JonnyAlpha
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The Emco is a nice little machine, lathes.co.uk is a great source of info: http://www.lathes.co.uk/emco/I understand all the advice, but I really don’t have the space at the mo for any of the big guys. What would be a reasonable compact bench to vice.
Such as this understanding the previous comments about combo tools.
my lathe and milling machines are smaller than most and some would say only suitable for model making
https://www.mig-welding.co.uk/forum/threads/hobbymat-lathe-and-milling-machine-modifications.58888/
when you say turn down some pistons, do you mean to shorten them of to reduce the diameter? shortening then in a lathe may be fine, but the skirts on a piston may not be round due to the way they expand when heated, so the clearances may be wrong if you make round pistons.
also thinking about what accessories you think you'll need and want to make as the accessories can cost more than the original machines do.
What about chuck size e.g. how do you know what diameter material will fit in the chuck.
as above you need to see the machine . not just bought on someones word its in good nick .I hear the words its just been refurbished that means its just been painted and all the gib strips have been tightened up because of the wear buy an honest one in original condition with hardly any wear and usable instantly its no fun to use or repair an old clapped out knacker unless you get it given
I prefer just buying a decent one and use it from day one and now only make or repair things I fancy with itDunno mate
I enjoyed the challenge of pulling mine apart and giving it a new lease of life.
Re the pistons - it involved taking machining out the crown 5mm in from the diameter flush with the base of the bowl. Not a difficult job, but no one locally seemed to want to do it?
The HobbyMat Lathe and Milling Machine you list in your thread look OK.
There are a couple similar on eBay, the MD65 and the BFE65 which is the combined lathe / milling machine. Smaller than yours and I realise that I need to work out what size jobs I'll be tackling and from there be able to identify what lathes / pillar drill / milling attachments, I need to look for.
So based on the above, would something as small as the Hobbymat BFE65 Vertical Drilling And Milling Machine And MD65 Precision Lathe be sufficient. This is listed as having 65 mm (2.6") centre height by 300 mm (12") between centres.
What about chuck size e.g. how do you know what diameter material will fit in the chuck.
Sorry for the dumb questions.
although the lathe can hold something 130mm diameter, that would need mounting on a faceplate which is an accessory and most are less than 100 mm diameter, which is why I made my own. if you use a chuck to hold something its about 100mm dia max that you can hold, but it may be less on the standard 3 jaw chuck. you may be able to turn something that is 300mm long, but by the time you add chucks and drills, it could be less that 100mm due to the length of the fittings.
Many are now Chinese made and the difference in quality comes through many forms.
First is the original build quality and specifications of the castings, Chinese companies do them in different qualities for different budgets, so look for something with a decent quality casting.
Do they come as finished castings, rough machined castings, or totally bare castings. This makes a difference as a finished casting comes as a completely finished machined part, usually of low quality or made down to a price, whereas a rough machined casting is simply a first machining where the seller does the final machining, usually to a higher standard, the bare castings are simply supplied as cast and the seller does all the machining.
One point to be aware of is that many castings are NOT Chinese and many are cast in India.
Next are the electricals, Chinese motors are usually rubbish and integral type motors which quickly burn out and you cannot replace them, a seperate type NON INTEGRAL motor is much better as even if it does burn out you can get a decent quality replacement and your machine is not scrap. Many of the electrical fittings on Chinese machines are poor quality generic items seen on many items and readily spotted along with poorly located wiring and fitttings, and in such an environment this is a necessity to get right, and finally the NVR systems are not very good as a machine will restart if the mains power goes off and comes back on again, and NVR is a legal requirement in such an environment and should be tested during a PAT test.
Hopefully this gives you a starting point.