New Cross Slide Handwheel Part 2 - Schaublinisation Of The Mini Lathe

This is part 2 of the new cross slide handwheel built for my Mini Lathe. I copied the design from the beautiful highest class swiss Schaublin lathes. The way they made the locking mechanism for the cross slide dial is very interesting.
In this second part I made the new acme leadscrew, the locking mechanism, the new nut and finished the whole project.
Part 1: • New Cross Slide Handwh...
It took quite a while finishing this project and video, longer than expected due to personal reasons. There might be a little summer break now.
Plans and drawings for this project are available on Patreon:
- / wecandothatbetter
I hope you enjoy watching. Feel free to comment and if you like the work subscribe to the channel. Many thanks.
If you want to support me, you can send me some love: paypal.me/wcdtb
00:00 Intro
00:27 Making the new leadscrew
07:07 Making the steel spacer
08:00 Dial lock first part
09:52 Dial lock expanding ring
13:04 Clamping knob
15:05 How does the lock work?
16:08 New acme nut
18:44 Adapting the lathes bedslide
20:10 All parts and final assembling

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Plans for the Cross Slide Handwheel modification on my Mini Lathe are now available on Patreon: www.patreon.com/wecandothatbetter

[@TheWhitsboy]

Great job, handwheel turned out fantastic. Would love to get plans, but I would rather pay up front instead of joining patreon. So many good youtubers, it can become quite expensive. No matter, I enjoyed watching. Cheers

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

@@TheWhitsboy Yes I understand, you can contact me via mail when interested in this specific plan.

[@josseman]

I have watched this video over and over again. Hats off to the quality of the work and beautiful design.

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thank you so much for your compliment! I really do appreciate that!

[@PaulsGarageProjects]

Many a full size lathe would be envious of those handwheels!

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

hehe ;)

[@JamesJones-zg4bv]

I've noticed that many of these lathe's get reworked. From all different companies, by many people. This is the best build I have seen yet.👍

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

I'm humbled! Thank you so much for your compliment. I really do appreciate that!

[@jonnyphenomenon]

you finally got a bandsaw! congrats!

[@Gottenhimfella]

My Ursus (Italian) lathe has that locking arrangement on both cross slide and compound, and it is indeed a treat to use.

[@jean3xyz]

Thank you for this beautiful video well done, ingenious and practical as a transformation! I would never have thought of doing that on my metal lathe. What a monk's work and what patience you put into it! Congratulations, that's perfect!

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thank you so much for your kind comment and compliment! I really do appreciate that! Yes, it is a lot of work, but in most cases it pays off later as it makes working with the machine much more convenient.

[@DavidHerscher]

Wow, excellent demonstration of skill, creativity, and problem solving. Perfect example of the saying, "it's not the machine, it's the machinist". Bravo!

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thank you so much for your commen! I really do appreciate that.

[@robertnicholson7733]

a bit of nit picking, it is only an Acme thread if it is imperial, metric threads are called trapezoidal. Both are trapezoidal, it is just the name that changes. I only mention it as searching for metric Acme threads will result in far less hits than metric trapezoidal, especially on websites belonging to nit-picking suppliers. >:-)>>

[@kenthutchins1431]

Nice job!……cleanest hands and fingernails I've ever seen on a man.

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

haha :) Thanks!

[@ricksweetser1683]

I am ALWAYS amazed at your ingenious engineering and master craftsmanship! What new projects do you have in store for us in the future?

[@nortonp240]

you easily have the best mini lathe on earth :)

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

haha thanks :D It's still a lot to do. In the end I guess I have to scrape the ways in.

[@homemadetools]

Schaublinisation; good one. We shared this video on our homemade tools forum this week 😎

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thank you so much for sharing my work! I really do appreciate that :)

[@rc166honda]

Beautiful work.

[@markwieben7341]

Mic Drop! Nicely done indeed!

[@paulmanhart4481]

Beautiful.

[@Bob_Adkins]

That method of removing backlash from the Acme threads was savage, something Ca` Lem might do.

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

You mean, that's not the most elegant way? I agree :) but it was relatively simple to do and I was getting a little bit impatient to the end :)

[@Bob_Adkins]

@@WeCanDoThatBetter Hey, I thought it WAS elegant, but the elegance was overshadowed by the rock-solid fix. That's the way I like fixes... no half-measures!

[@maximohuenulef]

Is an ancient anti backlash nut type

[@foogee9971]

Thats a thing! Very well done, congrats! 👍

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thank you very much! I really do appreciate that :)

[@EddywaKenya]

Wow! That's talent! Keep up the good work!

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thank you very much for your kind comment!

[@3in1Machining]

Really impressed with the quality of workmanship from such a young man. Well done.

