- Joined
- Mar 2, 2018
- Messages
- 232
While skimming this old thread, it occurred to me how very true this is. The parting tool is the evil nemesis of the wood lathe user too. I've always had a bad time with parting tools. On the metal side, I tried to solve this by throwing out some real money for Aloris stuff, and it breaks just as fast as the cheap stuff.
On my g0602, the big problem is rigidity. I made gib locks for every axis I'm not going to be moving, I switched to a real Aloris tool post with a super beefy hold-down (going from like M8 to 9/16"). I dialed in the angle of the tool to the work. I rigged up a way to deliver a steady stream of lubricant to the cut. It all helped considerably, but it didn't eliminate the problems. It just minimized them. I can still see a film of oil bulging and returning, bulging and returning along all the ways that are cranked down tight. If I got the tool holding side more rigid, I would probably just break even more parting tool inserts and blades.
Parting is evil. In some cases, it's more practical just to cut the part off with a bandsaw, flip it around, and face off the cut end. One of the great laments of my life is that I can't afford a cutting technology that is accurate enough for getting such cuts right the first time. Ironically, the most accurate cutting technology I have is parting stuff off on the lathe.
It's a necessary evil.
