Found an OLD lathe today....UPDATED WITH PICS

Most milling was done on lathes prior to WWII...when the bridgeport was introduced...And shapers ...Most lathes can be outfitted with a milling attachment...If I were to have just one machine , it would be a lathe with at least a 16 " swing and 36-48" btw centers....Just my 2 c worth Shawn

 

I had a lathe for years, I would never want to be without it. I remember buying my 1st computer in 1995 for $2000 it had very little memory. In a few years it was totally worthless. My lathe on the other hand could be used for the next millennium, Unless by then no one can craft anything with there hands.



Ago

 

That's one of those tools on every garage man's dream list... even if us laymen are man enough to admit we wouldn't know the first thing about it once we brought one home.

I'm dying to see pics and hope you have the cake (and the space) to go for it and theat you stumbled on a real find and NOT a 1 ton paperweight.

 

Old machines "rock" you get to know their worn spots,,, if you run them long enough...never had one I could'nt make parts with

http://35hotrod.smugmug.com/Machines/Work-Shop/2649184_H5Amu#140021162_jWtUd

 

Went back today. It is a Sebastian lathe, 14" swing & about 48" bed. 2 4 jaw chucks & one 3 jaw chuck. Lots of bits etc.... that go with it.

 

Learn to use whats there and you have done a good job! Hope it will clean up and the rust hasn't caused any pitting etc.
Looks like all the basic stuff is there.

 

Wow that's an oldie!! To me it dosn't look like the bearings have oillers, and that may be a concern. It dosn't have the quickchange feed change either. Looks like there's enough there to get you started though.

 

I'd say go for it if you have the space! Cleaned up/painted and your looking at history there. I'v been casually looking at lathes and one thing that doesn't get mentioned much is the size of the through bore. Do you guys do much with bar stock?

 

I noticed that the welding shop down the street (that I have never stopped into) shut down. Then, I saw semi-loads of steel being hauled-out... Long story short (don't mean to hi-jack) I talked to the son who's 58. His Dad died, and they're selling the property for "redevelopment". They've hauled 17 semi-loads of "scrap" off the property so far... After talking for an hour or so, he invited me into the main building... I coulda' crapped myself right there... He went on about how "no-one uses this old stuff anymore", he was always in the fields, and never learned to machine, and unfortunately, the scrap prices are more now than an individual will give him... There were lathes, mills, and one lathe which was the largest I have ever seen... The chuck had to literally be 4', with the bed measuring around 15 feet long... He said he is not having an auction, but will sell here and there by word of mouth. He has a Craftsman with piles of tooling that looks to be just my size, that he said I'm welcome to come back and talk to him about... Next week I'm going to take lots of pics, and will post. I hate to see this stuff go to the scrapper...but, I know that's where most of it is eventually headed... We're in Southern Illinois, but it might be worth a drive if there's stuff that can be kept alive and used...

 

So................... whats this one worth?

 

that is way older than my 1929 american 24 in that will swing 32 i think
the ways look good not much for extra good stuff $500 and maybee then you will need a sanity test
my favorite lathe is my HF its accurate and threads and functions good

my american i paid $5500 for it and did some work and it will be sold on a K bid auction in next couple weeks, I think i am gonna take a real kicking on it

i got a small lathe and a HF mill drill in the house basement, dont use them much anymore like i used to, haD A BRAIN FART AND DONT LIKE THE TECHNICAL WORK ANYMORE CANT EVEN HANDandle capsloc

 

If I had $500.00 to spend on a lathe I'd hold out for something better. I would think a city the size of Knoxville would have a few lathes coming up on Craigslist. I was thinking $150.00 for this.

 

Get it and donate it to a museum for a tax write off.,,,, It's a neat old piece, but unlikely to be useful for much without a LOT of work. That overhead drive is left over from the "line shaft" days, worthless now. There were gearboxes made to convert those old machines to separate drive back when,,,small car trans were some times used too, but it still needs a motor. Might be better than nothin', I guess, if you want to fuss with it.

 

Clean it up, Get it running...It`s better than no lathe. And you have to admire that home made steady rest.

 

If you're a neophyte machinist as I am, there is a good instructional video available from www.precisionmeasure.com

 

OK, sounds like the lathe MIGHT be worth $300..... if I'm not wanting to build rocket ship parts & I'm not wanting to spend just a little more for a newer one. To be honest, I like it's look as much as anything. Hate to see it sell for scrap.

