Making a dial for the Mini Lathes carriage

The handwheel on the Mini Lathes carriage annoyed me quite some time. It wasn't properly supported by bearings and got sticky over time. Besides it was very wobbly, a bit too small and the handle unscrewed it self when turning the handwheel.
The plan came up to replace the handwheel, install some proper bearings and additionally add a dial to the handwheel. I missed a way of indicating the travel of the bedslide quite often in the past that I necessarily wanted to include a big dial to the modification. Off course you can install a digital readout which will be much more accurate but I wanted to go the old scool way here.
A problem was to figure out the travel of the bedslide per turn of the handwheel. This is important for making the dial. In it's factory configuration the bedslide travelled about 19,2mm per revolution of the carriage handwheel. That is quite an odd number and useless for an easy to read dial. With a little bit of math I found out that by changing one gear in the Mini Lathes bedslide apron from 24 to 25 teeth I'll get a travel of almost exactly 20mm. That's just perfect for a 200 dividion scale I then machined. The scale indicates the travel with a resolution between the lines of 0,1mm.
The result is quite satisfying. Not just that it looks great in my eyes and much more "real precision lathe like", it also feels so much better than the old plastic handwheel. Due to the two installed bearings it feels now extremely solid and turns smooth. The slightly larger aluminium handwheel and handle feel very comfortable.
As you see in the end the handle of the cross slide now collides with the new bedslide handwheel. That is to fix next :)
00:00 Intro
00:24 Measuring and calculating the travel of the lathe carriage
01:39 All parts needed
01:52 Making the backplate/bearing seat
04:18 Turning the bedslide dial
05:25 Engraving the dial on the lathe
07:35 Knurling
07:52 Punching the numbers into the dial
08:32 Turning the shaft
09:56 Milling the keyways
10:13 Turning and keyway cutting the new gear
10:43 Keyway cutting on the new handwheel
11:26 Turning brass spacers
12:19 Machining a steel nut
13:22 Boring the new bearing seat in the apron
14:56 Drilling mounting holes to the apron
15:28 Clamping knob
15:54 Dial clamping mechanism
16:39 filling the engravings on the dial with lacquer stick
17:03 All parts and assembling everything
If you have questions or suggestions, please let me know in the comments. I'll read them all and try to reply to everyone.
I hope you enjoy this video. Feel free to comment, like and subscribe to the channel.
Thank you!
Instagram page: / wecandothat. .
Keep in mind, due to very limited resources, I have to improvise a lot and go unconvenient ways which may upset some of the "real machinists" out here. Hope - with some creativity - in the end come to good resoults anyway.
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[@mathewmolk2089]

And all without a mill! The lathe is the machine that can make itself,,,,with a little help from the drill press. ,,, but what impressed the most was your toolmaker grade workmanship and mostly the engineering. Second to none!

[@sd906238]

Amazing how much you can do with a small lathe. It just shows technique and knowledge is more important than having a big fancy expensive machine. I learned a lot from this video.

[@LuxGamer16]

Same here. Nearly everything he showed was a lesson for me.

[@358trucking]

Even on a monster lathe most jobs are smaller. I have a 10x22” lathe for the garage at home and the big lathe is at work. If I get a bigger job on occasion, I just take it in to work and use the big lathe but my little lathe is my “go to” for most jobs.😀👍Keep making chips!🤣

[@nefariousyawn]

I love how this beautifully executed modification concluded with a new problem to solve. I look forward to the next video!

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thanks for your commen! I would prefer, the problems will come to an end some day :D But there is still a lot to do on this little lathe :) And yes, the crossslide handle and scale is the next project

[@jaculjacula3879]

Lp

[@ramonching7772]

Now I understand why all of a sudden the launch date is delayed. 😀

[@Dodi-nz3fd]

@@WeCanDoThatBetter , Where can I buy this lathe, in *Indonesia???* .

[@thejackpot6928]

@@Dodi-nz3fd dude, stop it! Every video where emco unimat 3 is you always ask same or similar question.

[@skunkjobb]

Truly amazing job. I especially like the smart locking mechanism with the two pins.

[@wirefeed3419]

Now this is one of the best and best looking mini lathe upgrades I have seen done. Great idea and execution Beautiful finished product. Even the cross slide clearance issue I would normally call a mistake I said Ok … Good another project.

