Change gears? ELS? Help!

Already purchased! Just need my encoder which should be here next week...I'm excited and slightly nervous for the results!
 
I ordered one as soon as i saw the video, i was quite sure they would be going quickly
 
I missed it will keep a close eye out for the next batch.


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jarrettbailey said:
Hello all

I just bought a Lux Cut 12x30 lathe (made in Taiwan in the early 80's I believe). It's a nice heavy machine (2000 lb). Has a foot brake and a 5hp motor. Ways looks great and everything seems good and tight, but it didn't come with change gears for metric threading. I've been trying to find them or get them made, but I'm wondering if it wouldn't be better to go with the Electronic Lead Screw I've read about here and a few other places. I'm not really a programmer or electronics master, but I can do either enough to get by as long as it's not SUPER complex. I'd really appreciate the opinions and sources (either for gears or ELS). I'm just setting up my little machining corner in my shop and I'm excited to get it going.

Thanks!

View attachment 329121
Click to expand...

That Lux Cut is a sexy lathe dude...
 
Clough made a nice conversion, the Texas instruments board is bit pricey though.
(add encoder, driver, etc, $$$)
Im going with arduino uno 'gearing' and a leadscrew reset button to save the need of a starwheel.
 
I figure the TI board adds about $40 (in the US, not sure about others) compared to the typical arduino type board. It's also a lot more powerful, and has existing code and hardware that we know works. Compared to the overall cost of the project, it's not important enough to me to re-design and one-off the rest of it. I'd rather just contribute some code and use the existing project.

I don't see how you can remove the rest of the hardware and reproduce the result. You need the encoder to know the spindle rotation, you need the driver to run the stepper etc.. And you need that level of detail to thread. If you are just running it for feed, yeah, doesn't matter. You could use a 555 timer for that.

I'm happy to be wrong though, so please post the results if you do something different. The more projects out there we can learn from, the better.
 
Arduino would only need a one pulse for spindle and one pulse for leadscrew, after the first pass when the tool is removed and the half nuts split, the lead screw should then stop, wind the carriage back to the start position, engage half nut, push button, first program repeats.
I like the Clough, but its so close to a cnc conversion with all the feedback and cpu power.
It stands out more as a premium product.
 
Well, the idea is that you need to move the carriage x per rotation of the spindle. And it needs to be smooth, so even slight variation in the RPM could throw it off. The load from the cutter engaging could cause that change. At least, that's what I have read when people discuss issues around creating an ELS. But hey, like I said, build it and prove them wrong! I'd love to see it.
 
Berts_builds said:
Clough made a nice conversion, the Texas instruments board is bit pricey though.
(add encoder, driver, etc, $$$)
Im going with arduino uno 'gearing' and a leadscrew reset button to save the need of a starwheel.
Click to expand...
Agree that it costs more than an Arduino. But that's out of ~$350 for everything. I agree about being puzzled how you can achieve the same performance (speed and UI) at a much lower price, but have at it. You're also handed known-working code, so that's worth something, but I've been known to make projects difficult myself, so I can't say not to!
 
If you use decrementing cuts, 0.3,0.2,0.15,0.1,0.1,0.05 the loads stay contained.
Clough is an excellent setup, but nearly 3 times the cost, i have done a cnc build and wanted the challenge of an arduino to bring a mini lathe to life.
Those mini lathes usually come with 3 plastic gears, a big incentive for an els setup.
Can the OP please document the build please?
70% of the arduino setup is transferable to a Clough setup, maybe inspiration to 'jump ship'.
 
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