On Wed, 15 Oct 2003 21:53:46 -0700, Brad Brigade wrote:
I've been working on electronics for robotics applications for a
while, and I am now ready to start working on the hardware. I decided
to buy a lathe and mill, and after a few days of searching, have my
sights set on Sherline.

I'm going to need to make small parts, mostly out of aluminum, as well
as gears and threads. Will the sherline machines be adequate for
this?

How small? The Sherline is *tiny*. It is really a *micro* lathe rather
than a mini lathe. They're fine little machines, and there's a ton of
accessories available for them, but they are *tiny*. A similar machine
is the Taig (which I own). Neither will natively cut threads, though
there are ways around that.

I was looking at the Emco machines as well as the ones sold by harbor

Emco or ENCO? Big difference.

freight, but most of what I read about them had them dismissed as
"toys". While I have heard a few people dismiss Sherline as "toys",
it is not nearly as often as the other machines I've been looking at,
and Sherline is at about the maximum of my price range.

The Taig is a bit less expensive than the Sherline, and a bit more
robustly built too.

Has anyone successfully made gears on a Sherline, or is that just a
ridiculous proposition?

Well, lets just say it would be a *challenge*. Straight spur gears are
possible, but any other gear form is going to be very difficult. I'd strongly
suggest you consider *purchasing* gears, or salvaging them out of other
equipment, rather than trying to make your own with a micro lathe. You
might have a bit better luck making them with a mill and rotary table.

I'm also interested in the CNC capability. Any comments on that? Is
it worth it?

I think that CNC would be more helpful on the little mill they sell than it
would be on their lathe.

Can anyone suggest a better machine for around the same price as a
Sherline?

You really need to tell us more about the size work you're going to do.
If you're familiar with Battlebots, give us the class closest to the size of
the robot you're building. That'll give us a better idea what sort of
machinery to recommend. I'm thinking that unless your robot is going
to be a flyweight, you're going to need bigger machinery than Sherline.

Gary