THE WALKER-TURNER THREAD - Post your Walker-Turner pics

[Bryan Burns]

@Bryan Burns that is a very late model 1200 series that manufactured after 1956 because of the Rockwell logo on the badge. There is a possibility that the hole might be too large.

After hooking the spring on the pin you should have the spring housing as close to the drill press head as possible. Rotate the housing counterclockwise while allowing the notches in the housing to skip over the boss. Once you've achieved the proper tension, place the nearest housing notch over the boss and insert the spring housing retention screw. Screw it down just tight enough so that the housing will not slip out of the boss and test the spindle return. If it feels right, tighten it down. If you continue having the spring slip off the pin - and it does look like an original pin, you may have to drill a smaller hole in that return spring and fabricate a t-slot. Sawmill has the right idea in that a t-slot is ideal and the way it came from Walker Turner. This is more than likely an aftermarket spring.

Here is an exploded view of your model for future reference:

I thank you immensely.

 

[Hoorn]

@Bryan Burns here is a picture of an actual Walker Turner feed return spring. As you can see it has the t-slot type connection with the end slightly curved to create tension.

 

[Bryan Burns]

@Bryan Burns here is a picture of an actual Walker Turner feed return spring. As you can see it has the t-slot type connection with the end slightly curved to create tension.

This is very helpful! Thanks! I will attempt to drill a slot from the existing hole on mine as well as short the tail. I don't have a die grinder and am thinking of using a Dremel but maybe this is the excuse I need to by an M12 die grinder.

 

[shoot summ]

Found my next project, was looking at a unisaw on FBM and saw it in the background, wasn't for sale at the time but I worked a deal. Unfortunately it isn't a WT, I snagged a '40's Delta 6x48 sander on the CI base. I feel OK about my disloyalty to WT as I can't find that they ever produced a 6x48 on a CI base. I can post pics if you want but I don't want to pollute the WT thread.

 

[csp]

Found my next project, was looking at a unisaw on FBM and saw it in the background, wasn't for sale at the time but I worked a deal. Unfortunately it isn't a WT, I snagged a '40's Delta 6x48 sander on the CI base. I feel OK about my disloyalty to WT as I can't find that they ever produced a 6x48 on a CI base. I can post pics if you want but I don't want to pollute the WT thread.

Post it in the Delta thread.

1930-60s DELTA / ROCKWELL picture thread - Post your Delta!

I thought it was high time we started a Delta Manufacturing Co. / Delta Rockwell thread mostly covering the Milwaukee years, to discuss and post all your Delta/Delta Rockwell stuff. "Delta Specialty Company" was started in 1919 by machinist Herbert Tautz while working out of his garage...

www.garagejournal.com

 

[Nutria]

Another Walker-Turner 900, previously posted in the "old drill press" thread.

 

[Hoorn]

@Nutria that's a glorious example of a well restored 900. Beautiful, thanks for posting.

 

[pmcgowan]

1953-56 Walker Turner 20” Drill Press Model 1143-31, 3 Phase 220, 1HP. Rockwell Motor — I picked up this 20” Walker Turner drill press back in December of 2020. The farmer I bought it from purchased the machine from a local high school that was auctioning off their shop equipment. After some investigating and a keen eye from a fellow machine nerd I discovered that this machine was originally owned by the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. Hence the “LLNL” engraved on the original machine tag. The drill press was in relatively good shape with no major missing components or damage. The table had its fair share of “rook” marks and the belt guard was a bit dented up but that was about it. This machine has been completely rebuilt from the ground up and works flawlessly now. The table lift mechanism moves the table effortlessly up and down. The table traverses 360 degrees with the push of a finger. The holes in the table were filled with cast iron nickel alloy rods. I then sent the table out to have it Blanchard ground. The MT3 spindle was completely rebuilt with new bearings and it received a new to me Jacobs 18N chuck. The bearings in the motor were replaced, an original Cutler Hammer switch was installed, and all of the three phase wiring was redone. This machine has two unique features as well. First, it has the power feed option which, when engaged, allows the spindle to actuate on its own drilling a hole at the desired speed and feed rate you have chosen. Second, the main spindle pulley has a planetary gear system inside of it, allowing for two modes of operation. In the first mode the planetary gear set up is not engaged and this typically gives you faster spindle speeds based on the step of the pulley your belt is on. The second mode engages the planetary gears and reduces the spindle speed significantly, again based on the pulley step you are on. Needless to say this is one fantastic machine and I am looking forward to it being a central part of my shop. This drill press is a bit of an oddity as it comes from the era when Kearny Trecker owned Walker Turner, but it has a Rockwell motor. Rockwell eventually bought out Walker Turner from Kearny Trecker. All of this leads me to believe that this is not the original motor on this machine. Also while the planetary geared spindle pulley was OEM to Delta/Rockwell machines of the era it was I do not believe it was OEM to the Walker Turner machines or at least I have not been able to find evidence of this so far. The geared pulley was most likely added at some point in its service life.