[@Sctronic209]

That’s next level workmanship wow just beautiful. You must have a great sense of pride every time you finish a project.

[@samrodian919]

An extremely good result! Well thought out and some very creative set ups, and beautifully executed. Well done sir!

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thank you very much for your kind comment! I really do appreciate that! Happy to hear, you liked it.

[@davidkennedy2555]

I know I am a little late to the party, but that dial is one of the most beautiful things I have seen someone make. I did a tiny little wheel for my compound. I had never thought to make one for the carriage. That was really wonderful. Now, I have to make one. I will inscribe WCDTB on the back in your honor. Thanks for that... a lot.

[@danapatelzick594]

Well, I am impressed. The locking feature is very clean. I also like the indexing arrangement. Very cool enhancement.

[@TheRecreationalMachinist]

Both the idea and the execution are absolutely stunning. Bravo! 👍 🇬🇧

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thank you so much for your kind comment!

[@Dodi-nz3fd]

@@WeCanDoThatBetter , Where can I buy this lathe, in *Indonesia???* .

[@davidt8438]

The different colors on the divisional board is very clever. It helps keep track of what’s what.

[@14goldmedals]

Amazing patience engraving the wheel. Excellent planning and execution was a pleasure to watch.

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thank you for your feedback!

[@peter2uat]

great design, love it. I have added a thin backplate to the apron of my mini lathe to keep swarf out and to hold a bearing for the handwheel. I am using a handwheel on the lead screw and am planning to add a digital scale with the read head under the apron.

[@danl.4743]

Impressive. That was watching a work of love. Really I could feel how much you loved what you did.

[@spiderbrandt4066]

That was Awesome mate ,That was good thinking in the way you did the work , I'm a 70 year old Fitter & Turner

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thank you so much for your kind comment! I'm hubled! Thanks a lot.

[@steved8038]

Wonderfully thought out ( apart from the colliding handles !! ) Very well made and fitted all in all a very entertaining and instructive video Thank you for sharing looking forward to the handle problem being solved.

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thank you very much for your kind comment!

[@Dodi-nz3fd]

@@WeCanDoThatBetter , Where can I buy this lathe, in *Indonesia ???*

[@Georges-MILLION]

Alors là ! Bravo !!!! Félicitations pour cette modification !!! Then ! Well done !!!! Congratulations on this change !!!

[@morkbov]

Awesome work. Again. Thanks for sharing and taking the time to publish your work.

[@ivznh]

Such a fine job! Great craftmanship through the whole video!

[@mrvector257]

Subbed and binge-watched the whole mini lathe playlist. Keep up the great work and would love to see more mini lathe stuff!

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thank you very much for your kind comment! I really do appreciate that. There is more to come on that subject.

[@niklnikl1]

Awesome design and manufacturing. I love how the lock works.

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thank you very much! The lock is really cool, yes. It is not my idea, I just adapted it for my project. It works exceptionally well :)

[@larrypalmer7136]

You do optimal work with less than optimal tools. The quality of your finished product is inspiring. Nice camera work too! Please keep the videos coming.

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thank you very much! I really do appreciate that. It may take a lot more time and needs some patience but even with little tooling you can achieve quite a bit :)

[@Dodi-nz3fd]

@@WeCanDoThatBetter , Where can I buy this lathe, in *Indonesia ???* .

[@Thewatson77]

Wow what an amazing job 👍🏼 Some pretty clever techniques in there to accomplish this as well.

[@HM-Projects]

Nice workmanship and end result is beautiful. Thanks for sharing.

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thank you so much for the kind comment!

[@Zzeke]

I love the “drills eye view” too cool. Fantastic Work

[@danielabbey7726]

Really nice design work and execution on this project. I have never considered using a graduated dial on a carriage handwheel before, but it's an excellent idea.

[@mapsi03]

Have you never seen a lathe or any type of machinery before? Every single machine ever made has graduated dials on it. lol wtf

[@danielabbey7726]

@@mapsi03 Yes, I've seen many lathes before (have you?) The crossfeed and compound handles are normally graduated, but I've never seen a graduated dial on a carriage handwheel - you'll note that the original plastic wheel did NOT have graduations. This is typical on all lathes that I'm aware of.

