Need Advice On Tools To Buy

I would look into grinding your own HSS tools for your lathe, or go with a tangential toolholder like the Diamond Toolholder. While a bit pricey it will allow you to use a HSS toolbit, which are easily found and inexpensive, and the bit is easily resharpened on one face only (except for threading which is 2 IIRC). Or you can go with toolholders and HSS inserts from Warner. I didn't go that route because Warner's the only one that sells HSS inserts. Other than that, I agree with most everything the other guys have posted. For the mill I'd go with HSS endmills. A lot of the cost of machining is the tools and set up accessories that go with it. Welcome to the club and have fun!
 
join your local model engineering club, joined one couple of months ago.
got to try out different bits of tooling both at club and others members houses, also they know all best places for deals.
amount i have learned in short time is far more than self teaching over 2 yrs.
also our club as board you can list items you want to sell or need to aquire.
i have bought a southbend 9" model c with loads of bits for approx $300 belonged to member who developed dementia.
another member is teaching me milling in exchange for full rewire on his classic landrover.
 
chips forever said:
I would start with tool and work holding. I have almost the same mill as yours, 9902, either buy R8 collets or I went to the ER 32 system. By the way my mill with in 6 months I needed a new motor and new spindle bearings. For the lathe I use the quick change tool holders. Personally I can't tell the difference between the wedge and post types. I have used KDK, Aloris, and cheap Enco sets all work good. Use a good 3 and 4 jaw chucks.
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Did you upgrade the bearings and motor , or use factory parts ?
 
Thanks for all the replies, will try to let you know what I end up with on the first order .
As far as what I will be using this for , is to have fun at home. Thanks
 
All good answers above. With me being a novice also I have learned that understanding why a tool doesn't cut right is priceless. Learn to grind HSS if at all possible. Get the best quality measuring tools you can get. And most importantly memorize your bank account number, that way when your significant other takes your checkbook you an still get stuff. The guys here are a real help, but watch out they can help you spend money faster then you can make it. LOL!
 
I'd suggest cheap cutting tools to start with. HSS won't always cut what I have to cut so I also use the cheap HF carbide. While they might not cut good they still cut & I don't feel as bad burning up or breaking a $1 bit as a $3 one. If you use Android there are some apps out there with great information. I use them to get spindle speed mostly. I'd suggest thinking up a simple project & figure which tools you want to use to approach it. You might make your first project to make a tool you will use later. I used a cheap Drill press vice from HF until last month. It was what I could afford at the time. So my first project was to turn two pieces of round rod that was hard enough not to give(home made parallels) so I could lay them on my table & pull the vice down to them to mill the bottom of the vice to be parallel to the rails of the vice then bolted out down on the table right & indicated it as close as I could & started machining all the other aspects of it.

Some tools will be moved from one machine to the other.

I'd suggest minimum tooling for the lathe: to be HSS tool blank or preground to get started turning first, carbide only if you need it for hard stuff, drills, & center drill.

For the mill: set of 2 flute HSS up to 1/2", collets, 1/8"-1" in 1/16", drill chuck, fly cutter, parallels, rubber mallet, clamping bars w/risers, & a vise if you can swing it.

Measuring: a indicater as precise as you need to be, pin gauges, micrometers, digital caliper, blue sharpy, & a way of mounting the indicater.

Stuff that might be a must for you depending on the job or you don't already have it: common hand tools (the Asian machines come with most that you will need), bench grinder (I use a belt sander more but still need the grinder), boring head w/bars, (believe it or not)super glue, a tool to correct concentric(this is another good learning project, I milled a square shaft to fit my tool holder & turned the end down to press a roller skate bearing on), & probably a saw to cut stock.

How much money do you have I can spend for you?
 
Oh how I wish I could edit post I've made. Anyways one more thing. Very first thing you do is fix the key on the motor shaft of that G0709 so it won't come out. Your going to crap your pants when you start hearing it bang on the gear cover thinking your lathe has just come apart & is now trash. Grizzly really should fix this problem. Only thing I did was slide it back in & ping the bottom of the keyway for now so I could get back to what I was doing. I may get back to it with another fix later. At least I know what that noise is & the E-stop foot break are all working fine now.

Oh, switch on the break was an other thing I had to fix when I first came. I'm starting to think Grizzly only sales kits for you to make your own tools. Like the guitar kits. I'm not sure if I bought my end mills from them or not but if so they were fine. Nothing else has been much count. Customer Service & the Tech Department are outstanding tho.
 
Im a heavy diesel fitter that has just gone and bought a new (to me) colchester lathe and a pacific (lagun clone) mill off a machine shop, it all come with zero tooling much the same as you. I have pretty much had to go and buy 80% of the gear others have posted, but at the risk of going against the trend of previous suggestions I went and bought the best cutting tools and holders I could afford and it is the best money I've spent on tooling.

I still have standard series measuring equip a quality but not high end vise etc but the lathe tooling and carbide inserts I went quality and it is awesome. I had a little lathe previously that I used hss and cheap carbide tips and the frustration at taking a few thou at a time and just not getting the finish I was expecting was over whelming at times. I can now take a "rough" 120thou DOC at a time and the finish is better than aything I could ever achieve with the cheaper stuff. And I have done more in a week than I did in the whole time I owned the other gear because it is just so much easier. Plus im still on the first corner of my first inserts.

Have stuck with hss end mills etc as didnt think cobalt was worth destroying to learn on

As a discaimer on "cheap"... being in Australia our cheap is absolute rubbish and then it is top dollar for what maybe your cheap gear costs in the US. As a indicator a box of 10 inserts I bought are around $100-$120 there are much more expensive stuff, cheap inserts here are maybe $60-$80 for 10, but it food for thought.
 
I would get the 8" Mitutoyo digital calipers and not the 6". The 6" are too small and you'll be glad to have the
extra length. Buy what you need and the best that you can afford a little at a time. Do your research and buy carefully,
especially used gages. Watch for sales and free shipping codes and compare prices. Zoro tools is a good outlet. Ask questions
and consult with as many people as you can.
 
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