HL Shepard Lathe

Hello I’m new to this forum would anyone have any information about this lathe. I bought at an auction and know it missing some pieces but not sure if I’ll be able to find parts. Any help is appreciated.

How do I post pictures?

Do "quick reply"
Hit button "Go Advanced."
Pull page down about a third and complete your word entry.
Pull page down about 2/3rds and hit button "Manage Attachments."
Pop-up will occur marked "File Upload Manager." (make sure your computer allows this) Upper segment is where your pix will ultimately be stored for later use. Lower segment is called "attachments" and this is what will show on your thread entry.
Hit button in the File Upload Manager Screen on the upper right marked "add files"
ANOTHER small pop-up occurs - Hit "Browse."
ANOTHER pop-up occurs which is the "drill-in" screen allowing you to pick your pix files (from allowed extensions) and select for upload. You can pick only one. When you have picked press the button "open."
The 3rd Drill-in Pop-up will close leaving you with the second small pop-up - but now you'll see the file-name of your choice. Push the button "Upload"
Next you will see the pix of choice on the File Upload Manger BELOW in the box called "Attachments."
Press "Done" and you are.

Your pix will show as a "thumbnail" which can be clicked upon by others to bring attached thumbnails to a screen sized pix.

Hope this helps - the passage of pix from your computer to the thread entry is not intuitive, but fairly simple once you've done it successfully a couple of times.

You can even pick pix from your previous entries for re-use.

Here are the pictures of the lathe. Where can I get the missing pieces and does anyone else have this same lathe that could upload some pictures of it if it's complete so I can compare.

Thanks Joe for the help on pictures!

Mr Summers,what you have is an old lathe somewhat modified to actually do some turning.I suggest you use it for what it is,and forget a search for bits. Plenty of work can be done with hand feeds.........however ,before connecting to the mains,I suggest you check any antique electrics for faults,and dont use any perished rubber or fabric insulation.

Of course being the antique it is one can almost certainly say new parts are not available - although someone may come up with a "parts machine" that might be cannibalized for your machine.

Being a gap bed may make it only slightly more difficult. If HL Shepard is like other makers then they adopted the "modern convention" of gap bed later, when interest in a smaller machine might have been declining and they tried to increase the machine marketability. Meanwhile "regular" parts from earlier machines may or may not fit yours.

Making parts given a good example is certainly within the realm of possibility. It may be pricey though depending on your skill in patternmaking, metal casting, or flame cutting from the solid parts to make missing components. Still, much can be done even adapting parts from non-brand machines.

The first thought on replacement is "functionality" - can the new or modified part you provide work against what is there to accomplish some actual work, i.e. is it truly of value?

The second thought would be "originality" - is the new or modified part much as the orginal and will it do what orginal did in fit, form, function. Can replacement "look" like originals as made or be "simulated?"

And, of course is "restoration" of the rest of the machine you have if for no other reason than to assure optimal performance and "match" new parts you may fabricate.

You'll be following in the footsteps of those who were there before you in identifying technical problems, solving them to the best available method possible, and achieving "something that works."

It is, or was, part of the American Industrial Persona for at least a hundred years after the start of the Industrial Revolution - and probably still is, although it is not thought of in the same way. Today "teams" of engineers resolve problems and effect solutions - but frequently not to greater success. Consensus decision making has much to recommend, but so does ingeniousness of the individual kind. One is not necessarily more powerful than the other.

Its nice (and fun) when you think on a problem for a while, and suddenly without warning, a solution "sneaks up" on you. The proverbial "light bulb" moment.

Welcome to our club!

Joe in NH

It looks like that lathe was born without back gears. Maybe a pattern-maker lathe?

Paolo

I d say the spindle is a replacement ,the drive unit seems to be a worm box,and the lathe has obviously been trimmed of extraneous bits ....Gap is not sufficient for a brake drum lathe,which is a common conversion of old lathes.....but its obviously for a set purpose.With a very slow spindle revs ,welding or flame spraying is a possibility.

Thanks for the info. Can the chuck be replaced with a more modern one that only requires 1 place to tighten it down versus 1 for each jaw? Are the threads all the same on the spindle where the chuck attaches? Also noticed mine is missing the tool holder for the bit. Will any tool holder work or will I need one specific to this machine?

The dilemma you describe is actually a 4 jaw chuck,the item you want is a 3 jaw chuck....and un less the spindle has a common mounting ,its a case of make it yourself ....the toolholder is not a problem,as the necessary pieces are there .apparently.

I added some additional pictures of the chuck and the thread on the end of the shaft. Yes John your right I have the 4 jaw chuck that requires me to tighten each one separately. I would like to put on a 3 jaw that all jaws tighten together. Can anyone tell if the threads would match for the new style. What is the other plate used for that attaches to the shaft? Thanks in advance!

Paolo by the shaft where the belt comes up there was at one time something connected there that I believe ran the automatic feed as its been removed. Any thoughts?

nsummers said:

Paolo by the shaft where the belt comes up there was at one time something connected there that I believe ran the automatic feed as its been removed. Any thoughts?

Click to expand...

Yes,
Like in the picture that Joe attached to post #2, there was some gearing driving most likely a leadscrew, which was likely used both for threading and for longitudinal feeds.
For what I can see, your apron doesn't look like having any clutch and/or selector for longitudinal/transversal feeds. On the left side there is a lever that, I bet, was engaging/disengaging the half-nuts on the leadscrew. Possibly, the half nuts might still be there.
but, in my opinion, bringing it back to close-to-original, without a donor machine, will be an extremely hard task, requiring a fully tooled workshop and a lot of machining experience.

A big difference between your lathe and the one in Joe's picture is that yours appears not to have any backgear (the set of two gears, on the shaft parallel to the spindle, on the back side, engaging with the gears at the two ends of the cone pulley) and it seem born like that. Hence my hypothesis that your lathe was born as patternmaker lathe, essentially a wood-turning lathe used by pattern makers to carve casting patterns.

Spindle nose: you need to measure the threads (pitch, major diameter, pitch diameter) to see if it is possible to find backplates, or you need to have the threads custom cut.
My advice is to stick with the 4 jaw chuck and learn how to center things. the other thing you have there is called face plate and it is used to clamp/bolt the piece directly to it for turning. It is used mainly with odd-shaped objects and raw castings.

Paolo