"How I Steal Real Lathes From Suckers". Great vid. If i ever get to feeling like mercilessly beating folks down on their well maintained lathe, I will follow this guide. Seriously though, all this makes me think a new lathe with fresh, induction hardened ways, is pretty solid value. Upgrade the motor with a fresh induction drive, and bob's the bloke your aunty calls hers.
Finally a useable how to buy a lathe video! I've asked for this info from others at your level and caliber on TH-cam and have always been ignored. This is greatly appreciated and a tremendous help!Thanks so much!
You got an unbelievable deal on that Hardinge HLV-H lathe, I've never seen one on CL here for less than $10k. Even some of the smaller second op lathes with no tailstock or threading are around $3k.
Great technical guidelines, explanations and references for checking the state of a lathe. Very well done in terms of using simple explanations. I personally think it is overdoing it using the indicator and tightening gibs for a $1000 lathe. ;) You can have a sense of looseness without having to use an indicator. Myself, I would not let an unknown person show up and start playing with the adjustments of the gibs on my lathes since they are in perfect order! You must be the exception having paid those prices for lathes in good order. Or one has to spend an inordinate amount of time constantly looking for bargains. I bought lathes for less than $1000 but they needed a lot of work or tooling before being usable for turning something other than wood. The lathes that I have now for turning precision parts were all worth a lot more because of the state they were in and the tooling included i.e. chucks, collets, steadies, taper attachment, DRO. Then again, fixing an oldie machine to make it work almost as new and finding the accesories to equip it is a hobby in and of itself and that might be what gives you the most fun! Daniel
Good stuff, it is all your fault I had to break down and buy a 13" Southbend toolroom lathe last week....cheers, I have been watching you for a few years and like your approach....Paul in Orlando, Fl
Dale, a great set of guidelines that will be a great help to the first-time buyer. Of course, this could be useful to other buyers too, but I would think that they were already aware of these things from their first acquisition, however, there does exist those who never seem to learn. Keep up the good work!
I don't know if it's because it's 2021, or the part of the country I'm in (southern arizona), but I hardly ever see a full size lath for less than $2000 on craigs list, and if it's in nice condition (doesn't look like it was just pulled up from the bottom of a lake) and comes with some useful accessories, they tend to start closer to $3000 and go up from there.
I like your approach for buying a machine tool. Almost every machine tool that has been used & not maintained or rebuilt at some time is not worth over a $1,000.00 because you are going to have to ship to a quality machine tool re-builder & that will cost thousands depending on what needs to be fixed. I have seen 40 year old milling machines & lathes that had never been rebuilt going for $8,000.00 - $15,000.00. People & companies have no idea how to price their crappy wore out machines.
Thanks for the video. I myself am looking to buy my first lathe. A lot of useful info. Most of what I am finding in Kentucky are going 3-5 thousand dollars in the 13 x 40 inch range.
Some great tips, thanks! Like you said, it's all about patients. I live in Oregon and there are usually only three or four lathes for sale on Craigslist at one time (that look worth looking at). Most of the time they are way over priced by a machine dealer but every once in a while you will find one from an old hobbyist or an estate sale. And they go pretty quickly for good money. It could take 6 months to find the right lathe, but patients pays off in the end. Thanks for sharing, can't wait for part two!
Have been looking for a video like this one, didn't find one till now.... Just ordered a new one yesterday.... Guess I know what to look for now, kinda had an idea on most of it, but now a little more reassured. Thanks Dale!
Dale A thousand dollars for a Hardinge are you kidding me I was looking at a 1980 model Hardinge that was flogged hard a university yes it had allot of tooling but some guy paid $22,000 dollars for it unbelievable. In Australia we just cannot get machines like that for the money you guy's can. For the money that you are talking you would get a pile of junk even machine shops that are switching to CNC still want ridiculous money for there manual machines that have been flogged hard making them money. I sold a Chinese import that I had for two years and added a stack of stuff and with some tooling and I struggled to $2500 for something that cost me over $5000. My dad paid $500 for an old Myford English lathe 1930's and it was totally disassembled in a box and it is a very small lathe gives you some idea how hard it is here to get machines. That is why we are force to go for Chinese stuff and then fix all the problems that come with them. The one I have now I have over $10,000 invested including the tooling very hard to justify to she who controls the finances when it is a hobby. Ok enough of my rant looking forward to the next installment of this series keep them coming. Dave
David Cashin 😧 I so hear you. There are some useful-practical things for having a home lathe But frankly not so many - when I want to build something I want to build it - kinda hard to justify$ to a spouse that is concerned about money and anything that will reduce the time I can spend with her. 😂
I was looking for lathes and found a company who sells them. Prices from $759 upwards from Hare & Forbes. They're in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Perth. Try Gumtree too. Play around with words on your computer when looking as well, that's how I stumbled on a couple of unknown machinery sellers in W.A. It's true though, some secondhand ones are so ridiculously priced for what they are, even with most of the stuff missing it isn't really worth buying them. Keep looking, I'm sure you will find the one your looking for
I'm in NZ - I feel the same way, but the bargains are out there. I got a 1975 Colchester Bantam Mk1 for $500, and I see them go regularly for $4000+. I just put in a stupidly low offer and brought cash on the day and the place I got it from said yes!
I have the opertipunity to go big All the little lathes are swamped by hobbyists I found a 3metre bed servian No one could work out how to move it so it sat for 2 years for sale Price ended uo at $1000 It cost me anouther $500 to hire a hiab trucks to move it iyt of their shop that day (part of the deal) Then anouther hiab truck onto a trailer and drive it 900km home At the farm my telehadler can pick it up easy and shift it into the shed Its masive but thats what made it so cheap
Come to the US there are tonnes of old ones or new ones. Grizzly, Jet, Tormach and home made. Many people build them out of scrap. Yeah I dont see how they even run. but some guys can get amazing results from them.
Thanks for the useful info. I have been looking at lathes and mills on Craigslist for a while, but was thinking that I would end up with a 1000 lb. paper weight, now I think I might finally buy a machine that I can learn to use.
