If you’re looking for a lathe, then you’re probably already acquainted with the basics of what a lathe is, what it does, and the various uses it has for professionals and hobbyists alike. But if you don’t know much about lathes, rest easy! We’ll start with a basic history of the lathe, give some general information on what a lathe does, then move on to provide more guidelines on how to pick a lathe for a given project.
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Lathes, in their earliest form, were a two-man, manually operated machine. Of course, that early form was over three millennia ago in ancient Egypt, so things were understandably a bit more old-school.
Even the early lathes possessed the key feature of all lathes, from then till now; unlike other machine tools, in a lathe, the item being cut or shaped (the “workpiece”) is the thing that turns, not the cutting instrument. A lathe is the reverse of a drill; rather than a spinning cutting bit biting into a surrounding piece of wood or metal, a spinning piece of metal is shaped by a stationary cutting head.
Thanks to a lathe’s design, shaping a workpiece on a lathe is known as “turning” a piece. Nearly any kind of material can be worked on a lathe, though metal and wood are the most common ones.
Lathes started as fairly primitive tools, but took a giant leap forward during the Industrial Revolution. Steam engines provided more powerful lathes; electricity would develop lathes even further. In the s, servomotors added elements of control to the turning process, and today’s lathes are fully integrated with Computer Numerical Control (CNC), allowing them to be fully automated.
Along the way, craftsmen explored what could be done with a lathe. Lathes allow material to be removed to create rounded shapes; everything from metal shafts to wooden chair legs can be shaped out of irregular pieces using a lathe. Today, you’ll find lathes everywhere from fine woodworking shops to cutting-edge factory floors, serving different purposes but using the same principle; a spinning workpiece with a stationary cutting head.
If you’re considering buying a lathe, you first need to picture the primary project or projects you’ll be using the lathe for. With the project in mind, here are some questions to ask which will guide your choice of a lathe.
These factors influence the complexity of the lathe you’ll need. A fully CNC-equipped lathe able to handle industrial-sized pieces along four axis, with multiple heads for turning, drilling and cutting, is vastly different from a simple, two-axis lathe for turning furniture.
When it comes to the parts you’ll be putting into the lathe, there are more factors. Basic components of a lathe consist, generally, of the following:
The specifications you’ll need for those components is determined by the general intended purpose for your lathe, and the dimensions of the pieces you’ll be working on.
Headstock with spindle – Found on the left-hand side of the lathe, the headstock holds the spindle in place, usually with bearings. Usually with a motor and pulley, the headstock also provides the power to rotate the spindle and part, The size of the spindle varies, typically from ½ inch to 1 ½ inches in diameter.
The size of the spindle determines how big of a workpiece you can turn on your lathe. A one-inch spindle may be enough for smaller work, but for a spindle that’s sturdy enough to accommodate larger pieces without flexing, you’ll often need at least an inch-and-a-quarter spindle.
Other headstock and spindle considerations to be aware of: does the headstock allow outboarding? While pieces are intended to be mounted between the headstock and tailstock, over the bed of the lathe, outboarding allows the workpiece to be mounted away from the body of the piece.
This greatly increases the diameter of the pieces that can be turned. It’s not an ideal fix; there are good reasons why pieces are typically mounted over the bed of the lathe, where the tool turret is located and the tailstock helps to support the workpiece. Regardless, when you purchase a lathe, consider the size of the headstock and spindle, and the different positions the headstock allows. Some headstocks can actually be rotated, allowing outboarding more easily.
Chuck – The chuck is the specialized clamp to hold a cylinder. The chuck holds the workpiece, and most lathes can secure workpieces between 5 and 66 inches. Many chucks also have a through-hole, allowing long pieces to extend through the chuck and out behind the lathe. Use the same decision-making process with a chuck as with the headstock; what size do you need based on the pieces you’re likely to be working?
Note that there are extra options with chucks also; most chucks are jawed, which are the movable parts tightened or loosened to fit the workpiece. Typical jaw arrangement is three or four jaws on each chuck, but some chucks have many more. The jaws may be tightened together, or moved independently to help hold odd-shaped pieces.
