Hello from Minnesota

[ATV]

Hi Everyone,

I'm just getting into machining. Purchased a bridgeport, lathe, box brake, iron worker, welders, etc. Interested in reading about metal shaping.


________

Dave

[HEATNBEAT]

Welcome Dave!
boy when you jump in, you jump in with both feet

[sfm1951]

Dave , Where in are you Minnesota? I live in Grand Rapids . Steve

[CARS]

Welcome Dave!!

[Z5Roadster]

Welcome Dave.

Sounds like a set-up for a new machine shop. What do you hope to be doing?

Good luck

[Joe Hartson]

Dave, welcome to the site. Having machine shop tools and the skill to use the equipment will allow you to make a lot of the tools we use in metal shaping. To be a good metal shaper you need to understand how the metal moves when you hit it. Shaping with hand tools helps you learn how the metal moves and you will produce a lot less scrap. Thanks for joining us.

[ATV]

Originally Posted by sfm1951

Dave , Where in are you Minnesota? I live in Grand Rapids . Steve

Hi Steve,

I'm actually in Isanti. But I get up to Grand Rapids frequently. My in-laws have a cabin in Remer. I've got some flying buddies in Grand Rapids, too.

What kind of metal working are you interested in?

Dave

[ATV]

Thanks for the warm welcome, guys.


Up until 2 years ago all I had was a 2 car garage for working in and it just wasn't enough room. I had a drill press, air compressor, TIG and a bunch of air and hand tools. Not much room for much else what with the wife needing to park in the garage.

We moved and I ended up with a 40 x 70 pole building. The whole thing will be workshop. I just bought the metal to start finishing the interior ceiling.

Earlier this summer I mentioned to a buddy that I wanted to get a bridgeport mill. He said he knew a woman who had one and that her husband had passed away. The deal was that all of his machining tools came with the mill. Well, the tools weren't there at his house so all I could see was the mill. It looked like brand new. Had spent its life in a wood shop and only had about 100 hours running metal. I bought the mill. Well, as it turned out I got about $5k - $6k worth of machinist tools that came with it. I was floored but happy!

The 40 ton iron worker I got for $100 from a school that was selling some stuff.

The 48" Box brake is a friend's who said I could "store" it in my shop.

I bought a JD model 4 tubing bender and a number of dies. Bought a harbor freight press. Purchased a plasma torch. A few weeks ago, I found a craftsman 12" lathe with a 48" bed-- stole it for $400. Turns out it was one of the last years they (Atlas) made them for sears and it was their top of the line commercial model.

I'm pretty lucky that I ended up with some good stuff to start out with. Got a lot to learn! My first project is a ball turner that I'm making for the lathe.

Eventually, I'd like to build a tesla turbine, a model steam engine, possibly a rocket motor for a model rocket, etc. Mainly want to be able to make whatever I'm interested in.

I'd love to learn metal shaping, too. That to me is more of a skilled art than machining.

Looking forward to learning from you guys!

[sfm1951]

Dave, my boys used to race (dirt modifieds) and we used to make the cars from the ground up. I'm also into street rods I've had my 30 Ford coupe since high school. NSRA #2554 MSRA #911. We have a full sheet metal shop, with a lathe , milling machine, pullmax and other metalworking tools in our shop at home. If you get to Grand Rapids stop in. We live 4 miles from GR on Hwy 2 . Steve