New toy

[cutter]

Good show, Mark.
Almost everything the guys told me about little Charlie will probably apply to your lathe - except the size limitations and you have the quick change box.

There are currently 355 items on ebay under "Atlas Craftsman Lathe" & many of them are for your machine.
Ozarkwoodworker will probably have your manual.
The Southbend "How to Run a Lathe" applies equally well. Right now you have 29 choices.
As always, lathes.uk is useful reading for your new baby.

And finally, I gotta go to work for a couple of hours but before I go I think a free 12 x 36 is at least a double .....

[MarkBall2]

Thanks Rod, that means a lot to me.

I forgot to say, the motor turns quite free both directions, it has a Square D reversing switch already wired into the harness. I have no idea how to lathe, but I want to get a manual first, clean it up a bit, then toss some scrap in it to practice.

One of the first upgrades I plan will be a Quick Change Tool Post & boring bar for the lathe. I have a couple projects in mind to play with this new toy. I'm so pumped about having a lathe, I couldn't sleep last night.

[1911man]

Let's see, free lathe + pics = YOU SUCK BIGTIME! Ain't nothing like a new toy especially when it's free

[MZL LDR]

Yeah Mark, That's a " YOU SUCK" for sure. Congrats. I'm sure you will have fun w/that. Tom

[greywynd]

I hear the vacuum all the way to here!! A nice score, with some time and effort that should clean up to be a nice machine.

Biggest thing right now, tough though it is, is be patient. Let the oil etc work it's way into things and free them up etc, don't force anything. Some of the parts on these are brittle, and taking some more time is a whole lot easier than trying to find a replacement. Not sure about that one because of the quick change gear box, but some of those lathes had zinc gears, nothing wrong with them, but they will damage easier than steel or cast iron would.

[cutter]

Originally Posted by MarkBall2

I'm so pumped about having a lathe, I couldn't sleep last night.

lol
That's wonderful.
You know what? I'm not lol-ing at you. I actually laughed out loud for you.

A working lathe is a blessing in so many ways. It will change the way you approach your projects for the rest of your life, much in the same way that a welder does. You'll find new ways to do things that you never even thought about before.

Getting an old neglected machine up & running and giving it new life is almost a spiritual experience for me. The excitement you feel right now was shared by someone else, maybe several people, in the past and you just have to know at some point that a part of the spirit of excitement, or the joy they felt in using it remains with your lathe. That's just one reason I prefer old tools.

Then there is the realization that literally centuries of thought and ingenuity went into the design and development and refinement of a lathe, or a mill or - you name it. From the first wooden spring pole lathe or treadle lathe all the way up to the first motorized line shaft equipment rooms and the computerized marvels we have today, millions of men laid awake nights thinking and dreaming of the next little detail that eventually made it all come to life.

You and I - all of us - stand on their shoulders.
I think our shared excitement is a tribute to them.

[nctox]

Not a bad haul for an old Air Force guy. Congrats....

[OLD MAN]

Mark, my friend, congratulations, I am soooooo happy for you.

You could have set down with a pencil and paper and made a list of lathes to start with and what you got is at the top.

It has not been used. The screw slots have not been buggered and the bolt heads have not been rounded off, thus, no use.

i agree on the patience. Don't make things happen, let things happen. First a cleaning and soaking. As you clean you will find oil holes in places where you did not expect to even have place.

Use a good penetrating oil for the clean up and then change it for regular oils without the solvents.

Time is your friend, you can cause more damage by getting in a hurry now than you want.

It don't have to run for two or three weeks. Check everything. I would recommend a link belt for power because it eliminates so many other problems.

I would also recommend Frank the Chicago Chinaman for tooling now. later you can upgrade but for filling the shelves he is the cheap way to go. He talks funny and you might have to get Cutter to order for you.

There are so many places to start on tooling that there is no right answer. I think Cutter has just done this with his mill and can help steer you. What is important to one person is not to another.

The first problem is you will be working with numbers that you are probably not equipped to do. EBay can help a lot. You have to educate yourself first.

I wish I was closer, I would love to help clean it up and bring it to life. There are a lot of guys here who have done it so ask questions and help will be there.

Again, congratulations. Jerry

[MarkBall2]

I did find an online source for free machining instruction. I'm going to print it out & study it quite a bit before I start making chips. It's the basic training for machinists by the U.S. Army. Covers quite a bit of stuff, but for now I'm interested in the lathe training.

Here's a link to the site: http://metalworking.com/tutorials/AR...524-index.html

And the link to the lathe training: http://metalworking.com/tutorials/ARMY-TC-9-524/ch7.pdf

As I said, I'm pretty stoked at this. I've been working in the garage a bit, doing some cleaning. I'm using a product called Purple Power from AutoZone. It degreases stuff pretty good & is water based. Only problem is, it really drys out the hands, so ya gotta be careful & wear gloves. Most of the cleaning is with a soft bristle brush & the degreaser. I won't disassemble anything til I get a manual for it. Too many gears to loose track of.

The Little Machine Shop has an AXA Quick Change Tool Post I might get. From other readings that seems to be the correct size. But that's down the road a ways. I'll take my time cleaning it up. The paint isn't even scratched, so no paint will be needed. Just a good coat of oil after it's cleaned.

[cutter]

Originally Posted by OLD MAN

I would also recommend Frank the Chicago Chinaman for tooling now. later you can upgrade but for filling the shelves he is the cheap way to go. He talks funny and you might have to get Cutter to order for you.

There are so many places to start on tooling that there is no right answer. I think Cutter has just done this with his mill and can help steer you. What is important to one person is not to another.
Jerry

I've never spoken with Frank, didn't need to. Their online order processing was very impressive. Shipped the same day I ordered. I've been really pleased with the little dab of endmills and collets.
cdco tools
Frank has a sale on QCTP's right now that you probably can't beat anywhere, pricewise:
BXA for $89, including the toolpost & the 5 standard toolholders.
AXA for $78 - same five holders. (By they way, that does include a boring bar holder and a parting tool holder.)
I paid more than that for Charlie's little setup.
The downside is they ship UPS so you get to wait about 5 days. I think you have a few days cleaning & scraping before you need to worry about a toolpost anyway.

ebay sellers that have earned my trust include brbarker, Oz (the manual guy) and antfarm200. All very professional and have been helpful to me. Antfarm communicates better than barker but he does tend to be a little pricey; even so, you can talk to him; his name is Warren.