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9:15 AM
June 13, 2011
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I am a recovering lawyer in NYC and a beginner when it comes to machine shop. So far, as a start, I spend most of my available time studying the fundamentals, watching the videos and listening to the pod casts. No one in my family background was ever involved in any kind of shop work, so I have been going at it alone. I do have some experience at building large format cameras, clocks, model ships, etc., but in general, I have only my interest and fascination with metal crafts to work with. I hope one day soon to be able to show something that I built. So far, I have been spending many hours each week (a few hours every day) reading the excellent material found online. There is so much to learn, from the properties of various metals to machining methods, etc. I did not expect to spend so many months just reading and watching videos to learn the basics, but I am enjoying it immensely.
My goal is to construct a metalworking lathe. Nothing large. I prefer a small footprint, bench-top machine, but I would like it to be heavy and stable. My design will be sort of "retro" or vintage, and I want it to be full-featured. I will do castings, probably using zinc w/aluminum because melting bronze or iron might be too demanding for my limited space. (I live in a garden-apartment in NYC. I have a garage and driveway for space.) I will buy its motor and controller -perhaps the new one from Sherline. And I will be using purchased ingots. In the future, I suppose I will want to make clocks and perhaps some parts for a large-format view camera. In general, I will start with the low-melting point metals: tin, zinc, and aluminum. And if I can dissolve copper into tin and zinc, then I would want to try casting bronze and brass.
I will end my introduction with my thanks in advance for the help I know I will find here. It is a real pleasure to see how those with the experience and knowledge are so willing to share it. I appreciate the time and effort that goes into the responsive posts I read. Alden Banniettis, Brooklyn, New York.
9:30 AM
January 13, 2011
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Welcome to the site Alden. Like you I have just begun in this hobby. The guys here are very helpful and friendly. Looking forward to see some of your work.
Sammy
9:50 AM
January 9, 2009
Online
Welcome Alden!
You're plan to build your own lathe is an ambitious one, and I wish you the best of luck! It can be done (I assume you've seen the Gingery books that are listed in the "Books" section of this site, if not check them out ASAP).
What's amazing is it can be done even if you have no real machining tools at all. I think Gingery pretty much started out with a drill (not even a drill press if I remember correctly) and built an entire machine shop from scratch.
While I admire his ingenuity, I think most of us would rather start making chips right away. Which is why I bought my lathe new (a G0602 from Grizzly). However, I did purchase an old worn out Atlas Mill and spend about 75 hours refurbishing it. So I've tried two different approaches, buying new, and rebuilding old. One's cheaper but requires a lot more time before you can make chips. But building your own lathe from scratch is a whole 'nother level of commitment.
So if you don't have any tools yet, I'd suggest you consider purchasing a small lathe (9x swing or larger) just to get started. You can get them for $1000 or less, and you get a lot for the $. Even if you decide to make a lathe from scratch down the road, you won't be disappointed with your purchase. Lots of hobby machinists have more than one lathe. Just a thought.
Also, I'm sure you've already discovered another New Yorker who has a machining site – (nyccnc.com). The guy started out machining in his apartment, and has since purchased a Tormach mill and upgraded to a living situation where he has a garage. He used to have a lot of YouTube videos (and I think he still does) that were useful, but now it looks like he's trying to start his own fabrication business. In any case, it might be fun for you to reach out to him and see if he'd like to meet up. I have no idea where he is in NY in relation to you, but it might be worth it to try getting together.
Anyway, welcome to the site. Please let us know if we can help you get started in this wonderful hobby.
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11:35 AM
June 13, 2011
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Tyler,
Thank you for that warm welcome. I was sure that I would feel comfortable in this community as a beginner. Yes, I do have Gingery's books, and several others, which I read when I am not at my computer to read online articles. I like to try to find the answers to what must be elementary questions before asking of the time from others in the forum.
My idea to build a lathe as my first metal project came about mostly because I feel that I should not spend big bucks on what will essentially be a hobby. Also, regrettably, I have little space for a machine shop and, as well, many hands that reach out to me for money each month. So I have to go about this in a somewhat modest manner. As a wannabe machinist, I want a Southbend. But I know I only need a small machine, reasonably accurate for what I will be making. My hope is to learn from building my lathe and its attendant tools, and then, if I ever obtain the space, expand my capabilities into a more respectable realm. That is also why I will work with the low-melting metals at first, such as tin, zinc, and aluminum. And I have to keep things low profile before my lady gets wise to my intentions, lol. (I did some casting in high school -many, many moons ago. I have waited over thirty-five years to get started, so I will proceed slowly with prudent enthusiasm.)
I do have access to a drill press, grinder, and various sanding machines. I will be purchasing some critical measuring tools. I am hoping that, together with my self-study, I can make a start with this.
Again, thank you. I really like this site.