All you guys who can't find lathes... I don't know what you're doing wrong. The last lathe I had was an old Atlas I bought for $150. The lead screw and everything that connects to it came in a box disconnected from the lathe, but I never used it so it didn't matter. I likewise let it slip through my fingers afterward, because I had it for three years and only did two things on it and I can't devote 12 square feet of shop space to an unused tool. :D I suggest two things for those looking.... First, like he said, be patient. Deals come along. Second, get to know the other tool heads in the area. For instance around me there's an engineering listserve, and they have an annual yard sale where everyone cleans out their old crap. That's where I found the Atlas. But that wasn't until the second or third year going. See point #1. :D
+kmcwhq You aren't going to find a Hardinge in decent condition around here for less than ~$4.5k - usually north of $5k. The Clausings are going to run you ~$1.2k for a 12x36 You might get lucky and find a widow disposing of her late husband's stuff for the low end of what I'm citing... As for Craigslist, you can find a few machine shapes piles of rust, with oil leaks, with asking prices that rival what they would pay ENCO for a new machine. California, especially Southern California, has been picked over, and lots of manufacturing operations have left the state. What was available before 2006 was much more of a selection than what's on the market today. And, don't even get me started on the PITA involved in buying an *affordable* used milling machine! BTW - Oil leaks might be just a matter of the seals drying out with age... or, they may well be a sign of abuse / lack of maintenance... Always look into them, lower your offer accordingly, and *don't* be afraid to walk away - or even run... Eric
+Metal Tips and Tricks (Dale Derry) I'd really hear the Colchester and Hardinge stories as well! Nice score(s) I've gotten some great deals over the years, but I think you've topped me with those
I bought a 12 x 36 atlas,,2 chucks 3 and 4 jaw,,, aloris tool post and nice full set of tools,,and has quick change gear box and shows no wear on gears and ways,,needle didn't move in spindle runout,,,payed 800,,
bought my first lathe recently wish i had seen this vid first. incidently i bought this exact enco laithe used and was completely taken advantage of and lied to. but thats life. thank you for the invaluable information!
still working on getting the bend out of the cross feed lead screw. Im daunted have no experience with this machine. luckily the ways and main lead screw appear in great condition. so i got that going for me...which is good.
Next week on how to fetch a metal lathe will you have 4 mates sitting on the edge of the desk waiting to help with the lifting, great video though lots of good tips ...cheers gets a thumbs up from me
extremely helpfull video, I was looking for exactly this, someone to show me step by step, not being a machinist, how to buy my first lathe and not get ripped off. verry good deals! im envious. ive been keeping my eye on craigslist in minnesota for a years and the only thing I see for under $1k are occasional old 6-12" belt driven lathes, or big lathes in really bad shape in need of serious restoration (usually sitting outside for years). lathes like the ones your showing would avarage mabey $5k here, with mabey $2k at the low end. It may be a difference in location, but i just dont think deals like that can be found where I live, ive been looking for probably 5 years and if a deal that good came up i would have made it happen.
I hear you, I paid $6,000.00 for mine, of course it was brand new with the DRO... Not going to get much unless you find a moron that just wants to get rid of his/her lathe cheap.
I think this is a great video! Everyone on the forums always screams stay away from the grizz, buy used, but never an explanation of how or what to look for, but this, I learned more in this single video than 2 months on the forums. Thanks Dale! Im still lookin for that sub $1000 lathe but no luck. A lot of people still want 5K for a 40 year old South bend missing chuck, missing tail stock. Im still patient though. Anyway, keep the great videos coming!
I picked up a south bend 9x32 C for 150$ it had no ware the actual factory flaking was still visible! Two weeks later I picked up a South Bend 16 x 60 with a 3 jaw chuck , 4 jaw chuck , face plate , two steady rests , follower rest , taper attachment, ball turner and lots of tooling for 1000$
I have the same lathe just re-named, looking forward to your next video because my lathe has issues with the tail stock lining up center in different positions along the bed. thanks for all the good info you produce.
+Theo worm That's a bad sign... You should be able to keep the tailstock centered on the spindle *without* any adjustments for the length of the ways... What you are mentioning can be anything from worn out ways to a bed that's been twisted - either by crashing the lathe under load, or having the lathe fall over and hit the floor / ground. Get a longish straightedge - 18" or 24" - and for this, a Harbor Freight (aka Horrible Fright) 24" combination square's ($10) blade will do the trick - and set it up against the ways and look for light leaking between the straightedge and the ways. Check it both horizontally and vertically, on both rails (unless you have a Hardinge or similar, which only have *one* dovetail way for the bed) If the light leaks are thin - like feeler gauge / shim stock,
+Theo worm Im glad you like the video. I had a similar problem with my lathe. What I did to fix it was take the tail stock off and clean the ways on the bottom of it, they were a mess.
OK, so in my late night reply, I assumed that things had been cleaned of accumulated gunk & crud... I guess that I should have been more explicit about cleaning things up *first*... ;^)
Other thing I found while looking is to see if that machine has any known common issues that are hard to fix. For example, fixing the drive on a Monarch 10EE isn't for the faint of heart, and the tubes are $1000 each. I think the LeBlond Servo Shifts can have difficult issues too, though I'm not an expert.
I just called my psychiatrist, I need help after hearing what you paid for your lathes. I must be crazy for paying what I did for mine. My wife is going to kill me. I have never seen deals like that and I'm not doubting what you are saying. I think location has a lot to do with it. I drove almost 900 miles to pick mine up and the only reason I bought it was it was fully tooled and looked great for being 60 years old. I wished I had seen this video before hand. The head stock bearing is zero in one direction and 1/2 a thousand the other. Using a test bar and dead centers over a 12" distance it's zero on both ends but moves .0005 over the 12" from Tail stock to Head stock. Can't get the nuts of the handles for compound and carriage feed where I have .060 back lash on compound and carriage cross feed. I'm not a machinist but had some machine shop background over the 40 years I was a certified pipe and tube welder. I'm disabled and have a lot of work cleaning this lathe and bringing it back to standard. I would never have bought it knowing what I know now, I don't think I would buy a South Bend Lathe but would look for a lathe with more HP and not a flat step belt pulley setup. My health issues are shutting me down from doing any physical work anyway. I hope your method of buying a lathe helps all who watches this vedio
Lots of good information including the advice about the tailstock internal MT surfaces being badly worn or bell mouth. It is not an easy fix unless it is just slightly worn. I like to hear your advice on what to look when inspecting the headstock.
