scott63

I have a JET 1236 PS belt drive lathe that is new to me, but built in 1984 and have a couple questions for anyone with the same/similar machine. The motor seems to vibrate a bit at higher RPMs, I've tried adjusting belt tension to no avail. In looking at the motor mounting I noticed a tapped hole on the side closest to the bed between the motor mounting holes on that side of the motor. I was able to thread a corse thread bolt into the hole, it's only about an inch deep though, and I wasn't sure if I should tighten in or not. I'm also wondering if there should be any rubber pads under the motor to dampen vibration. I've attached links to a couple pics which should be easier to understand than my ramblings. Thanks for any help........Scott http://i214.photobucket.com/albums/cc47/sc.../IMG_0270-1.jpg http://i214.photobucket.com/albums/cc47/sc...63/IMG_0273.jpg

Thank you all for the info.............Scott

I didn't have any problems with the finish, ran at a high rpm and that was fine. I made a handle and knob for a tacticle rifle, mainly just for practice time on my lathe. I figured it it came out, great, if not---well I still would learn something from the run time. It came out better than I expected. I recessed the bottom, hard to see in the pics and I may deepen that before I use it, just wasn't sure about welding/bluing.................Scott

If you were going to make your own bolt handle, what type of steel would you use? Is 1018 ok?

The pic I have in mind was pretty severe, I wasn't planning on anything that drastic, just wanting to see what was possible. I thought you had posted the pic saying it was for a client that wanted the utmost in ultralight, but it may have been someone else. It may have even been a Rem 700 action. Thanks again for the 33/40 pics................................Scott

Thank you both for the pics, but the one I remembered had milling cuts that were pretty drastic, and the bolt handle was hollowed out too. I thought Mike posted it, but maybe it was someone else? Thanks again for the pics.................Scott

A while back you posted a pic of a receiver that you had lightened up quite a bit with milling cuts. I've tried searching for that and can't find it. Could you post any pics you have of these receivers? Thank you...............Scott

I'm pretty sure I've got him talked out of it. Two things helped convince him. First was that the rifle shoots very well with iron sights, he was suprised at how well he could shoot that rifle without a scope. Second was the fact that the rifle is probably worth 650-750 at a gunshow, and any holes will turn it into a 350.00 rifle. Again, I'm all for people doing what they want with THEIR guns, but I'd hate to see such a nice original gun go to the chopping block. Especially when you can look around a little and find one that has already been modified...........Scott

Very nice lemski4! How hard was the three posistion safety to do? I've never used one but would like to........Scott

I tried this post in a couple other areas with no luck so far. Here goes......... My best friend called me today to tell me he picked up a Remington 1903, 1942 dated barrel, supposedly 95%. He is not into milsurps and I'm not into 03's although I do appreciate them and will one day buy one. I haven't seen it so I don't know if it really is an 03 or an 03A3. Here's the thing: He tells me he wants to make it into a repro sniper cause he knows another guy that is doing this. It gets worse.....The other guy took his rifle to a local gunsmith, to have it drilled and tapped. The "smith" drilled it but it was too hard to tap, so he used an oxy-acetelene torch to heat the receiver "dull red" then let it cool and tapped it. My friend actually witnessed this and I told him it seemed like a bad idea to me because of the heat treating, to which he replied, "No, he packed it in wet saw dust so it would be ok." Wow, that hardly seems like a precise way of doing things. My questions are as follows: Won't drilling and tapping (even in a historically correct method) destroy the collector value? Are 1903 Sniper rifles marked any differently? Doesn't the tapping method this smith used seem dangerous? The rifle my best friend has is his to do with as he pleases, but I am trying to help him see that the real value in it is "as is", and that there are plenty of screwed up rifles out there to drill and tap to hearts content. I may be making some progress in this, because he was really impressed with how accurate it was with iron sights. Thanks for your thoughts.......Scott

My best friend called me today to tell me he picked up a Remington 1903, 1942 dated barrel, supposedly 95%. He is not into milsurps and I'm not into 03's although I do appreciate them and will one day buy one. I haven't seen it so I don't know if it really is an 03 or an 03A3. Here's the thing: He tells me he wants to make it into a repro sniper cause he knows another guy that is doing this. It gets worse.....The other guy took his rifle to a local gunsmith, to have it drilled and tapped. The "smith" drilled it but it was too hard to tap, so he used an oxy-acetelene torch to heat the receiver "dull red" then let it cool and tapped it. My friend actually witnessed this and I told him it seemed like a bad idea to me because of the heat treating, to which he replied, "No, he packed it in wet saw dust so it would be ok." Wow, that hardly seems like a precise way of doing things. My questions are as follows: Won't drilling and tapping (even in a historically correct method) destroy the collector value? Are 1903 Sniper rifles marked any differently? Doesn't the tapping method this smith used seem dangerous? The rifle my best friend has is his to do with as he pleases, but I am trying to help him see that the real value in it is "as is", and that there are plenty of screwed up rifles out there to drill and tap to hearts content. I may be making some progress in this, because he was really impressed with how accurate it was with iron sights. Thanks for your thoughts.......Scott

Here's what I do with the tab on the cocking piece when it has been removed...Just an idea http://www.sporterizing.com/index.php?showtopic=4275&hl=

Midway has a sale, thinking about the 7X57. Are these any good? I'm not expecting quality on the level of a Shilen, but has anyone used these with good or bad results? Thanks.....................Scott

My daughter liked the synthetic look, I tried talking her into a nice walnut stock, but she said these "look cool." Ah, youth and their ignorance!

