Colchester lathe user ? Help needed for a metric colchester student lathe please!

[fluff34567]

Hello all,

A friend bought a colchester student lathe mk 1.5 , about 5 years ago from a factory closing down sale and it's been sitting unused ever since. I'm trying to get it working again but I last used a lathe about 30 years ago so bit of a challenge!

I have worked out all the spindle speed selection , motor forward/ reverse , the safety / brake lever but despite everything i can't get the feed shaft or lead screw to engage.

I'm moving the lever on the most left A which I believe should engage the lower section of gearbox and have also tried the small levers on the lower section B and C which should engage the thread cutting and feed shaft but no joy.

The joystick C is extremely loose so I think something isn't right and lever A is engaging something but feels like just barely but again it's very loose. I don't know if a loose selection is normal on this unit.

Can someone tell me what to do?

Thanks !!!

 

[cathead]

Every control has some function on the lathe. A little trial and error will give you the
answer if you persevere. If that does not help, some disassembly might be needed to figure it out.

 

[Gaffer]

Welcome to the forums. I am attaching the manual and it looks like it is for yours. If not, check Vintage Machinery. They might have it. There should be a few safeties in place that could be your problem. There should also be a shear pin that protects the leadscrew. It's easy to get to. Refer to the last paragraph on page 17 of the attached pdf user's manual. It sounds like you might have to dive into the head and or gearbox. There are snap rings that hold the shafts/gear assemblies in place. There are also bronze guides that ride on the levers with the other ends riding in the channels on sheaves(?) that move the gears left and right on the shafts. Forgive my ignorance to the correct names of the parts. I attached photos of the A-D selector and then the backside of it showing the bronze guides. Note the wear on the one I'm pointing at. The attached pdf has exploded diagrams in the back with parts lists.

I have a Master 6.5 which is similar to your Student. Mine is apart now so I am attaching photos of the guts you are interested in. I'm not taking out spindle or disassembling the head any further so pictures of the feed reversing mechanism might not be much help. In the pictures looking down toward the spindle show my flashlight. It is illuminating the mechanism to your lever A. I am also attaching a pdf for the Student manual if you don't already have it. Best of luck, and let us know what you find.

Here is a link to a Colchester forum I found quite helpful:

main groups.io Group

This group is mainly for owners of Colchester Lathes, although owners and users of other makes of lathe are of course also very welcome. The Colchester Lathe Company was first established in 1887, with the first geared head machines produced in 1907. Colchester’s production hey-days were from...

colchesterlathe.groups.io

 

[Martin W]

Does it have change gears for threading? If the change gears are not in place on the end of the lathe. This will prevent the leadscrew from turning. There is also a shear pin where the leadscrew goes into the headstock, but I am not sure on this model
Martin

 

[fluff34567]

Hello all, I found some gears in the tooling cabinet which I thought was a bit strange but as it came with loads of other stuff I didn't think more of it.

I guess uts a case of taking the cover off and looking inside !

Martin and Gaffer- thank you so much for the infos. I will get the user manual translated for my friend.

I tried all combinations of levers but the shaft doesn't turn so something going on for sure

I keep you updated.