Is this mini lathe a toy or a machine tool

Рет қаралды 29,590

2 жыл бұрын

In this video I take a quick look at a new mini lathe to see if it is a serious tool or just a toy.
Model Number AMA714B
From Amadeal Ltd
Please note that I am NOT affiliated with this company but if you decide to buy one after watching this video then please mention me, You never know they may send me some free stuff.

Пікірлер: 39

@coldfinger459sub0 2 жыл бұрын

I’ve been thinking of buying this it’s been out for a few years there has been many KZfaq videos on upgrading modifying and fixing some of the little problems with it . I think this would be an excellent way to introduce my kids and grandkids to machine tools. And small enough to bring into a small home work garage for a little hobby projects

@davewalls752 2 ай бұрын

A great machine in the right hands I,m retired machinist and build model engines with it made a few mods just have to be patient !

@JerryWalker001 2 ай бұрын

Yes I agree. They cannot be used to bully off material but they are great for smaller jobs. I did need to do quite a lot of work on this one to get the tail stock properly aligned. The head stock was also not properly aligned with the ways but as it is bolted on this was easy to fix.

@donepearce Жыл бұрын

The main thing I find with mini lathes is that you may need to do several spring passes with no change to make the final size. They are just not stable enough. But definitely a tool, not a toy.

@Tater1337 24 күн бұрын

depends on the brand, the carriage and tailstock vary in quality by a lot depending

@RustyInventions-wz6ir 3 ай бұрын

Just found your channel and Subscribed. Very nice lathe

@john_in_phoenix 2 жыл бұрын

I'm impressed, looks like a good quality tool for the price.

@JerryWalker001 2 жыл бұрын

I have now tried machining steel and it works very well, no vibration and a good even finish with very little deflection. The last min lathe I tried just tried to vibrate itself to pieces if you showed it anything hard. It will be interesting to see what it can do.

@capthowdy126 Жыл бұрын

ive been wanting a lathe for yrs an i finally decided to pick one u that looks identical to what u have in the vidoe. mine was a 7x14, suppose to be here monday. cant wait, ive seen alot of ppl talk down on them but ive seen just as many say the opposite so i decide if i was ever going to get one an learn id bettter off trying one of these rather than spend way more on something ill never use to its full potential. i seen the smaller lathe an mill combos an i started to get one of those but it was half the price of the one i got an i couldnt really find anyone online showing videos of what it was able to do an the size of it just didnt leave me with much trust in it being worth the money especially for what i would want to use it for. i thought i had spent alittle more on mine than what i had to cause i got the one with the upgraded 500watt motor an metal gears but it was $525 in total so it was about half what you spent so it makes me alittle more concerned mine will not be as good quality, mine says its 130lbs in weight so im guess there 25-30lbs in just the crate it will be shipped in cause the page says it was 103lb so i figured that included the machine an everything thats shipped with it an not just the weight of the machine. i hope i got a good one.

@supercooldude300 2 жыл бұрын

These lathes are really good. I've dealt with amadeal too and they're great to deal with and very professional!

@JerryWalker001 2 жыл бұрын

Yes I agree on both points. I have now spent some time testing this lathe and would say that it can most likely handle reasonable sized projects without too many problems. The only real issues I have had with it (other than those I mention in the videos) are that the head and tailstock were not aligned with the bed but an hour or so with a dial gauge is all that was required. But for such a small lathe it is surprisingly rigid.

@alexfedorov1160 2 жыл бұрын

On all professional lathe equipment (manual and CNC) that I saw axis representation was Z for longitudinal travel and X for traversal. Also there may be Z0 if the machine is equipped with compound sensor.

@JerryWalker001 2 жыл бұрын

On every lathe I have and every lathe I have ever used the longitudinal is the Y axis. In fact the two channel DRO's that I have which are specific for lathe use only have X and Y and do not even have a Z axis at all. For 3 axis DRO machines the X is defined as Z0 and Z1 but this is a 2 axis DRO.

@Bata.andrei 2 жыл бұрын

It's not a bad machine for small jobs. It might need better spindle bearings (see This Old Tony's videos about this type of lathes). I started learning about turning metal parts on something similar to this. I think it is a nice entry level tool for anyone interested in learning machining. Usually, being a small machine, means that a beginner has less of a chance of loosing his/her fingers if he makes a mistake.

@JerryWalker001 2 жыл бұрын

I think I have replaced the bearings on almost every machine tool I have (Usually motor bearings as well). I normally base this on surface finish as this generally shows up bad bearings. I have never been able to decide if learning turning on small lathes is safer. Small mistakes on a small lathe tend to have fairly insignificant consequences but doing the same on a big machine can literally be fatal. Is it better to start on big 'scary' machines and develop a healthy respect and so not develop lazy or bad habits or try to learn respect later (when it may be too late)? It is an interesting point.

@spacedock873 2 жыл бұрын

The "smallest" lathe you have is nearly a tonne?! This item is rather out of my price range as something I would use rarely, if at all, but I would be interested in seeing more videos about it. I opted out of school metalwork before we got to play with the big machines so a little course on how you use it would be interesting to me (but child's play to you I imagine).

@JerryWalker001 2 жыл бұрын

Not any more. I now have one that only weighs around 40kg :) . 900kg is actually fairly light for a workshop lathe. One of the chucks for it weighs about the same as this small lathe.

@nbprotocol5406 3 ай бұрын

When they come out of the box they are a toy but if you make some modifications and fit some things properly then they are pretty good. If you don't have machining experience and working with fitting machine components then you may get poor results.

