Thread: Failure!!!

I tried to put these notes with the photos in the post "Failure: but it Failed!

#1 cheap Chinese lathe kindly lent to me.

#2 Headtsock end showing 18mm spindle thread.

#3Original Spur drive Adapter made by a local turner, keyless chuck.

#4 Chuck with mandre adapter- made by the same turner- and mandrel rod.

#5 Tailstock with live centre.#6 Mandrel mounted in lathe.

#7 Two piece Toolrest made for penturning. #8 & #9 Clamp used to press pens together. It broke during first use and also broke the transmission adapter on the first retro American I have ever turned.

I have been over everything with a fine tooth comb and there are problems that simply can't be overcome. The pen barrels were out of round and I will not make pens that end up like that.I put the problem down to several factors:
#1 The unsophisticated nature of the machine. No amount of adjustment and fiddling could get the head and tail stock centres truly aligned.
#2. The live centre had a small amount of play.
#3 Live Centre not a good fit in the mandrel shaft end.
#4 Impossible to get the correct pressure on the mandrel end with the tailstock and live centre set-up.Every time I attempt ro tighten things there is some movement.
#5 The locking mechanisms for both the toolrest and the tailstock are a PITA.

I have given up the idea of turning here. I cannot guarantee the quality of the work I will turn out with what is available to me. I reuse to waste more time and money, and I certainly have no desire to ruin pen kits and blanks.

Looks like I need to wait until I get back to Aus.to enjoy myself and not be so bloody frustrated.
#4

pity Arthur a Bazillian/Aussie pen maker on the CV would look good.

It is said to hear that you will give up
Never give up all hope you just never know what might be around the corner until then stock up on blanks and kits that we cannot get back here.
Since I started turning I constantly get surprised buy the number of people that do turn or have turned in the past. Bump into the right person and you end up going home with a boot load of stuff. So keep your chin up you may be pleasantly surprised

Artme ! I made my first hundred or so pens on an old dynalink lathe very similar to what you are showing ,seems its not the turning thats a problem but the assembly process . I have always used my drill press to push pen parts together as it allows me to align the pens vertically and hold it straight in line with the pressure ,those plastic covered clamps are next to useless as you seem to have discovered don;t give up hehe,there will be a better way ,you can even use your tailstock on the lathe as a press if you need to . Cheers ~ John

one should never give up altogether, you never know what you will find around the corner, and you happen across some special wood the you haven't got enough room in your bag to bring home i am sure there is any number of people that would put there hand up

PICK ME, PICK ME

MIK

Thanks for the sympathy!!

John it is not only the assembly that is the problem. Out of round doesn't come with assembly. There are just too many small faults with the lathe set-up that add up an make for a larger problem. The nature of the beast is such that it is good for turning chair legs only.

I wanted to buy a vise to squeeze the pens together but even a small one costs the better part of $120!!!!, and it is not big enough. As for a drill press - and I know how good they are for the job- the price is unbelievable.

I think I said somewhere in an earlier post that WW is not a big hobby over here and so there is a very limited range of machinery, all of which is very expensive.Table saws are unsafe crap.

Industrial quality machinery is a totally different matter. I would say it is as good as anything in the world.

The question of getting timber is another matter. I would love to bring home as much as I could. Problem is it all has to be certified to the satisfaction of the Australian Customs people. Dealing with the paperwork and slow progress of things here is horrendous. But I will keep trying.

Wheelin', everybody who sees my work ( stuff I brought over as samples ) wants some. No shortage of a market. If we come back here to live permanently I will ship all my gear from Oz. I will need to buy a step up transformer but that would be cheaper, and far less frustrating than trying to get stuphph here.I would need to spend up on kits and so on and even CA, polishes and abrasive paper. There are just so many things we take for granted that you don't realize until you don't have them.

In the meantime I intend to run around - well walk -with the camera and photograph things I think are of interest.

Originally Posted by artme

Thanks for the sympathy!!

John it is not only the assembly that is the problem. Out of round doesn't come with assembly. There are just too many small faults with the lathe set-up that add up an make for a larger problem. The nature of the beast is such that it is good for turning chair legs only.

I wanted to buy a vise to squeeze the pens together but even a small one costs the better part of $120!!!!, and it is not big enough. As for a drill press - and I know how good they are for the job- the price is unbelievable.

I think I said somewhere in an earlier post that WW is not a big hobby over here and so there is a very limited range of machinery, all of which is very expensive.Table saws are unsafe crap.

Industrial quality machinery is a totally different matter. I would say it is as good as anything in the world.

The question of getting timber is another matter. I would love to bring home as much as I could. Problem is it all has to be certified to the satisfaction of the Australian Customs people. Dealing with the paperwork and slow progress of things here is horrendous. But I will keep trying.

Wheelin', everybody who sees my work ( stuff I brought over as samples ) wants some. No shortage of a market. If we come back here to live permanently I will ship all my gear from Oz. I will need to buy a step up transformer but that would be cheaper, and far less frustrating than trying to get stuphph here.I would need to spend up on kits and so on and even CA, polishes and abrasive paper. There are just so many things we take for granted that you don't realize until you don't have them.

In the meantime I intend to run around - well walk -with the camera and photograph things I think are of interest.

Lucky you know 1 or 2 people in OZ that can help send you bits and piece if you do move over there

Ok Arthur so you now have a good disk sander variable speed

How is it at turning bowls???

Originally Posted by wheelinround

Ok Arthur so you now have a good disk sander variable speed

The world is his oyster with a set up like that.

home brewing is a big hobby world wide , pick up a bottle capper press and put a block of wood in it .

Art, there was a guy using a corded drill in a made up frame in here a while ago. He seemed to be having a bit of success with it and at the end of the day it shouldn't be too expensive to fabricate a unit like it? I used one of those quick action vices for a long time to put my pens together before SWMBO bought me a pen press.

Corbs

Originally Posted by wheelinround

Ok Arthur so you now have a good disk sander variable speed

Always an upside!

How is it at turning bowls???

Motor stalls too easily.

Originally Posted by munruben

The world is his oyster with a set up like that.

You'll keep!

Originally Posted by corbs

Art, there was a guy using a corded drill in a made up frame in here a while ago. He seemed to be having a bit of success with it and at the end of the day it shouldn't be too expensive to fabricate a unit like it? I used one of those quick action vices for a long time to put my pens together before SWMBO bought me a pen press.

Corbs

Yes, I've contemplated that sort of thing Corbs. However, a crappy single speed electric dill here is the equivalent of $100. Figure I' spent enough of the savings.

I use a Zylus vise at home. Works well. Also have used the drill press. I think I prefer that.

Sorry to see you give up. With all the mucking about and associasted costs, how much would one of our local suppliers charge to send over a complete set-up from here (GPW, Carrols etc), might end up cheaper in the long run. The just leave as donation where you leave.