looks like one I bought (different colour & badging) and returned it because it was crap.

Plastic back gears, lead screw had about 1mm end play, tail stock was off centre with chuck, lightweight,+, +.

All things that could have been overcome, but I thought it was poor value, even at such a cheap price.

I might have got a dud, but it was a shocker.

 

As the other guys have said, spend a few more $s and go for quality.

[Half Fast]

Not sure if you have one of those Grizzly lathes Bill, but it looks like one I bought (different colour & badging) and returned it because it was crap.

Plastic back gears, lead screw had about 1mm end play, tail stock was off centre with chuck, lightweight,+, +.

All things that could have been overcome, but I thought it was poor value, even at such a cheap price.

I might have got a dud, but it was a shocker.

 

As the other guys have said, spend a few more $s and go for quality.

 

I don't have one, so I defer to your expertise(if its in fact the same unit). Although the reviews seem positive, but one reviewer recommends complete dis-assembly and possible replacement parts to tighter the tolerances.

 

I guess we can't expect machine shop quality at these prices

 

Cheers

[Phil Hackett]

We gotta remember, we're looking for a real high degree of precision, concentricity, and rigidity - and, like any short list, we might get one or two of our wants but each item we want raises both the price and the risks. I've played with a lot of these lathes, and Most of 'em will deliver two of the three, if you treat them well. (Oh yah: I forgot durability. Add a zero to the price tag.)

 

I very much liked the Taig & Sherline products for roundness and runout tolerances, as well as the older Unimats. On all of these, the leadscrews for X and Z feeds are too simple to be real accurate and require a lot of care and good work habits to get repeat results, but you can hone good habits.

All these machines benefit from a good tear-down and set-up/tune-up. There are whole forums devoted to this subject, and they are good resources.

No small scroll-type chuck will repeat well, but you can plan out your operations to achieve concentricity where you need it. You'll quickly amass a collection of mandrels and pots to hold workpieces in tight operations. Here's another place those discussion forums will come in handy.

None of these small lathes will perform well with the tougher metals and larger diameters, and you can very quickly beat them down if you try to push them past their structural limits. Once again, treat them well.

 

I'll be an even bigger buzzkill: what'd be great is if you could score a good Hardinge chucker on Ebay, and then find a patient machinist to build you exactly the sort of saddle you need for your work; then you could easily turn out Duffy DamnSerious JigWheels in 316 Stainless*. Yah, like that's gonna ever happen.

 

Duf

 

 

*see "Duffy's Digs" for further, non-hijacking, updates

 

 

Duffy... you mean a Hardinge like this one????

 

Great Machine - Slightly Over Budget $$$$$

 

But then, I'd be looking at this for the same price but I don't need a project machine... God only knows what hidden Gotchyas are waiting for the buyer of this....

 

Take a Chance! Columbus Did!

[slotbaker]

I guess we can't expect machine shop quality at these prices

 

Very true.

 

I'm pretty sure it was the same lathe, as they are genericaly known as 'C2 Mini Lathe'.

(C1 manual feed, C2 powered feed)

 

I guess my expectations (ex-toolmaker) may have been a bit higher than the hobbyist after a simple lathe.