What am I?

Hi There!

Spotted this Lathe at a Friends yard the other day, can Anyone help Us identifying

it's Make/age?

Many thanks Morty

Edited By Morty on 27/11/2022 22:49:02

Southbend maybe?

Hi Jon!

It certainly has the look of the Southbend, apart from the apron layout and tailstock design.

A good starting point, many thanks!

Morty

Definitely not a South Bend. Even their first lathes had the half nut lever on the right and I can't think of any South Bend that didn't have double vee-ways for the apron. Plus the saddle would be much nicer rounded corners and matching the contours of the apron.

Might be a high end wood lathe, funny headstock with cheese head screws for the bearing caps on BOTH sides (which is not very strong) and a huge bore

weedy tailstock

Flat belt drive 20s 30

edit: Must be a 1890 to 1920 type of metal lathe, in which case it's in nice nick for its age

Seems to be the conventional type of build they used back then

s

Edited By Ady1 on 28/11/2022 02:09:35

There's not so many wood lathes that are both back geared and screwcutting.

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Maybe some measurements would help. It is a bit difficult to judge scale from the photos. If you can remove the backplate from the spindle, the spindle thread would narrow down the list of possibilities.

The lead screw pitch looks, to me, as though it is very fine 10tpi (or even 12?)? Doesn’t look ACME, either.

Tailstock looks out of place. Unless that tiny hole on the side is for lateral adjustment?

Could it be a pre-cursor to the V bed?

I would think very early in the last century, at the latest. No idea on a name.

Hi there!

Thanks for the replies, I will try to get down to measure the lathe, to give a better idea what We have.

At a rough estimate the total length is about 5'.

Many thanks, Pete

That poor thing is crying out for a new home and lots of TLC, it could still work well.

FWIW some of the features (the bed,(edit -or maybe not)  the tailstock, the apron) look passingly 'Britannia'-ish...

Edited By DiogenesII on 28/11/2022 17:39:46

I once owned and used a very similar machine, some 60 years age, still an apprentice and bought from a the local scrap dealer. Had it running in my dads garage from a lineshaft. Eventually gave to a pals pal ! NDY is spot on with the date IMO

Defiantly not a wood lathe, it has a tumbler reverse for the change wheels, half nuts on the carriage, left hand side lever and the central lever with two holes is most probably power feed to the lead screw or cross slide. From memory mine was a 10 TPI lead screw. Make — no idea but it did have a plate on it with reference to WW1 and may have been American origin ? i’ll Ask my pal if it’s still around

John

If the thread of the spindle nose could be measured, it would be a valuble clue.

the apron central control in the first pic, which I assume changes the feed from sliding to surfacing has an offset arm leading to a pull out knurled pin which slides between two positions. this is very similar, indeed almost identical to the detents on my Holbrook B9, and also the back gear handle in the same location and same shape, could it be an earlier (circa 1900) Holbrook?