jeweler's lathe

M

magnum .44

Joined
Jun 12, 1999
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1,110
does anyone know where to find a jeweler's lathe, the price doesn't really matter if it's under $800. will these cut stone? or are they just for metals.
 
Just for metal!! For $800 you might find a good used metal lathe that may be more usefull!

Doug
 
I need to know what kind of stone and what shape you need to make. It might be useful to know exactly what it is you want to make. I sort through all of the used sources for small shop machinery, so I could advise you if I knew what you want to do.
You would not be able find a used metal turning lathe that would chuck and turn stone.
 
Used to do a lot of lapidary work.What is it your're making.Have diamond grinders.
TJ Smith
 
I have the Unimat SL 1000. This is a machinist's version of a watchmaker's lathe. I've had mine since 1973 and the only repairs needed have been periodic replacement of the drive belts (less than $5.00 for both). A watchmaker’s lathe will not spin the mass of metal this baby will. It's Specifications are:

Swing over bed -- 3"
Swing over cross slide -- 1-6/10"
Distance between centers -- 7"
Tail stock travel -- 6-1/2"
Handwheel calibrations -- 0.002"
Spindle runout -- 0.0005"
Spindle speeds -- 300 to 5,200 RPM
(Mine will spin 50 to 12,000 RPM...)
Overall Dimensions 14-1/2" x 4" x 5"
Weight -- 30 lbs.
Motor HP (110V AC/DC) -- 1/10

Beside have the basic lathe (which will turn metal, bore metal, and thread screws, these attachments are available to add to it's versatility...

Drill Press, Vertical milling machine, Disc sanding, Wood planing, Circular saw, Scroll saw, Wood shaper, Wood lathe, Buffing, and Tool grinding. It's like having a micro machinist version of the "Shop Smith..."

Unimat (Germany, also known by Edestaal and Emco/Maier) no longer produces the SL 1000, but they make bigger (and better) machines, but my baby is still available through Blue Ridge Machinery and Tools, PO Box 536, Hurricane, WV, 25526, 1-800-872-6500.

I suggest you use Yahoo, Snap Dot Com, etc... and do a search on "Micro Machinist" and similar jargon to find some of the forums that cater to the "spin heads". When I needed a source for my drive belts, they turned me onto Blue Ridge.

If there is a limitation to my Ltl Unimat is it's size, besides making knives, I also make miniature cannons (Civil War era) in .22, .30, .38, .45, and .50 calibre that really shoot and the Unimat can do all my machine work on my barrels, from boring, to rifling, to finishing and buffing, but it can't make a barrel over 7" and the sealed motor has a run cycle of 15 minutes on and 10 minutes off, but I've never paid any attention to that since I've already machined the fittings to install a 1/4 HP if the motor blows...

As the “man” says, I am not affiliated with any company that markets, repairs, or advertises this product, I'm just a very happy owner who isn't afraid to share his point of view...

Good luck and good searching...

Bruce




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i was looking for something that would turn stone, i already have a metal lathe, no use in buying another. i've seen a couple systems similar to the micro machinist, but there a little expensive. how do i make stone round, i can do i by hand but it never really is completly round, anyone have any ideas. one thing i did see was a vise type thing for making flutes, mybe i could use this.
 
Try calling Frei&Borel @ 510-832-8148. I don't know if they have what you want, but they sell a complete line of watch repairing and jewelry making tools and machinery. They have a watchmaker's lathe for $450, for example. Come to think of it, working with pearl, fossilized ivory, gold, etc. for fancy knives is not that different from what some jewelery makers must do. So some of their tools may be useful.
Canuck

Canuck
 
Try some of the lapidary suppliers.
Kingsley North,Ebersole,Griegers look for a copy of the Lapidary Journal to get current suppliers.They also have ads for used equipment.
TJ Smith
 
If you have lapidary equipment already, how about dopping (Spelling?) up a stone on a stick of aluminum, chucking it in an electric drill and grinding it round. Or maybe a faciting machine will do it! Lapidary
journal magazine should help! Good Luck!

Doug
 
i have a pretty big metal lathe, so i don't really need a watchmakers lathe, maybe i'll give them a call on some of the other tools, thanks.
 
<a href=http://cgi.ebay.com/aw-cgi/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=168045517>click</a>
Try this link. Its to an auction page on Ebay online auction. They have several of the small lathes on there. This one is just at $250 or so. Hope it helps you! Take care and GOD bless! Michael
 
A tool post grinder with a diamond wheel on your regular metal lathe might be the way to turn round stone. I have seen some tool post grinders on Ebay from time-to-time.
 
A tool post grinder is a small, very high speed grinder that mounts on your metal lathe's tool post(T-slot). Actually they are somewhat large compared to the tool post. My Father has one, made by Dumore, that will mount on his 10x24 South Bend Model A. The one he has is belt driven. You should be able to find some pictures in one of the larger industrial tool catalogs like MSC, Enco, or Rutland.

I took a look in Ebay's industrial tool area this AM, but did not see any tool post grinders. You might want to try some web searches.

Tool post grinders are an excellent way to get a very smooth ground surface on anything you'd make on a lathe. They are very handy for final finishing on materials like G10 fiberglass where normal lathe tools will feather the material. They are the only good way I've found of threading G10 fiberglass. I expect linen micarta may perform similarly, but have never had the opportunity to machine any.
 
do they sell them in diamonds, and how small can you buy them?

[This message has been edited by magnum .44 (edited 04 October 1999).]
 
44,

The tool post grinder has an arbor on which you can mount most any small grinding wheel. Since you have a metal lathe, you can make spacers as necessary to mount a wheel made for a larger arbor to your grinder's arbor. The big industrial supply houses carry a fairly large selection of diamond grinding wheels. They are rather expensive though. You might be able to use a "green wheel" vice a diamond wheel. Green wheels are used for sharpenning carbide tool bits. I've never tried turning stone as you want to do, so I'm not sure if they will work for your application.

I figure the problem may be in securely holding the stone in the lathe. A three or four jaw chuck is liable to produce point stresses that could fracture the stone. Using a collet to hold the stone may be better if the stone is already somewhat round and will fit in one of your existing collets. If you have to use a chuck, you might want to pad the jaws with brass shims.
 
Mark K: That little Dumore grinder (1/15 hp) on your dad's 10" SB now costs over $1000! I have one for my 10" Logan. There are several used ones (some in need of repair) on Meridian Machinery's web listings. http://www.mermac.com/
 
Wow - I believe i'd buy an old cutter grinder and rig up something to spin the material between centers before I spent 1K$ on a Dumore. Luckily I do't have to, since I can use my father's Dumore if necessary.

After looking for another SB mdl A for 5 or 6 years, I gave up and bought a new Jet 9x19 lathe. Of course, the weekend after I bought it, a mdl A showed up in the local newspaper classifieds
frown.gif
. The Jet is nowhere near the quality of the SB, but seems to do most of what I've needed to do so far. I have given up the search for a SB, since I don't think I can explain to the wife why I need a second lathe.
 
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