My 12x36, same as the enco here was $250 canadian, came with a bunch US made indexable tooling, and multifix toolpost. Ways are flawless. Problems were cracked handwheel and gear selector from being dropped. I noticed later that the spindle has 0.002 TIR. Will have to learn to use my toolpost grinder to fix it..
All I can say is, you should change your name to Mr. Lucky. I live in Portland Oregon and I don't ever recall seeing a pro model lathe for under $1000, in any 'shape. Not to say that bargains can't be found if you're persistent in your hunt. I recently purchased (off of craigslist) a Boyer-Schultz 6-18 surface grinder for $200, a deal I thought I would never see. So I keep looking for that magic deal to replace my little 9x20 HF bench lathe. Maybe lightning will strike twice.
Dale, Having never used a lathe I wanted an older South Bend BAD! but being ignorant and did not want to take the chance on used, I decided to get a new made in China model. I think I'm glad I did but will always have the South Bend burned in my mind. Have only made some nickel dime projects but have a Model A HotRod project that will ensure there will be many many more waiting. Mike
Wow, you live in a lucky area or 5 years have really changed things. Starting at 2k gets you nothing but rusted out projects and a dream. And sellers act like they are doing you the favor.
Wow - you've been in WA and OR and spending less than $1000 for those in 2016 - what deals. I should have purchased one when we got here 8 years ago - was seeing great deals back then. On the hunt now and as you say will have to be patient. But will get a kit put together and ready to go to check one out.
Love the video great advice. I looked on CL but found lathes around 1500 slightly over my budget. I settled for a chinese make from Amazon 9x19 becuase its new and I don't have stress about a rebuild which is out of my scope. :-)
Very useful information when evaluating any lathe new or used. I must agree with a few others that you are a highly skilled buyer if you got an HLVH for a $1000.00! I have looked for one for almost twenty years up here in the northwest without success.
Exclennet video, very useful for me, as I fantasize about all them listings for cheap lathes here in France but wonder how to go about inspecting a candidate. Thanks ! Keep on trucking !
Now i know why people text me when i have a lathe listed on CL and say "if your willing to go under $1000 i will come look at it" I tell them to save their gas LOL
Interesantes comentarios.....tengo amigos que se han fabricado tornos a medida....o bien comprado tornos como un sencillo aa109 atlas mini Kathe como el mío.... lógicamente una empresa metal mecánica no es igual a un hobby millonario....a menos que seas Batman.....pero se puede hacer bueno con pocas cosas y suficiente dinero....pero más que invertir dinero es mejor invertir tiempo en saber buscar.....yo soy chileno..pero acá solemos armar tornos ingleses antiguos o bien mejorar los americanos con partes usadas y con las personas correctas que sepan reparación dichos repuestos o partes...no recomiendo nunca los chinos por que sus matrices son bastante defectuosas....suerte a todo y otra vez gracias por incentivar la cultura de fabricar nuestro mundo con nuestras ideas.!!!!
Gracias por los consejos, estoy buscando un torno y me resisto a comprar uno chino aún siendo nuevo, no parecen buena calidad...o quizás alguno si? muy didáctico, gracias nuevamente.
For me, the biggest thing on buying a lathe is the seller. On my A/C late, the seller showed everything that was not perfect on the lathe. No big things; cross feed screw has a bit of play. Tailstock taper did not fit some tools perfectly, aftermarket pulley as original was warped and ring in the spindle pulley. The lathe was well kept and oiled. So, I knew what I was getting. He was getting a nice Chipmaster lathe and needed room so sold it cheap. My 109 lathe was "here you go, I know nothing about it". Worst lathe I ever had. Before seeing it research it online. See if parts are available and forums will show common faults (i.e some have flaky electronic controls.). The more the seller knows, the more you can learn form them. If all they can say is it has a new paint job, walk away.
here in Australia we don't have the manufacturing industry and the population so its hard to get good small lathe as they don't come up for sale very often, especially here in Tasmania, I have had enough of Chinese, Taiwan tools and no longer buy them, I sold them and I replaced my tools with good quality used Aussie built tools even if I have to refurbish them. or I buy US, British, European or Japanese stuff.
This buying advice all came too late for me but to be honest I think I would have bought my hobby lathe anyway just because it's a fantastic antique. Got it here in the UK for £100 ($132). Drummond round bed lathe built between 1908 and 1938 & many of them were used in the machine shops on battleships in WW1. Have you ever had a round bed lathe with an internal screw ? I'm still building up the courage to clean it never mind open that can of worms.
I looked for years for a. good inexpensive benchtop lathe. I didn't either need or want a lathe bigger than 10x24, as I worked in a machine shop and had access to large lathes. Anything in even halfway useable condition that I found on ebay, used machinery dealers, Craigslist etc, fell into 2 catagories, decent condition but priced completely out of all reason for what it was, or old busted up and worn out parts missing, cleaned up and repainted junkers from (insert name of defunct US machine tool company here).Scrap iron. Better to just buy a new import. My hobby is making things using machine tools, not rebuilding junk machine tools.
Who cares if they become impatient. You will pay in the end if you rush buy anything. Good salesman always rush you into buying something you do not need, or may be junk, Hence the term salesmen.
