I'm thinking of starting a small business sorta out of my garage with a manual Lathe. It's a grizzly G0769. I'm wondering what kind of small jobs I would be able to do with that machine. It's a mill Lathe combo with a center. I have 7 years experience in the trade, 3 Working with Swiss screw machines. I've made parts as small from .020" in Diameter, .100" in length to as big as 1" in diameter. I feel pretty comfortable with turning and milling. What's realistic in the work I would be doing as far as jobs for maybe neighbors or friends or even a small job that may be overloaded on work and needs a hand. How do I go about advertising, would it be more repairs than making parts? What kind of parts would I be able to repair? I feel like I can do so much at work because I have a blueprint and the machine capability but now to do it at home I don't know where to start. Any insight would be appreciated !
What should you expect?....
With that machine you should expect hours of dick-around time and very little productivity;
You should expect to have people ask you to make parts for less than the cost of a replacement part from the manufacturer, who makes them by the thousands;
You should expect people to want you to do freebies;
You should expect people (and yourself) to underestimate how long jobs actually take from start to finish;
You should expect to take an occasional job that you probably shouldn't have.
As for the machine capability, you should only expect to do small shaft work, bushings, short threads...in aluminum and plastic. That machine doesn't have any real milling capability.
You should expect to want a real lathe after your first day in "business";
You should expect to want a real mill after your second day in "business";
You should expect to not have any business for quite a while.
You should expect to lower your expectations.
If you have been working in a real shop for 7 years, you should know that machine is toy.
You should also expect this thread to get locked.
