I think I have a Hardinge Cataract Quick Change lathe...

Hay all, first post here I just picked up what I think is a Hardinge Cataract Quick Change lathe. I got it along with a Luxmill and a Duro band saw all for $500 they all had been sitting out in a open yard for some time but I figured for $500 I could part them out and sell whats left for scrap to make my money back if I couldn't get them back in running shape. I would much rather get them back up and running than part them out. Anyhow I've been looking though this forum and found lots of good info and I saw that some of you are trying to figure out how many of these machines are still around so I thought I'd give a shout out. I'm very open to advice on my restoration and thanks for having me on the forum.

Jamin

First job is to sort out the parts for the "Cataract quick change swing precision lathe" from the other stuff. See if there are major things missing. I do not see the headstock spindle in your picture, for instance.

The guys that own them will want the serial number and will tell you where to look.

The name for this model was given because the swing could be quickly changed from 9 to 15 inches. The swing increase is done by installing riser blocks. If you have the riser blocks with your lathe, they are like gold.

Good luck.

Larry

Thanks for the reply and the info, yeah the spindle and some of the gears on the end are missing, I'll be taking a machining class at LATTC in the fall and I though I would take a crack at making the parts I couldn't find for it there with the help of an instructor.

Here is a few more photos

One of the other owners has a cracked spindle. If you can manage to make two good ones, you might sell one.

The spindle thread is 2 3/16-10 and you can still buy new chuck adapters. And there are plenty of used chucks, step chuck closers, etc. that you can use as a gage when cutting the thread. The inside of the spindle fits 5C collets. Of course, the spindle was hardened and ground to near perfect concentricity. I hope you have the spindle bearings, because I sold the only spares I had.

That round tag is not the serial number. Large companies kept inventories of their capital goods and numbered them, usually with tags. I think the actual serial number is stamped in the bed somewhere near the right end.

Larry

Another Hardinge found

Great to see another one of these lathes come up. There definitely is a group of us who have these lathes and are working on them Please Email me haroldmulder(@)Hotmail.com to discuss this lathe.
You can see pictures of my lathe during the restoration phase here. There is also a brochure listed there of this lathe. The serial number is on the far right of the lathe stamped in the end of the way's and look carefully you might see the date of manufacture just above. I'll include a picture of my lathe where the date of manufacture is the serial number is just below that As to making a headstock when you look at the photos in my brochure you'll see pictures of the headstock and back gears. I think that the cost would outweigh the value of the lathe. If you have any questions please email away. Look forward to hearing from you.



Harold Mulder

Harold, you can see the headstock body in the first picture, but he did say the spindle and some gears are missing. Remains to be seen what else is gone. It looks like someone took the headstock apart and lost some pieces.

Larry

Thanks for the help finding the serial number guys, looks like I'm #77 I seem to recall someone here having #78. I do worry about this project becoming prohibitively expensive but I love a challenge and I would love to have this interesting looking lathe in my shop.

L Vanice said:

The spindle thread is 2 3/16-10 and you can still buy new chuck adapters. And there are plenty of used chucks, step chuck closers, etc. that you can use as a gage when cutting the thread. The inside of the spindle fits 5C collets. Of course, the spindle was hardened and ground to near perfect concentricity. I hope you have the spindle bearings, because I sold the only spares I had.
Larry

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Forgive me if I ask stupid questions as I'm not a machinist yet but could I get a hardened shaft and then grind it to near perfect concentricity? Could I start with a piece of stock like this?McMaster-Carr

Would boring a through bore and other machining take it out of true?

I also don't have the bearings, are there no modern replacement?

David Everything is possible however If you talk to a machine shop I'm sure that when you here how much they want to machine and harden the headstock you might get sticker shock. Also the cast iron bearing really have no modern equivalent. When I restored my #039 I needed a new set as well. Luckily Larry VanIce had a set of bearings for a Cataract 5 lathe which matched in perfectly. I'm not sure if he still has another set you can ask him. However then on top of that you need to make all the bits and pieces that are included in the headstock. I'll include a cutaway picture of the headstock to give you an idea of what's involved. Then you need the backgears as well. If you go forward I'm sure there are a few people here who would love to follow the progress. All the best and look forward to hearing from you.
Harold

It is beginning to sound like a parts machine.

