# cheap lathe/mill mod idea



## New_Guy (Nov 14, 2009)

hey i was looking in a machinery catalog before and one of those small lathe mill combo machines got my eye one of these https://www.machineryhouse.com.au/Products?stockCode=L159 and from Enco http://www.use-enco.com/CGI/INSRIT?PMAKA=510-2586&PMPXNO=9033438&PARTPG=INLMK3 

i noticed that you have no carriage hand wheel and have to use that leadscrew which would be a PTA if it was a bigger machine then i noticed the simple dog clutch hmm that would be very handy..... a parallel rod just under the leadscrew, make some stops to slid along the rod, set up a dog to push each stop and a little modification to the dog clutch so the rod will push it out of engagement and there you have it a simple threading and feed stop and best of all you can do all of that on the machine its going on how cool would that be  ;D

i dont have one of these machines and dont intend to get one but if anyone does it would be cool to see if this idea would work. think of it the most PTA job on a lathe is threading if you do this it wont just be easy but you can ramp it up to a proper speed and just watch it go or what about boring to a depth on production parts? this is such a good and easy feature it pisses me off that it has been neglected all these years even on industrial tools its not not a new idea been around for years so why isnt it done more often ???

anyway thats my daily rant of ideas off to the shed now  oh for those more interested look up the tiny Cromwells lathe oh and you can put a nob on the end of the rod to quickly knock the feed off if the **** hits the fan....


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## New_Guy (Nov 17, 2009)

i suppose no one knows what i mean here is a pic to help 







the rod in red sits in under the leadscrew out of the way of moving parts

adjustable stops (in pink) run along the rod these are tightened so when the dog attached to the bottom of the carriage (also in pink) hits a stop it moves the rod and disengages the dog clutch but...

this will only work if the clutch is engaged left so it will be disengaged when the rod moves to the right note this only works on right hand threads but left hand threads are not a problem to cut 

is anyone interested in this ???


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## DavesWimshurst (Nov 17, 2009)

My 1914 design Hendey lathe has a dog clutch in the feed train that works in that fashion. It is located at the spindle end of the train on a shaft running at the same speed as the spindle and has only one engagement point to keep the thread being cut in phase with the leadscrew. It does indeed make threading easy but can only be engaged at low speeds.






Dave


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## New_Guy (Nov 17, 2009)

nice Dave yeah thats the idea i know of a few more lathes that work the same way as i said its not a new idea but can very easily be applied to this type of machine

anyone got one of these lathe/mill/drills? anyone interested in applying this idea?


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