Myford chuck guard

yes

Go to hardware store and buy transparent circular plastic cake box about 10 or 12inches diameter - costs about £5 down here. Slice in half and you've got one for the mill as well as the lathe. --

Chris Edwards (in deepest Dorset) "....there *must* be an easier way!"

Great idea... I'll get one tomorrow (just hope Tesco stocks them... can't be bothered to drive anywhere else...)

Think about using some brass or copper sheet to fabricate or spin some oil catching galleries to go with the oil flinger disks that you will make. This isn't something that I have done, but is something that I will do, when it gets to the top of the list.

Mark Rand RTFM

Sorry, could you explain a little further?

I'll do my best:-)

Most of the wall and shirt decoration from a Myford comes from the oil coming out of the mandrel bearings and working along the shaft until it gets flung off the register or (at lower speeds) off the chuck. One can make up a bit of brass or copper sheet in the shape of a boater hat:-

with a hole in the middle just big enough to nearly wipe the mandrel register. The 'hat' can be screwed to the bearing housing with screws though the 'rim' and either a drain hole can be put at the bottom or ,better, a bit of tube can direct the oil down to the drip tray.

The same can be done with the inside ends of the bearings and the counter shaft bearings. This will not only keep most of the oil of me and the wall, but will keep some of it off the belt. A cover over the back gears would complete the paranoia ^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H job

This must all come from spending too much time looking at steam turbine shaft glands.

Of course, If you then go and use suds or cutting oil, all bets are off :-)

Mark Rand RTFM

I've just gone and ordered some soluble oil... I thought it was necessary to use coolant - your statement implies that you do a lot of machining without... I have much to learn :)

Coolant is not a necessity, but it can sure make the job a lot easier at times. A good tip from experience. Try to set up your coolant flow so that it does not hit the chuck. :-)

Cheers Trevor Jones

Thanks, Trevor!! Couldn't wait to get cracking so have been turning a piece of steel (silver steel, I think) without coolant - just the odd drop of oil here and there. I'm using indexable tips and still very much on a learning curve. Managed to change my gears to get a finer power feed (Myford 7) and turned down a 15mm bar to 8mm which I'm going to attempt to thread...

I'm grinning like an American...

R

Worth knowing, too, is that oil and cutting oil are two very different items. Lube oil is worse than useless for cutting with. If you find yourself in a bind trying to get a decent surface finish when threading, try bacon fat. I have seen it suggested that bacon fat cut with a bit of kerosene will work well too. Kerosene is a good cutting fluid for aluminum, as well.

Animal fats featured large in the cutting oils of times gone by, but have fallen out of favour due to it going rancid over the long term.

A small bottle or jar of soluble mix is handy too. If you keep a paintbrush handy you can dip it in the mix and use it to apply coolant while cutting. It makes for a total loss system, but eliminates much of the hassles of a coolant tank and pump. If you are not using it all the time, a pint bottle of soluble will last a vry long time.

Cheers Trevor Jones

Although my lathe is equipped with coolant and the tank is full, I tend to use a spray bottle of it rather than start the pump. Much more controllable and less ends up on the floor and my tum. But why oh why do spray bottles all cease to spray after a while!!!! (my current one needs changing)

AWEM

There is surprisingly little that we do on our Myfords that _needs_ coolant. If you are using HSS or carbide tools. you can have the chips come off dark straw or even blue coloured and not worry the tool at all. An important factor is not to have too high a surface speed for the material.

For instance 400rpm is (just) too fast for a 1" diameter mild steel part with an HSS cutter. It is quite possible to spoil cutters by taking fine cuts at high speed, when they would cope quite happily with more aggressive cuts at lower speeds, a glance at my collection of wrecked tips reminds me regularly. Of course, belt slip and chatter can set the outside of the operating envelope :-)

I tend to use neat cutting oil from an old 3-in-one can when I feel the need for it, but most often that is to improve surface finish or wash swarf away rather than specifically for coolant.

Have fun, find out what works in your situation and make swarf.

Mark Rand RTFM

I bought one of those plastic plant spray things from the local garden centre (the type for humidifying indoor plants) for a couple of quid. It has been working for years with soluble oil and has an adjustable nozzle from a jet to a mist to boot!

I too have a full coolant system but for the Myford, I tend to use the spray to alleviate the problem of left hand side of my clothing needing a different wash-cycle from the right side :)

Mark

I was going to use a total loss system, gravity fed - thought about piping the coolant through some copper brake tube so I can bend it into position (rather than paying extraordinary amounts for one of those plastic jobbies). I'm planning on turning quite a lot of stainless bits and have heard that stainless tends to need cooling more than some other materials. Perhaps I am being over cautious...

No, I don't think you are being over cautious, most SS work hardens to a greater or lesser extent so the key to machining it is big cuts. Gentle cutting/rubbing will work harden it and kill your tools. Plenty of coolant and as big a cut as your machine will allow is the best way to get through it.

Mark