[KyleWarren]

I am working on a homemade lathe, I have no idea what I am doing I will post a picture of what I am thinking so far. Please tell me everything i am doing wrong

[KyleWarren]

I don't know if this is a dumb idea or not but I was thinking about buying a wood lathe then attaching the ball screws and linear rails to that.

[pippin88]

Wood lathe completely unsuitable.

[KyleWarren]

all I really need the wood lathe is for the spindle the linear rails and ball screws would be mounted to the base I think it would work fine.

[pippin88]

The spindle is not suitable for cutting metal. The base is not suitable for mounting your rails to.

If a wood lathe was a suitable base, people would use them. They are not precision tools.

You can do it if you want, but it is a waste of effort of you expect good results.

[KyleWarren]

Couldn’t the spindle bearing be replaced? I think that the base could be modified to mount the linear rails securely to.

[awerby]

If you need to change the spindle bearings and the base, what's the point of starting with a wood lathe? If you want to turn parts in metal, start with a metal lathe; they're built a lot more massively. But from your pictures, it looks like you've got the right rails and ball screws for the X and Y axes of a fairly good-sized router; why not build one of those, and put a rotary table on it if you want to make radially-symmetrical parts in wood?

[KyleWarren]

I already have a c.n.c. mill it is not as big as I could make with those rails and ball screws, and my reasoning behind starting with a wood lathe is that it is cheaper for the size of my ball screws than starting with a metal lathe. I have looked into the base of a wood lathe and I don't think it would require modification exept holes for mounting the linear rails, The ball screws I have are 24 inches and 19 inches I also have a 8 inch ball screw because I salvaged the ball screws and linear rails from an old broken mill.

[the4thseal]

there are many inexpensive import metal lathes at reasonable prices. it would be less expensive in the end, to do a conversion of a small metal lathe than what it would take to go from wood lathe. wood lathes are just not ridged enough. there is a reason why they are as different as they are. the design is not meant for it, not just a matter of bearings. which wood lathe are you considering and how much are you budgeting for it?

[KyleWarren]

I am looking to spend as little as possible thats why i am trying to reuse the old ball screws and linear rails.

[the4thseal]

i would wager the cheapest is starting out with a metal lathe. you can reuse what you have, you will just be staring out soooooo much closer to the end goal. you can get lathes for a couple hundred dollars.

[KyleWarren]

what lathe would you recommend starting out with?

[the4thseal]

there ae a great many. i know that does not help. however i would look in your area and see what is kicking around. it can be shocking what is available on craig's list or on the secondary market. not sure where you are located. i did a quick search in my area and found some very interesting possibilities ranging from a couple of hundred to under 2,000. that includes a couple of hardinge lathes that have me thinking about things i shouldn't.