Atlast Lathe for Cue Work

cnyncrvr · Apr 2, 2018

Not a cue maker, I simply do basic repairs and cleaning's, IE: Tips, Cleanings, Wraps, and the VERY seldom joint refacing. As such I have one of Todd's Mid America lathes right now that I perform these jobs on. Works great for its intended purpose. But I have the opportunity to pick up a 12" swing 36" between centers Atlas/Craftsman lathe for a bit of a steal.

Obviously I don't "Need" this lathe, but seriously what kinda man would I be if I only bought tools and equipment I "Need" :rotflmao1:

Anyway just wanted to see if any of you have used an Atlas lathe for any kind of cue work, if so what kind? and how was your experience as such?

HQueen · Apr 2, 2018

I don’t have experience with Atlas lathes but I have read a lot of Cuemakers like them. My advice is if it’s in good shape and a decent price I’d get it. Having a real lathe will open up options and possibilities for future work you may not be able to have without it. Good tools are always a good investment.

JoeyInCali · Apr 2, 2018

Spindle size is the key. You want 1 3/8.

Atlas is one of the cheaper American steel. The bed has no V way. Just flat.
Not quite as accurate as Clausing or the other major American steel.
But, you could do worse.

You can always convert it to a tapering machine later if you get a better lathe.
Or a rougher.

KJ Cues · Apr 3, 2018

HQueen said:
I don’t have experience with Atlas lathes but I have read a lot of Cuemakers like them.

I'm truly interested in where you read that.
I'll tell you why in a minute.

KJ

HQueen · Apr 3, 2018

KJ Cues said:
I'm truly interested in where you read that.
I'll tell you why in a minute.

KJ

Obviously you’re thinking I am wrong about that. Maybe I am. I’m not here to start an argument.

A metal lathe, if it meets criteria for cue work such as spindle bore, etc, for a steal of a price is great for anyone doing cue work, especially if he doesn’t own one. Even if it’s only used to make jigs and other tooling it’s a great addition to a shop.

67fastback · Apr 3, 2018

cnyncrvr said:
Not a cue maker, I simply do basic repairs and cleaning's, IE: Tips, Cleanings, Wraps, and the VERY seldom joint refacing. As such I have one of Todd's Mid America lathes right now that I perform these jobs on. Works great for its intended purpose. But I have the opportunity to pick up a 12" swing 36" between centers Atlas/Craftsman lathe for a bit of a steal.

Obviously I don't "Need" this lathe, but seriously what kinda man would I be if I only bought tools and equipment I "Need" :rotflmao1:

Anyway just wanted to see if any of you have used an Atlas lathe for any kind of cue work, if so what kind? and how was your experience as such?

I built 11 cues on a Altas 101 (12x36) lathe. The biggest con is the spindle bore is not large enough to enough to even pass a shaft through, that is the only real major con I have. I love that it has an indexable spindle (on 6 degree increments), this is a must when your cutting in miter or butter fly points. I have upgraded to a 13x40 Grizzly gun lathe which awesome, but I still have my Atlas too & will continue to use it for certain tasks. In my opinion, if you can get the lathe at a good price, buy it. There are so many uses for a metal lathe beside building pool cues that it is worth having around.

cnyncrvr · Apr 3, 2018

67fastback said:
I built 11 cues on a Altas 101 (12x36) lathe. The biggest con is the spindle bore is not large enough to enough to even pass a shaft through, that is the only real major con I have. I love that it has an indexable spindle (on 6 degree increments), this is a must when your cutting in miter or butter fly points. I have upgraded to a 13x40 Grizzly gun lathe which awesome, but I still have my Atlas too & will continue to use it for certain tasks. In my opinion, if you can get the lathe at a good price, buy it. There are so many uses for a metal lathe beside building pool cues that it is worth having around.

Beautiful cues!

Someone suggested if nothing else I could convert it to a tapering machine which is a pretty good idea as I get tapering/slimming requests fairly regularly and currently I outsource those jobs to a local cue maker as my setup as well as my lack of knowledge on tapering is the limiting factor for me currently. If I had a machine capable of completing those task's then I would have the incentive to learn the processes involved as such.

63Kcode · Apr 3, 2018

cnyncrvr said:
Obviously I don't "Need" this lathe
?

No, you need this lathe!

Larry

cueman · Apr 5, 2018

I used an Atlas for years to taper cues. At first I used it for most of my cuemaking processes. But as time went on I used it less and less and sold it. I think setting it up with taper bars to do your tapering and point cutting is a great idea if it can be bought cheap. The indexing is nice but if memory serves me right you can't cut eight points with it. But three, four, six and twelve all cut okay as well as five, ten and fifteen.

BHQ · Apr 8, 2018

cnyncrvr said:
Beautiful cues!

Someone suggested if nothing else I could convert it to a tapering machine which is a pretty good idea as I get tapering/slimming requests fairly regularly and currently I outsource those jobs to a local cue maker as my setup as well as my lack of knowledge on tapering is the limiting factor for me currently. If I had a machine capable of completing those task's then I would have the incentive to learn the processes involved as such.

i use my Atlas for only one operation , with 2 different taper bars, to cut my butterflys .
have a short video on facebook, but dont know how to show it here

probably have to join this FB group to see it
American Cuemaker
https://www.facebook.com/dee.hartma...fref=gs&dti=410041895741121&hc_location=group

BHQ · Apr 8, 2018

cueman said:
I used an Atlas for years to taper cues. At first I used it for most of my cuemaking processes. But as time went on I used it less and less and sold it. I think setting it up with taper bars to do your tapering and point cutting is a great idea if it can be bought cheap. The indexing is nice but if memory serves me right you can't cut eight points with it. But three, four, six and twelve all cut okay as well as five, ten and fifteen.

i think you're right Chris,
my Atlas has a 60 point indexer

italbomber · Apr 8, 2018

Hey bud. I have recently upgraded from a deluxe cue Smith which was a nice machine for repairs and such to 2 south bends. These SB, Atlas, Claussen, etc are the real deal. Very little chatter if any. No comparison imho. The headstock of my SB Heavy 10 head stock alone weighs more than my old cue smith. Don't hesitate if you can get one but make sure that center to center is enough for a shaft or butt. 36" may not be enough. Good luck!