Alden
3:13 PM
April 19, 2011
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Mercy me Alden you sure are looking into a major job and I respect and appreciate the way you're going at it.
Good luck and best wishes and welcome. They always told me the only dumb question was the one you didn't ask ?!
So ask away, someone will give an answer.
~Chris
3:49 PM
November 11, 2010
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Alden
Buy yourself a lathe even the smallest Harbor Freight one will work far better than a Gingery lathe. Once you have a lathe then build the foundry and build the machines, you will be a lot happier starting out with an operable lathe.I've build the shaper and mill they both work fine on aluminum, steel works them hard so they can't take very heavy cuts. I didn't build the Gingery lathe because I had a sears lathe. I think if I'd had to start by building a lathe I might have never gotten very far before calling it quits. Building the machines is a lot of hard work,but it is very fun.
It took me 3 months just to build the shaper. I worked on it full time, I'm retired so I spent almost every day either casting parts or machining them. I did take off and go on trips with my son and to visit relatives so I wasn't working on it 100% of the time. The mill took about 3 months also to build. The dividing head took only 1 month to build.
You might be able to find a used Sears 6" swing lathe or a lathe similar in size larger swing is better , I got one for $200.00 it needed some work to get going mostly it needed repairs to one drive gear. I now have a Grizzly G0602 lathe 10" swing and it is great but these lathes need some modifications to work good, at least that my opinion.
Good luck and I hope to see your projects on this forum.
5:33 PM
June 13, 2011
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Tenn, Norman,
Thank you for your good wishes. In fact, I have been taking frolic and detour from the machining articles and tutorials to look over the many inexpensive and used lathes available. They all appeal to me. For me, just looking at some of the photos of those sweet vintage lathes is a great pleasure! It may very well happen that I do, in the end, opt to buy something and take things from there. (I found the Sherline and Taig interesting.) I am going to continue to my studying while keeping that issue open. I know you guys are speaking from experience -experience that I do not have, and I want to take full advantage of such valuable advice. And, yes, I am itching to see some chips flying! Alden
3:24 AM
February 10, 2011
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'Recovering lawyer', I like that 
. Welcome to the site.
Don't be too cautious about asking questions that may have answers out there already. I say this because I really believe that beginners books etc. should ideally be written by near beginners, as that's the only real way to ensure there's no assumption of knowledge from the author. The experienced folk who put together this information can easily end up in a position where it's difficult to perceive things from a newbie's perspective. I reckon someone who knows a little, and knows it well, can relay that information with more sympathy for the reader. So if you do find there's answers, yet something is not clicking together, then speak up and folk will help I'm sure.
1:49 PM
July 18, 2010
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Hello Alden. You'll like this site. Have you been to the "Backyard Metalcasting" site? If not, check it out. He does aluminum, bronze, and cast iron in his back yard. He is also into the Gingery equipment.
I went for the Harbor Freight 8x12 lathe (same as the LatheMaster 8x14 lathe) and I love it.
Regards, Al
9:34 AM
June 13, 2011
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Jerry, Al
Hey guys. Thank you. I very much like this site already and having finished reading just about most of it, I feel like I have learned a lot. It is a great comfort to know that there is so much knowledge and experience out there and that so many with it are so gracious about sharing it. I am sure that, without the internet and sites such as PIM, there is no way guys like me could possible hope to get into and along with home machining. I feel so thankful.
Yes, I have visited Backyard. I love such sites and I spend a lot of time visiting and revisiting these sites whenever I find one. Usually, I will spend an hour or so reading articles and then I take a break by going to the sites with the videos. I have found Tubalcain and the MIT videos among the best so far. I find that there is a very ample amount of information for aluminum casting and machining, but, so far, I have not been able to find a really good site with information about casting zinc with added aluminum. Also, my search for sites about casting and working with tin and casting and working with lead has brought up relatively little. But I am, slowly, finding the sites, so I feel progress is good. I do not like to continue into a subject area if I am confused about some basic point. And, of course, I know I have the forum here to help me.
My main handicap right now is my lack of space for a shop. I have a one-car garage and every time I check, there is a car in there! But the lady has finally agreed that I can have the small spare bedroom. I suppose we will be having fewer overnight guests in the future, lol. By next summer we will have a summer house in Maine and that is really where I will be able to set things up nicely. I have looked over the Harbor Freight line -and many other brands. I could be happy with any of them. But I will be starting out with a mini lathe. Not only due to my lack of space and expertise, but also because it seems like the prudent way to ease into and advance through machining. This is also my thinking for starting with the low-melts for my casting work. Here in NYC, if I start melting iron in the driveway or backyard, I could have a SWAT team coming down on me, lol. I think a zinc-aluminum recipe will work best after all things considered. Ultimately, bronze will be my main squeeze, along with brass, since I will be doing mostly clocks.
Anyway, thanks again guys.
Alden
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