DIY Machine Shop -The Huge Benefits.

Having mentioned this before, I am happy to say it again. The benefits and advantages of having your own machine shop at your disposal is extremely convenient and offers more opportunity and value than most people realize.

If you intend to spend much of your life working on or restoring classic cars, not only will you save tens of thousands of dollars, but you will gain a massive amount of personal satisfaction and reward from being able to machine and produce a very large number of special components that you would other wise spend a large amount of money on, and not only that, you will also have the facilities to produce many special tools and jigs required for classic car restoration…

I have no doubt that there will be people reading this article who are fully qualified in the art of fitting and turning, they would be amazed at this old 1800s foot treadle operated lathe.

Don’t think for a moment that we are suggesting that you buy an old lathe such as this, we show this antique machine simply out of pure interest for old workshop machinery.

When I came upon this machine, I could not resist a photo op, and I could not help but have much admiration for the skilled workers who must have operated this fascinating old lathe.

When you compare this old lathe with an ultra modern machine, it operates on the same principles and functions as a modern day lathe, but of course, today’s machines are highly refined, and a hell of a lot easier to operate.

Putting Cash Back In Your Pocket With Your Own Workshop.
Wouldn’t you rather keep your hard earned money in your pocket, rather than shovel it into someone else’s, because, lets be honest, that’s what happens in the classic car restoration game, if you engage other people to do “all” of the work for you.

The direct and immediate monetary savings of setting up your own workshop will be significant to say the least, and the writer can absolutely verify that claim, because that is what he has been doing for the past 40 years.

The many trade skills the writer learned decades ago have been an enormous advantage during the completion of countless classic car rebuild successes, making many parts to enable and assist in everything from ground up rebuilds, to the production and machining of numerous and  otherwise hard to find expensive components.

The Two Most Important Workshop Machines.

• The Lathe.
  First and foremost in any workshop is the lathe. The lathe was the first major machine to evolve for engineering work, and dates back for centuries, all other workshop machines evolved from the humble lathe.

A suitable machine for the home workshop does not have to be the latest and greatest, even an old, but well cared for lathe will produce the parts required if care and attention is taken with your work – Lathe turning work generally has more to do with the operators skill, than what type of machine you have, but of course, if you plan to do a large amount of machining work, then a new lathe will make economic sense, even one fitted with DRO (Digital Read Out) or maybe even a CNC (Computer Numerically Controlled) machine… if you can afford the large outlay.  But as a beginner, we don’t recommend that you start with a CNC machine.

• The Milling Machine.
  Is just as important as the lathe, but it is possible to get away without owning a mill, but these two machines certainly do compliment one another… small milling attachments can be set up on the lathe, but in reality, it is better to have two separate machines.
  And as time passes and more skills and operator confidence is gained, extra tooling and accessories can be added to the tooling collection.

So What Can One Produce With A Lathe and A Mill?
Lets see now, how much space have we got on this page? oodles of space here isn’t there, web page space is endless, and really when you think about it, so are the countless number of unique and common parts that can be machined in the home workshop, we will post some samples just to give you an idea… but don’t think for a minute, that you could be limited with just these few things.

The sky, as they say is the limit when it comes to thinking what one could make with a lathe, and having owned a lathe for well over four decades, any machine will repay it’s original value tenfold.

Learning The Art Of Machining or Turning and Fitting.
I will be honest with you right now. You wont learn the fine art of machining over a weekend, it may take you several weeks or months to come to grips with it. The best thing to do is to book into evening classes at a college if one is near by.

Or maybe find a retired machinist to show you the ropes, a mentor is the very best learning journey you can have.

There are also plenty of good books around to help you walk through the maze, but the best thing is, that once you begin to understand how to do things, the rest will come easy… and always be prepared to listen and learn from others who know more than you do.

Finding The Right Machine.
Start at the new and used machinery houses, there are no shortages of these places, no matter where you live. Keep an eye on your local paper classified section, online auction web sites, there never seems to be a shortage of used workshop machinery for sale, all you need to do is to find the right machine, at the right price to suit your needs.

If you are not sure about things, take someone with you to help you to make your choice, several visits might be required to look at different machines before you find the right one for you.

With every machine you’ll also need tooling and accessories, but don’t go over board, begin with the basics and build as you go, and only buy what you can afford, a good place to buy machine tools is at machinery warehouses as mentioned above, auto jumble sales, and or swap meets, sometimes an absolute bargain can be found.

So good luck with your workshop projects if you want to begin the DIY workshop journey, it is a lot of fun, and very rewarding….

And last word of advice, if you really get the DIY machining bug, don’t become a habitual machine buying junkie.
Have fun, but take care.