20 Best Mini Lathe Upgrades And Improvements

Comments · 350

• TH

  @thedownwardmachine · 3 years ago

  I don't have a lathe or a mill, and I've never done any machining. For some reason I just find this video very soothing.

  7

• TE

  @teh_major4106 · 10 months ago

  10/10 this is easily one of my favorite machining tip videos ever!

  2

• KE

  @kencurtis508 · 4 years ago

  Great video, I’ve been a maintenance machinist for forty years and you learn how to make due with some pretty junky machinery. I own a couple of mini lathes and a mill and have been running then for five or six years as bought. After watching your video on up grades I think I’ll try a few and make my retirement a little mor ergonomic. Thanks for sharing.

  9

• MO

  @Motocue912 · 4 years ago (edited)

  Great video , I have been a machinist all my life and built pool cues for 30 years. I have been using the mini lathe since it first came out for putting pool cue tips on. I think I pretty much did all them mods at one point. For me my fav was my rear chuck to hold the pool cue shaft. Through the years I’ve made tens of thousands of dollars on the mini lathe . I used to have a portable one that I would set up at pool tournaments and do tips.  the whole thing was mounted to a small butcher block cart that I had on caster wheels . the front was framed in with a Plexiglass window and fluorescent light overhead . I also made an extension so I can put the whole cue or shaft in between centers ,  it was a simple Bolt on with no flex ,  the carriage never needed go back there just the tail stock.  I had some of the best pool players in the world walk up and have me put their tip on .. I wish I could post pics on here. Anyways awesome vid , keep up the good work.

  71

• MA

  @mavamQ · 2 years ago

  Great mods, makes me wish I didn't sell my mini lathe in expectation of buying a better lathe. I have still not bought a new lathe and I miss having the old one.

  2

• SP

  @spudnickuk · 5 years ago

  Thank you for spending the time doing this video, <br>i will be doing a few of your mods to make it more rigid for my Milling attachment .

  6

• AR

  @artyfarty87 · 1 year ago

  This is sooooo cool! I love seeing people make the best of what they have, it has a way of bringing out their creativity. You absolutely have lots of creativity. Massive Props, Bro!!!!!

• PA

  @PanamaSticks · 4 years ago

  I&apos;ve been machining over 32 years. &nbsp;You need to slow down your spindle speed and start using some coolant or cutting oil. &nbsp;The blue chip is a giveaway to using too fast a spindle speed. &nbsp;It will destroy your insert tooling much faster than it would normally last. &nbsp;The steel you&apos;re cutting will work harden as you cut it, and that will contribute to poor finishes. &nbsp;And the carbide inserts you&apos;re using have the wrong geometry for turning or facing. &nbsp;Get to know the cutting speed of the materials you cut in FPM (feet per minute). &nbsp;A quick and dirty calculation for a practical spindle speed when turning is &nbsp;RPM = (4 x FPM)/D, where D is the diameter of the work in inches. &nbsp;When drilling or milling a hole, D is the diameter of the cutter. But I cut the calculated spindle speed in half . &nbsp;Saves drill bits and mills, especially when drilling or milling deep holes.

  102

• JO

  @JoséCosta-f5q · 8 days ago

  Nice video and tips. Thanks for the share

• HA

  @harryniedecken5321 · 2 years ago

  Thanks for the video and insights.<br><br>From what I can tell from using these mini lathes and watching people do upgrades, &nbsp;the best path would be to buy something else

  1

• AL

  @allistar-center · 4 years ago

  Man you rebuild the entire Lathe.<br>Very useful video thank you very much, I just purchase mine.

  3

• BI

  @Bimmer_MD · 4 years ago

  I cut a dovetail into a right angle plate to mount to the cross slide, then mounted a t-slot plate to the vertical face of the right angle plate in order to use it as a horizontal mill. It worked out perfect to cut the new gib strips and carriage retainers. The next thing that I&apos;m looking for is a good way to be able to adjust the angle of the top slide faster

  5