Musing about uses for a Mini-Jet extension that's too long

Ask for advice at sci.engr.joining.welding before you try it, or Google that group's archives, or you almost surely will mess it up. Cast iron is one of the more challenging things to weld, at least among the non-exotic metals.

Owen Davies

======================== Arch, I'm all for experimentation, but I agree with Owen on this. If you stay committed to this idea, then I'd strongly advise brazing instead of welding. Even then you'll probably get warpage and maybe cracking if you don't heat it up evenly. (think drying wood on a monster scale!) I'd take it to a certified welder, but that's going to drive up the cost quite a bit. Someone else may have better news.

Ken Moon Webberville, TX

Thanks Ken & Owen. Since the shortened extension is just for holding the tailstock out of the way, any ideas for making a smooth & firm connection without welding or brazing: maybe long bolts or a heavier clamp than Jet supplied?

True, I'll probably never try it, but at least you two responded. It's your ideas and wonderings that interest me, but do subjects not on a few well beaten paths hold much interest for this ng? Without responses, it's hard to judge what, if anything, is of interest other than routine answers to routine questions. There's nothing wrong with that, and maybe that's all we want. Arch

Fortiter,

My guess would it would be easier to fabricate it from scratch rather than modify what you already have. There are TONS of DIY lathe plans on the net. You might wanna check them out.

I've seen a few plans online, but the have all been either for treadle lathes or for simplified, low-capacity lathes that I wouldn't have much interest in building. If you can provide a few links for more capable DIY lathes, I'd much appreciate it.

Owen Davies

Owen, I suspect that, like me, you enjoy visiting online sites re making robust lathes, but you aren't interested in going any further. Not online, but an older 'Fine Woodworking' book, 'Lathes and Turning Techniques' has an article re a fairly heavy shopbuilt lathe. Good read--No build!!

Pain, I was asking about the feasibility and for advice re using sections of a Jet-Mini bed extension. I have built several lathes in past years, but I wouldn't undertake that today. The place for bespoke shopmade lathes has become very small and mostly for show, not blow. The manufacturer's 'enlightenment' has given us better designed, certainly quicker to get into use machines with higher quality components and much better resale than most turners could build.

If the time needed to design, acquire parts and tooling and build a lathe is factored in at all, storebought is usually the better way for most of us. In rcw archives are pics and a thread re using his shopbuilt lathe by one of us, but he is the exception.

I await further advise & consent from the ng re chopping up my Jet bed extension. Arch

Fortiter,

Ah, no, and no. Thus far, I haven't found any online sites that give much in the way of detail about making robust lathes. And there is a good chance that I will eventually build a lathe, unless I find exactly what I want in a used--read "affordable"--machine.

As I remember the article--the books is in a box after a move--it doesn't give enough detail to build the lathe. I could be thinking about any of several other articles, though.

Look up "Fine Woodworking on Making and Modifying Machines," for a few more interesting designs, but not exactly what I'm looking for. (That book is in the same box, so I may have gotten the title a little wrong, but that is close.)

Owen

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James Johnson, a member of the Hill Country Turners, near Kerrville, TX, built one of the best "home made" lathes I've seen. His old web site was not active the last time I tried to go there, so I'm not sure what his status is now. Seems like I saw a post from him not too long ago. Anyway, this thing is portable ... sort of! He has a trailer axle that he puts under it and hauls it behind his truck. If anyone has his site address, please post it, since he also used to make custom toolrests, and I want to get more info on those, if he's still doing them.

Ken Moon Webberville, TX

is still around, but closed down his website. He is also back making the KISS toolrests, the best I have used. I have his emails around somewhere if anyone needs it.

Lyn

Ken Mo>

Ah... well, I was just thinking back to my experiences working with cast iron... they are ALL bad. Hell, when I was like 18 I worked a torch in a scrap yard and, as a joke, my boss told me to cut up a manhole cover laying in the yard... it was made out of cast iron.... I got the whole thing to turn red... one little spot to turn white... made a little notch in it... my boss was rolling laughing that I hadn't given up.

Hi there Arch

Wasn't going to react to your musing at first, busy here, expecting company from Holland over for the next couple of weeks and so LOML has some work for me as you can imagine. But gave it a thought,( and if I had to do it ), from the extension I would cut off the end, not the front part, so you would still have the fit to your lathe, now make a foot from a plate let say 3/8" thick, weld on a strip for the lathe bed to rest on, and drill holes trough the plate and lengthwise into the extension, tap thread, bold together and your done. Hope you can follow this, its clear to me (G). I wouldn't start welding on it, it can be done but, its a lot of work even if you are a good welder, or have some welding shop do it for you. The problem with cast iron is it will not give like iron etc., and your weld will crack or break unless you preheat, use special welding rods and let cool down slowly, even then it's not the best way to do it, unless it is the only way, like in a break repair etc.

Have fun and take care (keep > Thanks Ken & Owen. Since the shortened extension is just for holding

Hi Owen

I also have the "The best of fine woodworking" book that I think Arch refers to, and it has a couple of lathes you could build yourself in it, it is not a total " hold your hand " article but there is enough there to go by in my opinion, the one plan for a "low-cost wooden longbed" has al the dimension etc there. and the other articles give you less info, but between the info and the picturs you do get a good idea how to build them, I would think. Jerry Blachard is the maker of the 2 big lathes, you could possibly get a hold of him?

Have fun and take care Leo Dan Der Loo

Owen Davies wrote:

He's listed in the AAW directory. Dave in Fairfax

Hi Leo, Of course, of course! I was so focused on using the foot, I didn't even consider your sensible suggestion.

With thanks and a slap up side my head, Arch

Fortiter,

(clip) Ask for advice at sci.engr.joining.welding before you try it, or Google that group's archives, or you almost surely will mess it up. Cast iron is one of the more challenging things to weld, (clip) ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Arch, I am almost as old as you, and I spent most of my life in fear of cast iron welding. Then I tried it, using the appropriate nickel rod--now I LOOK for opportunities to weld cast iron--it's fun and it's easy, as long as you avoid the stresses caused by cooling. In a great many cases, these stresses do not occur, or can be easily handled. I suggest you get a couple of junk cast iron pieces, and play around.

The rec-welding NG does have a lot of good info, especially about peening the welds. Good luck and have fun. BTW, you sometimes poke fun at your ethnic background, as related to thrift, so be aware: nickel rod ain't cheap.