mini lathe suggestions

indychuck · Jan 13, 2018

I'm case prepping quite a bit more of the smaller stuff (17s, 20s and 22s)and my hands get tired a lot faster with the smaller type work.

A lathe investment will likely prevent physical therapy to the hands, ortho surgery and a lot of aggravation.....at least that's how I justify to wife!!

Can I have some suggestions on a tabletop or a minilathe for such work. Case trimming, inside/outside neck deburring, flash hole cleaning, primer pocket cleaning, etc.

Here's a couple images of my cases, just to give you some perspective on the size I'm working with.

dero338 · Jan 13, 2018

do you seriously think a lathe will work better than all case prep machines Hornady sells?

indychuck · Jan 13, 2018

dero338 said:
do you seriously think a lathe will work better than all case prep machines Hornady sells?

This champion bench rest shooter thinks so - Precision reloading tool: Mini lathe - YouTube

GGaskill · Jan 13, 2018

I think virtually any mini-lathe that doesn't suffer from excessive runout issues would work but you will probably want to make some custom tooling to hold the cases as a standard chuck doesn't hold tapered things very well.

ulav8r · Jan 13, 2018

Like George's answer but would add that thread cutting ability would increase the lathe's usefulness for tool making.

dero338 · Jan 14, 2018

indychuck said:
This champion bench rest shooter thinks so - Precision reloading tool: Mini lathe - YouTube

sorry, but there is no way I will beleive this cheap mini lathe will prep brass more accurate than good case prep tools on the market. and I would never trade my K+M turner for what is on that video.

if the question would have been: can a mini lathe be a usefull toll in my work shop? then my answer would have been : absolutely and the bigger the better.

the only thing I do on the lathe is modified case for the hornady col gage but it could be done on a drill press as well

GeneT · Jan 15, 2018

Look at eBay and check out jeweler's lathes. You can often pick up an old Hardinge for a few hundred dollars. These are tiny lathes but they are high quality and would be superb for case prep. Having access to some larger tools would also be helpful as you will probably want some custom fixturing (of course you could buy a lot of that, too). Watch out for incomplete machines, until you've ascertained that you can get all the pieces you want/need - some bits can be rare and/or expensive.

GsT

Monarchist · Jan 15, 2018

indychuck said:
I'm case prepping quite a bit more of the smaller stuff (17s, 20s and 22s)and my hands get tired a lot faster with the smaller type work.

A lathe investment will likely prevent physical therapy to the hands, ortho surgery and a lot of aggravation.....at least that's how I justify to wife!!

Sounds as if what you BELIEVE you want is no Asian LSO toy, but rather an "instrument makers" sized lathe. Next larger size from a "watchmaker's" lathe.

Early Pratt & Whitney, split-bed era Hardinge, Elgin, Rivett, the Derbyshire, Lorch, the small Schaublins, and a dozen others, near-as-dammit ALL out of production, and for long years.

CAVEAT: Handwheels / balanced crank levers can be too small. Power feed not always present. Tooling choices scant and costly, DIY near-as-dammit essential.

I wouldn't think they would actually be any more gentle on tendons and ligaments, net-net than - for example - a larger Hardinge or Schaublin with their near-legendary smooth-operating controls (good choices if you have the money), nor even the common South Bend 9 in good condition (nice feel to the controls at low-budget).

You hands may be getting stiffer, but I'd bet that ain't gotten any SMALLER than what fits an SB 9, Hardinge, or Schaublin.

Nor even is CNC much help, given you'd be exchanging mouse movements and typing of code at a keyboard for turning of cranks at the metal.

gzig5 · Jan 15, 2018

Any of the 7x10, 7x12, 7x14 lathes will work for what you want to do. Google reviews or go to Little Machine shop, or Home Shop Machinist for additional info. You're asking the wrong crowd here. Sometimes you do get what you pay for. Get a bigger machine if you can afford and fit it. The old Atlas 10-12" machines and SB 9" work fine for this. I currently use an Atlas 6x18 and have used my Craftsman 12" and EMCO Super 11. Bigger machines are easier to use and more useful. I have a method and fixtures for neck turning on the 6x18 where I can do three cases a minute with perfect results.

dalmatiangirl61 · Jan 15, 2018

Before buying one of the chinese imports I'd suggest looking at a small Atlas or Logan lathe, tooling and parts are plentiful for both, but not always cheap. My smallest lathe is a Logan 9 x 24 it may not be as accurate as a Monarch EE, but certainly better than a china special. If threading is important, some have a QC gearbox.

