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WTB - Small turret lathe

bardell

Cast Iron
Joined
Oct 10, 2011
Location
North Jersey, USA
I'm toying with the idea of a small old turret lathe for small lot production of some projects of mine. A DSM-59 would be great, but they get some big bucks (by which I mean more than a grand for something not completely destroyed). They're also typically 220v hungry. I dropped the ball when Sandiapaul offered me a Rivett set up for 5c with a turret and lever slide for 300 bucks. Oops. Anyway, my only real requirements would be 1" through the spindle, and perhaps 6 tools on the turret. Under $1000 would be good, under $500 would be great. Plain bearings are OK, flat belts are OK, and ugly is OK, too. 110v operation is a big plus. Don't need it to hog 1" stainless down to 1/8, or anything like that. I have a set of old plans for a 6" swing plain bearing lathe with a manually advanced 6 tool turret that I may build if nothing comes up. Any ideas on what to look for, or machines like this for sale? Thanks, guys.

FWIW, here are the old plans:
Build a Home Turret Lathe Plans

I would probably forgo the slide and build a lever acting form/cutoff slide, instead.

If this question is too close to 'home shop machinist', please kick me in the arse.
 
I got this mid-50's Wade 7 for $500, up to 1" thru the spindle, rpm up in 2000, coolant system and in excellent shape. Collets are somewhat proprietary but a conversion to 5C is not hard- basically a new closer tube. Motor is 240v but single phase so no vfd- treat it like a clothes drier lol.

wade01.jpg


Regards,

Greg
 
Don't blame ya, I wouldn't part with it either :) Good to hear that there are still good prices to be had on these, provided the maker doesn't start with 'H'... Shouldn't have slept on the freebie, mint HCT with 1000 lbs in tooling I was offered, nor that Rivett.
 
Older Wades fly under the radar, for some reason-

110V and 1" through the headstock is a tough one to get around. 1" means 5C or 8W, and those machines are almost all 220V, if not 3 phase. South Bend 9" turret lathes are plentifull and cheap, but won't take 1" through the spindle.

My advice, FWIW, is do whatever it takes to get 220V, and wait for another good deal to come along. The 220 will be very handy for other tools.

How far are you willing to go? Are you willing to buy at auction?

Neil
 
I think this is an old P&W No1. A real antique machine and a project to get running. Then this is the antique forum, so here is a pic. Just what shown, nothing else. Need a lot of TLC. I would have to confirm, its not mine - might be available for very little. Location Mass/NH state line.
 

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I came pretty close to getting one of the Rivett model 60 turret lathes.

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but the dealer wanted real money (almost $2k). Very nice machine, complete and in excellent condition, 5C in the spindle. The one shown in the prev post is slightly older model but I'm sure a fantastic machine if in good shape.
 
Gotta love those dealer prices. He's probably still sitting on it. I have a hard time paying much more than double scrap value, unless something is perfect. Then again, I'm a total cheapskate :)
 
Bardell,

you should have bought my Rivett...the buyers was not a happy camper, I think he was expecting a pristine Rivett lathe not a "frankenlathe" as he called it. Granted it was not a perfect example but with not much work you would have a functioning machine able to make real parts. For the price I kind of wish I'd kept it.

There out there, just be patient...

Paul
 
I'm still kicking myself, Paul. The price was quite fair, I seem to recall some extras coming with it. I was shy on cash after buying the mill, and I think I had 1500 pounds of people, iron, and fuel in a truck rated for 1000 already :) Sorry to hear the buyer was unhappy, i thought the condition was a good 6 or 7 out of 10 for a survivor. Oh well, life goes on.
 
If you are truly not concerned with looks and can deal with something with a lot of wear I have a Hardinge/Elgin turret lathe that I'd be willing to part with for cheap. I can take a photo tomorrow if you're interested but it is this model:
http://www.lathes.co.uk/elgin/img1.gif

It has a 5C ball bearing headstock with decent bearings and collet closer, comes with a couple of worn out lever cross slides and a thoroughly used 6 station turret. It looks terrible and must have made 10,000,000 parts but it does work. If you are really considering making something from scratch you'd be miles ahead starting with this.

I will likely be moving soon and I'd be better off getting rid of this than moving it. It's got a 2 speed 220 3ph motor (1HP?) so not a great candidate to convert to 110V. I have to say, having the FWD/REV and HIGH/LOW levers right on the headstock makes drilling and tapping incredibly fast and almost fun.

I'm close to you and the machine is in a building with a dock. PM me if you're interested and I can take some pics.
 
Here she is:

photo 1.JPGphoto 2.jpgphoto 3.JPG

Comes with a pile of parts for a complete extra cross slide and some bits of another collet closer as well. There is some of the plumbing for a coolant system and a tank but no pump. Motor is 2 speed, .75/.375HP. Turret functions fine but has a small amount of slop, wasn't bad enough for me to care about. I did some work on the collet closer to get it working correctly and had the headstock apart to fix the brake and selector levers. Surprisingly everything works.

$150
 
After some more thought, I am increasingly motivated to get rid of this thing. My scrap guy is happy to grab it off my loading dock for a few cents a pound but I'd rather it be put to use if someone is interested.

It is ugly as hell and worn out but everything works.

Price is negotiable, reply or PM me if you're interested.
 
Yes, it's true. It only uses 2'x4' of floor space and can make standoffs at an alarming rate. If I'd used it more than 3 times in 4 years and wasn't moving in a few months I'd certainly keep it.
 








 
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