RE: Lathe for conversions
 

Tim: I have been to many engine shows. Some nice Guy wrote down my email address and gave it to a woman. Her husband passed away and just wanted to sell the engine. One day I got a email and the next thing I know I was looking at a partly done Holt engine. The Lord has been good. It sure is fun getting a engine to finish and see it run.:D I do not have words to describe it! You can get the castings ect from a Guy in Texas I believe. In fact I will be buying the timing gears from him. I will PM it to you when I find the data. Take care and keep a eye on the next engine possibilities! Capt,n

RE: Lathe for conversions
 

TIM.....I will send a copy of the DVD of a engine show, with a model Holt engine running! Capt,n;)

RE: Lathe for conversions
 

Tim here is a link to You Tube of a Holt running! Best Regards Capt,n http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bSdI0Qf8hxI and another one http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AjQLK...eature=related

RE: Lathe for conversions
 

Hey somebody hinted my work bench was kind cluttered. I bought some new organizers and I am getting things sorrted out now! Getting some other stuff done too. My Beer can exhaust is about done. I used JB weld on the little adapter I made to connect the aluminum pipe to bottle. Here are some photos of my "sorted out messy bench" Thanks Capt,n

RE: Lathe for conversions
 

I cannot find any more postings by Volfy. Is he no longer on RCU? Capt,n

RE: Lathe for conversions
 

Opinions wanted! I can get a Harbor Freight/ Central machines 7x10 mini lathe that has never been used in exchange for an airplane I never fly and would sell for $50. Is it still worth it? At this point all I want to do is make aluminum prop hubs and shave down flywheels. I realize I will still have to buy lotsa tooling.

TIA

J

RE: Lathe for conversions
 

For $50, it's definitely worth it. It might be worth checking to see how old it is and whether or not there were any issues with those machines of that age. I don't think there was anything that would be a deal breaker though. I don't think I would even think twice if it's something you want.

RE: Lathe for conversions
 

I would trade any $50 airlpane for a Lathe in a heartbeat! You do not need much for tooling to make simple hubs. Capt,n

RE: Lathe for conversions
 

Before I had a lathe, a friend of mine turned down the fins on a ryobi fly wheel using that little HF lathe. It can be done.
Edwin

RE: Lathe for conversions
 

I have the 7x12 version, turning down flywheels is interesting, but I have pictures of my setup somewhere, I'll try to find them later tonight

turning prop hubs is no problem on it, order some stock through aircraftspruce.com if you need any parts for the lathe go to littlemachineshop.com they have literally every part of the thing...

I got mine for $250 and thought I got a good deal

oh, as far as tooling, if you have a decent assortment of drill bits, a drill chuck for the tail stock and a few taps, all you'll need is a couple HSS bits and a grinder to shape them, that'll get you through most of it

RE: Lathe for conversions
 

Thanks to all, I think I'll give it a go as it is basically free for me and it should be good starter lathe until I get a "nicer" lathe down the road, if I ever deem that necessary.

J

RE: Lathe for conversions
 

Has anybody tried metal spinning? Last summer I saw a show on the DIY channel on wood turning. This episode showed some metal spinning, making bowls. Naturally the first thing I thought of was spinners. I've been looking for some inexpensive wood lathes that would work for making spinners up to about 5" or so. Would need to be a pretty big swing.
Edwin

RE: Lathe for conversions
 

Edwin, Can you give us a link to this"metal spinning" so we can get a picture how it is done? Thanks Capt,n;)

RE: Lathe for conversions
 

Hmm! Let me see if its still on the diy web site. I saved it off on dvr last summer and dont think I have it any more.
Edwin

RE: Lathe for conversions
 

If you want a durable spinner they won't be spun. Spinning is done with soft aluminum.

RE: Lathe for conversions
 

This wasnt what I was looking for, but it gives you the general idea.
Edwin
http://www.centurymetalspinning.com/video/

RE: Lathe for conversions
 

Not a reply...but I did a little lathe work today. I made a ring to slip over the prop hub of my SuperTiger .90 engine. It was a close fit...but that is a good thing. A set screw will hold the ring in place but allow me to change timing at any time. Here is a couple of photos. Capt,n

RE: Lathe for conversions
 

How do you get the magnet to stay put.
Edwin

RE: Lathe for conversions
 

I am going to try Loctite on this one. I may also put the ring in a vise and "***** punch" around the magnet forcing metal in around the very top edge. Capt,n

RE: Lathe for conversions
 

Edwin, I ended up drilling a hole through the ring and used JB Weld to hold it in place and to fill in back side of hole, then slipped it on hub before it set up. I had the hub smeared with a lite coat of lube so I could get the ring off easy. I took the ring off afer the JB weld set-up and the contour is perfect. It worked nice. Capt,n

RE: Lathe for conversions
 

Thanks for the info. Will remember that.
Edwin

RE: Lathe for conversions
 

After 8 years being out of the machine shop, the itch finally got to me and I've decided to get a milling machine this year. I'm looking at this Enco bench mill but wanted to hear from some of you with experience. How heavy a cut can you take in steel with say a 3\4 endmill and how accurate are the bench mills? This one has a square column, so it should hold it's X and Y positions when the head is moved. It also appears to be the same machine as a Grizzly with different electronics. I don't expect Bridgeport performance, but I don't want to buy a POS either!

Thanks

RE: Lathe for conversions
 

I have a RongFu JFC45N2F (3phase,2speed version of the one the Enco is cloned from). It is plenty stout. There is a Yahoo group for these mills ( http://groups.yahoo.com/group/mill_drill/ ) . You might want to have a look there. I don't know what the max depth of cut I can take in steel with a 3/4 endmill, I have a 1 1/2 endmill, and have used it. You should be "OK". The stands they sell with these are sheet metal and kind of poopish, you might save your money and build one. I have the factory stand, it works and keeps the mill off the floor (wiggles a bit though). Good luck, MIKE

RE: Lathe for conversions
 

Thanks Mike.
Just trying to get an idea of how stout these bench mills are. I'd love a Bridgeport, but just can't just can't justify the cost nor have the space. Of course if I ran across a REALLY good deal, I could probably squeeze it in the garage!

RE: Lathe for conversions
 

There are many videos on youtube on spinning metal; very cool; very dangerous. But still...:eek:. I keep looking for lathe and mill and have not found any thing good and used so has anyone considered the combo machines? Or are they just a little too little. I want to build some engines in the long run.