thinking about getting a lathe.....

[katit]

Ok. Emco sold. I wasn't able to look at it (family stuff)
I understand Clausing is better stuff then Atlas (already read on their history) and there is one for sale. MK3a

http://stlouis.craigslist.org/tls/780417794.html

What something like this worth? Is it really 12"

 

[Rory Bellows]

Another way is by going to auctions. I was at an auction today and a SB 12 x 48 sold for $220. I bid up to $210 but just don't have the money right now. Granted it wasn't hooked up to run but it had many accessories. The ways appeared perfect with zero wear. It was an older model without quick change gears. Looked like it didn't get run much and I am still kicking myself for being a cheap b*stard. Heck, I could of bought it and sold it within a few days for at least a few hundred profit.

If it's a want and not a need be patient and you will find a good deal. I'm still pissed about today. There were only three interested bidders out of the 160-180 people there. One bowed out when I hit $180. Damn, if I only had a little more extra $$$ I'd be making chips tonight!

 

[katit]

Another way is by going to auctions.

What is a place to look at auctions? I don't even know how to figure out when and where they happen. Also, is items listed before auction so I know "my stuff" will be there? My time is not cheap, so if I go - I would like to go after something I know.

 

[Rory Bellows]

Here you go.

http://www.auctionzip.com/

 

[katit]

Looked at one lathe today. It's Clausing 100 (same Atlas 4800) mk3A made by clausing. It's all complete. Only clutch missing. Seem to be cared for very well and it's got tools and stuff that come with it. Bunch of cutters, set of collets, manual, spare motor, etc.
http://www.lathes.co.uk/clausing/page17.html

It's got automatic feed and cross-feed.

The only problem is that it's heavy to the point where I can't handle it myself and it needs to be pulled out of the basement and back into my basement. It's like 1000lb I think. I contacted movers and they want $220 to move it.

Guy want's 950 for it and he won't budge. I'm wondering if it's really worth it.

 

[Graham08]

I think that is worth $950. You're getting 3 and 4 jaw chucks, a steady rest, collets, and some misc. tooling. In addition, the lathe is fitted with a taper attachment, and IIRC correctly, those are tough to find for the little Clausings. That is a 12" swing lathe, and I think the through hole is 1 3/8", with 5C collets, which is plenty of capability for most projects.

You may be able to dismantle the lathe into smaller pieces to make it manageable to get into your basement.

 

[katit]

I did some research on this lathe and it seems that it's rare model and parts are very hard to get. So, from one side - it's all stocked up, but from another side - it's kind of rare and hard to maintain lathe.

Southbend with the same tooling may end up costing little more, but if we count cost of transporation and easy to find parts/following - SouthBend may look more appealing.

Am I correct or I should jump on that deal?

 

[Uncle Buck]

I did some research on this lathe and it seems that it's rare model and parts are very hard to get. So, from one side - it's all stocked up, but from another side - it's kind of rare and hard to maintain lathe.

Southbend with the same tooling may end up costing little more, but if we count cost of transporation and easy to find parts/following - SouthBend may look more appealing.

Am I correct or I should jump on that deal?

Yes I think you are correct, and yes I think you should jump on it. I think the price is fair for what he has even considering the moving expense. It has roller bearings and not babbit which is also a plus. Additionally, you could buy it, use it for a while and keep looking for a Heavy 10 (yes a better machine) in the meanwhile you still have a decent lathe to use that I think you could easily get your money out of if you find a Heavy 10 at your price point. Another good reason to buy it is once you have it, it will take the edge off of your wanting a lathe and you will not be so apt to prematurely pull the trigger on the wrong machine. I think it had QC gears didn't it?

 

[katit]

Not sure about terminology but it does have "automatic" gearbox. No need to swap gears or anything.
http://www.lathes.co.uk/clausing/page13.html
It's missing clutch though. Previous owner took it off and current owner never found replacement.

I wonder why it's still there for it's price then. He listed it more then a month ago and during this time I missed 2 other lathes(my wife had a baby) which wasn't nearly completed as this one. Like that Emco with milling attachement didn't have much and had broken parts. Yet it was sold in a week for $700. Old Atlas/Craftsman was sold for 900

I wonder if portability is a problem here. Some guys like me looking for smaller lathe don't want to deal with moving this one and guys who look for "real stuff" don't care about small machine like that. It looks like I may have same problems selling it later.

