I mean like a mid 80's or newer one with original paint, excellent condition and pretty clean....ideally with a mid 90's or newer DRO as well.... $25K even possible these days ? Maybe at live auction for one that is 440 volts only ?? (and no I don't specifically want 440 volts... just figured that might keep the price down some and wouldn't mind it)
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Anyone seen any pristine Hardinge HLV-EM's sell $25K or less in the past few years ?
- Thread starter Milacron
- Start date
- Replies 37
- Views 5,559
TDegenhart
Diamond
- Joined
- Mar 26, 2011
- Location
- Geneva Illinois USA
Are you looking for a machine that has not been rebuilt and for less than $25,000? Or can a machine be rebuilt? Not sure either can be had for $25,000.
Tom
Tom
I thought it obvious from my description I mean one that is as original, not rebuilt. I passed up a pristine 1990's one for $19,000 years ago but that was as we just just emerging from The Great Recession when prices were depressed on all machine tools.
Monarchist
Diamond
- Joined
- Oct 2, 2012
- Location
- Sol, Terra
Might have been the last Unicorn free range grazing, that one.
Hardinge-anything is just about dead-last on the list of manual lathes that might be installed to sit on standby, 'just in case'.
They were meant to be used-up, earning their amortization several times over, be shoved out the door for a newer one, lather, rinse, repeat.
Designed for rapid, if costly, partial rebuilds, but it seldom actually happened before needs changed, their owners wandered off to other schemes - or to corporate graveyards.
I'm serious. Better chance of finding a pristine Nebel Microturn. Protected species, those, and durable to a fault.
Hardinge was just another 'working girl'. Higher-class than most, but slender and delicate of frame, and somebody's well-used hoor, nonetheless.
Davis In SC
Diamond
- Joined
- Sep 14, 2005
- Location
- South Carolina USA
The HLV-EM Milacron is referring to was still as new. Bought new by me, and lightly used by me for 15 or so years. We were dissolving a business partnership, and former biz partner was adamant that I was not going to buy it. I still regret not having someone to act as a straw buyer, to buy it for me.
Now remind what tooling went with it so I can be even more sick I didn't buy it
Please don't tell me it had a DRO and Buck Adjust Thru chuck as well... 
Davis In SC
Diamond
- Joined
- Sep 14, 2005
- Location
- South Carolina USA
It had a Buck 3-jaw adjust-true, a 4 jaw, Accurite DRO, 1/32 increment collets (no 1/64ths), taper attachment, several nice live centers, a Jacobs drill chuck, and an Aloris AXA with a fair number of holders. The person that bought it is an occasional poster here at PM.Now remind what tooling went with it so I can be even more sick I didn't buy it
Just as a sidenote, I purchased it new in '93 for 36K and change..
Monarchist
Diamond
- Joined
- Oct 2, 2012
- Location
- Sol, Terra
Never was attracted to Hardinge for 'personal' use meself. Worked well at making money, but always felt as if I had to mentally shift-gears to get into doing things "the Hardinge way". Akin to driving a wrong-sided automobile for the road, such as taking my UK-Market RHD BMW across the channel to the continent for a multi-country tour. Never did it enough to quite feel comfortable with either.
Your lightly-used, never abused one was a "unicorn" indeed, then.
'93? For present-day yardsticks, ISTR I was on about 78 K/yr, gross, base pay before stock options and bonuses around that time, but my BMW 5-series 'company car' still cost less than your Hardinge lathe did.
OMG....all that, and a taper attachment as well ! OK, we both should be shot at dawn without a cigarette....you for selling it and me for not buying it....
Monarchist
Diamond
- Joined
- Oct 2, 2012
- Location
- Sol, Terra
OMG....all that, and a taper attachment as well ! OK, we both should be shot at dawn without a cigarette....you for selling it and me for not buying it....
Dad, 1946, turning down a free early 1930's Duesenberg LWB touring as a gas-hog, orphaned for parts and with odd tire-sizes, and my buying a Fiat 124 sport coupe rather than $3,500 Ferrari "Superamerica" roadster, blown engine, and a separate, working, V12 engine to match, wrecked vehicle, also $3,500... are in 'dumbest man on Earth' line waaaay to Hell and gone ahead of the both of you!
