This article describes how I added an easy-to-make DRO (Digital Readout) to the cross-slide of my 7×12 mini-lathe. It uses an inexpensive digital dial indicator that I bought from Harbor Freight for about $25. It works very well and you won’t have to drill any holes in your lathe or disassemble it to install it.… Read the rest
LittleMachineShop.com founder Chris Wood
When Chris Wood started LittleMachineShop.com, it was only supposed to be a test.
Wood and a partner were writing manuals for a Japanese printer company and he realized he should learn to build e-commerce sites for the clients he worked with. Wood had his own mini lathe at home but found he had few choices when it came to buying parts, so he decided to set up an online shop to sell them himself.… Read the rest
Essay Contest – Machining Metal as a Hobby
Read the winning essay: Honest – all I ever wanted to do was make some stuff …
We got discovered by StumbleUpon, which suddenly brought thousands of new visitors to MachinistBlog.com. It was probably the first time that most of them had visited a web web site about machining metal and I feel that I wasted a great opportunity to try and convince them that it can be a wonderful hobby. … Read the rest
Bogstandard’s “Paddleduck” Engine Plans
This is not just a set of free plans for a working model steam engine. It’s a well-written, well-organized, profusely illustrated 113-page tutorial about machining metal.
If you’re an inexperienced machinist who at least knows the basics I would strongly encourage you to download these plans and build this engine. Don’t let the picture fool you – this is not a difficult engine to build. … Read the rest