 

[pmcgowan]

Additional Images.

 

[Hoorn]

@pmcgowan a spectacular restoration of a grand W-T machine that had three companies worth of transition built in. Medical grade clean!

 

[Rick_Br]

I have a very similar machine sitting in pieces waiting for my attention. Mine has the cast iron cover - not sure if yours does or not. Mine also has a WT branded motor.

Rick

 

[pmcgowan]

I have a very similar machine sitting in pieces waiting for my attention. Mine has the cast iron cover - not sure if yours does or not. Mine also has a WT branded motor.

Rick

Rick, that would be the slightly older model. Mine has the sheet metal cover which was built during the Rockwell era. Rockwell changed the head casting a few other parts but kept some of the original Walker Turner parts. It is still essentially the same drill.

 

[Hoorn]

Wrapped up a complete tear down of this Kingston-Conley made W-T motor.





I've never been fond of the large capacitor housing atop The W-T motors, but I'm a slave to "era correct" and did not want to substitute one of my Delta or Craftsman repulsion induction motors.

Here it is mounted on the bandsaw. You'll notice the cast iron cradle it's on has a sliding arm, this allows you to lower it when placing the motor within, and then raising it into position once bolted down.





Of note, the motor pulley is solid cast iron and weighs 4.5 pounds.



Wired up to the switch.



It runs quite smoothly and when I place the belt on the smallest diameter sheave, when engaged with the metal cutting gearbox, you can easily count the spokes on the drive wheel as it crawls around at 180 RPM. Only thing left to do now is get some tires and a nice blade.

 

[Tarnished]

Wrapped up a complete tear down of this Kingston-Conley made W-T motor.





I've never been fond of the large capacitor housing atop The W-T motors, but I'm a slave to "era correct" and did not want to substitute one of my Delta or Craftsman repulsion induction motors.

Here it is mounted on the bandsaw. You'll notice the cast iron cradle it's on has a sliding arm, this allows you to lower it when placing the motor within, and then raising it into position once bolted down.





Of note, the motor pulley is solid cast iron and weighs 4.5 pounds.



Wired up to the switch.



It runs quite smoothly and when I place the belt on the smallest diameter sheave, when engaged with the metal cutting gearbox, you can easily count the spokes on the drive wheel as it crawls around at 180 RPM. Only thing left to do now is get some tires and a nice blade.

Stunning as always Hoorn. That was a quick turn around. Thanks for showing.

 

[shoot summ]

Wrapped up a complete tear down of this Kingston-Conley made W-T motor.





I've never been fond of the large capacitor housing atop The W-T motors, but I'm a slave to "era correct" and did not want to substitute one of my Delta or Craftsman repulsion induction motors.

Here it is mounted on the bandsaw. You'll notice the cast iron cradle it's on has a sliding arm, this allows you to lower it when placing the motor within, and then raising it into position once bolted down.





Of note, the motor pulley is solid cast iron and weighs 4.5 pounds.



Wired up to the switch.



It runs quite smoothly and when I place the belt on the smallest diameter sheave, when engaged with the metal cutting gearbox, you can easily count the spokes on the drive wheel as it crawls around at 180 RPM. Only thing left to do now is get some tires and a nice blade.

Beautiful, I love my WT bandsaw, it is on my list to spruce up some day.

 

[Hoorn]

One of the things I've been on the lookout for since I started my WT bandsaw project is an era correct ripsaw fence. I found this 8-in tilty complete with geared miter guage and the correct 9BN80 fence on FB MP and offered $40 which was accepted.



Here is a different angle from another picture as advertised. I was apprehensive about the garden spigot handle in place of the original but figured the price was cheap so why not. The miter gauge alone was worth it.



These two examples are what an original Walker Turner bandsaw fence should look like. The locking handle is what should be on mine.





Once home I took it apart and stripped the paint off the cast iron body. I backed out the locking screw which had the garden spigot handle brazed onto it. Cutting off portions of it and using a punch I got the two pieces separated. Although I didn't take a picture of it, the top of the screw had been formed into a precise square to fit inside the handle.

The screw is 1/2-in and I had to taper the end to 7/16-in while knocking off the edges and getting rid of the "square". Once uniformly tapered, I used a Greenfield die to grind out some threads.



So here's the secret, although they look virtually identical, this is not a WT locking handle but a Delta. Fit like a glove on the newly cut threads.



And I've now got myself an era correct WT ripsaw fence for my bandsaw. I have the actual welded steel fence under plastic with a bunch of CitraStrip removing the old paint.





