Quote:
Originally Posted by marki
Simon the C6 may be bigger but it is not better....
Mark
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Cheers Mark, nice to hear from someone that owns and uses a C4.
I had based my misguided opinion on reading reviews and forums.
Looks like the C4 is the next upgrade for me.
I would prefer a 320 or 335, but I just don't have the space
Quote:
Originally Posted by gary
To raise your tools so they are on the centerline, you will need to assemble
a collection of shims of thin sheet metal. You can place a center in the tailstock and add shims beneath the tool holder to align the cutting edge with the tip of the center.
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A quick change toolpost might be one of your first purchases, which will not need the shims, but I still use the standard tool post from time to time.
I found the best source of shim material to be cheap feeler gauge sets from places like Repco or Supacheap. I have bought 3 or 4 of these sets over the years and they are indispensable.
A very handy advantage is every leaf has it's thicknes etched into it, so if you need to remove a tool for whatever reason, you can note the thickness of each shim used for that tool on a piece of paper for when you need it again. Or better yet, get a small white board for the wall near the lathe... another very handy item!
I noticed my new Vertex milling vice was not quite right and item's weren't machining square, dial gauge showed it to be 0.1mm low on the left side when clamped to my table, so I flicked thru my feeler gauges, found the 0.1mm one, packed it under the left side of the vice, clamped it down and now it's only 0.005mm low according to my dial gauge. I can live with 0.005mm error(for now) over 100mm. Will reduce it further when needed.
Also a good move to check your tailstock alignment before setting anything against it.
Edit: I have done random checks of the feeler gauges with my Micro, those measured so far have been spot on.