Is this lathe worth buying for constructing small engines.

[gipetto]

there are two arrays of numbers, one in metric the other in imperial. the reason it looks like 3 arrays is because the upper array ran out of space. my lathe has a different sticker, it has a picture of the 6 change gears abcdef and each is labelled.
I have difficulty with my face shield fogging up. i use two in rotation to alleviate the issue, but i was wondering if it were a safe idea to cut a hole in the material to breathe through.

[Jasonb]

I think most of us just work with safety glasses, the chuck guard can be handy with materials like brass which can spray everywhere when being cut with HSS tools.

[crueby]

Some brands of the face shields, with replaceable plastic shield panels, have an option for anti-fog coatings. That works great on mine.

[gipetto]

the glasses i keep with the anglegrinder have the anti fog coating. i haven't found it to work for me. maybe some rainx on it, if i had it, or wear a full gas mask with tissot tubes. i actually have one, but it's not a good fit.
i prefer the face mask to glasses, because it takes longer for them to fog up, and it's a gradual process, on part of the mask at a time.

[gipetto]

I have some small lumps of brass that i'd like to melt into a larger lump for turning. what's the handiest way of doing that, microwave? I do have an old one here that works and won't worry about it blowing up.

[crueby]

oh no, that would not work! Probably a big light show.   

[gipetto]

when a hexagonal brass bar is sold as 24mm width, is that 24mm as the distance between two opposing flat sides, or is that 24mm as the distance between two opposing corners?

[crueby]

Metal is sold as distance between flats, hex or rectangle.   Tvs are sold as diagonal to make them seem bigger.

[gerritv]

oh no, that would not work! Probably a big light show.   

Never say never, it can be done but not simple nor for the faint of heart.

<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P1VmIYheuU4" target="_blank">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P1VmIYheuU4</a>
(I recently bought a used Vevor electric furnace to save me from yet-another-project.)
Gerrit

[crueby]

oh no, that would not work! Probably a big light show.   

Never say never, it can be done but not simple nor for the faint of heart.

<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P1VmIYheuU4" target="_blank">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P1VmIYheuU4</a>
(I recently bought a used Vevor electric furnace to save me from yet-another-project.)
Gerrit

Not for me!  Wow.   

[gipetto]

the brass i used to make the plumbing fittings contained lead at 2.5 to 3.5%. google says under 8% lead is safe to use. should i remove the fittings or leave them as they are safe to use. the water is soft in the area.

[gipetto]

Is there anywhere in ireland that you recommend that will sell 24mm or larger brass hex bar. miko.ie only goes up to 19mm and they haven't responded to my inquiry.

[Tin Falcon]

McMaster carr in the US sells 24 mm x 1 meter for $329 usd  and up to  2 1/2 inch 63 mm in 6 in or 1 ft up to 6 foot long pieces. my suggestion is check with local metal suppliers

[crueby]

And if there are any commercial suppliers nearby, sometimes they will sell you offcut drops at a good price. Worth asking, w9rst is they say no.

[Jasonb]

If you don't need a lot then buy round and machine it to hex, it can be done with just a lathe.

I could give you UK suppliers but you will get hit with import and paperwork costs.