ghost95 Posted November 24, 2010 Report Share Posted November 24, 2010 Hi all, I was wondering if a 7x12 or 7x14 lathe would be able to handle receiver work such as truing the receiver ring on a mauser. I thought that since the facing cuts were very light these small machines might work. Any input? Thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pacrat Posted November 25, 2010 Report Share Posted November 25, 2010 Nope, to short. The mandrel required to hold the reciever itself is 14" long. Then consider the face-plate and tailstock and centers required to spin it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rojelio Posted November 25, 2010 Report Share Posted November 25, 2010 You can get a 9x20 for not much more than the mini lathes cost and you can actually do something with it. Roger Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ghost95 Posted November 25, 2010 Author Report Share Posted November 25, 2010 Thanks for the feedback guys. I'm running into a space problem that's why i was looking for smaller. I'll check out the 9x20's though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pacrat Posted November 26, 2010 Report Share Posted November 26, 2010 When checking out lathes, don't just go by the advertised dimension such as 9x20 etc. Which generally is bed lenght, then you start subtracting for chuck, faceplate, centers, tailstock, etc. Find out the {between centers} dimension. That is the real usable lenght measurement of the machine. Even a 20" bed would be very hard pressed to spin a 14" mandrel with a reciever on it and have room to make a cut on the face. JM2c Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ghost95 Posted November 26, 2010 Author Report Share Posted November 26, 2010 Ok, 20" might be to short so at this point it sounds like a a full size machine is the way to go. Now what is considered a full size machine for gunsmithing? Now, I'm just curious because I think we've passed the price point and very limited knowledge I have of lathes. The only reason I was looking was that our local machineist charges a flat fee of $75. I guess that is just for the setup maintanance of tools ect. I understand the expense in running any type of equipment so I'm not put off, just thought I might be able to learn to do some of this myself. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dirtyjim Posted November 26, 2010 Report Share Posted November 26, 2010 i have a 9x20 & its plenty long enough for action & barrel work. the only real problem is the spindle bore. i reamed mine out to .814. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ghost95 Posted November 26, 2010 Author Report Share Posted November 26, 2010 Ok, another question...Would a 7x14 mini lathe be able to swing a brownells mandrel if a steady rest was used instead of a live/dead center or chuck? I'm really limited on space and trying to wrap my brain around a way to do these projects without buying a bigger house. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rustvyper Posted December 1, 2010 Report Share Posted December 1, 2010 Can anyone point me at a specific lathe they use? I'm looking for something under a G if possible. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ken98k Posted December 1, 2010 Report Share Posted December 1, 2010 http://www.sporterizing.com/index.php?showtopic=7754&view=&hl=lathe&fromsearch=1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dirtyjim Posted December 3, 2010 Report Share Posted December 3, 2010 i use a grizzly 9x20 that i picked up on craigslist for $450, they are close to a grand new Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spiris Posted December 4, 2010 Report Share Posted December 4, 2010 I would like to interject my thoughts on the subject. Around 5 years ago or so, I decided to get into fabricating my own firearms when loads of Turkish Mausers hit the market. I did a bunch of research on equipment needs after buying and trading for several decent Turk rifles. This MFRC site provided a bunch of information after joining and I picked the brains of several machine savvy members here. I had machine shop experience, but little actual lathe experience. My limited funds caused me to consider a mini-lathe for reworking Remington take-off barrels to fit the Turk's Large ring/small thread actions. I bought a Cummins mini 7x12, and with a steady rest and live center and a good bit of patience, I started my adventure into amateur gunsmithing. I added a 4" chuck, and was able to rethread some Rem barrels that I bought on ebay, back when they still sold them. And yes, it was a tight fit on the 7x12, but once I developed a technique, it served my intentions very well. You'll find that common sense and a mini-lathe can do a lot of work for you, but they do have limitations. Here's a link to a nice mini and some good information. http://littlemachineshop.com/4100 Spiris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bstarling Posted December 5, 2010 Report Share Posted December 5, 2010 I would like to interject my thoughts on the subject. Around 5 years ago or so, I decided to get into fabricating my own firearms when loads of Turkish Mausers hit the market. I did a bunch of research on equipment needs after buying and trading for several decent Turk rifles. This MFRC site provided a bunch of information after joining and I picked the brains of several machine savvy members here. I had machine shop experience, but little actual lathe experience. My limited funds caused me to consider a mini-lathe for reworking Remington take-off barrels to fit the Turk's Large ring/small thread actions. I bought a Cummins mini 7x12, and with a steady rest and live center and a good bit of patience, I started my adventure into amateur gunsmithing. I added a 4" chuck, and was able to rethread some Rem barrels that I bought on ebay, back when they still sold them. And yes, it was a tight fit on the 7x12, but once I developed a technique, it served my intentions very well. You'll find that common sense and a mini-lathe can do a lot of work for you, but they do have limitations. Here's a link to a nice mini and some good information. http://littlemachineshop.com/4100 Spiris You can make a mandrel from an old Mauser barrel stub. That way you can make it the length you need and it will fit into a 7x machine. I have a 7x12 Homier and it can face a receiver and if necessary thread a barrel. The motors don't have a lot of torque so you have to thread fast. That is nerve wracking for me, but it can be done. Bill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dirtyjim Posted December 5, 2010 Report Share Posted December 5, 2010 the spindle bore on the 7x12 & 9x20 can be reamed out to around .812" i have the reamer if anyone wants to ream theirs out. i had to ream mine to fit the a&b .375 blank in enough to thread & chamber & i still had quite a bit of the barrelticking out of the spindle. if you don't plan on running a bull or big bore barrels you should be ok but if you do plan on running them i would look for a lathe with at least a 1" spindle bore Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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