What Tooling To Buy For 101.07301?

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brownac1983

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Hey guys,
I need some advice please. I picked up a Craftsman 101.07301 (Atlas 618) lathe with basically no tooling. It has the lantern tool post but no rocker or washer and an incorrect bolt. It came with chucks and a faceplate but no tooling. Considering that I would need to purchase a tool post and set of tool holders anyway, is there a better or more cost effective setup than the original tool post and holders? I want to avoid spending several hundred getting tooled up with the original post and holders only to find out that I could have done better for the same or less money.

What are my options for tooling, and what would be best for a new user, both in terms of immediate functionality and being able to grow with me? Right now, all I will be doing is basic turning, cutting off, and possibly inside turning or boring, but I'd like to be able to learn threading eventually. Thanks.

-Drew
 
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Take a look at the AXZ CNC set at Little Machine Shop. LMS also sells a starter kit #3514 for the Atlas, take a look at that. They are the proper size. The next size is AXA, which is too big. Get more holders at the same time. One for each tool and a couple spares.

Next pick up some HSS tools. A ready to go set and some blanks to grind your own tools. You will need the proper grinding wheel for the HSS tools as well. Grizzly sell a set H5687.
Pierre
 
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Yes make your own i have used this on a atlas and now on my south bend 9" wide bed

101_0659.jpg 101_0660.jpg
 
I had my 618 for many years before I finally bought the 3514 from little machine shop. I should have bought it years ago. Make a huge difference in set up when changing tools. And yes by all means get and extra set of tool holders. Since I already had tail stock chuck they did some substitutions for me.

David
 
First comment or correction is that the 101.07301 is not the same as the Atlas 618. The Sears model number for the one that they sold from 1957 to 1981 which is the same is 101.21400. In most cases, anything that will fit the 618 will fit the 101.07301 but exceptions are anything that screws onto the spindle must have 1"-8 threads whereas the 618 and 101.21400 have 1"-10. The other significant difference is that the 101.07301 has sintered bronze (Oilite) sleeve spindle bearings whereas the other two have Timken tapered roller bearings. Except for the countershaft bracket, just about all other parts are the same in all three models.

The generic size designator for the quick change tool post that fits all of the Atlas 6" machines is 0XA. There is at least one brand of QCTP sold for which the tool holders are not interchangable with 0XA. It works as well as the better 0XA's but for additional tool holders, you have to buy them from the one source. In between the original lantern tool post and the QCTP are the various home-built or commercial 2-way or 4-way turret tool posts. They work fine but are much less convenient to use unless you only ever use two of three cutters. If you can afford the QCTP, go for it. But don't let anyone convince you that just because you "can" make a turret, you "must" make a turret. And I wouldn't recommend buying an aluminum TP. The steel ones will last longer and aren't much more expensive.

If you purchase a QCTP, be sure to get several additional 001 (turning and facing) and/or 002 (turning, facing and boring) holders. In most cases, you can put both a turning and a facing cutter in one holder. But if you are doing a job, need to use a different cutter, and don't have a holder for it, you just lost half the advantage of the QC.

However, don't discard the lantern tool post. There are a few cases where it might be the better choice. For example, the lantern holder with the boring bar kit is actually a little more rigid than the QC or the turret. Or you might encounter a case where the QCTP interferes with the workpiece so that you can't do the job with it.

Other accessories generally needed are a tailstock chuck (mainly for holding drill bits), a pair of dead centers, face plate and set of lathe dogs, and steady rest. If you don't have, can't afford, of don't have the room for a small mill, the milling attachment with draw bar and set of milling cutter holders or 2MT collets will allow you to do small mill work. However, if you can get a small mill, don't buy the milling attachment. The other common attachments are follow rest, taper attachment, tool post grinder and armature mica undercutter. But for most people, they fall into the category of seldom if ever used.
 
Thanks for the advice all, I really appreciate it.

One question that wa5cab touched on that I also wanted to ask, I'd like to have limited milling capability also but I don't want to dedicate the space and power supply for a large knee mill. As far as the milling attachment for the 101, it seems like I'll be in it for around $400 by the time I buy the attachments, drawbar and collets. Would I be better served by a bench top micro mill/drill, such as one of the various imports that can be had in the $500-$600 price range? I understand the limitations of the mill/drill machines, but I have no idea what I'm comparing it to in terms of the capability of the Atlas attachment. Thanks.
-Drew
 
In the case of milling attachment vs mini mill, mini mill is very much better. I have a Palmgren milling attachment that I have used on my Atlas 10", works but small tiny cuts and be careful on the direction of feed otherwise the cutter will snatch the work due to the backlash in the carriage no matter how tight you set the gibs.

Mini mills, they have their limits naturally. Keep your eyes open for a better unit like a Sieg X3/SX3 on the used market.
Pierre
 
Between the milling attachment on a 6" and a better quality mill-drill, I'll have to agree that the latter is to be preferred. The tooling up cost is apt to be about the same and the mill-drill will likely cost a bit more but the one real drawback to the milling attachment is that without some sort of auxiliary work holding device (which AFAIK isn't readily available for the 6"), you can't hold very large parts. What I mean is that suppose you had a fairly large part like a hollow cast aluminum housing about 2" x 2" x 14" that you needed to cut some short slots in (actual job that I've done several times). The slots themselves are within the X-Y-Z work envelope of the 6" milling attachment on the 6" lathe. But there is no way that I know of for you to hold the housing. On a 12" (or 10") Milling Attachment, you can replace the vise with the 6"x6" table from the Atlas X-Y drill press table. But on the 6", that isn't an option.
 
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