# TOOL ROOM LATHES



## John J (Dec 29, 2007)

I have been looking at small lathes on E bay.

Some quite reasonable priced. 

What is so special about a "Tool Room Lathe"?

The one's I see do not seem to have a chuck.

Is there something missing or is this a special lathe.

JJ


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## Kovacjr (Jan 2, 2008)

Well normally is is the style being part of a cabinet. Of couse the one you posted is for production work. The left of the headstock is a quick release fot the collet. you can advance the stock without shutting down the lathe. My friend has a 10" Heavy South Bend toolroom lathe, it is nothing more than a lathe with a motor mounted below out of the way. he has both chucks and collet set up. I do prefer it to having the motor mounted behind as it takes up more depth on a table to mount.


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## Gary Armitstead (Jan 2, 2008)

A tool room lathe was used in machine shops to do small jobs where the shop would not to use the big, money-making(revenue producing) lathes being occupied. The one you have in your photo looks like it has a collet-closer attachment on the spindle. Work is held in a collet, not a chuck. The two handles on the lower part of the headstock are for changing gears to cut threads. There are feed controls on the carriage and levers for engaging the lead-screw to cut threads. Tailstock. 

JJ be careful about buying machinery on Ebay, unless you can personally eye-ball the thing. You can have warped beds, bad headstock bearings, etc. 

Rick Marty bought a real nice toolroom lathe about a year or two ago. Brand new. Maybe he can chime in here and give you a few tips.


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## John J (Dec 29, 2007)

The ones I am looking at are "Pick Up only" so there fore I get to look at it before I haul it off. 

JJ


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## xo18thfa (Jan 2, 2008)

John: What brand is that lathe? I am sure who made it has a lot to do with its quality.

Gary: Don't they also use "tool room lathes" for mass production? Set up the jigs and dedicate the machine to do a zillion of the same thing. I've also heard the term "2d operation lathe", what's that?


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## Gary Armitstead (Jan 2, 2008)

Yes Bob. They are used as dedicated mass production lathes also.


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## Larry Green (Jan 2, 2008)

A little bit of lathe background-- 

The lathe shown is a 10" swing Hardinge HLV, made in Elmira, NY. In the days of manual machine tools, a Hardinge or a Monarch were (and still are) considered the Mercedes of lathes. I bought three of them in 1984, and the price then was $19,000+ each, with Accurite DRO's included, but tooling (collets, chucks, Aloris toolposts, etc.) was extra. A set of Hardinge 5C collets by 64'ths to 1-1/8" was $1000; precision Buck 5" dia. chucks were in the $600-900 range. These are high speed machines for very precise work, not grunt stuff that can be done on the likes of a South Bend. 

By comparison, my home shop lathe is a 1943 south Bend 10" toolroom lathe that I acquired used, a former Navy machine that saw light use after the war at Rutgers University. My live steam club (NJLS) was able to get it for $200 with chucks and some collets, along with some other equipment that was being surplussed. When the members decided they wanted something a bit bigger for the club shop, I (as shop chairman) found a 13' swing South Bend in great shape , complete with tooling, for $350 at a local company that was cleaning house. A swap took place, to everyone's satisfaction. IMO, a medium sized SB is the ideal modelmaker's lathe, be it 1-1/2"scale or gauge 1. 

Larry


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