The Home Machinist!

How many of these are out there? I've had mine for a few years. I think it's great for a home shop, big enough for barrel work to boot. I have the change gear setup modified so no tools are needed to swap gears. The compound and millvice have captive T bolts for quick changeouts, with crossslide handwheel quick release. Put a spider on back of the headstock, converted the steadyrest to ballbearings. Been having lot of fun and learning too.

I have the same machine which I really like for the money. I have owned it for about 2 years. I just finished machining and installing indicator setups for the downfeed and the cross-slide and adding an additional bearing and support to the downfeed shaft so that I can extend the shaft and handwheel to clear the indicator setup. Any interest in seeing the pictures? What I would really like to have for my machine is a DRO, but I can't figure out how to make it happen. All the out of the box setups are oriented for either lathes or mills, but I don't know if they could be easily adapted to our type of machines. Any chance you could post pictures of the mods you have made?

Have you happened upon this user group for a non-commercial but highly functional and featured 3-axis DRO? Uses Chinese scales.

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ShumaTech/

I have one that I got as a partially built kit, and am incredibly impressed.

I know it has both lathe and mill function capabilities, but am not sure if they are both accessible at the same time. I know the keypad overlay differs between the two, but if the functions are available, no reason you couldn't "learn" it both ways.

It was a short run group buy/production run by the developer. Its now a built-yourself project where you'd get the printed circuit board and have to order all the parts yourself and solder up the PCB.

Rick

Mike, I been fighting the flu so hadn't seen your reply. I posted some photos of some of my mods in the dropbox at metal working.com I think in 2002 under G9729. I made a kind of a DRO for the quill, it's in the pics. I would like to see your mods please send them to [email]jandhleary@yahoo.com.[/email] I'll look tomorrow to see if the photos are still there, if not I can take some more and send them. Jon

Wow! [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/shocked.gif"%20alt="[/img]I just looked at the pictures you posted to Metalworking.com. Really neat! I'm not sure I understand how your downfeed works from the pictures, though. Would you mind explaining? Also, I would love to know where you got the material to make the accordian-style way cover. I have seen these on industrial machines, but never on a home machine. My machine is always a mess and I am constantly having to clean the leadscrew because it gets all gunked up with chips and coolant ( I have installed a flood coolant system on my machine). As long as I'm asking, is there any way you could share your drawings for the threading dial indicator? I will take some photos of my mods ( a chip tray, coolant system, splash/chip guard, cross-feed dial indicator setup and downfeed dial indicator setup) and some of the tools I have built for the machine -which pale in comparison to yours- and send them to your email address, as you requested. Nice work!! [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/wink.gif"%20alt="[/img]

Mike, The downfeed is a inch scale designed so that each 1/16th on the scale equals .001 on the quill. the small knob is for zeroing, loosen move to zero, quick and easy. Each complete rev is .150. I made the thread dial as one of my first projects, it is pretty crude but works, just a 12 tooth straight cut gear angled to lign up with the leadscrew threads. It was thrown to gether so I could cut some threads, I alway planned on building a nicer one. Grizzly may sell one I never checked. The way covers are accordian window blinds, get one for about a 4x4 window, that would last a while, just cut to length in a chopsaw. Screw the alum channels to the headstock and carrige and tailstock(drill & tap). I don't use that vice setup in the dropbox anymore, I bought a 4" swivelbase from Enco, works alot better. I've made other small mods to numerous to to detail now. When I get a chance I'll take some pics of those and send to the dropbox. Jon

Hi, i have a G9729 I bought in June '03 (new). Mine came with a threading dial. I like the machine, it's good size for what I do and limited shop space. Seems reasonably accurate, although the ways don't seem very hard. I need to make one of those window-blind way covers. I made a fixture for notching tube for weld fit-ups. It bolts to the top of the compound in place of tool post. Compound swivel is used to set angle, tube is clamped in fixture and carriage feeds tube into holesaw or roughing endmill in lathe chuck. If anyone is interested I can send or post a picture. It's low budget but works great.
Does anyone know where I might find a more robust compound for this machine? The compound/milling vise is definitely a compromise.

Thanks,

Steve

I have the same machine which I really like for the money. I have owned it for about 2 years. I just finished machining and installing indicator setups for the downfeed and the cross-slide and adding an additional bearing and support to the downfeed shaft so that I can extend the shaft and handwheel to clear the indicator setup. Any interest in seeing the pictures? What I would really like to have for my machine is a DRO, but I can't figure out how to make it happen. All the out of the box setups are oriented for either lathes or mills, but I don't know if they could be easily adapted to our type of machines. Any chance you could post pictures of the mods you have made?

There was an article on a DRO for a lathe just published in one of the last 3 issues of Live Steam. Basically, they took and mounted a digital caliper to the bed and rigged some sort of stop for it. I will see if I can find it.

Fred

This is my first post , I have been quietly observing for a short time . I own a machine quite similar to the grizz , I believe the bed is a bit shorter ( 20" ) , the swing is more than it can safely or accurately handle ( 16.5" ). I'm not complaining , just stating the facts , I am happy with the machine and like others here have made some modifications , when I figure out how to post pictures or a link to them you will see what has been done . Mods include way wipers w/ felts , a support for the "Z" fine feed which is a work in progress , to be more specific one turn on the feed wheel is .150" at the quill , I will build a dial next to show .001" as the course feed dial is .040" and not very usefull, I built a cover for the threading dial ( another story ) to keep chips from falling in and meshing with the mechanism.

Let's see if I'm smart enough to make this picture thing happen .

http://img4.photobucket.com/albums/v29/JeffH/Shop18.jpg

http://img4.photobucket.com/albums/v29/JeffH/Shop16.jpg

http://img4.photobucket.com/albums/v29/JeffH/Shop15.jpg

Jeff

Hello Fred. Since you use the carriage for both lathe and mill it's a sort of two for the price of one on x and y axis. On the z axis you could use a second encoder for the compund (assuming you could figure a way to mount it) and switch plugs between compound and quill. Not qite the two fer but it'll have to do.

Dennis (Even us Okies thinks good once in a while.) C.

I posted some pics of my machine in the metalworking.com dropbox under G9729. Look in the 2002 archives. There is a photo of my downfeed scale, way covers etc. Jon

Steve
I would love a diagram or a picture showing the details of your homegrown tubing notcher!
Sounds like just the rig for what I plan do.
al.houston@xcountry.tv