I have been a member (passive) for several years and I think it is time that I present myself. I am retired and live on the island La Palma in the Canary Archipelago. A couple of years ago I bought a Chinese lathe, with side mounted mill, to learn something new and to realize an old dream which never had fit into the family budget.
So far I have been spending the time getting the lathe into decent shape, it was really from the bottom of the price barrel, making tools, bits and pieces needed at home, and learning. The only modeling I have done so far is a simple LTD Stirling, some kaleidoscopes and a Tuners cube.
I am alone on this island with my hobby and most of my inspiration and learning comes from mailing lists, internet, books and the Model Engineers workshop periodical.
I spent a lot of time grinding HSS bits and trying to get a nice surface on the local variant of steel, getting a fair result with time. But then I made a tangential toolholder from an article in Model Engineer Workshop and I now do practically all my work with this. It allows heavy cuts in steel and then, without changing any setup, a fine surface just by taking a light cut. If I am too optimistic with my depth of cut the toolbit just get pressed deeper down in the holder. Facing I do with the same setup and it seems to work equally well on steel, aluminum, brass and plastics.
The second tool which I do not know how to live without now, is a carriage stop with split cotter lock. I just move the carriage to where I want to stop, usually using the handwheel graduation, push the stop against the carriage and then lock it.
Presently I am adapting a rotary table and a toolmakers vice to my lathe-mill combination and the first thing I want to make when I have it ready is a flywheel following the thread by bogstandard. I will probably use it for a finger engine to start. A more elaborate Stirling and a Flame eather are also on the planned.
Goran
Edit to change size. Photo's previously viewed 23 times each. Don