Just invested in my first lathe. It's an old Acme Drive-All with a bandsaw attached to the end of it. Pretty damn sweet. I'll post pictures as soon as I get the camera up and running (find it). I was just gonna say, does anyone have their own pictures of Mill and Lathe machines that their running? I don't know but for some reason the sight of a beautiful older machine just brings a tear to my eye. So much possibility and creativity at your fingertips. Pics?
I don't have a lathe but I do have a pamphlet in front of me on my desk titled: How to Run a Lathe [for the beginner]. It's by South Bend Lathe Works, revised edition no.15 Copyright 1914. What I find interesting, besides the perfect grammar, is on the cover it shows a black man (operator) with a shop coat on standing working at the lathe. On the back it has price lists for their 40 sizes of lathes. The price starts at $100 for a screw feed lathe with a 4 ft. bed to $400 for a automatic feed lathe with a 12 ft. bed. The inside is priceless info.
If you don't know how to turn I strongly sugest you find a friend to gove you a run down. They're great machines, but they can bite. I work full time as a turner, there's heaps of good stuff you can make, and I'm sure you'll have a great time coming up with stuff. Every bit of bar-stock you look at from now on you'll be wondering what you could make with it.
Not that great of a picture of my lathe or mill, but here's some somewhat recent fun I had with mine - resplining a Ford axle. You'll soon wonder how you EVER got by without one. Word of caution: Machine tools have NO RESPECT for you or your limbs. My good friend lost a finger AFTER running a lathe for 30+ yerars. NEVER loose focus - it only takes a split second for disaster. Many people suggest getting that South Bend _ How to run a lathe book - combine that with some training (local community college perhaps - or retired machinist buddy and you'll be off to a good start. Be careful work safe - you're in for MANY years of enjoyment.
I have an old 9" Southbend I just recently restored, and a cheap ass Taiwan Mill-drill. Before: After
Richard that is Nice!~ I have a degree in machine tooling from a tech school, i work in the tooling department here at Bobcat... they seriously frown on Government jobs here at work, and its not worth losing my good job over trying to do some of my own stuff here. I am looking at buying a Bridgeport type machine and a Enco or equivilant lathe. i dont need any industrial duty machine, something to make bushings, and spin apart wheels and stuff would be nice.
I have a Bridgeport (no pix of it, though), and two lathes. My first lathe was (is) a Logan 1922 (11"x36") that I brought home as a basket case. Totally restored it, and it ran great. I disassembled it for a few upgrades (like going to a cabinet drive from the legs and rear drive), and then my neighbor offered me a 14" Rockford, and I couldn't refuse. I've been using the Rockford for a few months now, and it's great. (You can see the bed on my Logan in the background of the second photo; it's the red ladder looking thing leaning up against the wall.)
Here is a Cincinnati that I found on e-bay, I just recently repainted and wired it up....Just have a few more pieces to paint for it, then will dial it in.. This is my Bridgeport, that we just rebuilt the entire head, and I just finished wiring in. This stuff is out their if you want to find it...and to learn it and use it will give you just that much more freedom for your builds and imagination.. But as others have mentioned these machines will hurt you and are more than capable of killing you.....never leave your chuck key in your chuck, ever...I bought my first stuff and had no clue on how to use them, ask alot of questions, and their is plenty of good reading material on the web and machinst websites.............Have Fun, Littleman
Here is the Craftsman Atlas (circa 1945) that my uncle gave me. Wish I really knew how to use it (wish I had the instructions).
I've got a lathe and bridgeport knockoff that I got from a school board auction. They were 3 phase so I had to make a single to 3 phase converter to make them run. It cost about 75 dollars to make the converter and i got both machines for just over a grand.I'm always using them , I don't know how I got by before without them. I found this site that has lots of good tips for a beginner....http://www.jjjtrain.com/vms/
I can't believe the number of times I've seen guys on the building shows running machines with no safety glasses. It just seems logical. Sometimes I don't wear a full face shield and it's happened a few times that a chip with fly up and stick to my face. Good times. A foot brake is a nice thing to have too. As someone said already, machines aren't prejudice. Loose clothing, strings hanging from a hoodie, especially keeping the key in the chuck. My dad always told me to never let it go after you pick it up.
here's a pic showing part of my 1946 South Bend 9" lathe, making something for the kids' robotics team. The lathe is kind of worn out....but it still is ok for gummint work. Old machines are great, although you really have to be safety conscious, as there weren't any lawyers looking out for you back then.
Here is mine. It was my Grandfathers and then my Dads and when he passed away a couple of years ago it went to me. It's pretty worn out so not great for real precise stuff by I still use it alot. It's a Logan. No idea what year. Sorry for the bad picture it's from my phone.
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