Hi all,
Well, my Hobbymat MD65 mini-lathe is doing sterling service now it's been treated to a decent "CLA" (clean, lubricate and adjust) session. The tailstock jams if you accidentally pull it in past zero and there's a bit of backlash on the horizontal leadscrew, but that's about it. Certainly nothing that would prevent it from being used.
Problem is, now I find myself in a predicament: I don't have the external jaws for the Polish-made three-jaw Hobbymat chuck... and I need to turn a
1-5/8in. diameter aluminium rod down to a more reasonable size and put a few centred holes in it. Naturally this thing is just slightly too large for the internal jaws...The externals aren't available as a spare part, so I'm looking to get a second chuck (possibly two, a 3jaw self-centering and a 4-jaw independent plus a dial indicator). You can probably predict my question, but I'll ask it anyway... :)
Can anyone suggest a decent quality chuck for my MD65?
The standard chuck is an 80mm diameter thing with three M6 bolts protruding from the rear face (at 120-degree angles from each other) for fixing. These bolts are pushed through the faceplate and secured with nuts on the rear. I'd prefer this type of fixing if at all possible; installing bolts from the back of the faceplate would be tricky at best (and possibly involve at least partly disassembling the spindle section, which is Not Fun At All).
As I recall, the faceplate has six holes drilled into it at various spacings. There's a photo here:
I have no idea if it'll take the four-screw fittings the four-jaw chucks seem to use, but it'll certainly take a chuck with the three-screw mount.
I've also read that it's possible to install a 100mm chuck using an adapter backplate, so that's another possibility (if I can find a suitable backplate).
I've been looking at three chucks -- Chronos - "Imported" chucks and "Soba" branded RDG - HBM? (Indian made apparently, and AIUI not very good quality)
Does anyone have any experiences with these? Are they up to much, or should I be looking elsewhere?
I'm also after a suitable machine vice for the milling bracket -- the manual specifies "50mm opening" but says nothing about the mounting requirements. So if anyone can suggest a reasonably good quality machine vice suitable for an MD65, I'd appreciate it if you could share the details with me :)
Lastly, I'd appreciate it if someone could suggest some decent turning tools. I've used the Soba ones from Chronos (the ones which come in the blue plastic box) but haven't had much luck with them.
Thanks,