What's new
What's new

Clarify Leblond models

Fear624

Plastic
Joined
Oct 31, 2019
This lathe is relatively close to me. I can't find any information on it. I'm thinking it's too old to be a servo shift, but would like to know the specs before I make the trip.
I'm afraid of the servo-shift for fear of locating parts and I've read they only work when wired for 480v and my RPC cranks-out 240v. A transformer is one more expense, one more thing to go wrong and more lost energy in the conversion.

Facebook Marketplace: LeBlond 12" X 78" Metal Cutting Lathe with Taper Attachment 3 and 4 Jaw Chuck - Power Tools - Muscle Shoals, Alabama
 
This lathe is relatively close to me. I can't find any information on it. I'm thinking it's too old to be a servo shift, but would like to know the specs before I make the trip.
I'm afraid of the servo-shift for fear of locating parts and I've read they only work when wired for 480v and my RPC cranks-out 240v. A transformer is one more expense, one more thing to go wrong and more lost energy in the conversion.

Facebook Marketplace: LeBlond 12" X 78" Metal Cutting Lathe with Taper Attachment 3 and 4 Jaw Chuck - Power Tools - Muscle Shoals, Alabama

Afraid of finding parts, WTF!!! Do you have a telephone? Pick it up and call them, they have parts! 480 only???? where do you people get this shit??? I have been running my Servo Shift Regal on 220 daily for years, no problem.
 
NB1283 is a 12" Heavy Duty from about 1956. The wide sloping front way gives away the HD

This lathe is relatively close to me. I can't find any information on it. I'm thinking it's too old to be a servo shift, but would like to know the specs before I make the trip.
I'm afraid of the servo-shift for fear of locating parts and I've read they only work when wired for 480v and my RPC cranks-out 240v. A transformer is one more expense, one more thing to go wrong and more lost energy in the conversion.

Facebook Marketplace: LeBlond 12" X 78" Metal Cutting Lathe with Taper Attachment 3 and 4 Jaw Chuck - Power Tools - Muscle Shoals, Alabama
 
The LeBlonde you are thinking of would be a Regal which is a lighter duty machine. This would be a 12 inch 'NB' Heavy Duty Engine Lathe. Produced from 1950 to 1957 this one is a 1956.
 
That's awesome! Thanks.

The 12" swing looks kind of small. I've been sticking to checking on lathes with 13" swing or more because that seems to be the dividing point on a hobby lathe vs a rigid commercial lathe. This one looks pretty stout. Captain Douche seems to think LeBlond keeps parts in stock for every lathe they ever made so I'm all set. I'm just curious how well this model performs.
 
That's awesome! Thanks.

The 12" swing looks kind of small. I've been sticking to checking on lathes with 13" swing or more because that seems to be the dividing point on a hobby lathe vs a rigid commercial lathe. This one looks pretty stout. Captain Douche seems to think LeBlond keeps parts in stock for every lathe they ever made so I'm all set. I'm just curious how well this model performs.

Swing has nothing to do with rigidity, how it's built does.
 
See link in Post #5 and see spec page

The lathe in question is 14 1/2" actual swing - like most heavy duty 12" lathes of the period

Also check the weight on that page - the 78" centers gets you 5100 Lbs domestic. Does not sound very "small" or "hobby type":D

Of course there are MUCH larger Le Blonds - to 50" swing at least

That's awesome! Thanks.

The 12" swing looks kind of small. I've been sticking to checking on lathes with 13" swing or more because that seems to be the dividing point on a hobby lathe vs a rigid commercial lathe. This one looks pretty stout. Captain Douche seems to think LeBlond keeps parts in stock for every lathe they ever made so I'm all set. I'm just curious how well this model performs.
 
Last edited:
Swing has nothing to do with rigidity, how it's built does.
Obviously. What I meant was with most of the lathes I've been looking at (unless it's one of those old Hardinge or Monarch precision lathes) 13x40 lathes and smaller tend to be hobby lathes and larger ones tend to have wider bed ways and heavier, more rigid chassis, more speeds without having to swap out gears, etc.
A lot of times a 480v motor can be rewired to 240v or just swapped out. The servos seem a little more involved. Especially if I want to add a VFD later on.
It's obviously not a hobby lathe.
 
Obviously. What I meant was with most of the lathes I've been looking at (unless it's one of those old Hardinge or Monarch precision lathes) 13x40 lathes and smaller tend to be hobby lathes and larger ones tend to have wider bed ways and heavier, more rigid chassis, more speeds without having to swap out gears, etc.
A lot of times a 480v motor can be rewired to 240v or just swapped out. The servos seem a little more involved. Especially if I want to add a VFD later on.
It's obviously not a hobby lathe.

Ok...I'm not sure you really know what you are talking about. But please continue because it's fairly funny:rolleyes5:
 
It's obviously not a hobby lathe.

Uhhh... welll. No shit? Not unless your hobby is arming a nation for war.

The term "Heavy Duty" is one of the most often told lies in recent human history.
LeBlond single-handedly made it not a lie.

Arsenals used Heavy Duty LeBlonds. All day, every day, all year, year after year.
SOMEBODY had to compete with Large & Shapely!