Haha....I’d be better off buying a lotto ticket. You can hardly buy a “decent” Chinese 8x16 mini lathe for $800-1000, although this video is a bit old, I don’t think lathe prices were that much cheaper 3-5 years ago. Of course I’m trying to buy my very first lathe and I don’t really want to wait months or years for a killer deal. Great tips tho👍
Advice here on lathes and their pricing is similar to following "buy lottery tickets - you get rich". I never saw a 12 x 36 or 14 x 40 lathe for under or around $1000 USD. in over 5 years. But these things do indeed happen - a friend got older Atlas for like 50 USD (!!!) at estate sale. Chances are similar to lottery ticket win.
I get up at 4 am to watch my machinist and sailing videos then around 6am I make some love if I can talk or barter well enough to get her to agree then I watch another video then start my day. If I can't talk my way into getting some I watch SV Seeker. Married life!
Thank you for a brilliant video. A real pleasure to watch. Lets talk about Australia for a sec. Pay less than a $1000 for a lathe in Australia?? You;re not serious are you mate? $1000 is the scrappers price. All we get here is imported Chinese or Taiwanese crap which starts at $1500 and anything that remotely resembles something old has a million dollar price tag on it and is usually flogged to buggery but its old so it must be good. Good luck with beating anyone down on price too. seen blokes here bid $1000 for a rusty beaten broken old anvil which had no rebound but cause its old and there is no quantity of quality gear people pay stupid prices. Australia gets the shit end of the stick with stuff and we pay a premium, and we are overrun with wheelers and dealers all trying to sell you scrap metal under the guise of "rare" or "quality" Rant over ............
Unless you are going to estate sales or buying it short order/time crunch good luck with that. I have been watching craigslist for a year and not a single contender goes below 2k let alone 1. Sad thing is that people post up $3-6k lathes every day just caked in grease, grime and rust acting like they are doing you a favor by selling their filthy neglected piece. That or its 3-6k with zero extras. You can find deals here and there though. I just missed buying a 6 month old Miller syncrowave 250 tig welder with EVERYTHING plus consumables for $800 at an estate sale (the base unit minus the cart, bottle, helmet etc is ~$4000 new). Dude that had it on hold showed up with 5 minutes to spare before they sold it to me instead.
Useful info Dale.Just a point of note, at the beginning you mentioned Metric, English or even Whitworth well its the Whitworth, BSW, BA that are English (British) threads not the UNC UNF which are American threads despite being in imperial measurements ........... Just a view from an English Engineer :) :)
The best and worst of British engineering :D lol almost indestructible that is until they break down. I have bruised quite a few knuckles, scrapped a lot of skin and expressed quite a few choice words on Landrovers in the past
"How I Steal Real Lathes From Suckers". Great vid. If i ever get to feeling like mercilessly beating folks down on their well maintained lathe, I will follow this guide.
Seriously though, all this makes me think a new lathe with fresh, induction hardened ways, is pretty solid value. Upgrade the motor with a fresh induction drive, and bob's the bloke your aunty calls hers.
Finally a useable how to buy a lathe video! I've asked for this info from others at your level and caliber on TH-cam and have always been ignored. This is greatly appreciated and a tremendous help!Thanks so much!
+RL Fort
Im glade you liked it
You got an unbelievable deal on that Hardinge HLV-H lathe, I've never seen one on CL here for less than $10k. Even some of the smaller second op lathes with no tailstock or threading are around $3k.
Anybody who believes this guy is 🥴
Been looking for that $1000 dollar lathe in Arizona since 2014!
I’ve been searching also. Just checking in to lyk I’m on the lookout 😂
Same model lathe he is showing is for sale in Georgia in rough shape for 4000 right now haha
This guy is full of 💩. Ain’t no engine lathe less than 1000 that is worth a damn.
Great technical guidelines, explanations and references for checking the state of a lathe. Very well done in terms of using simple explanations.
I personally think it is overdoing it using the indicator and tightening gibs for a $1000 lathe. ;) You can have a sense of looseness without having to use an indicator. Myself, I would not let an unknown person show up and start playing with the adjustments of the gibs on my lathes since they are in perfect order!
You must be the exception having paid those prices for lathes in good order. Or one has to spend an inordinate amount of time constantly looking for bargains. I bought lathes for less than $1000 but they needed a lot of work or tooling before being usable for turning something other than wood.
The lathes that I have now for turning precision parts were all worth a lot more because of the state they were in and the tooling included i.e. chucks, collets, steadies, taper attachment, DRO.
Then again, fixing an oldie machine to make it work almost as new and finding the accesories to equip it is a hobby in and of itself and that might be what gives you the most fun!
Daniel
Better be pretty sure it's OK before pulling out a scotchbrite pad in someone else's shop
Good stuff, it is all your fault I had to break down and buy a 13" Southbend toolroom lathe last week....cheers, I have been watching you for a few years and like your approach....Paul in Orlando, Fl
Dale, a great set of guidelines that will be a great help to the first-time buyer. Of course, this could be useful to other buyers too, but I would think that they were already aware of these things from their first acquisition, however, there does exist those who never seem to learn. Keep up the good work!
I don't know if it's because it's 2021, or the part of the country I'm in (southern arizona), but I hardly ever see a full size lath for less than $2000 on craigs list, and if it's in nice condition (doesn't look like it was just pulled up from the bottom of a lake) and comes with some useful accessories, they tend to start closer to $3000 and go up from there.
Great info. I am looking for my first hobby lathe for retirement projects and this helps hugely on identifying problems.
you bought a lathe for $1,000 or less? damn, man. That's talent.
mikethemaniac1 i just got a 1921 14" lathe for 350, even if it never turns a straight part its a thing of beauty.
Divorce forced sales.
I like your approach for buying a machine tool. Almost every machine tool that has been used & not maintained or rebuilt at some time is not worth over a $1,000.00 because you are going to have to ship to a quality machine tool re-builder & that will cost thousands depending on what needs to be fixed. I have seen 40 year old milling machines & lathes that had never been rebuilt going for $8,000.00 - $15,000.00. People & companies have no idea how to price their crappy wore out machines.
Good info. A lot of people wouldn't know the steps to take , you explained it very well.
+Garry Fuller Sr
Thanks
That was great advice for us new bees. Thank you!
