Here's my 'new guy' post.

[mattgatten]

Hi guys,

Wonderful site. I made the decision to pursue machining recently to compliment my woodworking hobby. Now I'm totally addicted to it. I ran one of my woodworking machines for the first time in a couple of months because of it! It was somewhat of a woodworking tool; my cnc router. haha

I purchased my first mill a while back and it's an old Taiwan Jet-16. The guy who sold it to me is probably on this site but I don't know. He is a model engine builder and had a diverse collection. I'm posting a link to my collection of pictures and video. I just had to get some shots of this stuff. I had seen pictures but never witnessed them in person. Wow!

My Machine Shop Collection

I don't have a lathe yet but I'm on the hunt. I'm curious. Is any of this possible without a lathe? (Until I get one). I'm sure a lathe makes it a lot easier.

So, with that, "Hello from St. Louis!"
Matt

 

[Dan Rowe]

Matt,
Welcome to the group.

As to the question yes a lot of work is possible with out a lathe. With a boring head a mill can do a lot of round work. I have also chucked lathe bits in the mill vice to turn work mounted in the mill spindle.

The choice of which machine to use for any job largely depends on what is available and what tooling is on hand. On a merchant ship the shop is usually very limited with only a lathe and a drill press so we had to get creative for some jobs.

Dan

 

[kd7fhg]

Wellcome aboard, I also do woodworking when i am not machining, as for not needing a metal lathe, you would be limited on what could be built, but some amazing things can be done if you set your mind to it. Just look around this sight and see what these people build.
Rex

 

[mattgatten]

Everyone: Thanks for the welcome.

Dan: The one thing I haven't picked up yet is a boring head. Guess I need to find, at the least, a decent one. I've already got a decent Phase II rotary table. Would you or anyone happen to have any pictures or examples of some 'round work' being done with a boring head on a mill or chucking a workpiece in the mill and using a lathe tool? I'm excited to know this.

Thanks again,
Matt

 

[Maryak]

Matt,

Welcome to our forum. wEc1

Best Regards
Bob

 

[rake60]

Welcome to HMEM Matt.

Rick

 

[Dan Rowe]

Matt,
Here is a photo of using the mill as a vertical lathe. This was a rare job in my home shop as it was a paying job. I made a forged stair railing for a friend's straw bale house. He wanted the place to look like it could have been built 100 years ago.

The bolts were forged and trimed but I made the whole set to short so I had to make a second set. You can see the problem with using a mill for a lathe as only short work can be made but the most of the lathe work I do is very close to the headstock.
Dan

Edit, To make the setup work the bit has to stick out the other side of the vice...I set it up for the light not thinking about spindle rotation. ;D

 

[cfellows]

Hey Matt, welcome to HMEM. Always glad to see new talent in the Home Machinist world.

As Dan as pointed out, almost anything is possible. Just a matter of how resourceful you are and how much time you have!

Chuck