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thank you so much! I really do appreciate that!

[@robertosaragoni2218]

A professional touch???? Man the whole thing is a work of art. Amazing work!!!

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thanks a lot!

[@Omegajet223]

As always an impressive project, with a craftsman finish. 👍🏼

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thank you so much for your comment! I really do appreciate that!

[@HanifKasukoknikangol]

Excellent engineering

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thanks!

[@magcase2127]

Very nice upgrade and great work.

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thank you!

[@lucasandri5462]

The final piece looks awesome, very good parts. For the locking wedge try to make the angle steeper so it becomes self releasing because the force that pushes the wedge out of the ring becomes greater. At least in theory is also kin of the reason because morse tapers lock themselves whereas 5c collets don't for example.

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thanks for your comment! Making the angle wider would be the ultimate solution, yes. At the moment I'm lazy of machining it new. But perhaps I will do this some day:)

[@65jcbc]

Great job👌

[@Carnold_YT]

I'm impressed. Great upgrade and great update, there are quite some parts involved!

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thank you very much for your comment! Yes in the end it was a lot more work than I expected starting this project. Struggled getting it done in the end.

[@VanFlausch]

You are a great Machinist!

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thanks, I'm humbled.

[@tonypike5785]

Very nice work.

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thanks!

[@Vinlaell]

Nice work i love seeing your tooling expand

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thank you!

[@ellesse59]

Thanks for sharing!

[@proxxonpd250e2]

Absolutely a work of art!!! Incredible your creativity!

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thank you very much for your kind comment! I really do appreciate that.

[@mfletch392]

Bang on good job.

[@3in1Machining]

Excellent project. I need to make one. 😊

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thanks my friend! Good luck for yours.

[@Pushyhog]

off the hook incredible

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thanks my friend!

[@bmfbmf5954]

Beautiful! Congrats!

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thanks!

[@valdecijalbarez]

Thank you for the video.

[@temyraverdana6421]

WOW! an incredible work! Thanks for share it

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thank you very much for your comment!

[@Foz9852]

Lubricating the fixed center when using it to stabilise your workpiece will help reduce friction and heat, just an occasional dab will do :)

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

I think I did but didn't show it on camera ;)

[@waynethomson3852]

Looks Uber cool!!

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thank you very much!

[@SethKotta]

I think the lock, while unnecessary, is a good option to have just in case. Even if you wind up using it as a fine adjust to make the ring require a teeny bit more force to turn.

[@fredflintstone8048]

Beautiful work as usual. I've found one of the best things I did for my lathe was to add a DRO to the X and Z axis. The increments on my Chinese metric version mini lathe show increments on the cross and compound slides that are not exactly in thousandths, but are really metric (they show both), so you accumulate quite a bit of error over several turns of the wheel. I would of course compensate by getting close, taking a measurement of the material and then sneaking up on the dimension when it was critical. The DRO made life a lot easier plus it allowed me to program the X-axis for Diameter measurements instead of having to remember of course that the dimensions on the wheel are radius measurements. Of course we get used to that so it's not a problem, but one must pay more attention.

[@daniloagostini4156]

Brilliant!👏

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thanks!

[@francis.a2596]

très beau travail de haute précision chapeau bas.............! un régal de regarder cette vidéo

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Merci beaucoup mon ami! C'est tres joli!

[@jozsefbalatoni8782]

You always give me good ideas. Thank you!

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thanks for your feedback!

[@Bigwingrider1800]

THAT'S GONNA BE A MILLOIN DOLLAR MINI LATHE... i LIKE IT

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thanks!:)

[@fna-wrightengineering]

Gorgeous work. Seeing the whole thing coming together was awesome! Amazing job of improving function, while also adding some genuine class to the humble mini lathe. The locking mechanism is an elegant solution... I think, if you make the angle wider on the wedge and locking ring, the tapers wouldn't lock together like that. Maybe add a spring, or a Belleville washer between the wedge and the handwheel? Regardless, great job! Looking forward to more!

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thank you so much for your kind comment and feedback! I really do appreciate that! Perhaps some day I will make the wedge angles a bit wider so that it doesn't stick anymore. But at the moment I'm used to it and there are so much other things to do :)

[@malarikavela]

@@WeCanDoThatBetter From tapper theory locking angles (like Morse) are up to 15 degrees, self releasing are above that. BTW job well done. I'm impressed!

[@erlinghagendesign]

thsk man, life center next 😉 | Danke für die Aufnahme mit dem touch tool 😀

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thanks! :)

[@bahaddoutarik]

C'est du très très beau travail rien a dire félicitations t es le meilleur. Merci pour ta vidéo

[@afctin]

SUPER!👍😉

[@francisamanton1789]

travail de professionnel ajustage parfait , félicitations

[@parvizaghayarov935]

Wonderful thanks for video

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thanks for your comment!