+steve newman
im glade you liked it
Thanks for the video. I myself am looking to buy my first lathe. A lot of useful info. Most of what I am finding in Kentucky are going 3-5 thousand dollars in the 13 x 40 inch range.
+TJenkx6
If your not in a rush you will find a good deal
Some great tips, thanks! Like you said, it's all about patients. I live in Oregon and there are usually only three or four lathes for sale on Craigslist at one time (that look worth looking at). Most of the time they are way over priced by a machine dealer but every once in a while you will find one from an old hobbyist or an estate sale. And they go pretty quickly for good money. It could take 6 months to find the right lathe, but patients pays off in the end. Thanks for sharing, can't wait for part two!
+Nick Schneider
Patience is the key to getting a great price :-)
Thanks for the info. I'm a novice and want to buy a lathe and this information is just what I am looking for.
Have been looking for a video like this one, didn't find one till now.... Just ordered a new one yesterday.... Guess I know what to look for now, kinda had an idea on most of it, but now a little more reassured. Thanks Dale!
HI Bill, congratulations on the new lathe.
Dale
A thousand dollars for a Hardinge are you kidding me I was looking at a 1980 model Hardinge that was flogged hard a university yes it had allot of tooling but some guy paid $22,000 dollars for it unbelievable. In Australia we just cannot get machines like that for the money you guy's can. For the money that you are talking you would get a pile of junk even machine shops that are switching to CNC still want ridiculous money for there manual machines that have been flogged hard making them money. I sold a Chinese import that I had for two years and added a stack of stuff and with some tooling and I struggled to $2500 for something that cost me over $5000.
My dad paid $500 for an old Myford English lathe 1930's and it was totally disassembled in a box and it is a very small lathe gives you some idea how hard it is here to get machines.
That is why we are force to go for Chinese stuff and then fix all the problems that come with them. The one I have now I have over $10,000 invested including the tooling very hard to justify to she who controls the finances when it is a hobby. Ok enough of my rant looking forward to the next installment of this series keep them coming.
Dave
David Cashin 😧 I so hear you. There are some useful-practical things for having a home lathe
But frankly not so many - when I want to build something I want to build it - kinda hard to justify$ to a spouse that is concerned about money and anything that will reduce the time I can spend with her. 😂
I was looking for lathes and found a company who sells them. Prices from $759 upwards from Hare & Forbes. They're in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Perth. Try Gumtree too. Play around with words on your computer when looking as well, that's how I stumbled on a couple of unknown machinery sellers in W.A. It's true though, some secondhand ones are so ridiculously priced for what they are, even with most of the stuff missing it isn't really worth buying them. Keep looking, I'm sure you will find the one your looking for
I'm in NZ - I feel the same way, but the bargains are out there. I got a 1975 Colchester Bantam Mk1 for $500, and I see them go regularly for $4000+. I just put in a stupidly low offer and brought cash on the day and the place I got it from said yes!
I have the opertipunity to go big
All the little lathes are swamped by hobbyists
I found a 3metre bed servian
No one could work out how to move it so it sat for 2 years for sale
Price ended uo at $1000
It cost me anouther $500 to hire a hiab trucks to move it iyt of their shop that day (part of the deal)
Then anouther hiab truck onto a trailer and drive it 900km home
At the farm my telehadler can pick it up easy and shift it into the shed
Its masive but thats what made it so cheap
Come to the US there are tonnes of old ones or new ones. Grizzly, Jet, Tormach and home made. Many people build them out of scrap. Yeah I dont see how they even run. but some guys can get amazing results from them.
Wonderfully informative for a novice glad I saw this before I bought THANKS !
Thanks for the useful info. I have been looking at lathes and mills on Craigslist for a while, but was thinking that I would end up with a 1000 lb. paper weight, now I think I might finally buy a machine that I can learn to use.
+TheHillbillyEngineer
remember if you pay a Metal tips and ticks price you can always resell it. :-)
All you guys who can't find lathes... I don't know what you're doing wrong. The last lathe I had was an old Atlas I bought for $150. The lead screw and everything that connects to it came in a box disconnected from the lathe, but I never used it so it didn't matter.
I likewise let it slip through my fingers afterward, because I had it for three years and only did two things on it and I can't devote 12 square feet of shop space to an unused tool. :D
I suggest two things for those looking.... First, like he said, be patient. Deals come along.
Second, get to know the other tool heads in the area. For instance around me there's an engineering listserve, and they have an annual yard sale where everyone cleans out their old crap. That's where I found the Atlas. But that wasn't until the second or third year going. See point #1. :D
$750 for the Clausing, $800 for the Hardinge!
The title of this video should be "how to steal a lathe ". LOL
Those are smokin deals
Nice vid.
no kidding huh! The Enco he has is a $2k lathe in my neighborhood
+kmcwhq You aren't going to find a Hardinge in decent condition around here for less than ~$4.5k - usually north of $5k. The Clausings are going to run you ~$1.2k for a 12x36
You might get lucky and find a widow disposing of her late husband's stuff for the low end of what I'm citing...
As for Craigslist, you can find a few machine shapes piles of rust, with oil leaks, with asking prices that rival what they would pay ENCO for a new machine.
California, especially Southern California, has been picked over, and lots of manufacturing operations have left the state. What was available before 2006 was much more of a selection than what's on the market today.
And, don't even get me started on the PITA involved in buying an *affordable* used milling machine!
BTW - Oil leaks might be just a matter of the seals drying out with age... or, they may well be a sign of abuse / lack of maintenance... Always look into them, lower your offer accordingly, and *don't* be afraid to walk away - or even run...
Eric
+kmcwhq
In part two I give the back story on the ENCO your going to love it.
+Metal Tips and Tricks (Dale Derry) I'd really hear the Colchester and Hardinge stories as well! Nice score(s)
I've gotten some great deals over the years, but I think you've topped me with those
kmcwhq t
I bought a 12 x 36 atlas,,2 chucks 3 and 4 jaw,,, aloris tool post and nice full set of tools,,and has quick change gear box and shows no wear on gears and ways,,needle didn't move in spindle runout,,,payed 800,,
bought my first lathe recently wish i had seen this vid first. incidently i bought this exact enco laithe used and was completely taken advantage of and lied to. but thats life. thank you for the invaluable information!
