Please help Identifying lathe

Hoping someone can help with identifying this little lathe that has been in my family for many many decades. I only learned of its existence recently when a family member passed away and it made its way to me as I'm a machinist. Thankfully it escaped the dumpster! It's quite an odd specimen with the drawbar, thread follower, wood and metal capabilities, and weird easily offset tailstock. I've been in touch with Tony at Lathes.co.uk and he's also stumped. Any assistance from you fine folk would be much appreciated!

That's an interesting piece. It looks like it may be a brass finishers lathe. I would look into G. H. Fox or American Tool and Machine CO. of Boston, MA as a possible maker. I am thinking the V-belt pulley may have been a replacement for flat belt cone. Thanks for sharing.

That is a neat piece. That rear rod and handle setup with the half nut like setup geared to the backgear is interesting and may help someone with more knowledge of what this piece was designed to do.

Very nice lathe. I think it could be for brass work or watch making.

esbutler said:

That's an interesting piece. It looks like it may be a brass finishers lathe. I would look into G. H. Fox or American Tool and Machine CO. of Boston, MA as a possible maker. I am thinking the V-belt pulley may have been a replacement for flat belt cone. Thanks for sharing.

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I think you're onto something! It REALLY looks close to the first patent drawing. Thank you so much!!!

Go to that link above and click on the first Patent #10383 for a screw threading machine. Same setup as your lathe.

Nevermind I see you already found it.

The threading mechanism seems to have been common to various brass finishing lathe makers after Fox. IIRC, Smith and Coventry used a similar mechanism, though their lathes were larger.

The tailstock on this lathe is interesting. It almost looks like the upper half is part of a vise, it is so much more substantial than the rest of the lathe...

allan

Fascinating!
Curious, having a crank-handled leadscrew to set the cross slide over. If it was for quick adjustment for taper turning, presumably there would need some sort of adjustable stops to make sure you moved it the right amount. Could that be what the lever under the tailstock base is for – could it hold detents? Or, is it at all possible that the tailstock could have served as a cross slide, inserting a tool instead of the centre?

Thanks to Allan for reminding me that Smith & Coventry used a similar screwcutting arrangement. I knew I’d seen something like it before. Here’s a picture of an 1887 one at Manchester Museum of Science & Industry, made under Cooper’s (USA) patent:-

File:Smith Coventry MoSI1.jpg - Graces Guide

That in turn reminds me that there’s a basic c.1900 John Lang lathe in the National Museum of Scotland with the same sort of screwcutting feature.

Asquith said:

Or, is it at all possible that the tailstock could have served as a cross slide, inserting a tool instead of the centre?

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I was wondering that as well. It might be consistent with such a stout quill and the ready ability to adjust the tail stock. Not a big leap from this to a turret.

RFD: Can you give us any insight into the lever under the tail stock?

Can we get some more photos please with additional views and details.