Water soluble coolant in a LeBlond engine lathe. Interesting Results!!

[Leigh Knudson]

We are running torsion bars again on the LeBlond and I decided the
last time I made them I wouldn't breath oil smoke, for hours/days any
more. Monday I cleaned the coolant tank and replaced the light cutting
oil with Blazers water soluble coolant. I noticed yesterday that the
lathe was getting cleaner and cleaner. This lathe was a display lathe
at WESTEC about 20 years ago so had been painted white. The varnish
from the oil coolant had made the less frequently cleaned areas turn
kind of a yellowish brown. The lathe is almost back to its original
white except where chipping has occurred. This leads me to an
interesting conclusion. If you plan on cleaning and painting a
machine in your shop, switch it to Blazers for a few days and the prep
work will be greatly reduced.
Since I was on a water based coolant I was far more concerned with
corrosion and pumped the lube oil dispenser far more frequently then I
normally due. I watch a disgusting back sludgy crap come out of the
ways for the first day and then nice clean oil after that. Guess who
hasn't been lubing their lathe frequently enough.
Here are couple of details on these torsion bars that will probably
interest you guys. The bars start at 3/4" diameter and we have to
reduce about 57" in the center area to .608/.620" in a single pass.
We are running the lathe at 937 RPM and .010"/rev feed. Don't try this
with yur 1/2HP Atlas. We use a leader rest about .030" ahead of the
carbide insert. In fact the bar runs on a carbide drill bushing. I
know this sounds like a lousy bearing but it way better then all the
logical choices. I have made these things for years and it is the
nastiest job we take on a recurring basis. Leigh@MarMachine