Author Topic: New lathe  (Read 5249 times)

Offline AVTUR

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New lathe
« on: March 26, 2021, 12:32:58 PM »
Back in October I mentioned I had ordered a new Cowells lathe. During the last two months, avoiding the cold weather, I have been busy finding and making a home for it.

The lathe with most of the ordered accessories arrived three weeks ago, before the bench was finished. It is now installed and has been used. However it still needs some self made items, such as a mandrel handle and dial gauge holder, to be really useful. These will take a back seat as I restart work on the Hick Crank Overhead engine.

 :) :wine1:

AVTUR

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Online Vixen

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Re: New lathe
« Reply #1 on: March 26, 2021, 12:48:31 PM »
 :ThumbsUp: :ThumbsUp: :ThumbsUp:

Always was a pretty little lathe
It is the journey that matters, not the destination

Sometimes, it can be a long and winding road

Offline Jo

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Re: New lathe
« Reply #2 on: March 26, 2021, 01:09:31 PM »
 8)

How long before you decide to take off the rattley white cover  :thinking:

Jo

« Last Edit: March 26, 2021, 07:33:11 PM by Jo »
Enjoyment is more important than achievement.

Offline Bear

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Re: New lathe
« Reply #3 on: March 26, 2021, 03:09:28 PM »
Very nice. Congratulations.

Online Twizseven

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Re: New lathe
« Reply #4 on: March 26, 2021, 03:14:20 PM »
Nice machine. I made a mandrel handle for mine and also fitted it with DRO using Touch-DRO software.

Good to see you are still around Jo.  I must admit I have not removed my plastic cover.  I will be in the bad books if I start to spray oil on the walls and flooring (and my clothing) within my office.

Colin

Offline AVTUR

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Re: New lathe
« Reply #5 on: March 26, 2021, 06:17:01 PM »
I am going to try to keep the cover fitted. It is a bit rattley.

The mandrel handle will be a miniture version of the design in Ian Bradley's "Myford Series 7 Manual". I made one for my old Myford twenty years ago. I intend to fit a DRO and have had a look at what others have done,

AVTUR
There is no such thing as a stupid question.

Offline steamer

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Re: New lathe
« Reply #6 on: March 26, 2021, 07:45:42 PM »
Nice looking lathe Avtar!    I've always liked the Cowells....and Bill tells me it was worth it....so you can take that to the bank!
 :cheers:
Dave
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Damned ijjit!

Online Twizseven

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Re: New lathe
« Reply #7 on: March 26, 2021, 10:13:37 PM »
AVTUR,

I have a post on here re the DRO's I fitted, https://www.modelenginemaker.com/index.php/topic,5583.msg106950.html#msg106950

For some reason the pictures have vanished but the majority of them can be seen on the Model engineer site in my album 'Twizseven's Bits & Bobs'

Colin

Offline Chipswitheverything

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Re: New lathe
« Reply #8 on: March 27, 2021, 10:33:38 PM »
Hope that you get much enjoyment from your Cowell, I do like the look of my similar even if it has had rather ocassional use over a lot of years.  Accessory making  wise, a little swing clear boring tool holder is a useful thing to add to the toolkit, saves having to wind the carriage back many tedious turns to gauge an item to the bore.  Dave

Offline AVTUR

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Re: New lathe
« Reply #9 on: March 29, 2021, 11:09:27 AM »
Thanks for the comments. I like the little boring tool holder. Colin, I may have been in contact with you about the DRO. I will have some questions when I can get an understanding of everything and seeing what is out there. I think a member of the Bristol club has used Yuri's DRO system so I will also have a chat with him.

I have started on the mandrel handle.

AVTUR

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Offline Jo

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Re: New lathe
« Reply #10 on: March 29, 2021, 11:48:29 AM »
Is there a hole in the white cover to fit your mandrel handle in?

I seem to recall having to keep lifting up the cover to fit the handle was another of the nails in its coffin.


Forgot to ask: What is the serial number of your lathe? (wondering how many Colin is making per year..)

Jo

P.S. I still have the immaculate white cover for refitting if I ever thought of selling Little C  :o  :paranoia:
Enjoyment is more important than achievement.

Online Jasonb

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Re: New lathe
« Reply #11 on: March 29, 2021, 01:52:21 PM »
Machine DRO are doing some much smaller read heads for the magnetic scales since Colin fitted his, similar size to what EMSi used to do which should be ideal for the smaller lathes. If ever I feel the need for  DRO on the Warco that's what I'll be hiding inside the cross slide.

Offline AVTUR

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Re: New lathe
« Reply #12 on: March 30, 2021, 11:57:41 AM »
The cover does not have a hole for a mandrel. That is not a reason for removing it, though.

The number of my lathe is 3793. When I ordered it on August bank holiday Colin warned me that I would have to wait until February. I said I was happy to do so and asked whether the wait was due to COVID. Colin replied saying that this was the busiest they had been for 16 years.

I will have a look at Machine DRO's website. Yuri's system initially strikes me as complex (I don't know what Blu-tooth is, not quite true).

AVTUR
There is no such thing as a stupid question.

Offline AVTUR

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Re: New lathe
« Reply #13 on: April 05, 2021, 01:07:21 PM »
I may be wandering away from the title "My Workshop" and I really do not want to start another blog. I would prefer to write the occasional piece.

I have now started on the self made accessories:
   1.    Wooden bridge to protect the lathe bed when changing chucks etc. Although small this is a MUST for any lathe and should be made before the lathe is first powered up.
   2.    Tool height setting gauge. I saw this in John Wilding's "How to Make an English Regulator Clock" and made one for the Myford. The top is for setting from the bed while the step is for the cross slide. Very simple but very useful.
   3.    Mandle handle. A must for all the work not done under power such as thread cutting with a tap or die and small diameter reaming. A nice little job, turning the wooden handle was a real pleasure (sometimes I had a ribbon of swarf).
   4.    Arbor for die holder. Years ago I bought a nice Arrand die holder for the Myford and had hoped to use it on the Cowells. The small arbor I bought with the lathe only needed 0,15mm taken off the diameter to take the holder. The holder is a bit large and will not pass over the cross slide. However the slide can be parked between the die holder and tailstock.

I attach a couple of photographs of the tooling. The second includes the die holder.

AVTUR

There is no such thing as a stupid question.

Offline Admiral_dk

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Re: New lathe
« Reply #14 on: April 05, 2021, 09:17:46 PM »
I think I have identified some of your latest tools for the new lathe ....

1)  Simple and I probably should do something similar - though I have never dropped one of my chucks, it's probably only a question about when ....

2) I can't identify and therefor not see how it's used either .... - could you point it out, please.

3) hmm - I haven't done anything on the lather without power - but ....

4) have only done single point threading so far ....

 

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