Wednesday, June 18, 2014

How to Make a Mini Lathe



I have been asked, "why don't you just use a lathe?". Well, I have always wanted a lathe but never owned one, so I thought I would try make one. When beginning any new project it is best to start small and simple which is why I chose to build a mini lathe. The base and bed are both made of plywood. After I carefully aligned the headstock and tail stock I added oak slides in preparation to add the spindle and tailstock barrel.

I used a threaded rod, ground one end to a point on my grinder and fashioned a hand wheel. This was very simple, and did not take much time.












This is a spur drive centre for the headstock.  To make it I took a coupling nut, ground one end to make three points.






To make sure the drill was positioned properly I inserted a long rod into the chuck of the drill and used a telescoping gauge for accuracy to align the drill. 


To align the head and tail stocks I slid the tail stock into the spur drive centre to make a mark so I could begin drilling.










Lastly I used a coupling nut and hammered it into the tailstock.



Here are my first three pieces I turned. From top to bottom, the first was a piece of fir that cut very easily as it is a soft wood, but the end result was not my best. My second piece was oak hardwood. I did it just for fun just to see what would happen, and it turned out better than I thought. Finally I got serious and turned a small tool handle which was not bad for my third try.













You might also like:

Self centering drill press              Dial Indicator                                    Circular saw step stool   
                   

5 comments:

  1. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Thank you so much for sharing this knowledgeable blog for us, it is truly a great informative site. That is very helpful for us. see more

    ReplyDelete
  3. Great mind and awesome presentation. Thank you sir and happy turning on your first lathe!!

    ReplyDelete
  4. We provide first-class quality Lathe Machines in Pakistan. Automobiles Machinery, tools and their services included. Get instant price quote from Noor MC. Al Noor Machinery

    ReplyDelete
  5. Great post I would like to thank you for the efforts you have made in writing this interesting and knowledgeable article. laser metal cutting machine for sale

    ReplyDelete