Does anyone have any thing special they would like to ...

see as a regular part of the machinist gate as far as pics or information about a special subject of interest? Maybe by getting some ideas on the table we could design this gate with a special flare for our GTA members.

[shadow]

Something like a starter,s kit for us greenhorns(me). A good beginners lathe, tools etc. Thanks Ed

[ribbonstone]

Speaking for myself, have found that grinding lathe bits has been an interresting learning experince...learing what angles/shapes work best on what material...most of the books are lacking in a good step-by-step, so we kind of learn by trial and error (nope...you really can't buy every shape you might want pre-made).

Ok if what I am hearing is correct we need to focus on what materials make  good cutting tools for what metals. That can get pretty deep in itself. Lets start with a good entry level lathe or mill that is affordable for those of us who work for a living..hehe.

I have the Cummins 7x12 lathe and a central machine mini mill/drill. Both do the work for my airgun hobby just fine. They even handle some of the repair work on my boat with aluminum and stainless a big plus. There are other brand names out there but I chose these because of the price mostly. Expect to invest a little more on tooling also.

Here are a few  links to get started on information.

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/Category.taf?f=displaysubcats&CategoryID=9&tab=8

http://www.cumminstools.com/browse.cfm/4,876.htm

http://www.grizzly.com/products/item.cfm?itemnumber=G8688

Here is one of my favorite sites.
http://www.littlemachineshop.com/

http://proshoppublishing.com/

http://www1.mscdirect.com/CGI/NNPDFF?PMPAGE=489&PMCTLG=00

http://wttool.com/


If anyone else has any good links to help build our links catalog please list them.

Safety first

Bob..CDT..feel free to chime in anytime...hehe.

[jct842]

i have ordered boring bars and other tooling to compliment my cumins and harbor freight micro mill.  the place I ordered from screwed up the order, then ups screwed it up some more and damaged a box returning it to shipper.  will be dec 26 to get package #1 and #3, ...#2 came monday.  it all should have been in 1 box.   I will be constructing a ball turner, a lever lock for the tail stock and boring bar holders.   this is all to aid the construction of a big bore air gun from scratch will buy barrel, screws and springs.  don't know about any one else but I am getting serious about my lathe and mill.     the first gun project will be the valve, then to test it I will use some dom tubeing to test.  I am pretty sure I will be using a muzzle loader barrel.....length, twist rate, and caliber from .32 maybe a bit larger and it will be co2 maybe later go to 1500 psi/       John

I ordered from Harbor Freight too. Sometimes they get things messed up ..I had to return a machining vise to them and had no problem. I had good customer service on that one.
I ordered some boring bars and a quick change tool kit from them too. It all got here ok and I sure like working with them. Makes a world of difference in what and how I can do things.

Heres my little shop set up for now.

Central machine mill / drill and cummins 7x12 lathe.

[ribbonstone]

Have a nicer set up, but a lot of the heavy tooling (vices/cabinates/etc.) and hand tools are Harbor Freight items (mainly becasue there is an outlet 5mins. away).

Use to have a bit more, but events in my area removed them...keeping things simpler this time.

Shop you have will keep you air-gun entertained for a long-long time.

Hey thanks..)

 I didn't want to go to big because I don't plan on mass producing guns or parts for retail. I can still turn out some nice things but its not a production outfit...lol. The amount of work you can do with a small setup like this one is really amazing.

[ribbonstone]

Wife just shakes her head.

She's use to me going off for an afternoon and only having dirty guns and some sheets of paper with holes punched in them to show for it, but when I'll spend days in the shop and only have a little bit of machined metal to show for it (and a pile of shavings...lathe is basically a steel wool making machine, the part is a by-product) she just shakes her head.

[Gene_SC]

LOL ribbonstone,  that is so funny. And very common with the way wive's look at our hobbies and toys.. hehe

Gene

Ain't it the truth for sure.....lol.. Mine just smiles and says it keeps me out of trouble...hehe. She gets her fun stuff and I get mine...keep the little woman happy and everybody is happy..