Myford ml7 about to buy

It was an optimistic assumption

Not a waste of time, but it makes the tests less meaningful.

Still worth doing to detect nasty problems like smoking motor, crunching noises and faulty controls etc.

Precision tests of a loose lathe are inconclusive. A poor cutting finish or failing to cut parallel might well be due to the lathe not being bolted down.

Headstock misalignment will cause a lathe to cut tapers rather than straight. Not wanted, because axles should be the same diameter at both ends! However, when Myfords are installed, the fixings are tuned to level the bed, twisting it slightly as necessary to correct alignment. A lathe cutting a taper when loose on a bench may not be faulty., though it could be.

Do you have a micrometer? A 25mm diameter aluminium rod should turn to the same size within 0.02mm over, a length of about 100mm. As the test is quite sensitive it needs practice and a sharp cutter, so don't panic if it's a bit out. A newbie watching a lathe cut can spot gross faults, but not things affecting fine accuracy.

This lathe, like most second-hand machines, has positive and negative aspects. It sounds as if the seller is genuine, but he's not used the lathe and he's not an expert. It's good the lathe runs, but sad it's not mounted correctly. It doesn't sound as if it's been knocked about, but the accessories are missing. So it's neither a dead-cert bargain or an obvious crock. The price is a bit high, but buyers are hungry for Myfords, perhaps for the wrong reasons, and push prices up.

So one answer to your question suggests 'run away', the other sees 'potential bargain'. Both make sense because they reflect attitudes to risk. Martin, who know what he wants, votes against. Dave, who also knows his stuff, sees potential, and lists the clues. Only you know your own mind. What does your gut say? You want a lathe and this is a reasonable opportunity, but it could go wrong. Making dithersome 50/50 decisions like this, I often toss a coin. Not because I believe in providence, but because the coin takes responsibility. If the purchase is a dog, not my fault and I don't beat myself up. If it's a good buy, the decision was my good judgement.

I'd add that lathes don't have to be in tip-top condition to make a start, and getting going might be more important than selecting the best possible machine. I dodged second-hand risks by buying new Chinese and their hobby machines aren't perfect. Nonetheless, they do all I want and more. Now I regret the time wasted deciding what to buy: I'd have done better to have got stuck in by buying almost any screw-cutting lathe within budget.

Dave

Your biggest problem at the moment is how are you going to do these further tests before you buy. You should also allow for the cost of a fine for non essential travel into the overall purchase price as well as delivery costs.

very true thanks for all the advice lots to think about