@timbostock922 Жыл бұрын

Hi Jerry- I enjoyed your objective look at this AMA 714b. It seems like a nice machine but were you able to you come to any further conclusions after a couple of years using this? I just returned a Creworks 7x14 variable speed mini lathe - loads of quality issues especially with adjustments, broken belt after about 10 mins and poorly machined tailstock (etc). So am now looking for something a bit better. Thanks Tim

@leomateo9125 Жыл бұрын

Muy bueno video..

@BedsitBob 8 ай бұрын

I'm surprised it has a threading dial.

@adrianschneider4441 2 жыл бұрын

I am defintively interested in a follow up video.

@JerryWalker001 2 жыл бұрын

I will most likely post a follow up tomorrow. I have now tried machining a number of materials and so far it looks very impressive.

@MikeShawaluk 2 жыл бұрын

You've mentioned that your intended use of this machine is for metal and possibly some plastic pieces. Would it also be suitable for wood turning, or is a larger machine needed for that?

@JerryWalker001 2 жыл бұрын

I have used 'metal' lathes for turning specific types of wood (eg Lignum vitae) for very niche applications (eg bearing repair in old clocks) but generally I would not turn wood in a metal lathe as the dust produced tends to clog up the lubrication surfaces and causes a lot of problems. It is best to use a wood turning lathe for wood projects.

@rotattor 2 жыл бұрын

That machine looks to be made in Taiwan, better quality control, good fit and Finnish, half decent components and all metal gears. Always better (not perfect) from Taiwan.

@LaserGadgets Жыл бұрын

14:04 I have no idea what the hell to do. Its friggin useless. Nothing but confusing. Tried swapping up my plastic gears made of POM. The sound when spinning by hand is telling you "no".

@bobvines00 2 жыл бұрын

Jerry, I think you've found a very nice small machine tool, especially once you've "dialed it in" _and_ modified the tail stock. Will you use your micrometers for dialing in the DRO at several diameter ranges rather than using your calipers on the one 20-mm piece, or is that "accurate enough" for the restoration(?) work you plan to use it for? Regardless, I think you made an _excellent_ purchase decision based on what little I've seen in this video! I wish my mini-lathe had a variable speed motor and all of the options yours came with! (Of course, I bought mine second hand ~30-years ago and don't know what it originally came with, but I can still hold well within ±0.005-inch [~0.127-mm] with ease. ;)

@bobvines00 2 жыл бұрын

I think that asking Jerry: "...is that "accurate enough" for the restoration(?) work you plan to use it for? was kinda dumb and had to come back and respond to myself here. _OBVIOUSLY_ it is accurate enough for Jerry's needs or he wouldn't have purchased it! He's a skilled Machinist ("Engineer" in the UK, I think?) and he knows what he's doing and what to look for. Anyway, I'm glad that Jerry is sharing this lathe with us, along with the improvements & mods he makes to it, which will help anyone else that purchases this or a similar lathe.

@BruceWSims 5 ай бұрын

Well....since I have a SHERLINE 4100 I am always interested in anything "mini lathe". Unfortunately, these PRC machines have been ripped in a number of reviews and they always come back to the same problems. The machine looks good from a distance, but without Considerable attention the fit and finish really Suck. Further, AFAIK after-market items such as colletts, cutting tools, DRO-s and after-market up-grades do not fit well without ....again.....considerable amount of "customization". When all was said and done I paid about $1300USD for my set up but it came CNC-ready, a full set of collets, cools and tool holders. I'm guessing that if I had purchased only the machine by itself, I could have gotten a used SHERLINE off E-BAY which would STILL out-perform ther PRC items. You really do get what you pay for. 😊

@raymondj8768 2 жыл бұрын

its a very nice lathe but i dont understand if you thought it was going to be junk why did you buy it ? and all of these lathes need a bit of work.

@austineight996 Жыл бұрын

If you can’t control the rate of feed, then you can’t control finish’s or make a chip. Only strings wrapping around the work piece leaving scratches. The DRO is certainly very useful however accounting for tool deflection feeds and speeds is key to accuracy and controlling heat. Again, without being able to control feed rates puts great limits on its usefulness. Also, at least a 1.500 in. Spindle through hole would expand the usefulness of this little lathe. The I.D of the chuck should at least match the I.D of the spindle. But the real deal breaker is no feed rate control.

@heybabycometobutthead Жыл бұрын

Any chance you could tell me which lathe this size has a 1.5" spindle bore?

@alexjohnson280 10 ай бұрын

You can control Z axis feed rates by adjusting the gear train. Power cross feed can be added if needed through a modification. I have owned these lathes in different types over the past 20 years. They are capable enough machines which can do some useful work, they are not as ridgid as a 15" Colchester (which I also have) but for the smaller jobs it is often the lathe I go to.

@PirateEric1911 2 жыл бұрын

Your carriage is your "Z" axis. The only two axis on a lathe are X and Z

@JerryWalker001 2 жыл бұрын

Yes I am well aware of that I have been machining for over 40 years and it is not the point I was trying to make. There is a bug in the DRO. I will be posting a follow up video tomorrow that may help to clarify the point I was making. I did not describe it in detail as this is Not what the video was about.

@donjohnson7899 10 ай бұрын

X, Y and Z Newbie

@paolo2332 Жыл бұрын

Ma te ci pensi che quando il tuo popolo viveva ancora nelle caverne nel frattempo i cinesi costruivano la grande muraglia e avevano scoperto la polvere pirica? Ora vi permettete di denigrare prodotti cinesi che nella vostra nazione pagheresti dieci volte tanto? Spendete poco e prendete qualità?