:)
 
Ok...I'm not sure you really know what you are talking about. But please continue because it's fairly funny:rolleyes5:
There are things I'm very knowledgable about, for those things I don'y have any reason to go to an online forum asking questions and leaving myself vulnerable to strangers who have nothing better to do but try to humiliate the less knowledgeable.
I'm a truck mechanic with over 25 years experience and a ton of certifications. I've even taught the subject in college. I see people far less knowledgeable than me on these subjects try to humiliate new-comers because they thought their expertise gave them that license. I think of them as bullies and see them as very weak.
So if you just check for fresh posts without the intent on contributing anything constructive and are instead looking for someone to humiliate, you found the wrong mark. I can't be humiliated by someone I view as weak.

If you would like to compare dick sizes, I'm sure the internet has plenty of gay sex sights for that.
 
There are things I'm very knowledgable about, for those things I don'y have any reason to go to an online forum asking questions and leaving myself vulnerable to strangers who have nothing better to do but try to humiliate the less knowledgeable.
I'm a truck mechanic with over 25 years experience and a ton of certifications. I've even taught the subject in college. I see people far less knowledgeable than me on these subjects try to humiliate new-comers because they thought their expertise gave them that license. I think of them as bullies and see them as very weak.
So if you just check for fresh posts without the intent on contributing anything constructive and are instead looking for someone to humiliate, you found the wrong mark. I can't be humiliated by someone I view as weak.

If you would like to compare dick sizes, I'm sure the internet has plenty of gay sex sights for that.
It's the internet...we compare keyboard sizes not dicks :)
 
There are things I'm very knowledgable about, for those things I don'y have any reason to go to an online forum asking questions and leaving myself vulnerable to strangers who have nothing better to do but try to humiliate the less knowledgeable.
I'm a truck mechanic with over 25 years experience and a ton of certifications. I've even taught the subject in college. I see people far less knowledgeable than me on these subjects try to humiliate new-comers because they thought their expertise gave them that license. I think of them as bullies and see them as very weak.
So if you just check for fresh posts without the intent on contributing anything constructive and are instead looking for someone to humiliate, you found the wrong mark. I can't be humiliated by someone I view as weak.

If you would like to compare dick sizes, I'm sure the internet has plenty of gay sex sights for that.

WOW......I guess you feel insulted, sorry for your sensitivity, but not the content. You may be a wonderful mechanic, but your assumptions and questions indicate your ignorance about lathes. Suck it up, it's true, but that's not a crime nor should you be insulted by that statement. You asked a question and you got the answers you wanted. It is a great lathe at a decent price. There is no way anyone on this forum can estimate condition, it would have to be inspected by a knowledgeable person. Here's a tip. If you want to play on this forum, knock that chip off your shoulder and you will be very welcome.
 
We are an ornery bunch here, but we like to have fun too. Just because we poke fun at your shortcomings doesn't mean we are mean, it just means you gave us something to poke fun at. It happens to everyone, 3 posts or 3000 posts. :)


Most of the guys here are highly skilled machinists and tool makers...or a least we think we are. We have no problem helping out others new or experienced but there may be a little pissing and moaning.
 
Just because no one else has mentioned it IMHO that lathe is overpriced, at least from what I can see in the pics. Looks like it’s covered in surface rust which means not only is it a project to clean it up, the current owner has likely used it very little and likely knows very little about its condition.
 
WOW......I guess you feel insulted, sorry for your sensitivity, but not the content. You may be a wonderful mechanic, but your assumptions and questions indicate your ignorance about lathes. Suck it up, it's true, but that's not a crime nor should you be insulted by that statement. You asked a question and you got the answers you wanted. It is a great lathe at a decent price. There is no way anyone on this forum can estimate condition, it would have to be inspected by a knowledgeable person. Here's a tip. If you want to play on this forum, knock that chip off your shoulder and you will be very welcome.

I am grateful. I got what I asked for and I'm grateful for that. Thank you so much.

The internet forums used to be just that, some still are. You get stuck on one little thing and ask someone online, as you would another mechanic in a shop and you get a quick answer that allows you to move on.

I ran into this in motorcycle forums. Used to be easy, now a simple question about bearing preload and you get six flamers informing you how much of a stupid ass you are, three about your credibility as a mechanic and one that actually answers your question. I just don't understand how someone gets the urge to be a flamer on internet forums.

It's like "Should I go into the shop and make more progress on my working 1/30th scale locomotive steam engine or should I scroll through postings so I can find some dude who is asking how to work their taper attachment and insult the hell out of them? Stupid question, of course I'm going to insult some dude in Iowa I've never met who's trying to learn."

One mechanic that liked trying to humiliate me when I was starting out twenty-some years ago would take it so far as trying to set me up to be fired. He was addicted to crack, meth, alcohol and who knows what else. He was a miserable POS that wanted others to be as miserable as him. He got to running his mouth in a bar one night to some dude who beat him unconscious, dragged him out to the parking lot (in front of a crowd of people that didn't even try to stop him), ran a Harley over his leg and did a burn-out on it. It took a year before he could walk again. I guess some people are better off showing their true nature behind the safety of a keyboard.
 








 
Back
Top