Here is the geared miter gauge that came with the tilty. I haven't addressed it yet but it's in fantastic shape.



Before I had even left my home I looked at some of the other items the seller offered and scooped up a 1930s 3/4 HP Delta repulsion induction motor that runs silky smooth. I will buy these all day long at that price.

 

[shoot summ]

Nice score, I need to come up with the fence for my bandsaw, I have something that Dad put together, no idea what it is from. I will be on the lookout for an old TS now on the cheap...

I see people asking big dollars for the geared miter gauges.

 

[Tarnished]

Nice score, I need to come up with the fence for my bandsaw, I have something that Dad put together, no idea what it is from. I will be on the lookout for an old TS now on the cheap...

I see people asking big dollars for the geared miter gauges.

So Hoorn, you've done it again! Love the Miter. Wish I could find the 3/4hp like that for $. Nice work!

 

[Hoorn]

@Tarnished appreciate the kind words brother.
I've always liked those geared Walker Turner miter gauges best.

I did clean up the miter gauge, once I got past the layer of dirt and grime there was too much scratched up black paint for me. I'll leave it bare die-cast metal for now and decide whether I want to paint it black in the future.









For that locking handle, I reached into one of my "spare Delta parts" drawers, still got a few left.

 

[Hoorn]

The Benjamin Moore alkyd enamel I had matched to Walker Turner's gray green was dead on. Here is a hand knob from The 1930s W-T 8-in tilty next to that mixed paint.

 

[Hoorn]

Wrapped up the era correct 9BN80 rip fence.





For the rail support I took a 7/16 stainless screw, cut off the head and re-cut the threads. Over the threads I slid a steel sleeve and attached an aluminum collar on the end. Slides smoothly across the rail and when locked down it is rock solid.



I was attempting to replicate what is seen on this fence.



Already cut a gorgeous piece of maple to bolt up along the side of the fence. Although dry, I'll give the paint a couple more days to cure.

 

[Tarnished]

Wrapped up the era correct 9BN80 rip fence.

Beautiful resto on that WT saw Hoorn! That is One Nice Saw! Love to see your work, and posts. Now I need to look for that miter. LOL.
Will this be a keeper?

 

[Hoorn]

Thanks Tarnished, and yes sir! I've had several moments in the last 6 months or so where I could have really used a band saw, so this is a keeper. Once "emotional attachment" sets in with a machine I'm working on, it'll never get sold.

 

[Northfield]

I have a W/T 16" bandsaw in great shape except the round badge on the upper guard is missing. Anyone out there have a source or one for sale? Likely a hard item to locate!

 

[Hoorn]

Instagram
@kingtutley

 

[shoot summ]

Missed this one today, $150, the blade guard would probably fetch that much on ebay...

 

[xnology]

Love the W-T thread! I just got an old motor cleaned up and running. Love this thing!

As I got it.

And cleaned up.

Dual power 1/3 & 1/2 HP

As far as I’ve been able to find, it looks to be a 1936 model based on the badge logo. From vintage machinery web, a couple of screen shots one from 36 - the introduction of the dual power and one from 37 with the new badge. Then end bell cover looks to have changed as well.

 

[ronits]

@shoot summ a real beautiful DP 900 you have there. Because of the badge, a pre 1939. To have the slow speed pulley and ships wheel on one drill press, with a fairly clean table no less, is not common.

Larger drill presses from the 1940s and beyond, usually 17-in and greater had a built-in table lift. Drill presses in the 14/15-in range typically did not have a table lift and it was an accessory. This was the case with Atlas, Walker-Turner, Delta, Craftsman, etc.

Here is the DP 900 drill press table lift (incorrectly mounted upside down):







Here it is in the 1941 WT catalog; note it has wheel crank in the illustration, it would stay this way up until the sale to Kearney-Trecker despite it being a ball crank:



I would add a Walker Turner table lift is pretty difficult to find. I have had one and it's lift capability was not adequate or smooth. I did not care for the way it was designed, too spindly and thin, therefore I sold it.

This is my 1958 Craftsman drill press with the Atlas made head and table lift which works very well:





Ironic that the drill presses of a by gone era were made so much better but lacked basic accessories such as a table lift or light. These had to be purchased separately.