[@owenclark7210]

That does look really nice. Well done.

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thank you very much!

[@jrkorman]

And excelllent piece of work! And yes, it does look professional! Well done!

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thank you very much. I really do appreciate that!

[@IGBasov]

Nice!

[@AndySomogyi]

Ingenious idea for locking dial, love it! I’m totally going to make better dials like this for my lathe

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thanks for your comment! The idea itself is copied from the Schaublin machines :) So I haven't inveted it but it is highly cool:)

[@OL6162.]

Nice work. 👍👍

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thank you.

[@Jajamilan]

Perfect. 👍

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thanks!

[@eduardocamji308]

Excelente, muy buena terminación.

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Muchas gracias!

[@Sigmatechnica]

hmm interesting upgrade!

[@hoernst2762]

Gratulation, sehr schöne Arbeit!

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Vielen Dank!

[@YooProjects]

Fantastic job bro. I like your style 🍻

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thank you so much! I really do appreciate that!

[@fredericbryla6412]

Superbe Travail!. 🐸👍

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Merci beaucoup!

[@ParsMaker]

amazing

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thanks.

[@Jailguzzi]

Hallo Martin, das Entstehungsvideo schaut ja super aus. Das Schild hast du mit Kerbstiften befestigt. Schaut auch super aus.👌👌 Gruß Bruno

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Hi, vielen Dank:) Ja, ich habs zusätzlich noch mit Kerbstifen gesichert. Sieht einfach originaler aus:)

[@daveys]

Neat job, well done! Maybe remake that main wheel a bit smaller to give you a little more clearance?

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thanks for your comment! Either this or I will redo the carriage so that both handwheels are further apar as they are now allowing for a little bit more clearance in between. I'm not sure yet, what to do with it :)

[@daveys]

@@WeCanDoThatBetter - No criticism on my part, just guessing that you’ll constantly be cursing the bruised knuckles otherwise!

[@adriankohli4870]

meeegaaa- Job, Sir👌

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thank you!

[@mrjibrhanjamalkhan2144]

Nice

[@t1j1]

Good job! You might want to adjust the ways in the cross slide in your mill. The noise indicates that there is some play.

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Hi and thanks for your comment! I'm not sure if the noise is comming from the cross slide. I would guess its from the wobbly column and motor holding vertical slide. That is really a bit flimsy.... The cross slide is set rather tight but off course isn't the most rigid too.

[@UncySpam]

I have a cheap live centre. I pulled it down and cleaned out the gunk in the bearing and reassembled and it was much better

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

I haven't tried yet but yes, perhaps I can fix it by myself.

[@jaimeandrade9973]

Disfruto enormenente ver sus trabajos, lograr lo que logra con ese torno es digno de Felicitaciones. I greatly enjoy seeing his work, achieving what he achieves with that lathe is worthy of congratulations.

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thank you very much for your kind comment!

[@maercnc6707]

Good.!!!

[@davidsamways]

Nice work. Lots of Schaublin's designs are just too complex for their own good. The dial locks on my Hardinge HLV-H are simpler and more rational than those on my Schaublin 135.

[@leslieaustin151]

A lovely job, well done! Les in UK

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thanks my friend!

[@steventimme5268]

Oh, btw...nice work!

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thanks!

[@marcelopizzutipes2695]

Amazing process and a excellent job. Maybe if you use a spring in the clamping it will release easily. Congrats!

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thank you very much!

[@airflow49]

It turned out to be a chic limb. I have the same lathe. I put the DRO on the longitudinal and transverse feeds. It became very convenient to work.

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Perhaps some day I will install one too.

[@airflow49]

I installed 300mm on the longitudinal, and 150mm on the transverse. Helps a lot at work. In addition, a Chinese plastic caliper was installed on the tailstock. I bought digital rulers and calipers from Aliexpress.

[@bustednuckles2]

Absolutely FANTASTIC machine work. Especially out of the little Chinesium machines. You have a lot of skills. I see a new project in your future though. Upgrading the clamping slides under the saddle. A massive failure in the name of keeping costs down IMO. There are lots of ideas out there. Mine took a month to do but I also filled in the "H" of the Cross Slide and incorporated a locking mechanism. I'll look forward to your take. Either way, this upgrade you just did turned out fabulously.

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thank you very much for your kind words! I really do appreciate that! Good ideas, there is still a lot to improve on this machine...

[@ryebis]

Nice mod, I like it.

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thanks.