Turning down head of US operations, 1984, for floppy-disk media at a who-TF are THEY unknown called: "Japanese Victor Corporation" probably lets me retire the trophy.
moonlight machine
Diamond
- Joined
- Nov 19, 2007
- Location
- marysville ohio
Dad, 1946, turning down a free early 1930's Duesenberg LWB touring as a gas-hog, orphaned for parts and with odd tire-sizes, and my buying a Fiat 124 sport coupe rather than $3,500 Ferrari "Superamerica" roadster, blown engine, and a separate, working, V12 engine to match, wrecked vehicle, also $3,500... are in 'dumbest man on Earth' line waaaay to Hell and gone ahead of the both of you!
Turning down head of US operations, 1984, for floppy-disk media at a who-TF are THEY unknown called: "Japanese Victor Corporation" probably lets me retire the trophy.
No, that would be me....I turned down a real nice Vincent Black Shadow for a pristine BSA Rocket 3. I did that about a year after I turned down a Ford GT40, a real one with a blown engine for 7500.00.... worth a few million now.......What a dumb ass. Oh I almost forgot, I turned down a '55 Thunderbird for 2500.00 in '84
Monarchist
Diamond
- Joined
- Oct 2, 2012
- Location
- Sol, Terra
Ah well. we sorta 'owe' the Boss.
Let's agree - out of courtesy, mind, not petty meanness - that he was stoopider yet for not grabbing that Hardinge Unicorn when HE had the chance...
At the least.. it gets this thread back on-point..
Davis In SC
Diamond
- Joined
- Sep 14, 2005
- Location
- South Carolina USA
Yes, but think back to the doom and gloom at that time.. It seemed that manufacturing might not recover... Remember the rock bottom prices at the auction in Forest City? Wish I had bought a lot of that like-new machinery that was going so cheaply.. Of course my big regret is not buying up some Cummins stock at that time.. IIRC it was below 20 per share then.OMG....all that, and a taper attachment as well ! OK, we both should be shot at dawn without a cigarette....you for selling it and me for not buying it....
jim rozen
Diamond
- Joined
- Feb 26, 2004
- Location
- peekskill, NY
"Never was attracted to Hardinge for 'personal' use meself. "
Good.
More for me.
Good.
More for me.
Monarchist
Diamond
- Joined
- Oct 2, 2012
- Location
- Sol, Terra
TDegenhart
Diamond
- Joined
- Mar 26, 2011
- Location
- Geneva Illinois USA
I read what you wanted, but for $25,000? When I bought my HLV-H look alike, clapped out HLV-H's not EM's were going for $18,000, an EM clapped out was $25,000. Since you didn't say why you wanted a pristine machine I could only suggest a rebuilt for the kind of money. Double or triple the amount and you might be able to coax one out of the woodwork.
Tom
I'm under no obligation to say "why" I want anything and in fact am usually inclined not to as it results in endless speculation when all I want is the question answered. In your case, the answer to my question is a resounding "no" and that's all I need to know.
kustomizingkid
Titanium
- Joined
- Aug 2, 2010
- Location
- Minnesota
Curiosity killed the cat... you did just sell of a handful of pristine tools recently. Always up to something. If I had no need to turn larger parts thats a top notch lathe.
dkmc
Diamond
- Joined
- Jan 13, 2002
I can't answer your question either, but reading this thread
reminds me that 25 years ago one of the execs at Hardinge
retired, and they gave him a HLVH with all bells/whistles.
He had it in his basement. He's long gone, and I wonder what ever happened to the machine.
reminds me that 25 years ago one of the execs at Hardinge
retired, and they gave him a HLVH with all bells/whistles.
He had it in his basement. He's long gone, and I wonder what ever happened to the machine.
Monarchist
Diamond
- Joined
- Oct 2, 2012
- Location
- Sol, Terra
LOL! Funny you should mention "25 years ago", so DAMHIKT, but...
If he "loved his job" like some of that generation - trapped by family responsibilities and a needed income when all they REALLY wanted to be was a cod fisherman or an artist in oils somewhere in the South of France?
It may be the world's only Hardinge lathe with a toilet seat...