newbie needs advise

First off I would like to congratulate the members on the wealth of knowledge they bring to this forum. It is also refreshing to see such a generally respectful tone, often lacking elsewhere.

Moving along- Like most of us I would like to be a careful planner and not waste time and money. The 10L appears up to any task I could imagine, but I do not want to jump into a $4,000 hobby; prefering to grow into it with time and accessories.

Do the other South Bend 10's have sufficiently similar platforms (bed, keyways etc.) so I can get
a different version that needs a facelift but is otherwise compatable with the 10L for accessories?? Say an old 10R or any other 10 you care to mention. Thanks!

Not really. Some items will interchange between the 9" and the light 10 (also called to 10K), but not the 10L. I'm not sure about the 10R.

I can understand your concern about costs and not wanting to spend a big chunk at once, but the truth of the matter is that nicer well tooled machines are often the better deal. The accessories for the 10L are expensive if you have to buy them piece meal. Better to get a machine that already has them if you can afford it.

I have a nice 10L that is fully tooled that I'm thinking about selling. Send me an email if you are interested.

Zach

I think you are over-estimating the price on a heavy 10- You can get a nicely tooled one for under $2000, an untooled one for under $1000.

pete

As a point of reference, my 10L was purchased
basically untooled for $1.8K about ten years
ago, in the NY metro area. It was a fairly
modern machine with dual tumbler QC and flame
hard ways.

Photo:



One main feature that makes the 10L a nice lathe
is the large spindle bore. Because it has a
1.375 inch bore, it can use 5C tooling directly
in the spindle. It's noticeably more rigid than
a 9" SB machine and the underneath drive does
save space in tight quarters.

Jim

I'm sure there are still some nice fully tooled 10L's out there for under $2000, but not too many. To get that kind of deal, you need to stumble upon one at an estate sale or some other place where the owner doesn't know what he has. My experience was more like Jims. I bought mine from Dave at Meridian Machinery for $2,300. It came with a 6" Buck Chuck, Phase II QC tool post, collet closer and 10 collets, plain carriage stop, threading stop, threading dial, dead centers, and a live center. Mine is also a hard bed machine with the cabinet stand.

I have since added most of the other accesories including 4-jaw chuck, face plate, micrometer carriage stop, telescoping steady rest, standard follower rest, taper attachment, new cross feed lead screw (to fit the taper attachment), and a hand full of other items. I have over $1,500 into extra tooling.

Buying something that already has all the tooling is definitely the cheaper way to go.

Watch eBay. Of course price and condition go hand in hand, if the lathe is really pristine and pretty modern it is going to go for more money (Jim that's a nice looking lathe). If you buy it from a dealer you wil pay a premium as well- it can be worth it, but the more market research you do, the smarter you will be.

Mine sold on ebay well tooled- steadyrest, 3+4 jaw chucks, lever collet + collets, aloris toolpost, carriage stop, drill chucks, dog plate and center bushing for $1800- about two years ago.

Faults with the machine: it was three phase and had visible bed wear. Pluses: it had the extra large satin chrome dials and the paint was decent.

It was a good machine that I made a ton of parts with and hope the next guy is doing the same. I agree with the advice of trying to find one decently tooled- the tooling adds up quickly. Of course in buying a used machine adding the odd pieces of tooling slowly is almost a way of financing it. Also I would not be afraid of some of the dirtier lathes out there. There is a lot of life left in these machines, especially if you are not building long high precision parts.

pete

Sorry I did not follow the string properly to make individual replies so:
Thanks Zach for offering your lathe. I will of course consider it but right now it comes down to: pickup truck or lathe....lathe or pickup truck (mine was totaled by a would be foreman). Guess I need a pickup to do so on a new lathe!!@
I will keep looking around for a beater with lots of not so beaten tooling for now. (as a reloader I value my widgets and accessories far more than the machines which are easily replaced....
Thanks for the encouragement Pete. I have noticed an ebb and flow with prices but quality is never cheap. I think I may budget $1000-1300 and see what I get then find out from you all what else I need when I get stuck.
And thanks for the reference Jim.
The Heavy 10 was my choice due to recommendations by people here together with the gunsmiths (maybe one of you too?). It is about as compact as it gets for having some ass. Anything bigger continues the tradeoff between power,precision/weight,size. (being independent or just plain burned by promises of help I do not want anything in my basement I could not break down and load up on a truck by myself and I don't intend to move out my woodworking tools anytime soon)...
I have a small telescope project to work on and then we will see how often I am here!!

Many thanks and best regards, Joe

jrb - don't despair as there are 10Ls out there
in sort of rough shape that just need a bit of
TLC. My first one was 800 bucks and it would
still turn to a thousanth for six inche or so
near the headstock.

Had a ridge on the bed that was 1/32 inch
tall, but it still did decent work. Keep
your eyes out as those old machines never quit.

Jim

"Photo ..."

Jim,

I looked and looked and looked at the lathe in the backghround, and my eyes were telling me the 10 was a T-10 (Hardinge TL), NOT a 10L ... apparently being fooled by the Hardinge second op lathe in the foreground.

Your 10L's base even looks like my TL's base.

Yes, the importance of 5C tooling capability cannot be underestimated.

Even though I have 5C capability with my 10EE, it is only clumsily a 5C machine (it is a "native 12 Jarno" machine), what with the D1-3 nosepiece and separate drawtube.

My TL is superior to the EE in that one respect because it is a "native 5C", apparently like your 10L ... and 5C is, well, ubiquitous.

Peter.

Here is something that might be up your alley. Shipping would probably be the killer.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=3852184525&ssPageName=MERC_BC_RSCC_Pr4_PcY_BID_Stores

Examples of 10Ls currently up on ebay:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=57032&item=3852656099&rd=1

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=57032&item=3853163253&rd=1

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=3853442478&indexURL=1#ebayphotohosting

FWIW the auction url in the previous post is
not a lathe with a 1.375 bore spindle.

Jim

Thanks for the encouragement guys!
I may need to set my sights a bit smaller right now. Bidding on e-bay only to travel several hundred miles to be disappointed does not make a lot of sense.
How about a nice 9" Model A floor model, variable speed with lots of goodies?? The owner is local and wants me to see it (even after I told him I had my heart set on a 10L) so I think it will be in really good shape plus he's willing to negotiate. Has a 220v. three phase motor...(is that where the variable speed comes from?)
It's all I will need for a while and gives me time to keep looking for that "perfect 10".
What do you think it's worth? He's asking $1500 but will go down. Comments?
Thanks, Joe

Hey Joe, You could buy mine....

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=3853682646

I'm in the Philadelphia area. Not your back yard, but not the other end of the country either