Sorry hear about lathe. Did you get it working?
still working on getting the bend out of the cross feed lead screw. Im daunted have no experience with this machine. luckily the ways and main lead screw appear in great condition. so i got that going for me...which is good.
I have no experience with lathes, but I want to buy one so I can learn. This is an awesome resource!
I glad I could help
Next week on how to fetch a metal lathe will you have 4 mates sitting on the edge of the desk waiting to help with the lifting, great video though lots of good tips ...cheers gets a thumbs up from me
Why relocate so much Dale? Witness protection? ;-))
+Christopher Beasley
How did you figure ? it out now I'm going to have to move again.
extremely helpfull video, I was looking for exactly this, someone to show me step by step, not being a machinist, how to buy my first lathe and not get ripped off.
verry good deals! im envious. ive been keeping my eye on craigslist in minnesota for a years and the only thing I see for under $1k are occasional old 6-12" belt driven lathes, or big lathes in really bad shape in need of serious restoration (usually sitting outside for years). lathes like the ones your showing would avarage mabey $5k here, with mabey $2k at the low end.
It may be a difference in location, but i just dont think deals like that can be found where I live, ive been looking for probably 5 years and if a deal that good came up i would have made it happen.
If I ever see you coming to buy my lathe Dale . . I won't answer the door 😄
I hear you, I paid $6,000.00 for mine, of course it was brand new with the DRO... Not going to get much unless you find a moron that just wants to get rid of his/her lathe cheap.
You can lap the end way inner bore with an old end in the chuck, for a resized solid fit
I think this is a great video! Everyone on the forums always screams stay away from the grizz, buy used, but never an explanation of how or what to look for, but this, I learned more in this single video than 2 months on the forums. Thanks Dale! Im still lookin for that sub $1000 lathe but no luck. A lot of people still want 5K for a 40 year old South bend missing chuck, missing tail stock. Im still patient though. Anyway, keep the great videos coming!
Thanks for the comment. :-)
Thank you 🙏 I subscribed yesterday, feeling kinda poorly.....but I’m still pretty stoked about this .... Thank you 🙏 Blessings ....
Id say under $5k is a little more reasonable in 2023. Still a great help though!
Great video, with loads of useful info. I also liked your work on Modern Family opposite Cam...
I picked up a south bend 9x32 C for 150$ it had no ware the actual factory flaking was still visible! Two weeks later I picked up a South Bend 16 x 60 with a 3 jaw chuck , 4 jaw chuck , face plate , two steady rests , follower rest , taper attachment, ball turner and lots of tooling for 1000$
Nice explanation! Thanks, and I'll see the "part 2" and taking notes!
I have the same lathe just re-named, looking forward to your next video because my lathe has issues with the tail stock lining up center in different positions along the bed. thanks for all the good info you produce.
+Theo worm That's a bad sign... You should be able to keep the tailstock centered on the spindle *without* any adjustments for the length of the ways... What you are mentioning can be anything from worn out ways to a bed that's been twisted - either by crashing the lathe under load, or having the lathe fall over and hit the floor / ground.
Get a longish straightedge - 18" or 24" - and for this, a Harbor Freight (aka Horrible Fright) 24" combination square's ($10) blade will do the trick - and set it up against the ways and look for light leaking between the straightedge and the ways.
Check it both horizontally and vertically, on both rails (unless you have a Hardinge or similar, which only have *one* dovetail way for the bed)
If the light leaks are thin - like feeler gauge / shim stock,
+Theo worm
Im glad you like the video. I had a similar problem with my lathe. What I did to fix it was take the tail stock off and clean the ways on the bottom of it, they were a mess.
OK, so in my late night reply, I assumed that things had been cleaned of accumulated gunk & crud... I guess that I should have been more explicit about cleaning things up *first*... ;^)
Really great video, Dale. You covered a lot of good things other videos haven't. Thanks.
+TheOtherBill
I try too.
Other thing I found while looking is to see if that machine has any known common issues that are hard to fix. For example, fixing the drive on a Monarch 10EE isn't for the faint of heart, and the tubes are $1000 each. I think the LeBlond Servo Shifts can have difficult issues too, though I'm not an expert.
I just called my psychiatrist, I need help after hearing what you paid for your lathes. I must be crazy for paying what I did for mine. My wife is going to kill me. I have never seen deals like that and I'm not doubting what you are saying. I think location has a lot to do with it. I drove almost 900 miles to pick mine up and the only reason I bought it was it was fully tooled and looked great for being 60 years old. I wished I had seen this video before hand. The head stock bearing is zero in one direction and 1/2 a thousand the other. Using a test bar and dead centers over a 12" distance it's zero on both ends but moves .0005 over the 12" from Tail stock to Head stock. Can't get the nuts of the handles for compound and carriage feed where I have .060 back lash on compound and carriage cross feed. I'm not a machinist but had some machine shop background over the 40 years I was a certified pipe and tube welder. I'm disabled and have a lot of work cleaning this lathe and bringing it back to standard. I would never have bought it knowing what I know now, I don't think I would buy a South Bend Lathe but would look for a lathe with more HP and not a flat step belt pulley setup. My health issues are shutting me down from doing any physical work anyway. I hope your method of buying a lathe helps all who watches this vedio
Lots of good information including the advice about the tailstock internal MT surfaces being badly worn or bell mouth. It is not an easy fix unless it is just slightly worn. I like to hear your advice on what to look when inspecting the headstock.
+Paul Jones
Im glade you like this video. You will have to wait until next week to hear about the head stock
My 12x36, same as the enco here was $250 canadian, came with a bunch US made indexable tooling, and multifix toolpost. Ways are flawless. Problems were cracked handwheel and gear selector from being dropped. I noticed later that the spindle has 0.002 TIR. Will have to learn to use my toolpost grinder to fix it..
