Even if you’re not intimately familiar with manufacturing and machining, you’ve probably heard of a metal lathe. These machines are quite common in machine shops, second only to milling machines in terms of popularity.
You might know what lathes are but understanding them is crucial, especially if you’re a business owner, plant manager, or supervisor in charge of purchasing one.
We’ll begin with the basics, helping you understand these versatile and essential machines. Then, we’ll move on to some helpful buying tips to make sure you’re ready and well-informed about your purchase.
Although most of us connect the lathe directly to the Industrial Revolution of the mid-18th century, you might be surprised to know that a lathe is an ancient tool, with evidence of its existence dating back to Ancient Egypt around 1300 BCE. Greek woodworkers around this same period also used lathes.
The lathe has been a machine tool for turning operations, creating cylindrical shapes like spheres and cones. Today, lathe machines are an essential part of most machine shops since lathe work is usually an integral part of the machining process. Recently, the CNC lathe machine, a precision machine tool machinists employ for various woodturning and metalworking projects, has become the go-to lathe for machining high-volume components that require accuracy and repeatability and the most complex projects.
Whether you are shopping for a manual engine lathe or power lathe, a mini-lathe that fits on your workbench, or a multi-axis CNC lathe for large-scale projects, you’re making a substantial investment, and there are things you should know before your purchase.