Lathe bed – The bed of the lathe is a simpler decision. There are two basic options; the British flat bed, or the American-preferred v-bed. The two kinds are self-explanatory, and each of the designs have their proponents. For smaller lathes (and correspondingly smaller workpieces), it rarely makes much difference to the performance of the lathe.
On larger, more industrial-oriented lathes, beds can also be rounded, and slant-bed lathes are increasingly common on fully-automated CNC lathes in industrial applications.
Tailstock – On many new lathes, the tailstock is an optional feature. Its purpose is a simple one – it holds the far end of the workpiece. While a tailstock may not be necessary for smaller pieces, for larger parts a tailstock is crucial. Using a tailstock reduces flex in the workpiece; too much flex can give a finished piece an undesirable warp or curve. If you’re going to be handling larger pieces, purchasing a tailstock from the beginning is a smart choice.
Carriage, cross-slide, and turret – These are the “business parts” of the lathe. The carriage is a set of bars, often two or three, running the length of the lathe. The cross-slide rests on the carriage, and holds the turret. The turret, in turn, houses the different cutting and boring tools to be used on the part.
While this sounds complicated, just now that it is the carriage and cross-slide which determine the number of axis on which your lathe can move, whether that be two, three, or four. The size of the turret, and the number of heads which it can hold, is determined by the size of the piece you want to turn. Larger workpieces require larger cutting heads, which in turn require larger turrets.
Size – In the US, you’ll find lathes described as “8 in. by 24 in.” lathes. The latter number refers to the distance between centers (i.e., the headstock and tailstock), or the longest piece of material that lathe can handle. The first number, in the US, pertains to the maximum diameter a workpiece can have and still be above the lathe bed. This is also known as the “swing” of the lathe.
In the UK, the first number is expressed differently; as the measure between the center of the chuck, so in theory the center of any workpiece, and the closest point of the bed of the lathe. An 8 by 24 lathe in the US would therefore be a 4 by 24 lathe in the UK.
Most hobbyists and craftsmen working on smaller pieces will find that a 3” x 15” lathe is typically as small as one should go, while about double that size, 6” x 30”, forms the upper end of what a home lathe can be.
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Weight – Be aware that like many pieces of machinery, lathes can be quite heavy. The sizing as given is not the dimension of the lathe itself, but rather of the workpiece which can be accommodated; the lathe will be significantly larger. A 3” x 15” lathe can easily weigh more than 30 kg; a lathe double that size would weigh far more, and require an engine lift or small crane to move into place.
Power – One of the last things you’ll need to consider when buying a new lathe is the motor. While some lathes operate at a single speed, many will have multiple speed settings. There is also the matter of torque to consider.
For cutting larger pieces, your lathe will need more than just high RPMs; it will need the power to keep a heavy workpiece turning and cutting smoothly. Advertisers may proudly proclaim maximum RPMs for their lathes; but minimum RPMs can be even more important for operations such as screwcutting.
Axis – Lathes have at least two axis of movement: an X axis (forward/backward along the cross-slide), and Y (perpendicular to the X axis). However, a high-end CNC lathe may have as many as 7 axis, from X, Y, and Z (three-dimensional movement) to rotating axis. So, axis X may have additional axis of movement A, which is a rotational along the X axis.
This may sound confusing; suffice it to say, that the more axis of movement a lathe has, the more complicated, expensive, and industrial it is likely to be.
Buying a lathe is a big decision. A machine shop owner should consider the type of work they plan to do and future plans.
The lathe is one of the more complex machinery available to home workshop owners, or industrial production shops. It is also one of the most expensive tools to purchase. This is due to the level of engineering that goes into this machine, which can create metal shapes with incredible precision and accuracy. It is no wonder that this tool is so sought after for making everything from aircraft parts to automobiles.
When shopping for a new lathe, there are a few essential factors that should be kept in mind. The first thing to consider is what you will be using the machine for. The size of the work that you will be doing is important as well. It may not be the final decision-maker, but it will help narrow down your options as you shop.
Other things to look at include the swing measurement and bed measurements. Swing is the maximum diameter of a workpiece that can be turned, and bed is the overall length of the lathe that you will be working with. Also be sure to check out the chuck, as this is what will hold your workpieces. Most lathes will have a chuck that can secure workpieces up to about 66 inches in diameter. Some chucks will even have a through-hole, which can allow longer barstock to extend into the back of the lathe.
