[harryn]

Hi, I have the remnants of a small mini lathe.

The base casting has a "made in Poland" cast into it and a symbol mark that I cannot read.

It was given to me years ago and didn't really work that well so I took it apart to fix it - never put it back together.

_____________

Anyway, what I have now is really just:
- the spindle head stock
- 3 inch chuck and pulley all tightly bonded together
- a project that I would like to use it on. ( not a lathe)

This is not it, but it looks kind of like this sherline head:

https://www.sherline.com/product/she...specifications

[harryn]

I am attempting to remove this head from the base and not having much luck.

I have most of the bed apart and mechanism but not the round hollow pipe like part (sorry for not knowing the correct terminology) that is right under the head stock area of the base.

It isn't a sherline, but roughly this size of setup.

Most of the parts are gone - just trying to retrieve the head assembly and get it off really.

https://www.sherline.com/product/400...lacement-parts

Of course I will keep trying, but there is a point where I might have to just buy something instead.

I am wanting a good quality setup that can handle both axial loads and end loads like drilling. Not necessarily watch maker quality but not junk either.

Any suggestions for where to find head stocks that don't need a complete rebuild in order to have a something that works out of the box?

I am not really a sherline / harbor freight fan - something a step up.

Do not need it to have any gears - just a headstock that I can mount to a plate.

Unfortunately I don't have any real ability to do machining right now so I need to find a solution that doesn't need much more than a drill press.

Thanks for any suggestions.

Harry

[harryn]

I managed to get it apart.

Some parts required persuasion with a wood block and hammer.

As far as if I ever need a replacement, it looks like Taig is an option.

https://taigtools.com/product/400-00...dle-headstock/

[harryn]

It is not clear if any of these mini lathe spindle heads have tapered roller bearings in them or are just simple bearings.

Do the ones with tapered roller bearings usually call it out?

[kawazuki]

Certainly the majority of eastern / chinese models have plain ball bearings fitted as stock - almost first upgrade is taper roller bearings if higher speed spindle operation is required, so would expect budget machines from anywhere to be similar.

[harryn]

Thank you for the reply and info - this particular one seems to be built in Poland but i am not sure.

Anyway, the actual use plan is a bit odd for most people. I am converting a non working cnc router into a cnc drill press to get the lower rpms for drilling some materials.

Even if not perfect, the run out on it seems to be much lower than my hardware store drill press chuck, so I am hopeful.

If it turns out to not be sufficient, then the easiest path for me is to probably just buy a new, higher end setup with real specs so that I can get some work done. I just don't have the tools to do an upgrade correctly.

Really appreciate the response. Thanks