Mini lathe - my first attempt turning plastic - useless!

[Lee Roberts]

(the hospital have signed me off for two weeks :naughty:)

Hehe, welcome back mate !

[Robin Hewitt]

The tool is way too big, you want a smaller one. If the clamp doesn't have a vertical adjust you need lots of convenient sized shim to put under it for adjusting the centre height.

To cut a vee groove without CNC you might want to use the top slide set around at the correct angle so that the tool cuts on it's leading edge.

The world has gone carbide crazy, I think you want the slicing action you get from freshly ground HSS with relief angles front and top. It takes a much better edge. After grinding, round the sharp point off the end with a couple of strokes with a diamond hone, not so much as you can see without a microscope, and it will cut smooth rather than tearing the surface