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thank you very much! That's right, not every lathe has a dial on the carriage handwheel. But that's a useful modification. Without a digital readout you have no idea how far you go with the carriage without a dial. I missed that extremely in the past. I oriented my design a bit on the schaublin lathes. They have beatiful dials on the carriage handwheel :)

[@Dodi-nz3fd]

@@WeCanDoThatBetter , Where can I buy this lathe, in *Indonesia ???* .

[@jcmakes5977]

That is an amazing project and so many cool tricks! 👍 well done!

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thank you! I really do appreciate that:)

[@CS-Sir_Twit]

Mate. Maaaaate. Well done. IMHO the dial clamp is the best bit of the assembly, exceptional function with simple design.

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

:) Thanks a lot! The clamping is really cool yes. Much more convenient as clamping with a screw from the side. I saw this idea in a video of Stefan Gotteswinter here on youtube.

[@steveaylor376]

@@WeCanDoThatBetter - very well done - care to share the video link from Stefan ?

[@danielalfredorodriguez4345]

Nicely done, it's been quite an achivement was promising from the very beginning, congratulations.

[@edsmachine93]

Nice work. Great idea. I like the lock mechanism. Great and useful content. Thank you, EM.

[@artisanmakes]

Loving this video a lot. Amazing stuff that you are doing on this little lathe. Cheers.

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thanks my friend :)

[@Dodi-nz3fd]

@@WeCanDoThatBetter , Where can I buy this lathe, in *Indonesia ???* .

[@howardosborne8647]

We probably won't do better than this😁 I really enjoy your videos for the great level of problem solving using a great deal of ingenuity with only limited equipment. The camera work is tremendous too. That is a sweet dial locking mechanism.👌

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thank you so much for your kind comment!

[@steverobb5360]

That's some really nice work! Looking forward to seeing how you resolve the interference with the cross slide handle. :-)

[@larrykent196]

Agree. Nice job. The unforeseen often shows up.

[@M00j3]

Your a very resourceful maker. Keep up the great videos 👍

[@TheOnlyMosesMalone]

Loving the angled pins, a very clever idea

[@lucianoaguilera5448]

This channel definitely has the right name. You have a new suscriber!

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thank you so much for the kind words! I really do appreciate your support!

[@luistafoya1289]

You really did so many things better, congrats! I'm subscribed to see so better solutions for the next project...

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thank you very much. I really do appreciate that!

[@thomasfkeefe]

Beautiful work and great inspiration. Thanks again.

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thank you too! :)

[@kuba9722]

Great video as always! Looking forward to next one.

[@GURALEJ]

Super rozwiązanie , dobry pomysł. Gratuluję. 👍👍👍

[@joell439]

Stunning execution. 👍👍😎👍👍 thanks for the tips and inspiration.

[@caspar3152]

Großartige Arbeit!! Macht enorm Spaß zuzugucken und Anregungen mitzunehmen!!

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Vielen Dank für dein freundliches Feedback! Das freut mich sehr! :)

[@andli461]

A lot of skill involved here. And some great inspiration and food for thought. It might be more of a personal preference, but for me, fixed handles (to the wheels) would drive me crazy. 😄 Looking forward to the next video. 👍

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Haha :) Thank you very much for your kind words! The handle is actually a result of lazyness at the end of the project :) I first wanted to install a turning handle but then went for the fixed one to get the project done. Perhaps I'll change it later but to be honest the fixed handle feels quite ok for me.

[@andli461]

@@WeCanDoThatBetter At least you finish your projects when laziness hits. That’s a lot more than you can say about my pile of 90% completed stuff. 🙄🙈 Happy it works for you. 👍

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

@@andli461 Haha :D That's really hard sometimes to finish projects I know that! :) And as said, perhaps I'll change that in the future :)

[@gabster118]

I used to have a small 200kg lathe, very quickly I outgrew it and made room for a 650kg lathe. Ultimately I am very happy I didn't spend too much time modifying my small lathe before moving on. But this is done very nicely, definitely took some time and patience. Especially the handwheel engraving, nicely done! Personally I would save the effort and upgrade to a large machine before doing such work, but I understand this is a hobby.