$1000.00 For a decent lathe? Just notced this video is over 6 years old. Great vid thank for the info!
Hi Dale, great advice my friend, keep the good stuff coming. Greetings from Bonnie Scotland.
Hi mate. Where were you when I bought my Taiwanese boat anchor ; )
+Marcel Timmers
:-(
Metal Tips and Tricks
All I can say is, you should change your name to Mr. Lucky. I live in Portland Oregon and I don't ever recall seeing a pro model lathe for under $1000, in any 'shape. Not to say that bargains can't be found if you're persistent in your hunt. I recently purchased (off of craigslist) a Boyer-Schultz 6-18 surface grinder for $200, a deal I thought I would never see. So I keep looking for that magic deal to replace my little 9x20 HF bench lathe. Maybe lightning will strike twice.
Dale,
Having never used a lathe I wanted an older South Bend BAD! but being ignorant and did not want to take the chance on used, I decided to get a new made in China model. I think I'm glad I did but will always have the South Bend burned in my mind. Have only made some nickel dime projects but have a Model A HotRod project that will ensure there will be many many more waiting.
Mike
+Michael Marks
I would rathe have a new Chinese then an old South Bend
Wow, you live in a lucky area or 5 years have really changed things. Starting at 2k gets you nothing but rusted out projects and a dream. And sellers act like they are doing you the favor.
Great vid and great advice Dale. I think a nice follow-up series after this one could be general tune up and maintenance on a used lathe. ;)
+ARCustomKnives
Quit, don't tell anyone. Tthat going to be a up coming video.
Very helpful
Thanks
Agreed on the Hardinge, at $800 your going to get a pile of scap metal IMO.
Don`t lock your workshop. Turn off your alarm. Put your dogs to sleep. I`m coming for your Lathe.
Thanx, for the info, love to see the same for a vertical Mill
Yo me acabo de comprar un torno atlas AA 109......gracias por el incentivo....siga así y por favor sube más videos.!!!!!
800 for an HLV ?????? Man you should have bought a lottery ticket on that day .
I don't know about the states, but here in the UK, if you want a good lathe a decent size your looking at at least 3-4 K and the pounds sterling!!
Gracias señor! great video, very helpful.
Some good advice when buying any sort of equipment.
quite pleased with the lathe
Wow - you've been in WA and OR and spending less than $1000 for those in 2016 - what deals.
I should have purchased one when we got here 8 years ago - was seeing great deals back then.
On the hunt now and as you say will have to be patient.
But will get a kit put together and ready to go to check one out.
great video, thank you sir.
excellent video again! I'll be using this checklist when I get my lathe next summer.
+David Dombrowski
I'm glad I could be of service
Love the video great advice. I looked on CL but found lathes around 1500 slightly over my budget. I settled for a chinese make from Amazon 9x19 becuase its new and I don't have stress about a rebuild which is out of my scope. :-)
Very useful information when evaluating any lathe new or used. I must agree with a few others that you are a highly skilled buyer if you got an HLVH for a $1000.00! I have looked for one for almost twenty years up here in the northwest without success.
Exclennet video, very useful for me, as I fantasize about all them listings for cheap lathes here in France but wonder how to go about inspecting a candidate.
Thanks !
Keep on trucking !
+MakeFix
Good luck in your urge
Now i know why people text me when i have a lathe listed on CL and say "if your willing to go under $1000 i will come look at it" I tell them to save their gas LOL
wow super informative. thanks for sharing!
Interesantes comentarios.....tengo amigos que se han fabricado tornos a medida....o bien comprado tornos como un sencillo aa109 atlas mini Kathe como el mío.... lógicamente una empresa metal mecánica no es igual a un hobby millonario....a menos que seas Batman.....pero se puede hacer bueno con pocas cosas y suficiente dinero....pero más que invertir dinero es mejor invertir tiempo en saber buscar.....yo soy chileno..pero acá solemos armar tornos ingleses antiguos o bien mejorar los americanos con partes usadas y con las personas correctas que sepan reparación dichos repuestos o partes...no recomiendo nunca los chinos por que sus matrices son bastante defectuosas....suerte a todo y otra vez gracias por incentivar la cultura de fabricar nuestro mundo con nuestras ideas.!!!!
lots of good information, thanks dale
Gracias por los consejos, estoy buscando un torno y me resisto a comprar uno chino aún siendo nuevo, no parecen buena calidad...o quizás alguno si? muy didáctico, gracias nuevamente.
For me, the biggest thing on buying a lathe is the seller. On my A/C late, the seller showed everything that was not perfect on the lathe. No big things; cross feed screw has a bit of play. Tailstock taper did not fit some tools perfectly, aftermarket pulley as original was warped and ring in the spindle pulley. The lathe was well kept and oiled. So, I knew what I was getting. He was getting a nice Chipmaster lathe and needed room so sold it cheap.
My 109 lathe was "here you go, I know nothing about it". Worst lathe I ever had.
Before seeing it research it online. See if parts are available and forums will show common faults (i.e some have flaky electronic controls.). The more the seller knows, the more you can learn form them. If all they can say is it has a new paint job, walk away.
+Scott Henion
Great advice
here in Australia we don't have the manufacturing industry and the population so its hard to get good small lathe as they don't come up for sale very often, especially here in Tasmania, I have had enough of Chinese, Taiwan tools and no longer buy them, I sold them and I replaced my tools with good quality used Aussie built tools even if I have to refurbish them. or I buy US, British, European or Japanese stuff.
thanks for your comment. We really are spoiled here in the state.