[@ÁREAJ27]

Que maravilha trabalho perfeito amigo!!! Abraço daqui do Brasil a todos aí!!!

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Muito obrigado!! Thanks my friend!

[@gordon6029]

What’s next? Lovin this!

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

I have something in mind with the leadscrew bearing.

[@geordey9532]

Nice little mod you’ve made there cheers for sharing 👍 as for your dial lock issue just make the thumb screw captive for example plunge an end mill into the back of the handle deep enough for an circlip and cut a groove in the screw and hey presto instant fix the screw catches on the handle and pushes the wedge out

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thank you very much for your comment. And thanks for your ideas. Have to think about what I can fit into the tight space in the handwheel :)

[@geordey9532]

@@WeCanDoThatBetter I know there’s no clearance between the dial and the handle which is why I said plunge an end mill into the back of the handle it’s for clearance the clip sits in a recess/pocket allowing a flush fit between the dial and handle problem solved ✌

[@higosousamáquinascaseira]

Trabalho muito bom excelente peças

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Muito obrigado!

[@MarceloPereira-vl3gh]

Bom video😊

[@steventimme5268]

Install a spring on the locking wedge shaft and a dash of grease and it should unlock without having to push on the lock knob.

[@garygruber1452]

cold bluing works a lot better if you clean the part in acetone and then warm it up with a small torch prior to applying the blue.

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thanks for the tip! Didn't know that.

[@megandjaz7051]

excellent channel,you just got another subbie

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thank you so much for your nice comment and for subscribing! I really do appreciate that!

[@JoZf_Gibson]

Merci

[@vukpesic1344]

Dont worry budy this is exelent job!

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thank you very much!

[@giovanbattistatiepolo2517]

BRAVISSIMOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Mille grazie!

[@ernani228]

I don't know if anyone has mentioned it but you could use a type of bent washer that will act as a spring although you may need to turn back the tapered part to make room.

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Maybe that will work. I haven't tested so far. At the moment I use it as it is.

[@jrh4371]

nice

[@karlmansson8319]

Nice work! One thing that made me think though was your backlash adjustment. Squeezing the thread will maybe make the acme thread tighter on the flanks but it won't adress pure axial play, which is what causes the backlash. I think the usual way to do it is to split the nut the other way around to make two separate segments of thread and making those adjustable in their mounting on the corss slide so that you can alter the spacing between them. That way you can compensate for wear later on as well.

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thanks for your comment! Yes, the common way is to have two seperate parts which get axially pressed together to eliminate backlash. I thought this is a bit more work to do so I first tried it this way. As the threaded spindle is a bit smaller than the threads in the nut, when you squeeze the nut it also eliminates backlash. The range isn't as big as with your method as the threads someday reach the bottom of the nut internal thread. But as this machine won't get used excessively it should last for a while before I can't adjust for backlash anymore. I hope that makes kind of sense :)

[@heybabycometobutthead]

A trapezoidal thread has contact on 3 faces, this method of reducing play has been used for longer than you've been alive, the leadscrew on most lathes squeeze the half nuts together until play is removed.

[@filipporicci2936]

Master

[@user-bk6nb2yg5l]

Очень качественно решил. В моём случае я поступил по проще. Лайк

[@danielstewart3507]

Outstanding! These videos always get me so inspired. You are a man of great talent and patience. May I ask, what do you hope to achieve with such a great upgrade to a cheap lathe? Are you after a watchmaker's lathe or similar? I am in need of a new lathe and I am tormented with the decision of buying a new lathe or carrying out monstrous upgrades to my current machine. Curious how you approached the decision. Well done!

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thank you very much for your kind comment! I really do appreciate that. I have no exact plan. I have some upgrades in mind to realize in the future. Target is to have a well functioning lathe which is pleasant to use. I don't think it's possible to make it a watchmakers lathe. At the moment making modifications and videos about it is the main target :) But if you really need a lathe for doing work, don't go this way and buy a lathe which needs no modifications or use it as it is. Otherwise you just loose time:)

[@abejowilly]

Thanks for the video well done, I have a mini-Lathe Proxxon FD 150E, I wonder if I can do the same on my Mini Lathe

[@arduinomaquinas]

Excelent video❤ awesome 😉👍🇧🇷🇧🇷 subscribed 👏👏👏👏👏

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thank you very much! I really do appreciate that!

[@nrml76]

A Belleville washer would probably sort out the sticky dial.

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Have to try it. But it is very tight in here, not sure it will fit.

[@girliedog]

Eventually, you will have the most tricked-out mini lather in the world. I a wondering, could you not simply make the cross-slide handle longer, so it avoids close contact with the feed handle?

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thanks :) ! Best would be to have more distance between both handwheels. But that's a major modification..