Can a lathe be to big
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I love these pictures of big stuff 
Here is what I ended up with. It's 78" betwwen centers and has a 1 9/16" through. If anyone wants a larger one he has two 10 footers and a 25 footer for sale.
Price was less that 1/2 what a used cue lathe could be had for. Now to go see if I can get the three jaw chuck mounted back on. Got to love it when you need a crane to mount the chuck and tailstock!
Thanks for the help and comments!
Larry
Price was less that 1/2 what a used cue lathe could be had for. Now to go see if I can get the three jaw chuck mounted back on. Got to love it when you need a crane to mount the chuck and tailstock!
Thanks for the help and comments!
Larry
Here is what I ended up with. It's 78" betwwen centers and has a 1 9/16" through. If anyone wants a larger one he has two 10 footers and a 25 footer for sale.
Price was less that 1/2 what a used cue lathe could be had for. Now to go see if I can get the three jaw chuck mounted back on. Got to love it when you need a crane to mount the chuck and tailstock!
Thanks for the help and comments!
Larry
The bad thing about those oversize lathes are that usually the RPMs are not very high And often their motors use 440V. Good luck with your knew tool.
Dick
Big Lathe
Larry, Looks great! Keep me posted on your adventures... Mikey
Larry, Looks great! Keep me posted on your adventures... Mikey
Here is what I ended up with. It's 78" betwwen centers and has a 1 9/16" through. If anyone wants a larger one he has two 10 footers and a 25 footer for sale.
Price was less that 1/2 what a used cue lathe could be had for. Now to go see if I can get the three jaw chuck mounted back on. Got to love it when you need a crane to mount the chuck and tailstock!
Thanks for the help and comments!
Larry
I'd strip that thing down and paint it purple!
Bigger lathes meed not be a problem if you have the room. As long "as the bore isn't too big say 1.75 inches and it isn't worn out it would be fine. I would caution those who are thinking of a 12X36 lathe as these are usually too short for a few jobs. Speed of rotation is important, 1500rpm should be the slowest acceptable.
Purple???????
This one was powered at 440v with a 7.5 hp motor. I repowered it with a smaller 220v motor. Top speed on it is 804 rpm. Why would I need it to turn faster, sanding? The motor I have in it turns at 1750 rpm. Guess if needed I could put a 3500 rpm motor in it and it would turn 1604 rpm. I was very supprised how little ware this machine has. The only thing that shows ware is the cross thread leade screw.
The through hole is 1 9/16ths. Better two big than two small. The lathe I have been using had a 3/4" hole till I bored it out to 1 1/32" and the bed was only 20" long. I was thinking of making tapered bushings to fit the bore and use them like a back chuck. Any one know where I can get some 2" Delrin.
Today I am going to make a router mount and maybe afew wood chips.
Purple!!! I can't even imagin, but then I have a very limited imagination!
Larry
This one was powered at 440v with a 7.5 hp motor. I repowered it with a smaller 220v motor. Top speed on it is 804 rpm. Why would I need it to turn faster, sanding? The motor I have in it turns at 1750 rpm. Guess if needed I could put a 3500 rpm motor in it and it would turn 1604 rpm. I was very supprised how little ware this machine has. The only thing that shows ware is the cross thread leade screw.
The through hole is 1 9/16ths. Better two big than two small. The lathe I have been using had a 3/4" hole till I bored it out to 1 1/32" and the bed was only 20" long. I was thinking of making tapered bushings to fit the bore and use them like a back chuck. Any one know where I can get some 2" Delrin.
Today I am going to make a router mount and maybe afew wood chips.
Purple!!! I can't even imagin, but then I have a very limited imagination!
Larry
You need the higher speeds to do clean facing cuts or you will have to spend a lot of time making special cutting bits. MSC supply sells delrin in different sizes. 1 9/16 is a great size. Turn down a 1 3/4 rod to fit, slice off collars, then bore them for different sizes. collars
Thanks, Larry
Ship Yards are where the really big lathes are usually found. They can get larger than a 100 feet and have over a 100 ton capacity.
Dick
Probably a good one for doing tips. Bet you don't put your hand on the chuck to help stop it.
You are going to make them to slip inside the rear of the spindle I presume. Have you measured from just outside the chuck where you will be machining to the rear of the spindle? It was already mentioned, but one possible issue with such a large lathe is that distance approaching the length of a shaft or butt. Using bushings inside the spindle versus mounting a chuck on the rear of the spindle would reduce the distance a little, but it still might be a stretch.
I used a within spindle bushing for a while, but it wasn't tapered, just a snug fit. When it got warm enough to expand and lock on the inside of my spindle due to running the lathe for a while with a somewhat fast speed, I decided to machine an aluminum adapter that clamped on the outside of the spindle, and I use split bushings/collets on the inside of that instead of the inside of the spindle.
Kelly
32" funny it didn't look that long before I got the tape measure out. Yes I was going to slip the bushing in the spindle bore. Maybe one day I will get the perfect lathe. Right now I am going through the Goldie Locks stage. One to small, one to big, next one should be just right!!!!
Larry
Big iron can be very affordable if you have the room and a way of moving it as most don't want them. All of the machine shops and industry have already or are going to CNC to cut labor cost so all of their manual equipment goes on the chopping block. Many bargains can be had. The problem that cue makers have is that the perfect size lathe for us is also the perfect size for home machinists. Machinists buy these and a Bridgeport for home use and they can then pick up extra work as a sideline and sometimes make as much as they do at their full time job. I've got an old 16X48 that I picked up for 200.00 once. No one wanted to move it.
Dick
The wood will have more of a tendency to tear than cut at low speeds. You can use a lam router to do all of the facing, boring and cutting ops and negate the problem.
Purple=Barney............a lathe is no good without a name.
Machine shops are closing their doors by the dozens right now. I'm keeping close tabs on the auctions, and some VERY VERY good deals can be had. Bridgeport mills with power feeds and DROs sell regularly for $1,200. Lathes in the 40" range are going for $1,200 - $1,500. Frequently, these are some of the most expensive items sold in the auction. I've seen some very large, expensive machinery sell for less than scrap metal value because nobody wants to move it or has the business to put it to use. Crazy times.
Mr H
