hi folks,

looks like the spindle needs to be tightened a little bit but it's working!  i brought in some tooling, enough to make cuts and learn.  anyone interested in using it can easily learn the basics of lathe operations and how to grind lathe bits online before operating.  this lathe is also capable of cutting threads - just swap out gears as indicated on the inside cover of the gearbox and use an appropriate 60-degree bit.  the lathe and all the tooling I brought in are a donation to the space but once there's a place for the tooling I'll grab the toolbox back.