My first lathe and mill

[PelayoVial]

Hello all:

I want to buy my frist lathe and my first mill and I want some advice on wich one I should get.
Im interested in engine modeling. I've never used a lathe or a mill, but I've thought this through for a while now and I'm sure I want to take the next step into this hobby by buyingthem.

thank you

Pelayo

 

[Tin Falcon]

Your first mill and lathe is a personal choice.
A seig 7x12 lathe and an x-2 mill are common starter machines
an upgrade to that would be a 9x20 lathe and a x3 mill.

Taig mill and lathe also good rep made in usa
and the Sherline are small precision machines.
Proxxon are also premium quality small machines

I personally started with the seig machines.

you need to ask yourself the following questions and go from there.

1 what size projects/ parts do you intend to make.
2 what is your budget keep in mind rule of thumb it can cost as much for tooling as the machine cost.
3 what size workshop do you have. Where is it located garage basement attic shed. .
4) what kind of weight are you equipped to handle. You probably would not want to put a pair of 350 lb each machines in a 3rd floor walk up.

Suggested reading:
http://www.homemodelenginemachinist.com/index.php?topic=9413.0


http://www.homemodelenginemachinist.com/index.php?topic=16003.0


I suggest before you buy the lathe and mill buy or download a couple of good books on machining . it will give a better idea of what you need. Of coarse you can learn a lot here as well.
Tin

 

[ttrikalin]

well,

A lathe goes a long way.
the mini lathe (7x) is what many people have... and most people love it...

I started with a sherline lathe, a small lathe of 3.5" swing... I still have it and I love it. I got my self a bigger one, a 10" south bend cause the sherline is limited in the dimensions it can turn...

if I were starting now, I would probably go with the mini lathe...

tom in MA

 

[Tin Falcon]

The main reason I selected the 7x lathe over say a taig .(I looked hard at them )is the mini lathe will do threading. the others it is an add on. so if you want to lean single point threading (IMHO a basic machining skill) you need a machine that can do it.
also the 7x has a reverse tumbler that the bigger 9 x 20 I believe do not.
the 9 x 20 have more tooling in the package and a qc gear box. so if comparing a mini with a Chinese 9 x 20 you need to consider the cost value of a 4 jaw chuck face plate follow rest and steady rest.

face plate nice to have versatile . Steady rest on a 10 -12 in lathe almost useless no where to put it. follow rest seldom used and can be made, four jaw great to have more versatile than a 3 jaw. a qc gear box makes thread pitch changes quick and easy .
I leaned to machine on full size full featured machine tools a standard modern lathe and a Bridgeport mil. and it was a bit before I was on line to ask for help when selecting my own, but I at least had some clue a big gap between what I really wanted and what I could afford and had room for.
so confused yet ???
Tin

 

[Herbiev]

As Tin said it depends on what you intend to make. If your main interest is small engines then the largest diameter piece would be the flywheel, so a minimum turning diameter of 6" would be my choice. I also like a large bore (at least 1/2" preferably 3/4") but that is my personal preference. If you are starting completely from scratch I would reccomend the book "the amatuers lathe" by L H Sparey. It really helped me get started and I still refer to it today 30 or 40 years later. Good luck on your journey into a very exciting addictive hobby.
Kind regards
Herbie

 

[PelayoVial]

Thank you all for your advice. As you told me, im doing a little research on the Internet so I can get an idea of the different prcices. Im interested in building small engines so I think a 7x will do. Anyway Im reading the manuals posted in Tin's begginer post and Ill seek the one you have just told me that has been helpful for over 40 years.
Meanwhile Im searching for my hardware that is hard to get here. I've found just huge lathes (torno is the spanish for lathe). I think I'll end up buying one online and paying the shipment all the way here.

Thank you all friends

Pelayo

 

[MarioM]

It sounds as you do not live in the USA and speak Spanish. I live in Ecuador South America and Spanish is my native language if you need some help.