lathe

[Josh B]

I am getting a lathe soon and was wondering if i can use a 6 cell batt to power it, or do i have to use a 4 cell? thanks

[Railman]

The thing is, you need to turn the armature at the proper rpm to get a good true cut & keep from burning the lathe bit. Four cells works well when you use a 24' stock motor. There are other ways to slow it down but most are more trouble than it's worth. If you don't have any old packs to cut down, you can probably get one for next to nothing if you just ask around. I use a motor out of a trashed "Power Wheels"...you know the kind that kids run around in. It's a 12v motor with gobbs of torque & very little timing advance if any. With this motor I can use a 6 cell pack thats been run for a heat & can cut 2 or three coms with the juice. The only problem is I had to mount the motor with a piece of foam to isolate the vibrations because it's not balanced...yet. Use 4 cells with the 24' stock drive motor.

[old phart]

I just got a comm lathe myself. It says in the instructions to use NO MORE than 5 volts. If you use a battery, that would be a 4 cell. If you use a power supply, it has to be regualted at 5 volts. Otherwise the armature spins too fast and can damage the comm or the cutting bit. I'm sure the more experienced lather users will have more to add to this as well.