Sent from my SM-N950U using Tapatalk

cnyncrvr · Apr 8, 2018

italbomber said:
Hey bud. I have recently upgraded from a deluxe cue Smith which was a nice machine for repairs and such to 2 south bends. These SB, Atlas, Claussen, etc are the real deal. Very little chatter if any. No comparison imho. The headstock of my SB Heavy 10 head stock alone weighs more than my old cue smith. Don't hesitate if you can get one but make sure that center to center is enough for a shaft or butt. 36" may not be enough. Good luck!

Sent from my SM-N950U using Tapatalk

This machine is 36" Between centers, total bed length is 54" It also has the quick change gear box, and some basic tooling, 3 jaw, 4 jaw, face plate and drive dogs, some various cutting and turning bits and other misc parts, and tooling. Working with the seller currently to get down to him and pick it up.

67fastback · Apr 9, 2018

QUOTE=cueman;6127730]I used an Atlas for years to taper cues. At first I used it for most of my cuemaking processes. But as time went on I used it less and less and sold it. I think setting it up with taper bars to do your tapering and point cutting is a great idea if it can be bought cheap. The indexing is nice but if memory serves me right you can't cut eight points with it. But three, four, six and twelve all cut okay as well as five, ten and fifteen.[/QUOTEY]

You are correct, I Have done one 8 point on it, but I had to cut 4 points then reclock the forearm to get the other 4 points in between the first 4 (not the most ideal way, but functional & it came out pretty good.

waynewrc · Apr 10, 2018

I built a gantry over my atlas lathe. Made for a fairly inexpensive CNC lathe/mill.

Sent from my iPhone using AzBilliards Forums

KJListman · Jul 19, 2018

HQueen said:
Obviously you’re thinking I am wrong about that. Maybe I am. I’m not here to start an argument.

A metal lathe, if it meets criteria for cue work such as spindle bore, etc, for a steal of a price is great for anyone doing cue work, especially if he doesn’t own one. Even if it’s only used to make jigs and other tooling it’s a great addition to a shop.

Sorry, it's been longer than my "minute"... I was not looking for an argument, I had just been "coming up dry" in my research for my own lathe conversion (frankenlathe) project.

As someone pointed out elsewhere in this thread, having both vee and flat ways is
a key element to having greater accuracy. I'm still in the R & D phase of this project,
so when I posted the above, (months ago) I was very much earlier in the "R" phase.

I'm not planning on using this for cue making, but simply looking for something that made tip replacement, re-wrapping, and refinishing a lot easier. Without spending an arm and a leg, or my first born, on a bespoke cue lathe.

And, maybe the challenge of doing on the cheap, from unrelated parts was even a greater driving force. (or was it being told I couldn't do it?)

1948 PowrKraft 11x37 Wood Lathe
3/4HP Treadmill Motor with MC-60 Speed Control
Rigid Lathe table upgraded with Epoxy Resin Lab Grade "Solid Surface" Countertop
TAIG parts- Bed, Carriage, Cross Slide, Radius Cutter, Drilling Tailstock
MidAmerica Pool Adjustable Double Bearing Steady Rest

Some guys work on cars; I would if my kitchen were larger.

Cheers

kj

cueman · Jul 20, 2018

KJListman said:
Sorry, it's been longer than my "minute"... I was not looking for an argument, I had just been "coming up dry" in my research for my own lathe conversion (frankenlathe) project.

As someone pointed out elsewhere in this thread, having both vee and flat ways is
a key element to having greater accuracy. I'm still in the R & D phase of this project,
so when I posted the above, (months ago) I was very much earlier in the "R" phase.

I'm not planning on using this for cue making, but simply looking for something that made tip replacement, re-wrapping, and refinishing a lot easier. Without spending an arm and a leg, or my first born, on a bespoke cue lathe.

And, maybe the challenge of doing on the cheap, from unrelated parts was even a greater driving force. (or was it being told I couldn't do it?)

1948 PowrKraft 11x37 Wood Lathe
3/4HP Treadmill Motor with MC-60 Speed Control
Rigid Lathe table upgraded with Epoxy Resin Lab Grade "Solid Surface" Countertop
TAIG parts- Bed, Carriage, Cross Slide, Radius Cutter, Drilling Tailstock
MidAmerica Pool Adjustable Double Bearing Steady Rest

Some guys work on cars; I would if my kitchen were larger.

Cheers

kj

That lathe will not make tips ferrules and wraps any easier than Todd's lathe if it is the four foot version with higher torque motor. That Atlas could make tapering easier. But if you don't want to build cues your money would be better spent adding accessories to your cue lathe.

Atlast Lathe for Cue Work

cnyncrvr

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HQueen

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JoeyInCali

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KJ Cues

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HQueen

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67fastback

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cnyncrvr

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63Kcode

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cueman

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BHQ

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BHQ

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italbomber

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cnyncrvr

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waynewrc

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KJListman

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