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Just sold my SB11 and thinking on putting the proceeds against this:

[url=http://grizzly9-px.rtrk.ca/products/14-x-40-Gunsmith-Lathe-with-DRO/G0776][/url]

I would appreciate any advice, comments, etc. Thank you.---Spano

Seems to be a decent tool for the job..

Thank you.

My biggest complaint is why do they use a D1-5 spindle setup? Your tooling(chucks) will be very heavy. How will the DRO help you.
Aside from that, Shiraz offers some nice products and is a very accomplished FClass shooter.

Once you have used a DRO equipped lathe you'll be amazed how much easier and faster your work will be. I added one to my lathe in 1976 and haven't been without one since. No more mental mathematic gymnastics, counting dial revolutions, worrying about does this lathe cut 1:1 or 2:1. Get the DRO you won't regret it and will wonder how you ever got along without it. My DRO of choice has always been Southwest Industry's TRAK, you owe it to yourself to check it out. Feel free to PM me if you have any further questions, I am a Gunsmith/Toolmaker with 40+ years of experience.

http://grizzly9-px.rtrk.ca/products/14-x-40-Gunsmith-Lathe-with-DRO/G0776

That looks like the same Chinese lower gear box as on my Precision Matthews PM1236
http://precisionmatthewsstore.com/index.php?id_product=9&controller=product



12TPI is in the upper half with the 48 tooth gear, while 16TPI is in the lower half with the 24 tooth gear.
The change between 16TPI Rem700 and 12TPI 98 Mauser requires getting the fingers dirty on a gear change.

My lower gear box failed, and I drilled and taped a shaft to pin a key and fixed it.

How effective is a DRO for threading?

DRO does not help me in threading.
But it helps a lot in preparing the breech for threading.

DRO is like having a microwave. You live without one, until you have lived with one.

Wait Wait,
Butch Lambert?
You know more about gunsmithing than I do.
You must have posted that question rhetorically.

Sharpie marker is the best for threading.

I can see using a DRO for some things, but my mind doesn't work fast enough to use it for threading. I love my Trav A Dial for threading. I have DROs on both of my Bridgeports.

I have used DROs on both lathes and mills. I really like them on mills but haven't felt the need to spend $2000 extra on a DRO for my lathe.

I think the one you are looking at has a D1-4 spindle rather than the 5.

I really like the 509 and 670 models and I am used to the D1-6 spindle so it doesn't bother me.

That's my preferred method too. Start the compound at zero, run to cross slide in to just barely touch the tool to the work, and mark cross slide dial with a sharpie.

I have both a SB Wide 9 (from 1929) and a Grizzly 14x39. The SB has a lot more features, with the quick change gearbox, etc, but I find myself using the Grizzly more often. The heavier chuck and more modern bearings do make a difference in the quality of the cut, as well as the depth of cut it can take.

I do it just the opposite. I back my compound out so as to have enough travel to do the thread then set the cross slide to 0. And then bring the compound in until bit touches. That way I just have to come back to zero. Either way works I have thread hundreds of shafts and barrels on my 1945 14 x 7 South Bend this way. Depends on how you where taught.

So your carriage is moving towards the headstock and you have a Sharpie mark on the ways? Now as far as the cross slide and compound, I start both at (0).
Please! Somebody tell me how to use the Sharpie to know when to disengage the half nut.

I start both at zero too. I set the crossfield handle in the 3 O'Clock position so I have back it off quickly. It would be fun to have a Haas lathe to thread with where you could set it up for zero runnout and let the computer start and stop. Those high-speed threads sure look nice too!

A DRO just shows you your position in big, red letters to 4 decimal points instead of a tiny hash mark on a dial.

It's the difference between fixed sights and a 10 power scope.

I started to purchase the DRO with my lathe but didn't figure it was worth the extra cost for my what i use my lathe for. I only use the lathe for personal builds and have never missed it.

No! A sharpie mark is just made on the cross slide dial, once it's run in to just touch the tool to the part. The sharpie mark is just a big clearly visible mark to make it easy to return the cross slide to the same place for each cut. Same idea as setting it to zero, just another way to do it, that can make it a little easier.

Question though, how do you set both the cross slide and compound to zero, with the tool touching the part? Do you have adjustable dials? Or are you loosening the tool in the toolholder and moving it to the correct position?

Not opposite, you're doing essentially the same thing. The only difference is you're using 0 on the cross slide as a reference, and I'm making a sharpie mark as a reference, wherever it happens to be. I just prefer to start the compound at 0 to make it easier to count how deep I've cut, but that's a very minor detail.

Neither of my lathes have adjustable dials, so I'm not sure how both would be set at 0.

My lathe is a d1-5 and has a dro. I like it.