Lathes-ultimate machine tools for any industry

Lathes are the machine tools that are extensively used for machining operations of any cylindrical piece of metal, wood or plastic. You can do a lot of machining operations on a lathe. These operations can range from turning to drilling, facing, boring and grooving of any surface on the specimen to be machined. Basically, the task of a lathe machine is to give the metal any shape desired, and, along with that, it can be used on wood and other materials too. 

 In the present times, lathes are available with varying rotating speed and can be operated manually or automatically. The chuck of the lathe is a specially designed clamp, which is designed to firmly hold the work-piece to be machined. When the lathe is turned on, the chuck starts moving and rotating. The tool bit that is used for the desired operation is kept stationary and is moved towards the rotating work-piece for the machining operation. The table of the lathe can move in both vertical and horizontal directions. 

Basically, there are three types of lathes- engine lathes, turret lathes, and special purpose lathe. The lathes those are smaller in size can be mounted on a wooden table, but the large sized lathes are fixed in the floor as the wooden bench cannot bear the weight of the machine. An engine lathe is very small in size and light in weight; hence it can be carried from one place to another easily and is very versatile. Due to its versatility, it can be used for a variety of operations. It is mainly used for tooling operations or for production of very little quantity. The other two types of lathes are used for producing a large quantity of materials as they are very big in size and meant to do specialized operations. 

When you are working on a lathe machine, you must remember about three features that are crucial for a lathe and must satisfy your requirements. 

 First one is the rotating speed of the chuck, which is responsible for the fineness of the surface. If it is very high, then the surface finish of the work piece will be very fine, but if the rotating speed of the chuck is very low, the surface finish will be very rough, but for the beginners, low speed is preferred as high speed is dangerous. 

Second thing is the depth of cut. The depth of cut is also a major factor that is responsible for the final surface quality. A deeper cut results in a rough surface. If you are not very sure about the depth of cut, then it is advisable to keep it very low to avoid any problem. 

Different tools used with the lathe machine are boring tools, drill bits, facing tools, turning tools and grooving tools. Grooving tools are the tools used for making groves or embossed patterns on the surface of the finished workplace. These grooves are meant to provide grip to the work-piece and are very useful in eth industry.