Maybe I'm thinking too much I don't have real urge to buy and I don't feel like dealing with reselling later. I need to make some bushing tools for my car right now ($450 to buy) but again it's not urgent. And I may move next year and will have to deal with it again..

 

[Uncle Buck]

The referrence to "automatic" as opposed to the term "simplified" which is also referrenced in the link is simply another way of saying a "quick change gearbox equipped machine would be the automatic, and manual change gears would be the referrence to simplified. I do not know anything about the clutch of which you speak, you should PM a question about the clutch to OCG he might have an idea about the clutch. The only thing I can think of for the clutch would be for speed changes on the belt which might still be accomplished manually. (just a guess on the belt speed thing thing though)

 

[katit]

it's

A combined cone-clutch and brake unit, built into the 3-step V pulley on the countershaft and with its operating-lever pivot on the right-hand side of the headstock cover, became an option on all but the "Dual" lathe - where it was fitted as standard. To operate the clutch the lever was moved to the right - whilst to bring the (external-band) brake into play - and arrest the rotational progress of the 56 lb lump of cast iron bolted to the faceplate - it was pushed further to the right.


On another note, how does this look for $500 less? All tooling to start doing simple stuff
http://stlouis.craigslist.org/tls/755107000.html

 

[OldCarGuy]

Looked at one lathe today. It's Clausing 100 (same Atlas 4800) mk3A made by clausing. It's all complete. Only clutch missing. Seem to be cared for very well and it's got tools and stuff that come with it. Bunch of cutters, set of collets, manual, spare motor, etc.
http://www.lathes.co.uk/clausing/page17.html

It's got automatic feed and cross-feed.

The only problem is that it's heavy to the point where I can't handle it myself and it needs to be pulled out of the basement and back into my basement. It's like 1000lb I think. I contacted movers and they want $220 to move it.

Guy want's 950 for it and he won't budge. I'm wondering if it's really worth it.

The lathe that you're looking at is a direct belt drive with a set of back gears for lower RPM's. Just like a south bend lathe. And doesn't use a clutch to engage or stop the spindle. You simply start and stop the motor. The owner may be referring to the mechanisms that controls the two feeds. Used to protect the lead screw from being damaged if any feed is run to end of travel. I cannot imagine that it would be hard to find or make the correct replacements to get that up and running.

Clausing makes a nice lathe. The pictures look as if it was well taken care of. And has the basic tooling such as a three and four jaw chucks, face plate, 5C collet setup, and tool post. Between the condition that it appears to be in and having a taper attachment,, I'd say it's well worth the asking price. As far as the weight for moving, you could easily disassemble enough components to make it manageable by two men to move it down stairs. To me the taper attachment would make the sale. It's easily worth half the asking price alone...

 

[Uncle Buck]

it's

A combined cone-clutch and brake unit, built into the 3-step V pulley on the countershaft and with its operating-lever pivot on the right-hand side of the headstock cover, became an option on all but the "Dual" lathe - where it was fitted as standard. To operate the clutch the lever was moved to the right - whilst to bring the (external-band) brake into play - and arrest the rotational progress of the 56 lb lump of cast iron bolted to the faceplate - it was pushed further to the right.


On another note, how does this look for $500 less? All tooling to start doing simple stuff
http://stlouis.craigslist.org/tls/755107000.html

I would pass on that old Crafty/Atlas machine. I started with one just like it, it likely has babbit bearings in the headstock, is not QC equipped and not nearly the machine the first one displayed is. If you fiddle around much longer the Clausing will go away. My 2 bits.

 

[G1K]

I would pass on that old Crafty/Atlas machine. I started with one just like it, it likely has babbit bearings in the headstock, is not QC equipped and not nearly the machine the first one displayed is. If you fiddle around much longer the Clausing will go away. My 2 bits.

+1. You probably won't regret getting the clausing, you'll quickly tire of the c-man/atlas. I know this from experience.

R