Larry

L Vanice said:

It is beginning to sound like a parts machine.

Larry

Click to expand...

Well that breaks my heart to hear but your probably right I don't currently have the funds to get this thing going but I guess if it can help others finish their lathe I guess it's not the worst thing to send this beautiful machine to the recyclers... If anyone sees something they might want make me an offer. I'll post a listing in the sales section later today. I'll put the funds toward buying a more viable modern lathe.

Thanks for the help guys.

David-
I sent you a personal message.

Wes Loomer

Jamin, don't give up on that lathe to fast! I am also a Quick Change lathe owner and I am willing to bet since Hardinge made a lot of this stuff to be interchangeable, that if you can find a "regular" 5c-9" swing cataract lathe headstock(they are out there, watch ebay and craigslist), either ball bearing or plane bearing (as long as it is not an enclosed head) that it should work just fine, the only drawback is you would not have the back gears. The back gears on my lathe have been missing from my lathe, and it works just fine, just not much power for large diameter stuff. I do not have a standard 5c9" headstock to test on my quick change lathe, but maybe another Quick Change lathe owner out there might be able to test it out for you.

Also one more thing, there was a person that came on this form that had a Quick Change lathe headstock on a normal Cataract lathe bed, the only problem was it was a 4c headstock insted of the 5c normaly found on the Quick Change lathes... I can't remember the persons name at the moment, but if you can get in contact with them, maybe they would be willing to part with the 4c Quick Change lathe headstock.

I would hate to see one of these lathes get scrapped, but if it goes that way, I could use a part or 2.

Good luck, and hang in there!

Tyler

David, thanks again for dealing with the parting out process, you helped out a few Quick Change lathe owners I am sure!

I got my parts, and they arrived just fine. I have started cleaning up the headstock, and the tailstock, as well as a few other things, and I am starting to get some information about this lathe, It had a rough life!

Tailstock:
1. The tailstock ram has had about 3/8" machined off the nose (the 3 jaw chuck that was used during this process put some nasty marks on the ram.
2. "Custom" camlock levers installed, as well as a "custom" ram lock.
3. To compensate for wear shims were between the tailstock base and the rest of the tailstock, as well as shims for the removable center "inverted V" used on the Quick Change lathe beds (must have been a lot of wear on the bed).

Headstock:
1. Headstock casting itself seems to be in good shape other then rust, but had a shim for one of the camlock t-bolts that hold the headstock to the bed (odd, don't think Hardinge would normaly do this).
2. The 1 spindle bearing that was still with the lathe (rear spindle bearing) appears to be in very nice condition, I haven't cleaned the rust off yet to get the full story.
3. The back gears look like they have had a few teeth repaired at one time.

I can only guess at the condition of the rest of the lathe.

Anyway, even more of this lathe's story might be learned from the serial number. Normaly many parts and assemblies on a Quick Change lathe all get stamped with the lathe's serial number, which is 77 in this case. The tailstock was stamped 95, and the headstock has the normal Hardinge stamp, but the serial number is absent, just "No." with no number stamped in. The only item I received with 77 stamped in it was a small part used in the carriage.

I am guessing at one time this lathe received a replacement headstock from Hardinge, hence the missinge serial number, and a shim to get the camlock to work right. I am also thinking the tailstock is from lathe number 95. I am really curious to see what serial numbers are on the rest of the parts that people receive from David.

Its sad to send any machine tool to its end, let alone a rare lathe like the Quick Change, but I have a feeling this one, with all its problems and missing parts, had one foot in the grave and the other on a banana peel, so atleast some of its parts can be of some good.

Thanks again

Tyler