The Amateur's Lathe

An excelent book that is full of great hints and tips, and all gathered from a long and wide experience. It's an old book, yes, but to my mind, it's still a real must for those who are starting in the world of home-based metal-turning lathe work. The lathes and other equipment that are talked about throughout the book, are not new at all, but the main techniques and tools have not changed that much, especially for the home workshop enthusiast. I love especially the more traditional style of English language usage used by the author, this being right up my street in terms of its readability.

I bought this book because there were good reviews that it was a good book for a beginner. I would say for me it was a waste of money. Ive used lathes in the past in basic operations (cutting, tapping etc), and have used milling machines and CNC. I'm not a mechanical engineer though I am a professional engineer in another field.I found this book was rather like an old metal work teacher I had at school. If you asked him a question he would answer quickly without all the details with a tone that clearly implied I should know it anyway.Taking for example the section on tools, a quick run through of the tool types and a discussion on sharpening. But the diagrams were just side on profiles with lots of talk about cutting angles, I need at least a 3d profile so I can see the shape of the cutting edge and its relationship to the tool.The drills chapter is another case, there is a long description of how important grinding drill bit "back off" is...but no diagram to show what this actually is. Google didnt help me (and if I wanted to google everything I would not have bought a book). The only backoff I know of is when you drill a little then back off (and program a CNC machine to peck). This is something to do with grinding angles?So I would say that this may be a great book for someone with the background knowledge...but without a full understanding of the terms involved perhaps I am missing this.I'm giving it a 3 because I expect perhaps its of great use to some...but for me I would not use this as a step by step guide or reference book for the beginner.

Was exactly what I expected knowing when it was originally published (1948).All in all a good read with some useful information.Would be a good book for a beginner with little knowledge of the subject.If you have an engineering background, its just a nice nostalgic read

This book was originally printed in the late 40's and was just what I wanted, having just acquired a Drummmond M type and a small Zyto lathe. Unfortunately the quality of the printing is terrible, it looks almost like it has been photo copied and put together by a child. The quality of some photos is so bad that I could not make out any detail at all. There is one reference to a photo that is missing (annoying when you spend time looking for a photo that is not there). When I opened the book I found that the cover had been put on back to front and upside down (not a major problem but an example of the print manufacturers quality control). Worth keeping for the authors in depth knowledge and enthusiasm though.

This little book is full of information, ideas, calculations and advice but, I think you need to have more than a basic understanding of engineering to fully understand and interpret its content.

The book was easy to understand by the novice. It suited me well because I am 73 and appreciate the language used. I am just starting with a small lath ( a Greyson) and find the book very good for such a small lath.

Written by a very well respected model engineer. As is often the case when experts write books - they find it hard to believe that the reader might not understand what they are talking about. Tells you how to make tools etc., which today would be off the shelf, but not always why you would need them, how to use them or what use they have! The very old b&w photos are below par by today's standards and are often "explained" by the expression similar to "as can easily be seen in the photo" - when maybe it can't!Otherwise quite a "cozy" reference book.

Although it was published in 1948, it is still completely relevant today and is suitable for experienced engineers and beginners alike. Although it doesn't cover the modern small lathes, the principles are the same, but some ingenuity may be needed to adapt or improvise some of the processes. Excellent book despite its age.