Thread: Old (Very Old?) Lathe on Craigslist in Fall River, MA

Looking for machines on Craigslist and stumbled upon this ad:

8 foot antique wood lathe


Identified by seller as a woodturning lathe but I think it's a pretty old (circa 1850 or earlier) metal lathe. It is backgeared and the chain drive for the carriage and some other features are similar to an 1830's metal lathe I saw in the museum in Cooperstown, NY, except that lathe had a wooden bed with iron rails.

We've had looooong idscussions of lathes which were less interesting than this one.

Who else thinks the chain and sprockets look too modern to match the rest of the lathe?

Anybody recognize those legs?

John Ruth

There is another thread further down on this same machine... I have one with virtually identical legs and know of at least 3 or 4 more.