Help needed to identify SB 9 please

442freak · Mar 22, 2021

Hello everyone. Was told this is the place to go to find out info on this lathe. Purchased it this last weekend on a whim. Only info I got from the person selling it was the man who owned it passed away from complications due to covid. He took care of it and had it for many years. No tags, no serial number, no date stamps anywhere. All gears are clean and not missing teeth. Ways look decent. Lots of backlash on the compound. Countershaft and motor on a home made bracket. Looks pretty clean and oiled, but unfortunately I know nothing about it or lathes. I want to restore it if worth it and learn to use it properly. Any help would be appreciated. I will follow with pictures.

442freak · Mar 22, 2021

They included a bunch of tools

442freak · Mar 22, 2021

442freak · Mar 22, 2021

jim rozen · Mar 22, 2021

This is a *very* unusual lathe. The bed appears to be home-made, starting from pieces of steel channel. The triangular prismatic ways on the top have been attached in some fashion that I cannot figure out from the photos.

The rest of the parts (headstock tailstock, carriage, etch are indeed from a southbend lathe. I would be interested to know the distance from the centerline of the headstock spindle, to the top of the flat ways.

johnoder · Mar 22, 2021

Has Series O apron - a SB series discontinued over 80 years back

unfortunately I know nothing about it or lathes.

A place to start correcting that

http://vintagemachinery.org/pubs/1617/5795.pdf

have fun

442freak · Mar 22, 2021

Interesting. I have been trying to research about this lathe and have noticed from other SB 9 lathes that I have seen on pictures and videos that none look like this one, similar, but things like the legs, the fact that I cannot attach a countershaft drive tensioner on the stock location, no stamping anywhere, makes me wonder. I live close to Chicago, someone mentioned that maybe it was a South Bend employee's lathe that he made from parts he took. lol
Took pictures underneath the triangular way so that you can see how they are attached and measurements.

442freak · Mar 22, 2021

The legs and under

mcload · Mar 22, 2021

Someone sure did go to an awful lot of work to make that lathe. Got to wonder how straight the bed is
without any webbing or precision stand-off pieces between the channels. Will have to give him an
"A" for effort tho. Hope you didn't pay a lot for it.

PMc

jim rozen · Mar 22, 2021

At first glance it appears the V-ways are screwed on from underneath. Somebody went to a tremendous amount of work to build this bed.

Homebrewblob · Mar 22, 2021

Wild! That’s a whole lot of work!

Looks like someone really wanted a lathe and had a pile or parts/machine shop to build one.

Gives me vibes.

I would personally think the dollar amount on this lathe is measured in $ per ton.

And there’s no way to “restore” that lathe, it’s a true 1 of a kind in the worst way.

You said the ways were “decent”?

Dude that’s like steel girders, Accuracy measured in inches...

mcload · Mar 22, 2021

You never know. Given the tenacity of it's maker along with a decent SB lathe saddle/compound, I'll bet it got used
more than we think. Maybe tolerances were bit wide, but still, I'll bet it will cut just fine. Like almost any project, you
sneak up on the last couple thousandths. Would make a good wood lathe too!
Just sayin'!

PMc

442freak · Mar 23, 2021

Oh wow, I knew something was up with this lathe. I'm glad I came here and asked. Thank you guys for your inputs.. I did not pay a whole lot for it and figured it would be something good to learn on. I break it, im not out thousands.

Pretty cool machine though. I actually like that someone many years ago decided to build it. Lots of work I can imagine. At the very least its a one of a kind. Lol! It will be a fun project to play and learn with. Plus great way to bond with my kids. They are excited to learn also and we need this.
Thank you gentlemen !

jim rozen · Mar 23, 2021

The way that bed is constructed? You couldn't break it with dynamite.

M.B. Naegle · Mar 23, 2021

Even though it's "unique," The way the head stock is mounted looks like the slightest vibration could knock out out of whack. That and I don't think that the cast iron elements running along a structural-steel bed will wear nicely :confused:

.

