Thread: QCTP for AL250g

I would suggest you purchase the AXA QCTP from CDCO in the US, currently $US83 with 5 tool holders, extra toolholders about US10, get Frank to put it in a Medium size Flat Rate box with as many tool holders as will fit in under the 20lb weight limit.

He also has the wedge type, purportedly better, on special for $US98, normally $US168.

CDCO Machinery Corp.

As you have said it's not that time consuming to set up a tool holder without a QCTP. Nice to have, but can you spend your money better elsewhere? Let me know how the diamond tool holder goes, it was to be my next purchase. Unfortunately I didn't receive much feedback when I asked the question.

I recently fitted and AXA QCTP to my Hercus 260 and it's the best addition I have made (even better than the VFD I just finished fitting).

I bought a genuine Aloris toolpost and a heap of Chinese holders from this bloke:ALORIS SUPER PRECISION EA HEAVY DUTY LATHE TOOL POST items in allindustrialtoolsupply store on eBay!

The Chinese holders are very well made. I don't know how good the Chinese toolposts are tho. I have a DTH fitted into one of the holders.

Originally Posted by th62

Let me know how the diamond tool holder goes, it was to be my next purchase. Unfortunately I didn't receive much feedback when I asked the question.

What was the question again?

Ok, maybe that response was a bit harsh. Then again, maybe not.

Fairly obviously there are no moving parts in the holders. And I've already told you this before- others have had problems with Chinese holders (Ewan I think) so I wasn't going to risk shipping a dodgy one from the US.

Yep that was me. I have a cdco bxa wedge type, quality is crap. I had to replace the central bush, the backlash on the wedge was appalling, and the clearances were huge. In hindsight I would do what Chris did, get a genuine post and GOOD Chinese holders. I have both cdco and tools4cheap holders, the tools4cheap ones are way better quality. But they are twice the price.

Cheers,
Ew

At the risk of sounding like an advertisement for CDCO, I have his AXA toolpost (piston type) and his holders.

Have never had a problem with either the toolpost or the holders.

Use them every day and have never replaced any bits, including the grub screws.

Like jack620 said, I would rate a QCTP as one of the best, if not the best, addition to a lathe.

YMMV.

Hi There Brian,

Mine works a treat - just happened to pick it up from the throw-out aisle @ H&F - only missing the spanners.

I had to make a collar for the bottom and a sleeve for the top (used for both tool posts), plus a longer centre bolt, 12mm waisted to 10mm at the top so that I could use the original handle.

https://www.woodworkforums.com/f65/ti...-again-170850/

Ewan has a thread somewhere he has made a dozen or 11 extra holders - very impressive - and I'm envious too! (sorry, It was Dave J)

Regards, Daryl

I do not have a QCTP so I can give an opinion from my perspective for whatever it is worth. I have thought about getting one but as my lathe(s) take 20mm shank toolholders I need a fairly large size QCTP. These are expensive and to make the holders will take a lot of metal so at this point I have managed to resist the temptation. This may be due to the fact that there is no way that I can afford the price and I believe there are a lot of other things I need first.

Consider the total cost including enough holders to fit all the tools you have and may get in the future and then decide what else you need to buy for your lathe and work out your priorities. I don't have a problem with using a 4 way toolholder. I have the tool height engraved on my tools so I can work out the spacers needed very quickly. The main ones I remember anyway. I am going to start leaving the spacers with each tool, held on with a rubber band so no working out is needed. I think I would need more convincing before I shell out the money as I do not see that much of an advantage at this point in time.

Dean Porter

Brian,

QCTP Are great but not essential to start with. Everybody says get them from CDCO as they are cheap but when you go to their web site they say email for export orders. I am still waiting for a reply from March. H&F sell a piston type BXA holder for your lathe. The wedge types are better and I got mine from CTC tools in Hong Kong. I have also bought a heap of tool holders from them at $22 each. I ask him for some extras when I check out with an order and he sends me a Paypal invoice for the extra amount which I pay as they are not on his web site. They are very good quality and heaps better than the little QCTP I bought from H&F for my last lathe.