Along the same lines.............. he also has this Millers Falls hack saw. Now, on this one, I know it's not worth much. A new $200 Craftsman chop saw will cut this thing to pieces. I like the table it's on though & would like to have it.

Any thoughts on a fair offer?

 

Cool piece. Ask youself what could I not do on that? it will do everythig a $1000 one will. . You need to get it right of course. $125 to $300 would be my range. If he wants more just move on and find another. however that looks like a decent piece. If you dont get that one I am hoping you find one with your name on it. I have seen quite a few of them. I just spent a couple of hours on mine this morning making a piece to adapt motorcycle dirt bike wheels to a 60s straight axle. I have enjoyed every second of it. I cant imagine getting it done . at least the first one if I couldnt do it in house. It would be next to impossible as are many things you willl make when you get one. All the best on your purchase.
Don

 

$25 well worth for the legs, looks like the saw has a regulated down feed..Yep, slow, but you can go do something else while its doing its thing..Back to the Lathe...Quality for its time, real easy to set the change gears for threading..Worse thing I can see in pics is the spindle has bushings for bearings, if they are bad then using the lathe becomes tedious..Second is the size/weight..BIG cosideration..If you don't mind [re: enjoy] doing some refurbashing it will serve you well...

 

http://www.lindsaybks.com/prod/sub/machine.html
Like I said in my earler post go to lindays books & order a few of there books and you will have the old girl up and runnin' and then you can see what adjustments are really needed...they have several books on babbit bearings and how to make new ones, so if the spindle is a little loose, you can make it like new...you will also notice none of those chucks are self centering , meaning you will have to indicate every job in...a little tedious but do-able...just dont be in a hurry...Shawn..oh moving the beast ..un bolt as much as possible and use a cherry picker and a floor jack to move it to the trailer if possible , (A tilt bed car hauler works best) place it on a sheet of plywood with a couple holes drilled in one end to run a strap thu, and slide it onto the trailer by pulling on the sheet of plywood(NOT OSB).I moved a 16 X60 changHi Shaker(imported gear head lathe) that weighed 3000 lbs ...almost exactly the same way, and will have to do so again shortly the cherry picker is used to pick up the tailstock end and place it on the floor jack, and then the cherry picker is slid down to the headtock end , & the boom straped to the lathe bed to lift , Do Not lift it by the spindle, where the chuck attaches as bearing damage may result...it sorta looks like that thing is in a basement...if so you are gonna have fun breaking that thing down to get it out....take good pic's as you do it so you know where it all goes...Shawn

 

Forgot to mention ...the leather belts can be replaced with the widest serpintine belt you can find...they track true because the pullys are crowned, they grip good because the v's crush a little and grip very well...it's just trying to explain it to the auto parts clerk....

 

X2 on the belts. Ran a swing table cordwood saw of the rear PTO flat pully on a tractor with 2 big V belts, each just a touch off center of the crown spaced by the double pully on the driven end. They ran true and didn't slip.

Ed

 

if you can get the lathe and saw reasonable with means to move them, go for it! i had a lathe like that one did a lot of work with it. it's an oldie but looks like it has lots of use left. lol

 

I have used conveyor belting also in stead of leather,,,laced it up with the old clipper and some old cat-gut

 

I paid 500.00 for this Sheldon off Craigs list......13x53 and it's in very good shape......

 

I would snag the reciprocating hacksaw, they are slow, but they cut square!!

I would pass on that monster lathe, and hold out for something more useable for the type of stuff you might be making, automotive wise....................
It's a neat piece, though, but not real practical for you, I wouldn't think..............

 

I have a reciprocating hacksaw that I was the only bidder on at a farm auction. Probably paid $10 for it. Granted, most things I just zing through with my cutoff wheels, but that's not the point of these old girls... Sometimes, it's just fun to crank it up and watch it work. Good for the soul and all that stuff...

 

see here:

http://www.practicalmachinist.com/v...istory/new-member-old-lathe-pic-heavy-204622/

It sure looks a lot like yours, and some good info also.

 

I think that’s the lathe they used to make the first lathe
COOL!

 

Just bought this old Craftsman at a barn sale for $180 a day or two before this thread was started. Came with a lot of stuff. Somebody made a nice table for it. Needed everything. Headstock bearings were loose, drive screw was stuck, 3 jaw chuck had jaws mixed up. Amazing how true it is after I got them in the right slots. Getting it fixed up. Know it is not to Aerospace tolerances but for my small shop I plan to have some fun with it. Learning a lot from this thread.
Gary