What's new
What's new

Monarch 10EE Lathe Day 25 October 2021

glixons

Plastic
Joined
Feb 20, 2005
Hello all,

As a retirement gift to myself, I recently had my 1959 and 1961 30" Monarch 10EEs refurbished by Monarch and converted to English-Metric, Electric Leadscrew Reverse (ELSR), Separately Adjustable Reverse Speed (SARS), Acu-Rite Digital Readout, and VFD controlled 7.5HP motor with C-face back gears. I wanted to share my excitement with one and all!

Thanks for reading,
Scott
 

Attachments

  • Monarch Lathe Day Group Photo 20211025.jpg
    Monarch Lathe Day Group Photo 20211025.jpg
    95.2 KB · Views: 309
Last edited:
Scott
A very Nice retirement present x 2.
You are one of the few if not the only one, in the world, to own two 30" I/M 10EE's.

Did you get a wiring diagram from Monarch ?

Hal
 
Fantastic! - with VFD do they then become 3 phase machines or does the VFD offer the option to go with a single phase input?

I read about your Acu-Rite but didn't see the displays/HMI/control head...did they just mount the scales parallel to the machine ways?
 
Not sure, I think one will be set up for inside jaws and the other for outside jaws or one with a chuck and the other with a 2J speed chuck. I will reserve 5C collet work for my Hardinge HLV-H-EM. Or I may just stare at them until the day I die!
 
I decided to wire the machines for single phase 7.5HP VFDs even though I have true three phase in my shop. Single phase machines will be easier to sell at my estate sale.

The Acu-Rite heads were already packed for shipment when the photo was taken.
 
The photo was taken at the Monarch factory in Sydney, Ohio on the day I acceptance tested the lathes (i.e. witnessed test cuts). Please see the attachments below for the original test cut sheets. The guy with the black tee shirt in the center is me. The guy in with the black tee shirt directly behind the 1961 headstock (on the left) is my good friend Cory. The rest are 12 of the 14 Monarch employees. I took all the loose stuff home with me since the lathes were now worth their full new price. I thought it best to ship them direct by truck fully insured in a Conestoga trailer.

Refurbishment was everything you might imagine from grinding to scraping to new bearings to the replacement of any wearable parts including new lead screws and half nuts. Essentially the only items that are original are the original castings and any gears that were not damaged.

image (1).jpgimage.jpg
 
Good on ya mate and what a cool project. Some guys buy boats and fancy cars why not have two of the finest American machine tools rebuilt. Thanks for sharing, and supporting Monarch.
 
Wow, Congratulations on your retirement & rebuild. If I had deep enough pockets, I’d do the same think. Beautiful machines.
 
Thank you for posting that picture. I recognize a few faces from when I worked at The Monarch Machine Tool Co., some 24 years ago. Still the best group of people I ever worked with.

John L.
 
The photo was taken at the Monarch factory in Sydney, Ohio on the day I acceptance tested the lathes (i.e. witnessed test cuts). Please see the attachments below for the original test cut sheets. The guy with the black tee shirt in the center is me. The guy in with the black tee shirt directly behind the 1961 headstock (on the left) is my good friend Cory. The rest are 12 of the 14 Monarch employees. I took all the loose stuff home with me since the lathes were now worth their full new price. I thought it best to ship them direct by truck fully insured in a Conestoga trailer.

Refurbishment was everything you might imagine from grinding to scraping to new bearings to the replacement of any wearable parts including new lead screws and half nuts. Essentially the only items that are original are the original castings and any gears that were not damaged.

View attachment 334744View attachment 334745

Thank you so much; it's great to see a group photograph of almost all the current staff at Monarch Lathes. Wonder if one of the women is Terrie who in the past would reply to my inquiries about parts.

For the interest of others here, based on Scott's description Monarch did what they call a "remanufacture" described here: Rebuild / Remanufacturing | Monarch Lathes

Monarch also uses the term "rebuild"; as seen on their website this is a more focussed approach with various options as to how much is done.

David
 
Thanks Don. I really had trouble deciding to do both lathes. I really only need one. When I first started dealing with Monarch in the early 2000s, they were 40 strong and now they are 14. They have a decent amount of US Government work and rebuilds (50-50) but they have an aging workforce with a tremendous amount of institutional knowledge. I know that Monarch is a limited partnership of three and two of them are elderly and are probably interested in selling the company. So the question was if I don't rebuild the second machine, Monarch may not be around in its current form to rebuild it later. Just like parrots who live more than 100 years, my unicorn lathes will out live me and I will have to provide for them a good home. BTW, I was think about donating one of them to a museum but not now, as I am not done staring at them.

Scott
 
Thanks Don. I really had trouble deciding to do both lathes. I really only need one. When I first started dealing with Monarch in the early 2000s, they were 40 strong and now they are 14. They have a decent amount of US Government work and rebuilds (50-50) but they have an aging workforce with a tremendous amount of institutional knowledge. I know that Monarch is a limited partnership of three and two of them are elderly and are probably interested in selling the company. So the question was if I don't rebuild the second machine, Monarch may not be around in its current form to rebuild it later. Just like parrots who live more than 100 years, my unicorn lathes will out live me and I will have to provide for them a good home. BTW, I was think about donating one of them to a museum but not now, as I am not done staring at them.

Scott

Thank you for this. It's good to get information about Monarch from someone who has a history of direct dealings with them.

David
 
Scott,

It is interesting that you mention donating a machine to a museum. I have considered this, in the end a donation like a machine may not end up as envisioned. Stories of organizations selling off donations that were intended to be curated pieces. If you choose to do this get a written agreement with the entity that your donation will be used in the manner you intended or the donation is void.

The value of these is as much intrinsic as it is utility, while they are still fantastic machines collector value is the market. Like fine watches or classic cars/motorcycles these machines are a relic of our mechanical past. Superb craftsmanship and elegant design never go out of style. Our cherished Monarch lathes like other classics still have a place in the heart of folks that revere the excellence of engineering and design these machines represent.

Personally I could see my whole shop turned into a museum!

Steve
 
Wow, Scott. You're like a savior of a great era in machinery. I would love to be at that level. I had to practically pull my 10EE from a scrap heap and repower it to bring her new life. Would love to be at your level of commitment, but military service and years of teaching never put me at level that make buying even one of those beauties a possibility. Just let me stand back and admire.. Thank you. Don
 








 
Back
Top