Centre lathe

The Centre Lathe is used to manufacture cylindrical shapes from a range of materials including; steels and plastics.

Components that assemble to make an car engine work have been made using lathes. The Lathe may be operated by people (manual lathes) or computer controlled lathes (CNC machines) that have been programmed to carry out a particular task.

A basic manual centre lathe

The lathe is controlled by a person turning handles on the top slide and cross slide in order to make a part.

Lathe Parts

Lathe bed
Made from rigid cast Iron Accurately machined slideways Slideways guide carriage & tailstock Headstock on upper end of the lathe bed

Lathe parts
Headstock
Holds lathe spindle and gears Chuck is fitted to spindle Spindle is hollow for long bars

Lathe parts

Tailstock
Can be moved along slideways Can be clamped in any location Inside tapered to hold drill chuck

Lathe parts

Carriage
Moves along bed between tailstock and headstock Saddle across the lathe Apron hangs down in front

Lathe parts

Cross Slide
Fitted on the Saddle Moves cutting tool at right angles to lathe bed

Lathe parts

Top Slide (Compound slide)

Fitted to top of Cross slide Carries toolpost and cutting tool Can rotate to any angle Is used to turn tapers

Lathe parts Feed shaft

Used to move the Carriage automatically

Lead screw
Used when screw cutting on the lathe

Lathe Parts
Three Jaw Chuck
Self centring

Holds round and hexagonal work 3 jaws are connected Jaws are stamped 1,2 & 3 and fitted in order Chuck key used to open

Lathe parts

Toolpost
Fitted on top slide and carries the cutting tool or the cutting tool holder Can adjust the height on some types Can carry 4 different tool holders

Lathe parts

Tool holders
Used for holding cutting tool bits Available in Right hand, left hand and straight

 Cutting Tools
Can be High Speed Steel held in tool holders Can be also Ceramic (Tungsten carbide) bits held directly in toolpost

Cutting Tool Angle

Clearance angle
Ensures only the cutting edge of the tool touches the work Too much clearance causes chatter

Cutting tool angle

Rake Angle
Allows the chip being cut to flow out Changing the rake changes the power used in cutting and the heat generated Large rake = soft ductile materials Small rake = hard brittle materials

Cutting tool angle

Tool bits are held in holders at an angle of about 15

Cutting tools
We can put different shapes on the High speed tool bits to cut different shapes on the workpiece

Lathe operations
Facing off

Parallel Turning

Parallel Turning

Parallel Turning
The tool moved parallel to the work and cylindrical shapes are formed

Also known as sliding

Parallel Turning
The student can Parallel turn the work on the lathe manually or use the automatic traverse option

Facing off
The tool is moved at right angles to the work using the cross slide Flat surfaces are produced

Knurling
A knurling tool is used to press a pattern onto a round section. The pattern is normally used as a grip for a handle. This provide a grip for the round part e.g. Screwdriver

Knurling

Parting off
If the student wants to cut off the part they have turned, they can use the hacksaw and a vice or use the parting off tool on the lathe.

Setting the tool height

The cutting tool on the lathe must be set to the exact centre of the work-piece We use the centre of the tailstock to guide us to the correct height

Screw-cutting on the lathe

Lathes are also used to cut threads in round bars These threads take up different profiles e.g iso (60) ACME etc. These threads can be seen on bench vices, lathes etc.

CNC Lathes

 In Industry it is not efficient or profitable to make everyday products by hand. On a CNC machine it is possible to make hundreds of the same item in a day. First a design is drawn using design software, then it is processed by the computer and made using the CNC machine. In industry, CNC machines can be extremely large.

LATHE OPERATIONS
Producing a Flat Surface

Producing a Cylindrical Surface

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Taper Turning

Radius Turning Attachment

Drilling on a Lathe

Parting Off / Under Cutting