Quick questions about an available old South Bend lathe

[Mike H.]

I ran across the pictured Southbend Model A lathe on Saturday.  It was at an abandoned old machine shop where all stuff inside was being liquidated by the new tenant moving in.  (I bought a very old Delta/Rockwell band saw.)  The only other thing it said on the nameplate was:  Bed 3-1/2.  Quick questions:

1.  It takes 3-phase power.  Motor nameplate says 208-220/440V.  Is there a reasonably priced converter available to convert from 220V standard residential to something this thing can use?

2.  What would be a reasonable price?  I think he is at about a $1000 range right now.

3.  What are some things to look out for?

[rampa room artillery]

you can find better for cheaper.  just got to keep looking. i would never go any smaller then a 13x38 now that i have one.   oh the bigger they are the cheaper they are. i am looking at a 19x120 right now that is going for 1500 dollars.

  rick bryan

[Mike H.]

What "size" would this be considered?  I don't know much about metal lathes.

[1Southpaw]

although you may find cheaper , it depends what tooling comes with it . It is easy to spend another $1000 for the tools needed to do what you want . So if the 1000 $ includes  a big box of tool posts , cut off tool , boring bar, steady rest, drilling chuck ,center drills , live centers , 3 jaw,4 jaw , face plate, dog legs . etc , it may well be worth the money.

[Soot]

An important think to watch out for is bed wear.
Move the carriage all the way left to the headstock and lock it.
Then loosen the carriage lock just enough so the carriage moves smoothly.
Now move the carriage all the way to the tail stock.
Any binding is a sign of bed wear. Typically the carriage will work smoothly near the head stock and start to lock up as you move it to the right because the bed is worn down where it has been used the most. Bed wear is very expensive to repair and usually only done to very expensive lathes.
If the carriage wont lock at all it could be because the carriage has been loosened up so you cant perform this test.
South Bend lathes and the parts are plentiful and in demand, which is always something to consider.
This lathe is a 9 or 10 inch x 24 (a guess). It appears to have a collet closer and a quick change tool post (2 in the pic).
Those appear the be real Aloris tool posts. 2 Aloris tool posts new with 4-5 tool bit holders would cost well over $1000.00.
This lathe with everything pictured is probably worth over $1000.00 as long as there is no signs of bed wear.
I would complain about the 220v motor and try to get it for $800.00 - $900.00.
Smaller lathes like this are in demand and easier to sell than a large machine.

I'm no South Bend expert but after looking into it I think that's a light 10" model with 18" or 22" between centers.
http://www.lathes.co.uk/southbend/page8.html

[Mike H.]

There was an absolute ton (probably literally a ton) of accessories. All the drawers under it plus a bunch behind and to the side.

[Soot]

Grab the deal and don't look back.

[dan610324]

BUY IT

[GGaskill]

Bed wear can be a problem if you're doing precision work but it can be compensated for and really is probably not a problem for cannon making.  Try to talk him down but take $1000 in cash with you and maybe that will get you a break.  You can probably sell it for $1000 if it turns out to be something you don't want.

The 3 phase motor will not be a problem.  A buzz box is cheap and for the price of a second 3 phase motor (usually you can find these for free), you can have an idler system that gives you full power and instant reverse.  Check the Phase-A-Matic site for info regarding the idler system.  Method 2 is the idler system and it's on page 2.

[Mike H.]

I'm no South Bend expert but after looking into it I think that's a light 10" model with 18" or 22" between centers.
http://www.lathes.co.uk/southbend/page8.html

That is it. 22". It was just less than 2' when opened all the way up.   I'll call him.

[GGaskill]

Make sure you get all the collets with it, especially if they are not 5C.  The other sizes are much rarer and correspondingly more expensive to buy new.

[Mike H.]

He did not sell it over the weekend at the open sale.  He is still at $1500.  But he has no use for it, so he said he will ultimately come down if he is not able to sell it in a reasonable period of time.  He is going to list it on Craigslist in a dedicated listing and see what happens.  I am going to go back by there and check it out more thoroughly, looking at the things y'all recommended.  Maybe make a list of what all is there.  (And see what else he did not sell.)  Thanks for the help.

[GGaskill]

I paid $1500 for my 12x24 Logan 10-15 years ago and whatever too much I paid (if any) was repaid by having the machine instead of not having a machine that I got later and paid less for.  Considering the loss of value of the dollar over the last 10+ years, $1500 is still pretty cheap if you get a lot of tooling with it (a lot being at least a 3-jaw and a 4-jaw chuck plus the full selection of collets plus the quick change tool posts and tool holders for them plus a steady rest.)  Other things that would be useful are a follow rest, some ball bearing centers and some dead centers and a bull nose center for large bore cannon/mortars.  Tool bits are nice, especially if they are carbide insert ones, but otherwise, tool bits are cheap stuff compared to machine accessories.

A spare 3 phase motor of twice the horsepower of the one on the machine would be a useful throw-in as you could use it for an idler in a 3-phase generation setup.  Even a buzz box would be a few dollars saved.

Get enough stuff and $1500 will start sounding like a bargain.

And remember, South Bends have a cult following in the home shop machinist hobby so unless it is totally trashed, you can probably recover your whole investment if you don't like it.

[Mike H.]

Well, he has now listed it on Craigslist individually.  Listed at $1800, but I know he will take $1500.  After a little time maybe less.  Is this worth it, from what you see in the pics?

http://orlando.craigslist.org/tls/2315448854.html

[irishman]

Mike,

     I think you should go get it for 1500 before George does. It sounds to me that he is falling in love with it.

     The tooling has to be worth well beyond 1500. More importantly, having that variety of tools will give you the 'tools', as in 'learning', without having to buy individual tools at 3 -600.00 and beyond to learn something new. Think about Georges' comment re having his Logan for 15 years. If you keep this for 15 years and throw it away (or not) it will have cost you 100 bucks a year.

                                Michael

     

[dan610324]

if you wait another week or two you might get it for 1000
or its sold

100 a year aint that much for loads of fun
if you have it for 30 years its just 50 a year

but my guess is that you will get much more for it if you sell it in 15 years or so
quality machines will always sell for high prices , and this is a size thats easy to sell

[gulfcoastblackpowder]

Winter Park/Orlando isn't too far from me, though I'm not prepared to part with $1500 (and it wouldn't fit in my Camaro anyway ).  I think you should get it so I can visit you and learn how to turn metal!

Nice to learn some of the stuff these guys tell you about buying used machines, since I have very little experience with them!

[Soot]

Not too far from me either, I drove that far to buy my lathe.
Too bad I'm poor.

[GGaskill]

No, I am not in love with it and I don't think it will do anything my Logan won't, at least with comparable accessories.  And on top of that, it's on the other side of the country from me.  But I do think it's worth $1500 (considering how little that is worth these days) and even if you don't like it or decide you need a larger one, you wouldn't lose any money on the deal.