If it was me, I'd get on eBay and buy one of the 9" SB beds that pop up on there from time to time. If you were to use it in the mean-time, don't get to cocky with your feed/depth-of-cut, and keep lots of oil under the carriage and tail-stock. One advantage of these old tool-room lathes is that if you get in a bind, your belt might slip or you break your cutter, but otherwise they hold up well. This lathe adds a whole lot of ???? into things that can go wrong or give issue.

IMO the lathe needs to be fixed, but the old bed is worth throwing under the bench as a conversation piece. I can imagine the builder had a very worn-out lathe or one that was dropped and cracked so he made due the best he could. It reminds me that the world turned just fine before we had everything at our fingertips via the web.

M.B. Naegle · Mar 23, 2021

I'll add too, that for the right price, you still did very well considering all the tooling you got in the deal. It's an odd-ball, but it "works" right? Even if the lathe gives you a ton of issues and it becomes a parts machine, you can come out ahead financially and have a better understanding of how the base/frame of a machine effects things.

mcload · Mar 23, 2021

442Freak: (as in Oldsmobile?)

Be certain to keep everything on that lathe very well oiled, especially in those little oiler caps.
You can't over oil it!

I would also suggest getting an inexpensive book from Amazon "How To Run A Lathe"

https://www.amazon.com/dp/1614274746/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_WFD6MX6D6C4GXH9GS6Q8

You can probably find it on the Internet for free too. But it will answer a lot of very basic operation questions
as well as tool shapes and geometry.

You can also find some very good informational/tutorial videos on YouTube if you just look around.
Here's a good lathe "overview" video:
https://youtu.be/KYh67NbAiKw

Most of all, work safely! A lathe can be very unforgiving!

PMc

mattthemuppet · Mar 23, 2021

M.B. Naegle said:
Even though it's "unique," The way the head stock is mounted looks like the slightest vibration could knock out out of whack. That and I don't think that the cast iron elements running along a structural-steel bed will wear nicely.

If it was me, I'd get on eBay and buy one of the 9" SB beds that pop up on there from time to time. If you were to use it in the mean-time, don't get to cocky with your feed/depth-of-cut, and keep lots of oil under the carriage and tail-stock. One advantage of these old tool-room lathes is that if you get in a bind, your belt might slip or you break your cutter, but otherwise they hold up well. This lathe adds a whole lot of ???? into things that can go wrong or give issue.

IMO the lathe needs to be fixed, but the old bed is worth throwing under the bench as a conversation piece. I can imagine the builder had a very worn-out lathe or one that was dropped and cracked so he made due the best he could. It reminds me that the world turned just fine before we had everything at our fingertips via the web.

I'm not sure a regular SB9 bed would fit - the generation of SB9 lathes that headstock and carriage came from included the "wide" 9, which has a bed an inch wider than the later workshop 9s.

At the end of the day, if it works, use it. If it doesn't, part it out and use the proceeds to buy a better lathe.

mcload · Mar 23, 2021

mattthemuppet said:
At the end of the day, if it works, use it. If it doesn't, part it out and use the proceeds to buy a better lathe.

I agree....I wouldn't go to the expense of buying another used bed. You'll never get that money back should you try to sell the Frankenlathe.
Better off with an original later year model from 50's or 60's with more features. Don't consider anything without a gearbox!
(PS: good luck keeping the kiddos engaged!)

PMc

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pavt · Mar 23, 2021

Wow that really is unique. I don't think that style of drill chuck has been made since the 1920's. Maybe that will help date it. It's really impressive that somebody was motivated enough to do a home-made bed, that makes this machine one-of-a-kind. Questionable accuracy and longevity though. It is impossible to over-oil this kind, use as much oil as you can on it. The Middle East is going to claim my lathe bed when I pass on, that is how much oil I use.
In your photos, all the accessories and gears etc. If you clean them up and polish all the rust etc off, there's probably several hundred $$$ worth of stuff there, at least.

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