Suggestions On Tooling For New Machinist

[Danny Mayes]

I need suggestions on what I should have starting out. I have a Sieg X2 CR32 collet set, small vise, Air Spring Conversion, a few end mills and a nice set of drill bits.

 

[brino]

Hi Danny,

A few thoughts:
-a fly cutter; this is holds a lathe tool bit at an angle such that the point sweeps a large circle, it's good for milling flat surfaces
-a good bench grinder for sharpening lathe bits, drill bits, etc
-measuring equipment; calipers, micrometer, dial indicator, a dial test indicator is nice for aligning the vise on the mill table
-an edge finder to align the mill with the work
-good lighting, perhaps a ring light add-on

-brino

 

[kingmt01]

To add to what brino said a square, scribe, file, boring head w/bars, & parallels.

 

[T Bredehoft]

I might suggest a "Speed And Feed" chart, telling you the best speed to run your tooling at, and a Starret wall or pocket chart of drill and tap sizes.

 

[kingmt01]

Actually my most used tool is my Android phone. I have a few apps that I'm always referencing. Also a level & axes DRO on my phone is priceless. The $150 phone probably replaces over $2K in tools. I still have room to add more down the road when I find them & most of the apps are free.

 

[brino]

....thought of a couple more....

-a t-nut clamp down set, like this:
http://www.busybeetools.com/product...8pc.html?page_context=search&faceted_search=0
what ever size fits your table slots; for bolting work directly to the table

-1-2-3 blocks (many uses in clamping and work-holding)

Depending on what your projects/interest are, there will be others.
Sine-bar if you need to mill angles, collet blocks for easy square/hex setups, rotary table or indexer if you need indexing....
Obviously you don't need all of this to start, but it is nice to know what's available so you can see it's potential value to your work.

-brino

 

[schor]

Keith Fenner does an annual toolbox giveaway and he has compiled a list of basic tools that go into each box. You can find it here -> https://turnwrightmachineworks.com/whats-in-your-box-the-giveaway-project/machinist-tool-list/

 

[taycat]

main 2 things in workshop are safety glasses and a kettle for brew when things aren't going right so you can relax.

 

[markknx]

Some of the things above you can make as your skill grows. Like 123 block, sine bar, collet blocks. It really comes down to what do you want to do. Square, ruler, cutters, mic., caliber, DTI, file, scribe, parallels. all pretty much must have for accurate work. But by far the best thing recommended was safety glasses.
I recommend you watch some basic machine shop safety videos, MIT does one, Mr. pete2222 I believe has some. But please be safe even that small machine can hurt you bad and fast. One more thing the charts mentioned above are all on line.

 

[schor]

Another good channel for beginners is 'thatlazymachinist', all his videos are geard to beginners, I've watch every one and learned from them all. Some I watch multiple times because I can never remember everything.