[@Mattbe72]

This is what I call Art. Really nice job!

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

I'm humbled! Thanks :)

[@GulliJ]

Very nice job! Professional and we'll thinked. Very pleasant to see. Be proud 🇲🇫

[@GavinM161]

Brilliant idea for the locking screw on the dial. Ingenious!

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thank you very much! I have seen this on other machines. It is extremely handy.

[@bustednuckles2]

Extremely impressive workmanship and it looks beautiful too! Now I want to see your cure for that cross slide handle.....

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thanks for your nice words! Yes, that's the next project. But have to make a plan what's needed to do first :)

[@andyvan5692]

wow, nice handwheel, looks like one off of a Seargent & Greenleaf safe!!, good job.

[@moises5102]

Há profissionais que estão em outro nível, realmente incrível esse trabalho...🤩👏👏👏

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Muito obrigado :)

[@quadplay2591]

Amazing! Just 12 videos released and your already over 9k subscribers... well done 👏

[@lloydrmc]

What a beautiful bit of work!

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thank you! I really do appreciate that.

[@estebanalgar3218]

Fantastic execution of the works. Thanks for share.

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thank you very much!

[@jmtx.]

Wow, that's an awesome upgrade!

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thank you very much! Yes, it is such a pleasure now to operate the bedslide. No wobbly handwheel anymore :)

[@alireza8327]

Very professional and excellent. Thank you👍👍

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thank you very much! :)

[@EDesigns_FL]

Very nice design! I especially like your wedge lock. A similar method is used for timing chain adjusters on some motorcycles. I'm in your same predicament regarding lack of spacing between carriage and cross feed handwheels and my solution might work for you: shift the apron forward of the saddle. I'm doing it with a pair of steel blocks. One will go behind the apron and under the saddle and the other will be in front of the saddle and on top of the apron. In regards to your fixed handle, that's going to grow old fast. I've made replacement handles for all my Chinese machinery because it one of the things that we are in direct contact with, and it effects our perception/feel of the machine. I used ground steel shoulder bolts with a pair of needle bearings and turned aluminum handles. The handles are hard anodized (type III) to resist both internal and external wear. Combined with stainless handwheels, it dramatically improves the feel of inexpensive machinery.

[@smallblockchevy1022]

"𝗶𝘁 𝗱𝗿𝗮𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗿𝗼𝘃𝗲𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗳𝗲𝗲𝗹 𝗼𝗳 𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗻𝘀𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗺𝗮𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗲𝗿𝘆." In other words, you've devised a method we can use to fool ourselves into believing our machinery is of higher quality than it actually is? 😁

[@Carnold_YT]

I really enjoyed this video, it's a problem a lot of hobby machinists can relate to. Smart design and clever engineering. I also liked the camera angles and editing, so you've got a new subscriber!

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thank you very much for your kind comment and for having you as a new subscriber! Welcome, I really do appreciate that :)

[@Dodi-nz3fd]

@@WeCanDoThatBetter , Where can I buy this lathe, in *Indonesia ???* .

[@AdjustinThings]

Paper plate and dial indicator with and a wood shim as a diving plate. 🤯I have been humbled.

[@jonnyphenomenon]

I saw your comment about the paper plate before I got to that part in the video and was puzzled by what you meant. Now that I've seen it, I'm humbled too. Impressive!

[@jasonhull5712]

Cool project! Turned out very nice ! 👍

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thank you very much! I use it a lot. It's extremely helpful when having no digital readout.

[@homemadetools]

Good job as always. We shared this video in our homemade tools forum this week :)

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thanks, happy to hear! :)

[@alexanderchapman1]

What you had wasn't good enough, so you scratch-built a serious upgrade. Subscribed. Keep up the good work.

[@a0cdhd]

Brains, patience and skill. Wins hands down every time. Calculating to fifteen decimal places might be overdoing it a bit but I like your style.

[@ChristophLehner]

the engraving indicator and also the jig for the numberstampig are quite neat

[@oldskeptic1513]

... now, this is much, much better ... well done ...

[@joshwalker5605]

nice trick with the locking pins! thanks for a great video!

