A rhetorical question

Hell, I call myself an "engineer" and I've never made an engine, nor have I operated one for money (if you discount driving a shop truck).

And I _do_ own a lathe, plus an excuse for a mill, but I only call myself a "machinist wannabe". This in spite of the fact that I have no fear of setting over the tailstock, nor of bringing it back into line once I've done (you just get it until it eyeballs as straight, right? :-)

LLoyd,

I'm very sure he didNOTt spend his decades running a manual lathe. He could have spent that time on a turret lathe, milling machine or grinders. All would qualify as a machinist.

That said, now you know that his knowledge is not all encompassing, check his suggestions.

I knew many machinists that don't own machines, to them it's a job.

Others enjoy the craft.

Dave J. .

Lloyd,

He's not even a _operator_

He's a "tool changer"

--.- Dave

Ayup..sounds like a Boeing "Machinist" who came in to one of my clients looking for a job as a Bridgeport machinist.

He didnt have a clue how to do anything other than the same 3-5 parts he ran for his entire carreer at Boeing.

He didnt get the job....shrug

"Obama, raises taxes and kills babies. Sarah Palin - raises babies and kills taxes." Pyotr Flipivich

I have to laugh when I hear stuff like that. Who does he think got that tailstock on center in the first place? A human being. If one human can get it on center, another can get it back on center.

Jon

I wonder if he came in with the attitude "I am an apprentice now" or if he was looking for the same pay rate &c as he was getting.

Was he in a union. in some union shops, any one operating a machine, even a punch press, is a machinist. gary

When I worked at Briggs & Stratton, there were journeymen machinists who knew how to run their machine, set it up for the several parts they might run, and inspect those parts. Period. As it was a union shop, they knew how to look busy while doing little. But what they did do was done right, they knew better than to kill the goose.

David

I missed the Staff meeting, but the Memos showed that Gunner Asch wrote on Mon, 15 Sep 2008 14:34:01 -0700 in rec.crafts.metalworking :

I just hired on at a new job, and yoikes! this isn't like the last place! I mean holding a thousand tolerance? Well, strip my gears and call me shiftless, I'm in like a porch climber! "Now this is machining" and yeepers, am I "scared"! But the guy training me started out by saying "When you get the paperwork, ask yourself 'how is this job going to bite me in the ass.' Not 'can' but 'How'." I learned that TiN coated taps run oversize. Taught him what "theoretical thread depth" means (all that expensive technical schooling finally was useful. Finally.) I'm 'loving' it, I've half a block shorter commute, and a ten cent raise. I can live with this.

-- pyotr filipivich "I had just been through hell and must have looked like death warmed over walking into the saloon, because when I asked the bartender whether they served zombies he said, ?Sure, what'll you have?'" from I Hear America Swinging by Peter DeVries

I missed the Staff meeting, but the Memos showed that "Lloyd E. Sponenburgh" wrote on Mon, 15 Sep 2008

Or are called that, think they are that, and are really just "button monkeys" Some of them may learn the trade, but ... well I'm learning the "problems" which occur when all you've done for a set up is put fixtures in predefined locations, load ,material and go. This machining is really wild. I'm learning a lot, but I'm also building the base of previous 'experience'.

pyotr

-- pyotr filipivich "I had just been through hell and must have looked like death warmed over walking into the saloon, because when I asked the bartender whether they served zombies he said, ?Sure, what'll you have?'" from I Hear America Swinging by Peter DeVries

Nearly always AFTER something has gone wrong.

Thankfully!!!!