Monarchist · Jan 15, 2018

dalmatiangirl61 said:
Before buying one of the chinese imports I'd suggest looking at a small Atlas or Logan lathe, tooling and parts are plentiful for both, but not always cheap. My smallest lathe is a Logan 9 x 24 it may not be as accurate as a Monarch EE, but certainly better than a china special. If threading is important, some have a QC gearbox.

SB, Logan, any of many small "conehead" antiques, but please, NOT an @las. DAMHIKT, but if anything aids and abets a market for a Horror-Fright Lathe Shaped Object, and @las would be first to be indicted. Unsanity, and not "temporary" its only defense.

dalmatiangirl61 · Jan 15, 2018

I'd take a ratty old Atlas over an HF any day of the week! I bought an Atlas 35 years ago, and still have it, and it has been a good machine. First thing I did to it was upgrade motor to 1.5hp, it will take a .100" cut if feeding by hand, only do fine cuts using the feed. Gears are all still good, anyone busting gears on an Atlas is doing something wrong. Like I said, its not a Monarch, but it will make more chips, and produce better results, and hold its value better than an HF pos.

Monarchist · Jan 15, 2018

dalmatiangirl61 said:
I'd take a ratty old Atlas over an HF any day of the week!

Just Firmly Do It then. There's no more point in discussing it than rank amongst 2LT's or virtue amongst Politicians.

indychuck · Jan 15, 2018

Monarchist said:
Sounds as if what you BELIEVE you want is no Asian LSO toy, but rather an "instrument makers" sized lathe. Next larger size from a "watchmaker's" lathe.

Early Pratt & Whitney, split-bed era Hardinge, Elgin, Rivett, the Derbyshire, Lorch, the small Schaublins, and a dozen others, near-as-dammit ALL out of production, and for long years.

CAVEAT: Handwheels / balanced crank levers can be too small. Power feed not always present. Tooling choices scant and costly, DIY near-as-dammit essential.

I wouldn't think they would actually be any more gentle on tendons and ligaments, net-net than - for example - a larger Hardinge or Schaublin with their near-legendary smooth-operating controls (good choices if you have the money), nor even the common South Bend 9 in good condition (nice feel to the controls at low-budget).

You hands may be getting stiffer, but I'd bet that ain't gotten any SMALLER than what fits an SB 9, Hardinge, or Schaublin.

Nor even is CNC much help, given you'd be exchanging mouse movements and typing of code at a keyboard for turning of cranks at the metal.

Correct, a step above a watchmakers lathe appears to be the right size. Although I have a woodworker friend that may be getting rid of his seldom used Unimat. Would the Unimat be a good candidate?

john.k · Jan 15, 2018

A Unimat would be a prince among coolies......but I am definitely not in the "worn out yankee iron beats new" camp............as someone once said "I admire the Model T,that doesnt mean I want to drive one"

FredC · Jan 16, 2018

indychuck said:
This champion bench rest shooter thinks so - Precision reloading tool: Mini lathe - YouTube

This thread has run a while, so hijacking at this point will not be so bad. that Eric in the video has cut and bailed hay for me. Small world! He did ask me about barrel tuners many years ago. I did not like the idea of a set screw locking the threads in place, maybe I missed some detail that was not apparent from his description. Will look at his barrel tuner videos to see what I missed.

sealark37 · Jan 16, 2018

If you run across a used Myford lathe, you might give it a close look. Regards, Clark

Monarchist · Jan 16, 2018

indychuck said:
Would the Unimat be a good candidate?

Not my personal cuppa. I have plenty of space and power these days.

That said, they were once considered good enough and found USE enough to have earned the nickname "Gunimat".

GGaskill · Jan 17, 2018

My first personally owned lathe was a Unimat SL and I still have it. It doesn't see much use these days since I have other machines now but it served its purpose. The version I have uses rods for the carriage support so it is very flexible and really unsuited for cutting steel, although it can do a tolerable job on brass and aluminum.

One of the larger ones would be a better choice. A Myford would be an elegant choice but they are not common in the US and probably pretty expensive. If all you plan to do is case prep, a good Chinese lathe would be all you need, but once you actually have a lathe, you will be tempted to use it for other things and that is when the deficiencies will start to be relevant.

indychuck · Jan 19, 2018

This is what I've come across so far at a local surplus store. Would any of these be potential candidates for - flash hole uniforming, primer pocket cleaning, in/outside neck deburring? Or, would these be more trouble than they are worth in trying to find attachment and mounting options to work with these lathes?

mini lathe suggestions

Aluminum

Plastic

Aluminum

Titanium

Cast Iron

Plastic

Cast Iron

Diamond

Hot Rolled

Diamond

Diamond

Diamond

Diamond

Aluminum

Diamond

Diamond

Stainless

Diamond

Titanium

Aluminum

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