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thank you very much! The locking mechanism is something I saw in a video of Stefan Gotteswinter, another machinist here on youtube

[@shennalim111]

So impressed! New subscriber looking forward to more. Thank you!

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

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

[@aldenhoot9967]

Really nice execution and a great video too!

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thank you very much!

[@bkriss]

Can't stop watching :-) Amazing job!

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thank you so much!

[@wibblywobblyidiotvision]

Nice work. I very much like the locking mechanism.

[@garul1669]

On KZbin I look just video of mechanics and I can say that you are one of the best I've ever seen. Continue so, I'm sure you'll soon have millions of inscribed PS I look forward to your next video

[@supergarball]

That looks totally pro. Well done.

[@probins2299]

A great idea executed brilliantly 👍🏿

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thank you very much. I haven't used it a lot yet but it is really a pleasure to use with the big dial :)

[@sherifabouzeid2924]

This is what you can say art.

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thank you so much!

[@helipilot727]

Well...... THAT IS GENIUS lol! The piece of wood to lock the spindle. DUH! Thanks for this

[@machinistmikethetinkerer4827]

Nice work. Using your lathe as a shaper/broach/engraver. Liked that.

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thank you very much! Yes, a lathe is extremely versatile :)

[@MadeInMichigan]

Very nicely done. Thanks for sharing!

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thank you!:)

[@kentuckytrapper780]

Great improvement, looks great..

[@BwAMurena]

Amazing how author gets creative not having milling machine. :) Good job!

[@marekmaslak8040]

I like how you tackled indexing the dial without using an elaborate tool (like a Dividing head).

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thank you very much. Yes, this method worked quite well.

[@campbellmorrison8540]

Superb handle markings

[@andrewdolinskiatcarpathian]

Brilliant idea, Brilliantly filmed. Not so brilliant ending 😂 But I have no doubt you will find an equally clever and interesting solution. 👏👏👍😀

[@MarkW321]

Nice project well done, looks great.

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thanks!

[@mfs5493]

Forgot to say: a lovely piece of work!

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thank you!

[@roadshowautosports]

Oh, the beauty of hobby shopping! You do all perfect, measure it twice, test assemble them all together, then… it interferes with the cross slide!!! 😂😂😂😂😂😂 Excellent job on the dial and great ideas! I’m working in a micro lathe and wondering if I can do the same due to the even smaller dimensions. Thank you for sharing!

[@meporfo66]

Dem Ingenieur ist nix zu schwör👍 Exzellente Arbeit 💪

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

hehe, genau :D Vielen Dank, freut mich!

[@tonycstech]

True craftsmanship. Respect.

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thank you very much!

[@imrankhanpti2715]

You are absolutely a genius ❤️

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thank you so much for your compliment!

[@albworkshop]

awesome build, thanks for sharing

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thanks for your comment!

[@rb67mustang]

After reading your detailed description, I totally agree that the carriage feed handle and the cross slide handles are to close to each other to begin with. Your new bigger and batter carriage feed handle makes this issue more pronounced than before, but I know you can make it better than new.

[@grahamdowdell4356]

Serious skill. Nice job.

[@craigtate5930]

I too love the lock mechanism. We'll thought out

[@TuanLe-no5wl]

Great work 👍 ❤️

[@mftmachining]

Excellente Arbeit, gute Problemlösungen. Stark.

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Dankeschön!

[@netoluna1]

Ingenioso, excelente, te quedo precioso, te felicito.

[@redline6k]

You do amazing work!

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thank you very much!

[@dixonqwerty]

excellent work young man!!!!

[@HexenzirkelZuluhed]

Pretty slick. Well done.

[@sebastiengomez3855]

beautiful work

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thanks!

[@REDLION0044]

That's awesome. Well done.

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thank you very much!

[@Jayjam209]

This was great! beautifully designed and executed. I am glad I stumbled along your channel. I will be following along. Just goes to show it doesn't matter the tools you have when skill is at a high level. I love the paper indexer. GOLD! Just subscribed. Cheers.

[@WeCanDoThatBetter]

Thank you so much for your kind comment! I really do appreciate and thanks for subscribing! :)

[@Dodi-nz3fd]

@@WeCanDoThatBetter , Where can I buy this lathe, in *Indonesia ???* .