Today I acquired...........

[bricol]

Today I acquired one of the vac units for my flowbench via a cheeky bid off the bay of thieves

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Filter the inlet - and I hope is been used with one - fine tolerances/clearance inside - ingesting much of anything will wreck it. One of our standard bits of kit used on our machines is a 7/5kW version . . .sucks well

 

[Arc Tourist]

View attachment 302319

That that could double as a possible home defence solution to deal with armed intruders/attackers.

 

[grim_d]

Finally turned up yesterday, these two have been on order over two months but well worth the wait, having the drill chuck on a Quick Change holder, bloody magic. Yes, this system and holders can run into money but well worth every penny, transformed the speed with which I can swap tooling:

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Righto, off to earn a crust.

They look excellent, how much does it increase stickout?

 

[Edward Teach]

I picked up this ML7 on Saturday,
I now think its over priced, as its a little worn out
Spindle and bearings are worn, as is the bed and lead screw,
Having no experience with lathes
It has been a steep learning curve,
I have got it working better,
We'll have to see how it goes.
Any advise may be helpful,
ps: I do have all the covers etc.

 

[Brad93]

I picked up this ML7 on Saturday,
I now think its over priced, as its a little worn out
Spindle and bearings are worn, as is the bed and lead screw,
Having no experience with lathes
It has been a steep learning curve,
I have got it working better,
We'll have to see how it goes.
Any advise may be helpful,
ps: I do have all the covers etc.

View attachment 302366

Are they white metal bearings?

 

[Edward Teach]

Are they white metal bearings?

Yes, they are white metal bearings,
I have adjusted them, scraping and shims etc, they are a lot better,
I think replacement parts may be the easier way to go,
Spindle and bearings, bed, lead screw,

edit:
I may be flogging a very dead horse

 

[zx9]

Yes, they are white metal bearings,
I have adjusted them, scraping and shims etc, they are a lot better,
I think replacement parts may be the easier way to go,
Spindle and bearings, bed, lead screw,

edit:
I may be flogging a very dead horse

If it is a first lathe just run with it for a while and try not to spend too much time or money improving it there is lots to be learned and even a small tired lathe is better than no lathe.
Just remember that when you out grow it someone else will be looking for a cheap Myford and you can move it on at no loss, enjoy.

 

[GRW]

I'm fascinated by Metalworking Lathes - they are just wonderful things..... but haven't a Scooby how you use one (nor do I have the space, time or spare cash to get one and try to learn). Maybe if I ever get to retire it'd be a hobby I could indulge in.

I hope that the skills and use of these lovely bits of kit doesn't ever fully die out. Perhaps with the growing appreciation of old quality stuff over disposable junk - we will see a resurgence in the use of Lathes to maintain kit instead of scrapping it.

 

[Onoff]

I picked up this ML7 on Saturday,
I now think its over priced, as its a little worn out
Spindle and bearings are worn, as is the bed and lead screw,
Having no experience with lathes
It has been a steep learning curve,
I have got it working better,
We'll have to see how it goes.
Any advise may be helpful,
ps: I do have all the covers etc.

View attachment 302366

Same boat here, first lathe, yet to set my cheapo Grayson acquisition up. Play I think in the same areas.

I got the two lathe books someone on here suggested.

 

[Brad93]

White metal bearings can be melted down and repoured. You can then scrape them in, a thankless task I'm sure. There are a few videos on YouTube.

You can also grind Myford beds without too much trouble. Blue diamond had one on their grinder last week.
I can't imagine a grinding job on a Myford being much more than £300. Maybe a bit more for turcite on the saddle and shimming the tailstock.

 

[Onoff]

I can't imagine a grinding job on a Myford being much more than £300. Maybe a bit more for turcite on the saddle and shimming the tailstock.

Be a bit gutting when I paid <£200 for the lathe!

 

[zx9]

Be a bit gutting when I paid <£200 for the lathe!

If you paid less than £200 for a ML7 you could double or treble you money on ebay tomorrow, as above live with it, learn and have fun.

 

[dobbslc]

Be a bit gutting when I paid <£200 for the lathe!

If that's all you paid it's a bargain!
Have you tried adjusting the gibs?
Are you mistaking backlash on the hand wheel for wear on the lead screw?

 

[Onoff]

If that's all you paid it's a bargain!
Have you tried adjusting the gibs?
Are you mistaking backlash on the hand wheel for wear on the lead screw?

If you paid less than £200 for a ML7 you could double or treble you money on ebay tomorrow, as above live with it, learn and have fun.

Mines a Grayson:

 

[zx9]

Mines a Grayson:

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Sorry, I replied as though you were the OP.
Still £200 for a usable lathe with counter shaft, three jaw chuck and at least some change wheels is good going even if you can't take advantage of the Myford premium.
My Drummond is perfectly usable but has quite a lot of ware in the bed at the headstock end, sure it would be nice to have it re ground but that is not going to happen, any major upgrade will be to something bigger but again I can not see that happening soon.

 

[Moose McAlpine]

I think this is number 12.

Variable speed. I had a gift card so it cost me a whopping 6 quid.

 

[James1979]

I think this is number 12.

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Variable speed. I had a gift card so it cost me a whopping 6 quid.

I need to try a variable speed one. I use those de rusting mops and a normal speed grinder just wrecks them.

 

[Moose McAlpine]

I need to try a variable speed one. I use those de rusting mops and a normal speed grinder just wrecks them.

That's exactly what i bought it for. I read from someone on here about them lasting much longer at lower speed but being just as effective.

 

[mtt.tr]

That's exactly what i bought it for. I read from someone on here about them lasting much longer at lower speed but being just as effective.

Does it have grunt still on the low end?

 

[Moose McAlpine]

Does it have grunt still on the low end?

I don't know to be honest. I'll give it a try later. I would imagine it's less but for rapid strip discs i guess it doesn't need as much grunt as a cutting or grinding disc.