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Hello all!

Larry just left my place with a nice Atlas power hacksaw to match his lathe. Welcome aboard Larry.

That's FANTASTIC!

I had thought very seriously about volunteering you, but thought that would be too much of an imposition. I'm super happy you two guys found a way to make it work!
 
Never an imposition to meet a fellow addict, especially a new addict..

Looks like we already have a collaboration set up. The little Atlas hacksaw seems have had an unscheduled disassembly of some sort upon first use. We will get it sorted though.
 
So happy to have found this site!

In the last 72 hours I've learned more about my (new to me) Atlas 618 Model 10100 metal lathe than anywhere else. (also thrilled this is a Canadian group to boot!) My last foray into turning metal was in Mr. Skinner's grade 7&8 shop class in the very early 1980s. But for the past 10 years I've done a ton of car restoration / welding / forging and have always wanted a lathe. Finally found a reasonably priced one here in Toronto. (Although... now that I play with it more I might have overspent.) BUT... I'm no stranger to tearing things down, cleaning and re-building having a 1970s MG sitting beside me in the garage at all times!

Can't wait to dive in.
Chris
Not sure how I missed this last month, but welcome!
 
My cross feed on the 618 has a 1/8” back lash when it touches the work. Would that mean my cross nut needs to be replced
Probably. But it could be that both the nut and screw are worn and need replacing. Have you seen the Parts List document?


BTW, that screw (M6-36A) and nut (M6-19A) were redesigned early in the life of the 618 models. The "A" on the end of the part number indicates it is revised. I believe they switched from basic V threads to an acme thread profile as the V threads were wearing out too quickly. You'll be able to tell by looking at the parts.

A few years ago, I believe you could still get some parts from Clausing Service (who purchased the Atlas business years ago). Confirm the shipping cost--I got a nasty surprise ordering from them. There is also a guy in Michigan that sells some parts:


Let us know how it goes!

Craig
 
My cross feed on the 618 has a 1/8” back lash when it touches the work. Would that mean my cross nut needs to be replced

1/8 is a lot for screw and nut wear. I'd examine the screw anchor too. I'm not familiar with that machine. The anchor could be at either end of the screw. Once you know which end it is, you can find it be pushing the table back and forth with your hands with the locks disengaged and watch for the screw itself to move axially.
 
Sharp HSS with decent cutting geometry will work more easily.

Another thing about HSS - you will sharpen it yourself and learn first hand about cutting tool geometry. Pre-made Carbide inserts can be great things, but you really do want to understand what's going on under the hood, as it were. They are also cheaper and can be reground, like sharpening a pencil until they are mere stubs. But that takes years (lifetimes?), rather than a hand full of study hall classes.

My cross feed on the 618 has a 1/8” back lash
1/8 backlash is a lot, but I have worked successfully with machines that were worse, and backlash can be allowed for. If you always crank up to the work, never back from it, you should be OK unless there is more than simple wear induced backlash. As suggested, I'd do some more diagnostics and confirm exactly what's what (disassembly and examination) before just ordering new parts.
 
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