You will also want to see if the lathe has a quick change gearbox. This makes it much easier to swap out the gears depending on what you are doing, and will save you a lot of time and frustration. The quality of the gears is another important factor; a good set will have little to no backlash and will run smoothly.
A final factor to consider is the power of the motor. The more torque a lathe can provide, the better it will be for things like screw and thread cutting. Many smaller lathes will use a brushed DC motor, but larger machines will likely have an AC induction or brushless DC motor. These are more efficient than a traditional brushed motor and provide more consistent power, especially at lower speeds where the most torque is needed.
Most modern lathes are powered by a geared headstock. This is attached to a carriage for longitudinal movement and a cross slide for axial motion. The geared headstock drives a series of changeable gears, and this in turn provides plenty of power to the rotating spindle.
Depending on the type of work being done, you’ll need different types of accessories. For example, if you’re turning long shafts, you’ll need a steady rest. This bolts to the bed of the lathe and supports the shaft while you’re working on it. You’ll also need a live center and a dead center to hold the workpiece in place. For the tailstock, you’ll want a three-jaw or four-jaw chuck. You can also add a faceplate to work on larger pieces that cannot be held in the tailstock.
Another feature you’ll want in a lathe is speed control. This allows you to run the tool at the correct cutting speed for any diameter you’re working on. This can be manually done by changing belts on stepped pulleys or electronically with a rheostat similar to a light dimmer.
Before purchasing a new lathe, machinists need to decide what type of work they will be doing with the tool. Lathes are divided into a few categories, including engine lathes and turret lathes for metalwork and woodworking lathes for other projects. When deciding what kind of lathe to purchase, shop owners must also consider the size and geometry of the parts they plan on producing. For example, if a project requires a long, slender shaft, it’s best to buy a lathe that can accommodate this length or consider an addition of a tailstock to the machine.
The basic two-axis lathe consists of the headstock with spindle, chuck for holding the part, carriage and cross-slide, and tool turret. If a project requires the part to be turned on an axis other than the headstock, then a mandrel can be used to hold it. A mandrel is a tapered axle that can be forced into the hole in the workpiece. This can be used for supporting the piece between centers or in a faceplate.
To ensure that a machined workpiece is accurate, the tool bits must be made from the correct material and ground to the proper angles. For example, a roughing tool should have a smaller radius than a finishing tool. In addition, the overall shape of a tool bit can affect the quality and performance of the cutting action.
Shops must always keep a good supply of spare parts and accessories on hand to make the most of their lathes. These include three- and four-jaw chucks, faceplates, live center, and various Morse taper adapters for the tailstock. They should also consider adding a collet chuck and a steady rest to their arsenal of lathe equipment. Lastly, it’s important to have enough power capacity for the lathe machine. If possible, a 220-volt, three-phase electrical system should be used. If not, a phase converter can be purchased to increase power capability.
A lathe is probably the most important machine tool in any shop. In fact, anything that involves moving or round parts probably has a part made by a lathe somewhere in its construction. This makes it a vital tool for the engineer to have, and one that requires careful consideration when buying.
First of all, the size of the workshop is a major factor in what type and size lathe to buy. There is little point in buying a large, expensive lathe that will only be used for small jobs. On the other hand, a smaller, cheaper machine might be left unattended and unused for long periods of time. In this case, the value of the machine may drop significantly in comparison to its original purchase price.
The next thing to consider is the headstock spindle and chuck. The spindle should be a good fit for the chuck and should not have any looseness. The condition of the chuck should also be considered, as this will affect how true the chuck will spin. In addition, the threads and bearing surfaces on both the spindle and chuck should be well-lubricated.
Finally, a steady rest should be included with the lathe to support shaft work and other longish pieces while turning. This should bolt to the bed and provide a solid mount for between centers work. It should be drilled through with a Morse taper for both live center and tailstock work.
There is no substitute for hands-on experience with a machine, so if you can find a used lathe at a garage sale or at an auction, try it out and see if it meets your needs. It is always better to do this than to be disappointed when you buy a machine that has a number of features that aren’t useful to you. In this way, you can avoid a costly mistake and get the best value for your money.
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