New to me lathe... 16x54 Pratt Whitney Model C.

Wanted to share my new acquisition with y'all! I saw it on Craigslist, about 250 miles from my location. I managed to convince the guy that I'd be there with cash in hand the next weekend, and he held it for me. Solid guy! I got there as it was getting dark after driving most of the day, and looked the lathe over as best I could given that it was not under power (no 3 phase big enough there). Handed the fellow $2500 and we picked it onto my trailer.

Found a parking lot and slept a few hours in the truck... heading out early the next morning I discovered an equalizer bolt had fallen out completely from the mount bracket between the tandem axle springs on my trailer and had to deal with fixing that situation... got it home just fine after that, big lathe though to be sure for hauling across the state over two considerable mountain passes with an F150...

At home, a neighbor helped me unload, we picked my 18" Hendey conehead out of the shop, and set the Pratt inside. I had two full days of pinch bar/roller/scooting various machines around to swap the two big lathes out... finally I got the Pratt into the corner, wired it up, ran it through its paces... everything smooth in all speeds, oil systems working well, gears look good, clutch brake and leadscrew reverse work. Did some toolroom style threading with the cross slide stop and leadscrew reverse, wow is that ever nice

After a little difficulty in sussing out the control circuit (had been modified) I have the worklight and DRO, coolant pump on their own 110V circuit and operational, so all is now in working order.

I'd been looking for a P&W model C, in a 14" size... I'm so happy that this deal worked out. John Oder here looked it up and by serial number, it was manufactured in 1953. The golden age!

It included a Newall DRO which works well, a steady rest, 10" 3 jaw Bison chuck, and a Jacobs rubberflex collet chuck with one collet... need to find some more. Also it has the ball bearing taper attachment although it needs the bearing shoe and connecting pin (dunno if those are the correct terms). I need to tool it the rest of the way up, next things to obtain are a wedge type CA toolpost and holders, a live center, and a four jaw.

I took a .300" doc pass on some 1.5" mild round stock tonight, 453 rpm and .0032" per rev- just peeled off there super nice and left a fair finish with a brazed carbide cutter. That's far beyond what my previous lathes have been capable of (I know it'll cut a lot heavier than that...)

I used to own a P&W model C with a shorter bed. It was a beast and as you said could take a hell of a cut! It ran and ran...never had issues with it. I wished the spindle hole was a bit bigger occasionally. It was made by Pratt & Whitney when machines were made in America and I would bet your machine helped win WW2 in some shape or fashion! Enjoy a Great Machine! Your a heck of a good story teller too, ever considered writing a book of your adventures? :-)

What a great find.

Related thread

Pratt and Whitney Model C, 16”x54” age by serial number?

I have the newer 16" X 72" P&W model C. I too like it. Well built machine! My power buttons are not on the quick change gear box, they are up near the very top of the head stock in the rear above the spindle. Like yours it's labeled Start and Stop, (though I would have to check Start) but have an unlabeled button that will start the motor in reverse. Not sure if your machine runs the same but when in reverse the Oil pump in the head stock is running backwards and does not pump oil. Mine has NO oil in the head stock, the reservoir is below the head stock and pumped to oil the bearings and gears. I would think running in reverse for long periods is not a good idea. Also do not use the feed/lead screw stops while running in reverse!!!

Very nice, ...................and with a bit of TLC will see you out and on to the next generation (even if you were still in the womb )

Looks good.

Man what a beauty. I love it! When did Pratt and Whitney stop making lathes?

ClappedOutBport said:

Man what a beauty. I love it! When did Pratt and Whitney stop making lathes?

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That's a good question; I'm not sure. There's a big thread about the demise of Pratt and Whitney, the machine builders... I'll link to it here.

USA Heavy Iron Disappearance

A sad story, like many others about the downfall of America's once proud names in machine tool manufacturing.

Congrats on a nice score! I have a monarch 16cw that is 18 1/2 actual and use a CXA toolpost that came with it and it is just about perfect for it. You might double check using a CA toolpost on your machine, besides CXA stuff is cheaper and maybe a little more common used.

Froneck said:

I have the newer 16" X 72" P&W model C. I too like it. Well built machine! My power buttons are not on the quick change gear box, they are up near the very top of the head stock in the rear above the spindle. Like yours it's labeled Start and Stop, (though I would have to check Start) but have an unlabeled button that will start the motor in reverse. Not sure if your machine runs the same but when in reverse the Oil pump in the head stock is running backwards and does not pump oil. Mine has NO oil in the head stock, the reservoir is below the head stock and pumped to oil the bearings and gears. I would think running in reverse for long periods is not a good idea. Also do not use the feed/lead screw stops while running in reverse!!!

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Have you ever changed the leads or wires coming in? That could be the problem. switch 2 of the wires because your main motor is running backwards because of that I bet.

Richard King said:

Have you ever changed the leads or wires coming in? That could be the problem. switch 2 of the wires because your main motor is running backwards because of that I bet.

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Motor is running in the correct direction when Run is pushed. Spindle turns counterclockwise as it should and oil pumps good but if the motor is run in reverse using the other push button the pump will stop pumping. Also lead screw will run backwards that's expected. But if the lead screw stop is used while spindle is running cloclwise instead of stopping the lead screw it will lock it engaged. Only way to stop the carriage is to open the half-nut or stop the spindle quickly before breaking gears. My Hendeys have splash oil system in the head stock so spindle direction is not a problem but they too lead screw stop can't be used in reverse. I have the Parts Manual for both the newer version and older version of the Model C. The newer version is the same except changes are noted and refer the reader to pages containing the changes located in the rear of the manual. As far as I can remember there are no changes in the Head stock nor automatic carriage stop other than outward appearance.

My 1953 machine will only pump headstock oil in forward, though it does have a factory installed fed/rev double starter and push buttons.
I’ll be sure to limit the duration of any operations I may conduct in reverse... but that’ll be a rare thing.

I really like the look and presence of this machine, in my shop... I’m not one for the new paint look, and the current colors and aesthetic do it for me. It’s big and handsome in construction, with a voluminous headstock and generously proportioned bed and ways. It doesn’t have that big lathe clumsy feel in smaller work, and I don’t feel awkwardly far from the work.
It has a nice precise solid feel and direct feedback when cutting- completely unlike either my smaller Grizzly or 18” Hendey tiebar.
I think I’ll still be going with a CA size toolpost, after reading around farther on the subject. More rigidity and the ability to take larger cutters makes the added expense worthwhile, to me...
Thanks for the input, guys! Glad you like my lathe.

I feel your correct choosing the CA toolpost. I have a CA on my 16" P&W model C. Problem with size charts is that they use the swing. The top of the line American machinery like P&W have a larger max swing than rated size so a 16" will swing larger than 16". Plus I also find that distance of the compound to center of spindle varies from maker to maker. I have a CXA on my 14" Hendey and wish I got a CA. I can't change it now because over the years I acquired just about every type CXA holder available and quite a few duplicates of the open slot toolbit holder. So I made a 1/2" riser for the CXA toolpost. Being I have two 12" Hendeys and 14" L&S with CXA toolpost I use the tool holders on other machines.
If my memory is correct only 2 buttons are shown for power in the Parts manual for the older Model C so I assume it was an option. Light use of the lathe in reverse I'm sure there is enough oil remaining. However that oil pump also pumps oil to the spindle bearings and gearing to the quick change box. The quick change box has another oil pump. The carriage oil pump is cam operated by the clutch rod so when starting my P&W I operate the clutch a few times to oil the carriage ways and gearing.