Looking at a Hardinge TFB-H

[jwdiho]

Hello, new guy here.

Looking at the above lathe. It's the yellow one on ebay right now. Practically down the highway from me, and it really would be my dream lathe.

Price at the moment is $3500 and the seller says nonnegotiable despite what the product description says.

Can't get him to let me come and see it. Can't get a good description of what comes with it.
All he'll say that it is in good condition and comes with some cutters, tool holder and collets. Those are his exact words. Not much to go on to even make an offer.


Let's say it's not a lathe used in mass production and actually has little wear on the way and carriage is tight and smooth and the headstock has little runout. Is it worth the buy it now price?


I'm purely a hobbyist that has worked on a small 3 in 1 lathe/mill combo making stuff for custom old (not vintage) motorcycles. Spacers, carriers, etc. I'm looking to graduate to real machinery and have done a lot of reading here. Getting up to speed with some of the terminology and brands. But I'm still a noob! Take it easy on me (or not, I can take it)
My house has 3 phase service but last I checked it'll be another $1000 to wire a box to run a lathe and mill.

I paid the machinist $600 for this piece recently and made me think I should seriously consider getting my own equipment.

 

[dustpan3]

It would probably be worth the asking price but I would question why you can't inspect it prior to purchase.

Not sure what your application will be in using the lathe or if it matters to you or not but the TFB-H does not built in threading capabilities. This the name TFB (turn/face/bore)

 

[jwdiho]

Yes, I read that. It would be nice but...
the price of a threading HLV vs nonthreading TFB it seemed like a "great" deal. (Again, I'm new to this so I may be way off)

As I understand, there are other options to thread. But, it would be nice to cut threads for engine studs and exhaust studs that are no longer available.

He didn't actually say no, I couldn't see it. But, I asked him twice and he did not answer that particular question.

It would probably be worth the asking price but I would question why you can't inspect it prior to purchase.

Not sure what your application will be in using the lathe or if it matters to you or not but the TFB-H does not built in threading capabilities. This the name TFB (turn/face/bore)

 

[dustpan3]

For cutting threads for studs and such would be easily done with a geometric die head which you could use on the TFB but you will have to have individual chasers for each size you want to thread - but no big deal.

Since you are local if you went there in person you could make a cash offer not through eBay and that way it would save him money on the eBay fees - just a thought.

 

[jwdiho]

That was my thought, but he did not even let me know where he's located. Ebay just lists the city.

 

[dustpan3]

I have found that some people only answer one question at a time even when you ask several.

 

[Billtodd]

Just an observation, but most TFB's seem to have a harder life than the average HLV-H. You might want to take a close look at the machine before buying.

Bill

 

[L Vanice]

Just an observation, but most TFB's seem to have a harder life than the average HLV-H. You might want to take a close look at the machine before buying.

Bill

I bought a TFB-H through a sealed bid auction at a General Motors plant. I thought I could not lose for $850. There was no visible wear on the bed. Eventually, I got it running and found the hardened steel dovetail slab screwed to the top of the bed was worn to the point that the lathe could not be used for normal work. These machines were designed by Hardinge for repetitive manufacturing jobs that were too low volume for screw machines. They have a four position carriage stop where you would expect a lead screw. They had a couple of different four position tool holders available. If your part could be made with four or less tools, you could crank them out all day long. The original owners would use them until they were worn out and then dispose of them. I would be very hesitant to buy another TFB-H at any price above what it could be sold as parts.

Of course, they could also be used in a shop doing a few precision one-off parts, and that is the used lathe you want. But such a shop probably bought the HLV-H version that could cut threads.

Larry

 

[stephen thomas]

Ya know I hate to say it, but a heavy 10 SB with the big bore might be a better match for your interests at the price point. You can even get metric transposing gears for them.

I'm jaded. But I think anything over $2,500 for a TFB is too much, and at that price it better be in really good shape mechanically. At around $2,500 - $3,000 you can start to look at dirty, chipped paint, but competent HLV-'s and sometimes HLV-H's if you get out to auctions. I would not buy any of these lathes without a personal inspection. FWIW, I've mentioned in the past that HLV- and later that I've seen often have leadscrews worn much more than you would expect on most lathes. I attribute that to the fact that they were designed and advertised for easy, very fast threading. So in many cases, that is what they were relegated to.

PS, Feeler and Sharp clones of HLV-H's go for a discount, especially if they are not pretty. Have about as good a rep mechanically.

smt

 

[jwdiho]

Thank you for the advice and suggestions. I think ill wait and keep looking.

 

[FredC]

A good clean TFB-H for $2500.00 sounds like a bargain to me. I paid $20,000 for my HLV-H about 20 years ago and I only thread with it a couple times a year. It is used almost daily supporting the other machines.
Your seller seems to be trying to commit some kind of fraud not letting you see it.

 

[rons]

Thank you for the advice and suggestions. I think ill wait and keep looking.

Contact the seller and thank him and tell him you are going to look at other lathes.
"I do not buy machines without a inspection".

 

[rons]

My house has 3 phase service but last I checked it'll be another $1000 to wire a box to run a lathe and mill.

I paid the machinist $600 for this piece recently and made me think I should seriously consider getting my own equipment.
/QUOTE]

What is the $1000 going to get you?

A milling machine should be on your list with a indexer.

 

[daduck748]

The last time I hired an electrician wire up a machine, he charged about that much, in a shop that had a 30-40 foot run in conduit. He did install a separate box but he daisy chained it to the main. I started having problems with the machine, a tech told me someone wired it wrong. The ATC indexing backwards should have been an indicator. That's what you get for $1000. I bought myself a 3ph checker for like $50 and been saving myself a lot of $ since.