3-in-1 Mill/Drill/Lathe

Hello my respectable machinists

I do not own any mills/lathes yet and have only worked with such machines on a scale of clock work mechanisms - Very precise, but miniature in size and rather simple in construction with little number of features.

I have little space, so I would like to hear your thoughts on the 3-in-1 combo machines and whether they are comparable to dedicated mill/drill and lathe machines.

What popped up in one of my searches is Smithy 3-in-1 series.

>>> http://www.smithy.com/products.php?cid=1



It looks like a good package that is close to my budget(that is if I save up for a few months ), what are your thoughts on these machines? ...are there any others you can recommend? ...and of coarse how big should I go on the size and features when targeting crossbow making?

Thank you for all your help,

Ivo

Hi Ivo.
        The Smithy is not a bad machine,but it is a 3 in 1,so it's a compromise.You can do all the milling you need for crossbow work in a lathe.I would suggest you read up on lathe work or watch some videos,better yet,subscribe to some magazines,there are 3 good ones,Model engineer,Model engineer's workshop,both of these are British publications,Home shop machinist is American.In order to mill on a lathe,you will need a Vertical slide,which is fitted on the lathe on the cross slide.The best lathe for this,is a Myford,as it has a "T" slotted cross slide,a good used one is ideal.Another lathe that is suitable is the American Atlas lathe,you can get milling attachments for it. There are quite a few good sites on the internet that describe and show machining operations on the lathe.
                                                    Lathe sizes:there are 2 dimensions that are used to define a lathe's size,one is "Swing",this is the distance from the centre of the lathe's spindle,to the top of the lathe bed,or ways.Most lathes of a size suitable to crossbow work will be either 7ins. or 9 ins. swing.double this measurement and it will give you the largest size of work you do on the lathe in theory,(practically,it works out to a bit less)the next dimensions will; be"between centres",this is the longest piece of work you can put in the lathe,a lathe suitable to you would be 20-24ins. between centres.As you can see,this is a HUGE subject.It would take a few hours of conversation to tell you all you need to know.My best advice to you,would be to find a really knowledgeable Model Engineer,or a skilled machinist,in that order,read books on model engineering,and watch videos on You tube,there are a lot out there.As I have said,you can do all the milling you need in crossbow making on a lathe,if you have the right kind of lathe and a top slide,in any material you want,steel,aluminium and plastics,a lathe is the first machine you should go for,but you really need knowledgeable advice from a machinist before you buy,particularly if you are on a limited budget.Any other questions you have,I would be pleased to answer,so if you have any P.M. me.With machining,you need the best advice you can get.otherwise you can spend a lot of money on machines that will dissapoint you,because they are not suitable to do the work you want them to.
                                          Hermit.

Vintageplans.com has plans for small make it yourself lathes. There is a series of books called the Machinists Bedside Reader http://www.amazon.com/Machinists-Bedside-Reader-complete-Vols/dp/B003JGIK2C/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1385259966&sr=1-2&keywords=machinists+bedside+reader has a lot of plans for your own accessories. I met the author when I was a small kid. He knows what he is doing. Another series is Gunsmith Kinks.