Gotta be careful what I wish for, *LINK*

Re: Gotta be careful what I wish for,

john lucas

I bought one years ago. The guy who had it didn't know how to tune it up and it was pretty far off. Being a learning machinist I've had my ups and downs with it. I'm slowly learning to use it and getting it tuned up. It's kind of like when I tuned up my hand planes the first time. They worked better but when I watched hand plane experts I could tell mine weren't there. So I tuned them again. They got better and so did I. They still need more and so do I. That's the way the Smithy is. I just need to spend a lot more time with it. I've had fun with it and made some cool things but still have a very very long way to go. Oh and it's just like a wood turning lathe. Buying the lathe was just the tip of the iceberg. I didn't buy the Smithy (which I bought used) until I had enough money to spend an equal amount on tooling.

I think I've found a spot for it.

Keith Newton

It came with a pretty good box of goodies too. `But I have a good machinist friend that is just incredible, and can do anything. I've just got too many irons in the fire right now to be fooling around with this.

Re: I think I've found a spot for it.

john lucas

Yes it's really really time consuming. A job a good machinist would do in minutes probably takes me an hour. still I've had fun making things for turning that I couldn't do otherwise. A good example was the tools I posted about traditional vs irish grind. I made those just for experimentation on grinds. It would be far to expensive to buy tools and play with different grinds.

Re: I think I've found a spot for it.

John K Jordan

Keith, I hope you can keep it. I don't use them a lot, but when I do my metal lathe and small milling machine let me make and fix things difficult or impossible to do any other way. If yours came with tooling you are far ahead in the game.

I use the mill more than the lathe. A friend recently gave me his spare Rong Fu mill drill which is much heavier duty than my benchtop mill. It's in pieces as I rebuild it, replacing all the bearings, etc. I wish I had built a bigger shop...

JKJ

Re: I think I've found a spot for it.

Keith Newton

I guess I'm going to keep it. I managed to get it back to where it will stay. It is still on my shop engine crane, where I'll leave it until I can build a stand or find legs for it.

I need to get an apron and long gloves, and maybe a grease-monkey cap. Every time I get near, I have grease up to my elbows, and just don't have time to do a major wash down now. ha

Re: I think I've found a spot for it.

john lucas

Yes I went over mine from head to toe with Mineral spirits. I still wear rubber gloves every time I work on it because My hands get so oily.

Re: I think I've found a spot for it.

mikeee12345

Having a metal lathe has helped me make a variety of tools for my wood lathes, so when a new

project comes along and I need additional tooling and jigs the metal lathe goes to work making

the tools I need for my wood lathe projects.

Re: I think I've found a spot for it.

William Duffield

I think at this point, a "You suck!" would be appropriate.

Perhaps an explanation is in order for our turners who are not conversant in the jargon of hand tools. "You suck" is the highest compliment one could pay to a galoot for an old hand tool acquisition.

Re: I think I've found a spot for it.

Jim Barbour

Hear, Hear! And, by tradition the acquisitor buys the next round!

Re: I think I've found a spot for it.

William Duffield

I'm ready to start pouring the slab! Concrete blocks and trusses are on order.

I think I forgot to mention it was FREE.

Keith Newton

Now then, that makes it all better doesn't it?

Oh, and it came with a nice big machine vice.