Thank you for the extensive post.

Comments interspersed:


On Sun, 4 Mar 2012 12:38:21 -0500, Wild_Bill wrote:

The unusual design of the Proxxon PD 230 lathe leaves few options for any of
the more commonly available QCTP quick change toolposts.

[...]

I think you'll find that the supplied toolpost is adequate for most
operations you'll end up wanting to do.

[...]

Yes, I am beginning to see the issues and I will try practicing
patience.



As a beginning lathe user, it may be very useful to start with plastic stock
to help you get accustomed to the various general aspects of cutting
rotating material.
Scraps of PVC pipe, empty pen bodies and various parts of items which will
be discarded, should all be seen as potential parts now.. definitely good
materials for practicing anyway.

Good idea; there is certainly lots of that sort of stuff around here.

A shallow chip tray/pan can be fabricated from any number of materials or
unused products which you may have in a cupboard or closet, such as a baking
pan for example.
Many small lathes have features on the bottom to enable the owner to mount
the base to a table or bench. Those features can be utilized to place block
spacers between the base and a chip pan, where rubber feet/pads can be
mounted to the bottom of the pan under the blocks to prevent sliding around
during use.

Yes, the Proxxon has two notches for mounting bolts. I am now thinking
about just screwing it to a thick wooden cutting board with
rubber-shod feet. That ought to keep it from tipping or moving around.


When metal parts become a regular part of lathe use, you'll discover how
easily chips attach themselves to clothing and shoes, which then transfer
them to various other locations.. so try to set up a work table away from
the busy traffic patterns within a household, and be aware of the parasitic
characteristics and behaviors? of chips.

Good point; I am looking at an out-of-the-way side of the basement...

I'm not familiar with the design of the Prox lathe, but you may find it
useful to have a hand crank for the spindle, if one can be attached on the
left end of the spindle.
Hand cranks are useful for certain operations, and I find them very handy
for short threaded sections such as you may be contemplating for lens
adapters.
It's always the best practice to unplug a machine before installing
something like a hand crank which is likely to cause machine damage or
personal injury if the machine power is accidently turned on with an
unbalanced spindle hand crank in place.

Good idea!

There seem to be two possible ways to attach a hand crank to the
spindle.

One would be to start with a taper that fits the spindle, extend a
shaft from the narrow end of the taper out through the back of the
spindle, and add a crank. The taper and shaft would need to be
inserted before mounting the work and left in place; the crank could
be added and removed.

The other possibility is to remove the spindle "gear" (actually a
timing belt pulley) and mount a crank to the exposed outside of the
spindle shaft.

Any advice?


In addition to DoN's excellent recommendations made earlier, one lens type
that I know of has inch-pitch threads, and those are C-mount video lenses,
which are 1" 32 TPI.

The notorious example is Leica Thread Mount, which is 39mm x 26TPI!
The Royal Microscopical Society thread standard for microscope
objectives (known as the Royal Screw) is .8 inches by 36TPI Whitworth.

The Proxxon thread chart does not include either 26TPI or 36TPI pitch
settings, which is unfortunate from my point of view. Those two
threads could be useful to me.

A couple of other items needed for machine use would be some small brushes
for cleaning away chips (compressed air can actually force chips into places
on machines where thay may do harm), and an oiler with an oil suitable for
your new machine.
The manufacturer may recommend certain lubricating products for your
machine, and indicate which parts need to be kept very clean, and
lubricated.

I got some brushes.

The manual recommends where to oil, but not what oil to use. I assume
that the duty is light enough that almost any lubricating oil (not
penetrating oil or anything else silly) will work fine.

Finally, I hope you get a great deal of enjoyment from your new machine.. I
find metalworking projects to be very gratifying.

Thank you again!