This buying advice all came too late for me but to be honest I think I would have bought my hobby lathe anyway just because it's a fantastic antique. Got it here in the UK for £100 ($132). Drummond round bed lathe built between 1908 and 1938 & many of them were used in the machine shops on battleships in WW1. Have you ever had a round bed lathe with an internal screw ? I'm still building up the courage to clean it never mind open that can of worms.
nice.. much needed info to be available. I hope a simillar video on a Bridgeport/ knee mill is in the future (?) :)
I looked for years for a. good inexpensive benchtop lathe. I didn't either need or want a lathe bigger than 10x24, as I worked in a machine shop and had access to large lathes. Anything in even halfway useable condition that I found on ebay, used machinery dealers, Craigslist etc, fell into 2 catagories, decent condition but priced completely out of all reason for what it was, or old busted up and worn out parts missing, cleaned up and repainted junkers from (insert name of defunct US machine tool company here).Scrap iron. Better to just buy a new import. My hobby is making things using machine tools, not rebuilding junk machine tools.
Nice description !
I bought a 13 south bend 6ft bed from high school 1200.00 it came with some tooling a 4 jaw chuck.
+Danny Chavez
nice job
VERY useful video. Thanks.
How long do you take to go through all those inspections? Did any seller become impatient on you during that process?
Who cares if they become impatient. You will pay in the end if you rush buy anything. Good salesman always rush you into buying something you do not need, or may be junk, Hence the term salesmen.
Some great info here for a buyer, Thanks!
+Precision Machine Shed
Thank s
Your Harding is gorgeous !!!!!
hgr industrial surplus if u r within driving distance to cleveland..
Thank you, I have a jet metal lathe GH-1440w-1 for sale and was wondering if you be interested
Haha....I’d be better off buying a lotto ticket. You can hardly buy a “decent” Chinese 8x16 mini lathe for $800-1000, although this video is a bit old, I don’t think lathe prices were that much cheaper 3-5 years ago. Of course I’m trying to buy my very first lathe and I don’t really want to wait months or years for a killer deal. Great tips tho👍
You need to make more videos, you do a great job. :-)
Very helpful. Happy new year.
I bet he's also the kind of guy that want's new prices for his used equipment !
But his used equipment is probably in better condition than new
@@stormyeffects4795 pimps say the say thing...🤔
@@Not.The.Avg.Smitty I wouldn’t know
@@stormyeffects4795 no one said you would, but now you know.."the more you know 🌈" don't take everything so personal😉
@@Not.The.Avg.Smitty
I wasn’t taking it personal, but it’s all good 🌈
Help! I can't find a lathe for 1000 here in Colorado heck, I can't hardly even find many lathes on craigslist in colorado😢
Need to look at neighboring states. Some areas don't have a heavy machine presence.
Advice here on lathes and their pricing is similar to following "buy lottery tickets - you get rich". I never saw a 12 x 36 or 14 x 40 lathe for under or around $1000 USD. in over 5 years. But these things do indeed happen - a friend got older Atlas for like 50 USD (!!!) at estate sale. Chances are similar to lottery ticket win.
I see I'm not the only one who has to wait til the middle of the night to upload videos so as not to interrupt the wife's Netflix time.
Amen brother lol
+Joseph DAndrea
LOL
I get up at 4 am to watch my machinist and sailing videos then around 6am I make some love if I can talk or barter well enough to get her to agree then I watch another video then start my day. If I can't talk my way into getting some I watch SV Seeker. Married life!
If your wife is the boss then yea you need a hobby to get away from her and have space
Any suggestions as to the best way to transport a lathe once you have bought it?
useful,very useful.Thanks for sharing.
Thanks
Great video very informative
Joe Faller 😂
Thanks for the tips
Good advise, enjoyed...
Thanks Tommy
Thank you for a brilliant video. A real pleasure to watch.
Lets talk about Australia for a sec. Pay less than a $1000 for a lathe in Australia?? You;re not serious are you mate?
$1000 is the scrappers price.
All we get here is imported Chinese or Taiwanese crap which starts at $1500 and anything that remotely resembles something old has a million dollar price tag on it and is usually flogged to buggery but its old so it must be good. Good luck with beating anyone down on price too. seen blokes here bid $1000 for a rusty beaten broken old anvil which had no rebound but cause its old and there is no quantity of quality gear people pay stupid prices.
Australia gets the shit end of the stick with stuff and we pay a premium, and we are overrun with wheelers and dealers all trying to sell you scrap metal under the guise of "rare" or "quality"
Rant over ............
+AkubraHatman
I will have to say we a very very spoiled here in the US, and some time I forget that. thanks for your comment
+Metal Tips and Tricks (Dale Derry) thanks mate. Please keep up the great videos. Absolutely enjoy watching.
Unless you are going to estate sales or buying it short order/time crunch good luck with that. I have been watching craigslist for a year and not a single contender goes below 2k let alone 1.
Sad thing is that people post up $3-6k lathes every day just caked in grease, grime and rust acting like they are doing you a favor by selling their filthy neglected piece. That or its 3-6k with zero extras.
You can find deals here and there though. I just missed buying a 6 month old Miller syncrowave 250 tig welder with EVERYTHING plus consumables for $800 at an estate sale (the base unit minus the cart, bottle, helmet etc is ~$4000 new). Dude that had it on hold showed up with 5 minutes to spare before they sold it to me instead.
Good luck in your search. you will find a good deal when you lease expect.
Will most people on Craig’s list actually allow you to do all of this? It doesn’t seem to me as though they wouldn’t.
Useful info Dale.Just a point of note, at the beginning you mentioned Metric, English or even Whitworth well its the Whitworth, BSW, BA that are English (British) threads not the UNC UNF which are American threads despite being in imperial measurements ........... Just a view from an English Engineer :) :)
+Rich ok
thanks for your comment
+Metal Tips and Tricks (Dale Derry) One more thing I own a 1973 landcover :-)
The best and worst of British engineering :D lol almost indestructible that is until they break down. I have bruised quite a few knuckles, scrapped a lot of skin and expressed quite a few choice words on Landrovers in the past
Nice job Dale!
+DoRite Fabrication
thanks Buddy
Dale, Are you thinking of a restoration project? Like a shopper or horizontal mill?
+Paul Devey
yes, but it will be some time before I get to it.
nice one, very useful, thanks
+ionsparks
Thanks for dropping by the channel