Using a Mill as a Lathe

[Laredo7mm]

I have a mill, but no lathe. I have a couple projects that I want to do that would involve turning some damascus down into rods.

Have any of you heard/seen/used a mill as a vertical lathe? What my thought is was to get my damascus round enough on one end to fit inside of a mill bit tool holder, put that into the quill, and then spin it.

Then I would clamp a carbide lathe tool in the vice, get to the approximate center, and turn the damascus down to size.

Think it would do an OK job or should I just take the billet to a fab shop and have them turn it for me?

 

[sfoo]

You could do what you need with a rotary table and tail stock. Or go see your local machine shop and they can probably do it in 15 minutes.

THe HF/Homier/Grizzly minilathes work ok for a lot of stuff and aren't too expensive.

 

[rlinger]

I agree; a rotary table and a tail stock - with a end mill in the mill head stock. Another way to do it if absolute precision is not essential and the work piece is not too long is to chuck up the work piece and hold a file against it.

RL

 

[Sethhoward]

Not to hijack the thread, can your turn a metal lathe into a mill?


Seth

 

[fitzo]

There is a milling attachment made for a lathe that allows for some milling operations. The one I'm familiar with is called a "Palmgren" milling attachment. Brownells sold em.

 

[rfrink]

You bet! The milling machine can be used to turn small parts with excellent results. The single point tool pressure is much less on the spindle than a big honking end mill....also, if you have a DRO....you can set it to read 1/2 scale for radius rather than dia for this application.

I've used my CNC mill to turn all sorts of small parts....heck up to 4" dia! You can also use the power feed on the quill for feeding the work into the tool.


The lathe can also be used as a mill. Simply put a rotary cutting tool in the chuck and fixture the work piece on the carrige. You can drill, mill, slot and slit....using the power feeds and carrige stops for very accurate results.

Have fun with it.....let your imagination run wild as there are really no rules on how to use these machines. Some common sense for safety and rigid setups are always required.

Sincerely,
Rob