Thanks, I know the stock really does look nice, and when you're looking at their website you don't really have any sense of proportion. If they would slim their stocks waaay down, they would be fantastic. As it is, it's very clunky, and not worth the nearly 200 bucks. In fact, the stock is more of what I'd expect on a varmint/tactical rifle not a hunting rifle.

Here is the swede I put together for my daughter. It is a .250 savage, E.R. Shaw barrel, Bell and Carlson stock, Dayton safety, Timney trigger and Leupold scope base and rings. I wanted to taper the trigger guard, but just ran out of time. I had the floor plate engraved after I had bead blasted the whole thing then had it blued. It turned out nice, but the stock is not what I wanted at all. I was very suprised when the stock arrived how THICK it is. To say it resembles a boat oar would be a bit mean spirited, but accurate. I have a Ramline stock that is shaped much nicer but has that "plastic" feel and doesn't look as nice, but if this B&C stock had those dimensions, it would be much nicer. How does it shoot? Factory ammo was grouping between 1.25 and 1.5 inches at 100 yards, recoil was nil. I'm pretty confident that handloads should be able to shrink it down to 1 inch but I'm not sure it's necessary for a 250 yard gun. My daughter is able to put 3 shots into about 3 inches at 100 yards, which is the farthest we'll shoot, so we should be good to go. I shot my 6.5X55 Twede that I previously posted here, and it continues to amaze me. No matter what load I put behind a 140 grain bullet, it shoots little tiny groups. I plan on experimenting with some 129 grain bullets after deer season.

Thank you both for your help, this info is exactly what I was looking for.............Scott

So I have cleaned and oiled my lathe and read the owners manual, which is a model of brevity. I was able to get it set up for the speed/rotation I wanted and was actually able to turn it on! The first thing I want to do is true the face of some receivers. I have receiver mandrels, and a three jaw and four jaw chuck. But when I put the mandrel into the four jaw chuck I can't help but think it is going to be difficult to have it secure the mandrel evenly as each jaw tightens separately. If it was like a drill chuck, all four jaws would tighten simultaneously. So how do I get it centered? I tried to get it eyeball close (which I know is not close at all) with a Turk receiver on a mandrel. If you are familiar with this action it has a handguard retaining lip the is normally taken off when the face is trued. I began cutting and took off about 2/3 of the lip, stopped and checked with a small machinist square and then with a depth micrometer. The amount taken off was suprisingly uniform all the way around. I don't understand how that can be when the mandrel can't possibly be centered with any degree of precision Any light you can shed on these issues would be greatly appreciated..................Thanks scott

Did you use a mill, or files/stones? I have a set-up for a drill press but all of my projects are at a standstill as temps are in the low 90's. This is when A/C gets turned on, doesn't work, and I'm swamped.......Scott

Well here is the finished product, 300 Win mag with stainless barrel, stock and barrel from ebay. I'm satisfied with the look but it is not exactly what I wanted. Overall I am happy with the end result, I have 485.00 total in the rifle without scope, even a used rifle in this caliber in my area is 100 bucks more. I sent the action and barrel to Mark Skaggs in Oregon, he was more than fair on the price of the work that he did. If I had to send out another rifle for work I wouldn't hesitate to send it to him, however I plan on ordering a lathe in the next month or so. I am anxiously awaiting a chance to shoot it....Scott

Thanks a million for the information. Guys like you make things a lot easier for guys like me. Again, thanks for taking the time to explain things to a complete novice. I work in the HVAC field and now I know what people mean when they thank me for explaining how something works......................................Scott

So this sounds like it is the same as the 11x26 unit from Grizzly. I noticed this in the Grizzly add, "Feeds and threads to the left only." Is your lathe the same as this? Is this some kind of disadvantage? Again, my immediate plans are to face actions, clean up bolt faces and chamber/thread barrels. After yet another week and looking at three more junk used lathes I am leaning towards this one due to price and space. With the prices people want for total junk, I have no doubt I will be able to sell a used grizzly for a minimal loss and put that money into a larger lathe when I'm ready. Thanks again.........Scott

Thank you for the input, I will look up that sites, if nothing else I am sure to learn some valuable information. As I have not looked up the site yet, are you saying that you can add length to the bed of your lathe but not the 10X22 or 11X26? Thanks again..............Scott

I'm supposed to look at a cincinatti lathe this weekend, I'm told it is a 12 or 13x40 and that it is a three phase machine with a converter for single phase 110v. It has 4 different chucks, a bunch of tooling and has not been used in ten years, but it is in running condition. Guy is asking 2500.00. If I can arrange a look with a machinist friend I'm going to check it out, but a new 12x36 is less, just depends on what kind of tooling is included.....Scott

Thanks for the ideas, but I have been watching all of those as well as running adds, but all I've found is overpriced junk. I would even consider rebuilding an older unit, but what I've looked at has only been good for scrap. So, that is why I'm looking at this option. Just not sure about the three things I've questioned......................Scott