Gunner, Machine tool mechanic

"Obama, raises taxes and kills babies. Sarah Palin - raises babies and kills taxes." Pyotr Flipivich

When I worked as a manual cut off lathe operator in a tube factory, I was classified as skilled labour, one step up from the floor sweeper. My machine was set up by the shift lead hand but I was allowed to re sharpen the cutter after receiving instruction. Gerry :-)} London, Canada

I never owned a lathe till this year. It's a Chinese one and I'm the first one to put the tailstock on center. I'm pretty sure I'm not a machinist. Karl

On Mon, 15 Sep 2008 20:31:47 -0500, with neither quill nor qualm, "David R.Birch" quickly quoth:

Ah, a Briggs Boy. Maybe you can help. I inherited a free riding mower with a blown engine. Are the 14.5 horse engines worth rebuilding, or should I just replace it? The old owner said it made a very loud noise and blew oil all over as it quit. He was working on a slope. I did a quick visual and can't find any rods sticking out the case, but there is no compression. So, do these beasties usually tear themselves to shreds when they break, or are they pretty sturdy and inexpensive to repair? I still have all my tools from my auto repair days.

Model 287707, Type 022701, Code 9502154A ('95 KGRO PowerPro T4315)

Thanks for any info you can impart.

-- Guard well within yourself that treasure, kindness. Know how to give without hesitation, how to lose without regret, how to acquire without meanness. -- George Sand

See the recent (July) thread about Troy Bilt engine with similar problem (OP: stryed).

Well, I can understand not wanting to mess up the tailstock offset for a one-shot deal, and also turning tapers or constant diameters on long thin work is a royal pain, anyway. If you need an accurate diameter on that sort of work, it is better to grind, even better if you have a cylindrical grinder. Of course, not too many home shops have those.

And, of course, you CAN get the tailstock centered again, but it does take a few minutes with measuring instruments to do it. A "real" machinist who did frequent lathe work in a "real" shop would have known exactly how to do this, and how long it will take to get it dead on and KNOW that it is actually correct. A guy who dabbled in the shop, mostly using just a drill press might know the general concept, but have no idea how easy it is after you've done it a couple times. Without a dial test indicator, preferably a tenth-reading one, it gets a lot harder, like turning test bars and miking over and over.

Knowing the decimal equivalent of the threads in the tailstock setover bolts is a good help, so if it is a 24 TPI thread, and you need to move .004" then it is about 1/10th of a turn of the bolt.

I generally resist offsetting my tailstock, too, if it doesn't make a big difference. On critical work, however, where an accurate taper can actually be turned (something like a Morse or R-8 arbor, for instance) then it is worth doing it right. (Of course, a taper attachment is even better!)

Jon

Jon Elson fired this volley in news:B- Gdndp0YsBZQFLVnZ2dnUVZ snipped-for-privacy@giganews.com:

Oh, PSHAW, Jon!

To get the tailstock back to acceptable (cheap machining) center takes only a swatch of shimstock and about 30 seconds.

To get it back to "tenths" takes only about three or four minutes using a truing bar and taking a few tenths off each end. I've had my bar since 1971, and still haven't worn it down to where it needs new bosses.

LLoyd

Sorry, no clue, I was a trucker, which meant I pushed around heavy loads of parts. Neck size went up 2" in 6 months, waist fat was converted to shoulder muscle.

Learned why I never wanted to be in a union shop again.

Saw guys working a lot less hard than I was for more money. Was told they were "machinists". Went to MATC, got As, got lathe job, NOT at B&S, now I push around a mouse as CNC programmer and IT guy.

David

I missed the Staff meeting, but the Memos showed that Gerald Miller wrote on Tue, 16 Sep 2008 01:09:45 -0400 in rec.crafts.metalworking :

We all got to start somewhere.

I was the "setup guy" for the Robomills. I loved setting them up, but it .. took a while for me to "settle into the production routine." But I started as one of those who pushed buttons after "Roboman" set them up, too.

Now, I'm "back" as the new guy, drinking from the fire hose with new machines and new procedures. At least this time I had a new notebook on day 1.

tschus pyotr

-- pyotr filipivich "I had just been through hell and must have looked like death warmed over walking into the saloon, because when I asked the bartender whether they served zombies he said, ?Sure, what'll you have?'" from I Hear America Swinging by Peter DeVries