WTB a 13x40 inch metal lathe - used

Dave38

Dave38

theemperorhasnoclotheson
Silver Member
I am currently looking for a used 13x40" metal lathe. I was looking at new ones, and their just a little too pricey. Even Enco is around the $2600 and up. The cheapest I have found is harbor freights $2000 model. I went to their store in the next town, but it was only half put together, with key things missing., so I really wasn't able to check it well.
If anyone has one or any leads on one, just pm me. I live in Mass.
Thanks,
DAve
 
Ebay is your friend as long as you have a truck. There are lathes going cheap every day in the north with you, and out to the west. You shouldn't have any trouble finding a lathe.
 
yea but they're still going to cost 2k. I'd go used American for 2 -2.5k before I'd spend the same on a new import. Check Surplus Record or Machinery Values one of those sites has listings by state.
 
DawgAndy said:
yea but they're still going to cost 2k. I'd go used American for 2 -2.5k before I'd spend the same on a new import. Check Surplus Record or Machinery Values one of those sites has listings by state.
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I have to agree with you, thats why I'd rather spend the same 2K on a used american. The issue with ebay, is I have been watching/searching, but most of them aren't the size I want. Alot are 10x42, or 12 x24, etc. The 13x40 gives me the 1.5" spindle bore I need to chuck up butts.
Thanks guys
Dave
 
Try craigslist.com I have picked up several pieces of equipment really cheap on there. Plus you can just look thru people local to you. I just got a shaper with all the tooling a few months ago for $50. Chris
 
If I were you I wouldn't overlook a Chinese lathe just because it's Chinese. If the reason is that you don't want to send more money out of the country then that's one thing but if the reason is that you believe a used American lathe would be a better lathe then you might be in for a surprise. Larger American lathes can be had for a song as no one wants to move one, however, the popular size being a 12 or 13 X 36 or 40 is a very popular lathe and are much harder to find in decent shape. You must also be aware that most American lathe companies are out of business so parts will be harder to find. I bought an Enco (Chinese) lathe new in 1961. I have put 1,000s upon 1,000s of hours on this lathe and I still have some of the first quart of oil that I had bought to top off the boxes. I haven't spent 50 cents on up keep on this lathe in 16 years.

Harbor Fright lathes aren't quite as nice as an Enco and an Enco isn't quite as nice as a Jet but for the difference in money the little extra cleaning and set-up is worth it. Every so often Harbor fright sends out e-mails with either 10%, 15%, or 20% off on any one item.

Shipping a lathe can be expensive so if looking for one on eBay you can go to "refine search" and put down how many mile radius that you want to purchase from and that is the only auctions that will pop up. When looking for heavier equipment that is what I do. I'll put a radius of 150 or 200 miles and see what is available in used equipment. I bought a 13 X40 Jet lathe in excellent condition that way for 1200.00 a couple of years ago.

Dick
 
i was also looking into buying a few more machines.

has anyone encountered problems in buying used lathes as far as abuse. i dont want to buy anything i cant even use. ebay scares me i hate buying site unseen and usually dont unless its brand new and guaranteed...
 
A used lathe can be a can of worms if you don't know what to look for. Check the ways. are they worn how much play is in the cross slide are the cross ways worn? Does it run fw and backwards? 3 phase or 1 phase most old american lathes are 3 ph. does the spindle have play? when you lock the auto feed in is there a lot of play also for the screw feed? If you are only going to turn wood on the machine then go import IMO. I have not had a problem with the one from Harbor freight. Now metal, that machine I would not use for. In that case I have an old Harrison M300 I probably would not have bought that particular lathe had I known then what I know now. I am looking at 6-800 bucks to get the ways ground. Granted it is a great machine but there are better ones out there than what I bought. As Dick said enco makes a pretty good lathe you may also want to check out Grizzly.com they make some pretty good lathes too.
 
the giz lathes look great.

i know buying used can be problems.

rather buy new. not that their arent great used machines out there

is the $$$ you save really worth the worry... not to me
 
I have a harbor freight lathe

I bought it with a coupon and got it for about 1600 out the door with a 18 month in home warranty thrown in by the manager of the store! Now it was the 12x36 model, which is marginal for cues. A 40 inch bed is way safer to use for sure! But measure the distance between centers of any lathe you buy, I have a 36 inch jet that is two inches longer in the bed than my HF lathe. You also have to decide if you want to use a chuck with a live center to spin shafts, if you do some 40 inch models may come up short.
I will say that my 36 inch HF lathe is my most accurate after extensive testing with indicators compared to my Jet and my South bend. But the other lathes were bought well used.
I bought the Jet for maybe 750 as is from a used machinery dealer/rebuilder. It needed a new counter gear, that was no longer made. I was able to make the gear for under $50. But I also had help of a machinist friend here. I made him a custom cue as a thank you.
The biggest thing I learned in buying used machines is to not NEED one. Just look and stay alert for the right deal, not the first one that happens to pop up. That is how I got my last two deals. Here in the rust belt used lathes come up fairly often. Except when you need one!
 
rhncue said:
If I were you I wouldn't overlook a Chinese lathe just because it's Chinese.
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I agree. In many cases the lathe will be better than the operator, and I speak from experience :o

Be careful not to buy a worn out lathe. Here is a link to some work by Dave Ficken, a used machinery dealer who used to help out the home shop machinists a lot. This guy was to rcm as Jim Meador was to rsb, bless them all.

http://www.mermac.com/advicenew.html

Dave
 
I have checked out craigslist for my area for a few weeks now. I actually saw one and called him, was going to check it out but he pulled the old 'someone is coming tomorrow morning, so you should come tonite'. Then upon further questioning, the spindle bore was only1-3/8s, and he already had removed the motor so it couldn't be ran. Needless to say, I passed on it. I am interested in the HF one, they look alot similar to the Enco and Grizzly. I have an old Atlas TH54, so I am aware of the old parts issues old stuff creates:D
That Grizzly does look like a great deal, if it only wasn't 1600 miles away.:D
Dave
 
Dave38 said:
I have checked out craigslist for my area for a few weeks now. I actually saw one and called him, was going to check it out but he pulled the old 'someone is coming tomorrow morning, so you should come tonite'. Then upon further questioning, the spindle bore was only1-3/8s, and he already had removed the motor so it couldn't be ran. Needless to say, I passed on it. I am interested in the HF one, they look alot similar to the Enco and Grizzly. I have an old Atlas TH54, so I am aware of the old parts issues old stuff creates:D
That Grizzly does look like a great deal, if it only wasn't 1600 miles away.:D
Dave
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All you need in a lathe is a 1.375 bore hole. How often do you think that you will get a butt larger than that to work on. I have an old monster of a lathe that is 16X54 and it's headstock was only 1.250 which is not quite big enough. I bored the through hole out to 1.375 myself and have had that lathe running for 20 years now.

Dick
 
Enco Free Shipping Code

The free shipping code on orders over $200 from Enco is HFSP27, good until December 31st. I'm going by memory, so call and double check before ordering. Their 13X40 starts at $2500, if I remember the email correctly.
 
There 's a couple quaility levels in the import lathes sold under different brands. I've checked out the Birminghams, the ones I looked at were put together pretty good. I think Southern Tool carries 4 or 5 different brands of the Chinese lathes.
 
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