Have a floor model WT 900, came with slow speed, table lift with ball crank and belt guard, paid $163 total for it! A steal for sure. within an yr I have acquired a mint production table (gotta love that cast bowl there!) and a vintage style (solid hand wheel) with a 29" or so lead screw. It came off a 1934 drill press that I got for $50, but had to drive 3hrs one way to get it. well worth it. And I know these WT lifts are not the greatest, especially with the latter clamp type nut that pulls and pushes on the machined flange around the table, what happens is it binds on the lead screw itself and creates a lot of friction and wear. Not a great design. the idea is to eliminate all that moment being created. the earlier lower round drum shaped collar is the way to go! The atlas/craftsman lift mechanism is more beefier and should work much better. I acquired parts for it, missing handle and lead screw. ordered the lead screw on McMaster ($100, 4140 precision lead screw) will need machining before it will fit. will do some mods like adding needle bearings where possible and steel gears. I plan on using it on the WT900 and the WT lift for the head, i know the atlas/craftsman lift can lift the head as well as the table but I do love the hand wheel of the WT and wish to keep that on the machine as well for looks more than anything! what amazing cool looking vintage drill presses, atlas/craftsman and WT!

 

[Hoorn]

I bought a late model W-T bandsaw with a cast iron base I found on MP for $200.





This badge tells us it was made between 1953-56, the serial number will not break it down to a specific year.



Because it's such a late model, here are some interesting design changes. Both the upper doors and lower wheel cover are aluminum as a weight saving measure versus cast iron.





The cast iron door is about 1/4" wider.



Because of the narrower width, the door knobs were made shorter as well.



I needed several small parts for my upper and lower blade guard, but as a bonus the table angle gauge was in great shape, so after some polishing I swapped it out.

 

[bmwrd0]

I found this old guy over the weekend

and I figure that for $3, I didn't have much to lose if it turns out to be nothing more than scrap. They couldn't get it to work when I was picking it up, so they loaded it in the back of my truck for me.

Ugly, isn't it, with wiring that is a complete disaster

It actually wasn't too bad, once I took a bit of time to get rid of all the newer stuff that had been done


Wired in a new (temporary) pigtail

And she runs!

Badge is pretty shot

But near as I can decipher, it is a KEB5, 1/2HP, 3450rpm, 110vac motor, as a motor just like that is in the '38 catalog. The overspray, rust, and dirt seems to clean up nicely with a little Simple Green and a stiff brush, so as soon as I get it wear I want, a drum switch will be connected and she will power my Pratt &Whitney benchtop mill.

 

[Hoorn]

@bmwrd0 you got yourself a nice project there, will be rewarding to get that thing looking new.

 

[bmwrd0]

I finally found a stand worthy of my W-T 1/2hp grinder:

Tucked in the corner next to a W-T 900 DP and a Pratt Whitney mill.

 

[xnology]

New to the work bench.

I picked up a ‘37 J505 scroll saw this summer. Finally got it up on the bench. I know there’s nothing super special about these little guys, but the vintage nature of it and its industrial design just speaks to me.



It might not be accurate, but looking through all the publications, this guy shows up in ‘37 with the logo on the front of the crank case. I don’t recall how long the 14” was produced.

 

[shoot summ]

New to the work bench.

I picked up a ‘37 J505 scroll saw this summer. Finally got it up on the bench. I know there’s nothing super special about these little guys, but the vintage nature of it and its industrial design just speaks to me.



It might not be accurate, but looking through all the publications, this guy shows up in ‘37 with the logo on the front of the crank case. I don’t recall how long the 14” was produced.

I watched this one keep dropping on price, it was about 4 hours away from me. Last price on the ad was $60, I suspect it went for less. I really wanted it.

 

[Beerhippie]

Another variation on a Walker-Turner scroll saw:

As found at my favorite kind of yard sale--huge yard (pasture) full of piles and boxes of junk, **** and gems-in-the-rough.

It's a W-T, rebadged for Craftsman. I've found very little documentation on it, but it's mentioned as "the older model" in this #J740 brochure, second page, bottom right and third page: http://vintagemachinery.org/pubs/808/2860.pdf

Based on the part #s and other stuff, I'm calling this model JS3XX.

Refinished and working:

Motor from the same yard sale--it might be the motor that came with the saw.

https://flic.kr/p/2pYz7e4
The entire tear-down and rebuild is here: https://www.garagejournal.com/forum/threads/craftsman-by-walker-turner-sj-30-scroll-saw.534153/

 

[Nutria]

As found at my favorite kind of yard sale--huge yard (pasture) full of piles and boxes of junk, **** and gems-in-the-rough.

Just the stuff in the field of view is impressive. Great find and save-- beautiful machine.

 

[LindaPass]

Any idea what equipment this goes with?

 

[Hoorn]

@LindaPass Hi Linda, and welcome to garage journal. This is the Walker Turner thread dealing with W-T machines or those related.

Was there a badge or casting, perhaps a serial number that led you to believe this was related to Walker Turner?

 

[shoot summ]

These two showed up on Marketplace in Houston, $200, I don't have room for them, although I would make the drive...

 

[harleyberger]

I found this Walker-Turner Driver Line ratchet and socket set at an estate sale this weekend. Can't find any info on it. Thinking it may be a companion set that was sold with one of their power tools. Any ideas?