What to start with , tooling , accesories ect

[mac1911]

Picked up a Smithy 1220 XL for the price of hauling it home.
Seems to have all the main parts.
Just not sure where or what to get to get going

 

[matthewsx]

I’d concentrate on the lathe portion first. Get some HSS bits and learn how to grind them.

Realize that many of us have started on similar machines and upgraded fairly soon. For the price I don’t think you can go wrong but they do have shortcomings.

I wouldn’t spend a ton on tooling yet, just get some bits and stock and start making stuff. You can download good lathe texts like south bends “how to run a lathe”, most things will translate. You may have luck with the milling portion but I didn’t with my HF clone of your machine.

Lots of good help on here so please post as you get it up and running, others will be along soon with more to say.

John

 

[mickri]

Welcome to the forum.

You will get answers all over the map on what to get. Some will suggest buying everything under the sun. My suggestion is to only buy what you need for a given project. This will prevent you from buying stuff that you may never use.

Before making anything I would suggest practicing turning and especially threading just to learn the motor skills. I practiced on pvc pipe.

My favorite teaching source is Mr. Pete aka Tubalcain. He is a retired high school shop teacher who really knows his stuff and how to teach it. He has 100's of videos.

What did you get with your Smithy?

Also tell us a little bit about yourself and what you might like to make.

 

[graham-xrf]

Your first fun is the big clean-up and inspection.
You also start to gather your documentation. Everything you can find on it. Especially user and maintenance manual information.
You decide where it goes, and provide what it needs.

Then have a look at these

Then here is the Mr Pete Tubalcain tips playlist

 

[Alcap]

You can’t beat that deal ! Did you happen to get any of the change gears , other accessories ? I have an older “ lathe only “ version .

 

[C-Bag]

I also second Mr.Pete as a good place to start. He’s where I started. I was lucky in that I had most of my metrology tools before my lathe and mill. It’s the chicken or the egg thing for me because without calipers, mics, dial indicator and a mag holder I’d have no way to know what I’m doing. The majority of my metrology tools I bought used on CL and eBay.

 

[Chewy]

I third Mr. Pete. Grind some HSS tool bits to directions in the books. Most be a thousand different sources showing angles. The bits are set dead on the center-line for cutting. You will need some good dial calipers and dial indicators to start. They are for indicating run-out and for measuring diameters and length. Look ahead at what you want to make and get information on the different ways to achieve it and then look at making or buying tools.

Smithy has a set of videos on how to use their machines.

 

[markba633csi]

You'll need a small vise for milling- don't spend a lot. You may need a collet for the mill head to hold endmills if it didn't come with any.
Some HSS bits for lathe use- 1/4" is a good size.
Get a small bench grinder and practice grinding your own- it's a valuable skill to have.
-Mark

 

[mac1911]

I third Mr. Pete. Grind some HSS tool bits to directions in the books. Most be a thousand different sources showing angles. The bits are set dead on the center-line for cutting. You will need some good dial calipers and dial indicators to start. They are for indicating run-out and for measuring diameters and length. Look ahead at what you want to make and get information on the different ways to achieve it and then look at making or buying tools.

Smithy has a set of videos on how to use their machines.

The Smithy videos I have found so far are a bit lacking , So is the owners manual , I can navigate it but its a bit poorly written .
Just my observation
I will get there

 

[mickri]

Have you watched any of Mr Pete's videos? Here is a link to his channel. https://www.youtube.com/c/mrpete222/videos

Please tell us what you got with your Smitty. That will be very helpful in providing suggestions on what else you may need.