Hi all, from the new guy.

[Lucas1997]

Hi all, I have been watching this site for some time and thinking about getting a lathe. Yesterday I got my first lathe, a Central Machinery 9x20 metal lathe.
I'm thinking about buying a PM Research casting kit, maybe a 3A or a 1BI. Any suggestions on a first project?

 

[cwelkie]

Welcome and congratulations!
I'm sure you'd be happy with a PM Research kit ... at least you won't have to search around for bits.
Have fun!

 

[Tin Falcon]

Welcome to the forum. PMR kits are well made have a full size large format print and all the materials. (except air steam fittings.)

Castings have less material to remove.

castings can be harder to hold in the machine and if you blow a tolerance or break a tap(common OOPs .) then the casting may have to be replaced . or take a lot of time for a work round

So in general we recommend building a bar stock engine to start the down side is it take longer to source material. And you will likely need to buy more material than needed just for one engine.
Read here :

http://www.homemodelenginemachinist.com/f27/selecting-first-engine-build-15183/


and here
http://www.homemodelenginemachinist.com/f27/geting-started-model-engine-building-8701/
Tin

 

[Tin Falcon]

your first project should be clean . de bur lubricate and adjust the lathe.
Tin

 

[Mbusha]

My first three engines are materials kits. Liney's and the Grizzly stirling. I really do not want to go too fast. It's a hobby. Start slow, enjoy each build, tune up the machines, replace the buggered up spindle bearings in the mill and generally have fun.

Not on piece work in my shop.

274 days to go.

 

[Wagon173]

I agree with tin. I was looking into getting a casting kit for a first build after I bought my lathe. As it turned out, it took every bit of my patience to build a wobbler. Got the milling machine and just finished a launch engine and now I'm still thinking that maybe I should do a few more bar stock engines before I progress. Good luck though! Good job in having the foresight to get the bigger of the harbor freight lathes though! You've saved yourself a lot of headaches haha. I went with the 7x10. 3 months in, it's time to upgrade.

 

[Lucas1997]

Thanks for your input. I am thinking of going with Elmer's Wobbler. I am waiting on a some tools to get here so it will probably be a while before i start.

 

[Jack B]

Hi Lucas: You have picked a great hobby and this forum is filled with friends that will give you much help. Besides being a machinist all my life I taught metal processing in a Vocational High school shop for 23 years. The most important advise I can give you is to study the safety rules and follow them. Castings are one of the most difficult things to hold on a lathe. Take some practice cuts on scrap bar stock to get a feel for the machine.
I had a young visitor in my shop recently and I was able to answer a ton of questions he had. Maybe you can find an experienced friend who lives close to you that you can talk to. My students had 10 hours of classroom time before we let them start up a lathe. We would start slow by letting them try to get a diameter about one inch long on a piece of 1 inch by 8 inch long piece of mild steel. They would take light cuts .005 and stop the lathe and measure the piece with their micrometer each time. We told them the truth they were developing a feel for the machine. I can't say this enough please go slow and observe the safety rules.
Jack B

 

[Tin Falcon]

Jack gives good advise.
read the safety rules in the safety section here. I was trained buy the air force as a machinist . IIRC we had a week of mostly classroom before even getting to the lathe lab. We learned about shop math including trig, material properties safety taps tapping the band saw etc. then several, maybe 8 hours of lathe theory before making a cut.

I have a 9 x 19 that I still have not put through the paces. but in my experience get a decent quick change tool holder set . Quality import wedge styles seem to be well likesd and not too much money and your first project on the lathe should probably make a good compound slide hold down clamp . this seem to be the one major complaint with these lathes and a first upgrade.
there are lots of resources to download in the getting started in model engineering thread.
tin