You can get by without a QCTP holder and if you grab some old hack saw blades and empty a can of beer and cut it up with tin snips. The beer can shims gives fairly precise height control. If you only have say a left and right hand tool, then the 4 way tool post is very efficient. In fact I ordered a QCTP before I set the 4 way up on this lathe and wondered if I had done the right thing.

Once you have a QCTP the holders breed like flies!

Here's a link to my CDCO holder and its woe's. https://www.woodworkforums.com/f65/bxa-qctp-cdco-160008/

Both Dave J and I have recently made holders, although my effort is nothing on Dave's mammoth 60+. https://www.woodworkforums.com/f65/ma...olders-172434/

I don't think i could go back to my 4 way now, changing tools is just so easy. It also makes it easy if you are having trouble getting a good cut with one tool just to swap to another. Need a chamfer? Just put the tool and and do it, too easy. I think 10 Holders would probably be a decent amount. Thinking about the last thing i've made on the lathe i used 8 different tools i think. This included boring, internal and external threading, parting, facing etc. Can't do that easily with only a 4 way.

Cheers,
Ew

To expand on Rodweb's thread: I have a steel plate which I use under the tool holder. To bring the tool up to the right height I use auto feeler gauges as shims between the steel plate and the tool holder. Residing next to the lathe in a plasticised sheet is a list of tools with the corresponding shim to use with each tool. A quick look at the plasticised sheet is all it takes. Obviously not as good as a QCTP, but for those on a budget it works well. The AL-250G's 4 way tool post is pretty rough so the surface where the tools sit requires machining. I did this by jacking up the 4 way with parallels to the appropriate height and with an end mill in the chuck machined the tool holder lands so all were the same height. A little unusual, but it worked for me.

Originally Posted by Ueee

I don't think I could go back to my 4 way now, changing tools is just so easy. It also makes it easy if you are having trouble getting a good cut with one tool just to swap to another.
... Thinking about the last thing I've made on the lathe I used 8 different tools I think. This included boring, internal and external threading, parting, facing etc. Can't do that easily with only a 4 way.

I moved from a 4 way because while most tools were fine, the parting blade hung over the side and so meant that every time I wanted to part I had to stop and set it up from scratch. Got irritating after a while (and finding shims) - that and discovering that the previous owner of the lathe had machined out the tool post to fit larger tools and had weakened it so that tightening up a tool was enough to distort it slightly.

A couple of things I have seen/ heard of for 4 way posts though -

• Some users work out the shims needed for each tool and compose a "shim pack" that they tape to the tool so that it is ready to go.
• I have also seen articles in things like MEW where owners have made up 2 or 3 Four way posts (the rotating bit) and swap those in and out (preloaded with tools). A bit cumbersome but not a bad solution if you haven't got the cash for a QCTP

Originally Posted by Ueee

Need a chamfer? Just put the tool and and do it, too easy. I think 10 Holders would probably be a decent amount.

What I like about the Aloris style holders is that they are not hard to duplicate - you can start with 5 or 6 and then make up more if you need them. Other types (Multifix, Dickinson) can be duplicated but are more involved. 10 is probably a nice number, although more will always find a use. I find that my often used tools stay in holders but for things like threading or form tools I may swap bits of HSS around.

The last point that I would like to make is to echo Ewan's comment about things like chamfer tools. Every so often someone talks about the need to be able to rotate their tool post on the slide, presumably to put on chamfers or similar. QCTPs were developed in production environments where adjusting machines (unnecessarily) is regarded as wasteful and eliminated where ever possible. When using a QCTP you need to get into the mindset of setting up your tooling to suit the lathe rather than setting up (adjusting) the lathe to suit the tooling. Having a 45 degree (90 degree included angle) tool set up for chamfers means that chamfers take seconds rather than several minutes while you stop the lathe, turn the slide and the post, turn on, make the cut, turn off, change things back and check the alignment. A QCTP is a great aid to working with less effort if you start thinking that way.


Michael

I agree with Ewan and Michael. One of the first things I did when I got my QCTP was grind up a 45 degree chamfer tool. Now everything gets a proper chamfer because it's so easy.

Chris