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Mini Lathe Upgrades

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AllenR13:
Eric,

Thanks to you and this thread, I think I can do this mod.  I ordered the 16" bed and it should be here Friday.  Just in time for a weekend of fun in the shop. :)

Again, thank you for starting this thread and inspiring me to give it a shot!

Allen

Brass_Machine:
Hi Allen,

It is pretty simple. You have to do the following (besides setup the rack and leadscrew)

1. Measure out and drill 2 mounting holes for the head stock. Mine was shorter.
2. Fab a motor mount, I chose to recreate the slots of the 7x10

Good luck! Do a project log!

Eric

Brass_Machine:
I just ordered another bit for the lathe. Apparently, Real Bull lathes have a spindle with a 4" face plate compared to the stock 3". I ordered a replacement from Amadeal just a few minutes ago.

Spindle



Mike's Workshop talks about the upgrade HERE

Eric

Brass_Machine:
I ordered another upgrade for the lathe. LMS Sells an extended cross slide kit for the little guy. LINK



The plan is to make tapered gibs for it.

I still have yet to install the new spindle. I am going to order a new set of tapered bearings first. Might as well since I am going to be in there anyway... I did replace the stock bearings a few years back with tapered ones when I added the metal transmission gear. They must have a few hundred hours on them by now...

I have been using the lathe. Seems to run OK. When I turn it on, the motor kinda surges for a minute like it is hunting for the RPMs. From what I have been reading, it seems like this might be common for the tiny lathe. At this point the thought of adding a new motor and/or controller might be a good idea. Not sure how much I want to spend as I probably could have bought an 8x14 by now.

I have seen the mod to add a KBLC-19PM-MOD to a mini mill to get better performance out of the stock motor. I am now wondering if I can use it with the lathe motor??

Anyone?

Eric

modeldozer:
Hi Eric,

What these lathes need more than anyting is torque, so any additional mechanical reduction is the way to go.  I have just finnished a jackshaft reducer for mine and it makes a world of differance.

Another big improvement is to replace the plastic spacer at the end of the spindle with a steel one.

Cheers
Abraham

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