What's new
What's new

Alfred Eriksen lathe

qb6sagr

Plastic
Joined
Mar 1, 2018
Hi Guys,

This is my first post on the forum, but I have occasionally perused the site for information on old machines and because I enjoy seeing what others are getting up too, wether it be showcasing their work or detailing old machines they are restoring.
I thought I would share my new purchase, and in the process hopefully someone can offer some information on this machine. I would really like to know a bit more about this machine, so if you know anything, please do share. Beyond the basic details of who Alfred Eriksen was, and the fact that Matra used rebadged Eriksen lathes, I can’t find much about them at all. I can see design similarities to other machines that Eriksen built but I can’t find any solid info on this specific machine. I’m hoping someone can supply information on approximately what year this lathe was manufactured and what oil to use in the gearboxes for when I strip this thing down.
It was a bit of an impulse buy, and I secured it as part of a deal when purchasing an old bobcat and backhoe. It was in a grubby old shed (set up on the only piece of concrete in the whole place) and was totally covered in filth. Having said that I can’t help but look at these old machines and see potential.
I figured with a gap bed, quick-change gearbox, power feed on the cross slide and a 46mm spindle bore it was a big step up from my trusty Hercus 260B ATM. It also came with both 3 and 4 jaw chucks, a fixed steady, some elaborate pneumatic contraption that clamped to the ways, a motley assortment of tooling and a whole bunch of bar stock between 25mm and 50mm in size I couldn’t go wrong.
IMG_3174_4.jpg
[/url][/img]
When I got it home I gave it a quick clean before tarping it and waiting for my new shed to get built.
IMG_3232.jpg
[/url] [/img]
IMG_3234.jpg
[/url] [/img]
IMG_3235.jpg
[/url] [/img]
I then had to fab a crane before I could lift it off the trailer (we lifted it on with a 10t Fiat payloader!) and what a handy thing this crane is. I don’t know how I lasted this long without it. That’s my old man in the photo giving me a hand working the chain block.
IMG_20180226_115552853_BURST001.jpg
[/url] [/img]
And this is how it sits in my shed now.
IMG_20180226_170654790.jpg
[/url] [/img]
It needs a lot more cleaning and then I’ll start removing some covers to check the internals before replacing the fluids. If everything seems ok I will go ahead and fit a DRO for ease of use.
I’ll check back here and update this as I go, but in the meantime if you can shed some light on this machine please do.
 
Hi mate. I too have an Eriksen (180-NE) and have been trying to find out some information and obtain some manuals. The only info I have been able to find is on Lathes + Machine Tool Archive which provides a decent write up.

If anybody has any information please let us know. I particularly want a service/user manual as I would like to strip it down and restore it.

I also would like to find a steady rest for it..........
 
I too have an Eriksen lathe. Mine is a 180-NE. I have searched far and wide for information and a service/user manual but have only found a small amount of information on Lathes + Machine Tool Archive which is a great site.

I would like to find a fixed steady for it but don't like my chances. As said above, if anybody has any information at all or knows where some info might be please please drop us a line!

OOPS - double posted......
 
Last edited:
G'day,

MK1, I have not got any info on the lathes unfortunately. That 180-ne looks like a big bertha, very solid. maybe of a later design than mine as it appears all the gears are in the headstock whereas mine has a seperate gearbox for spindle speeds behind the machine and only a high/low in the headstock. I can see some similarities in design of some components but over all a very different machine.

Just an update on the old girl. I have brought the lathe back to working condition, and from a distance it is quite a good looking machine. I am very happy with it, and after leveling I can generally hold .01-.02mm over a 150mm length without any trouble. It is a pleasure to use compared to my smaller machine, being much more rigid and with more comfortable size handwheels and controls. the gearbox makes it much faster and easier to change speeds. my only gripe is that it really needs to be an extra 3-4" off the ground to make it more comfortable to work at for my 6ft height.

I did not pull the whole machine apart, rather I left the headstock on the bed and the bed on the stand. i could reach all the components with these still attached, so didnt see the need.

I did completely strip the main gearbox as the gear shifting was badly bound up, and pulled the spindle to replace the drive belts. The apron was completely stripped, as was the tailstock and the screw cutting gearbox.
IMG_0674.jpg
IMG_0706.jpg
IMG_0637 - Copy.jpg
IMG_0718.jpg
IMG_1495.jpg

Electrically, when I took possession of the lathe there was some dodgy farmer setup using a single phase motor to drive through the original three phase motor via a single V belt. I got rid of that, stripped and cleaned the three phase motor and was pretty happy that it ran well when reassembled. The original fwd/rev contactors where in great shape and just needed a clean. That old siemens gear is so good. The original wiring to the controls and the motor was disintegrating, so I rewired the machine with flex, and feel much safer for it!

after a coat of paint, the old girl is a great feature in the shed. I bought a new 4 jaw and machined a backplate to suit, as the old Bison three jaw is pretty flogged and the original 4 jaw wont clamp anything less than about about 40mm.

Now this project is complete im looking forward to the next, which will either be stripping my Thiel Duplex 158 mill, or my newly acquired lathe, a Sheraton Cadet, which I just won at auction, from the now closed Ford factory in Geelong, Victoria, Australia.

Anyway, hopefully the pictures will help anyone else who comes across one of these very well made old German machines. send me a PM if I can help with anymore photos etc.

Thanks for reading.
 








 
Back
Top