# South bend lathe at auction



## wschock (Oct 10, 2017)

Hi, I have always been interested in machining and have found a lathe for sale at auction(this weekend) that I was hoping you guys could give a little advice on.  It is advertised as a 12" quick change gear lathe.  As far as I know no tooling is included.  I am just curious as to a ballpark figure on what to pay if I decide to buy it.  It is located in central Indiana.  Thanks guys and here is a web address for the auction if you wanna take a look.  
http://www.auctionzip.com/cgi-bin/auctionview.cgi?lid=2990616.  Auctioneers website is cuskadenauctions.weebly.com in case the auctionzip doesn't work.  There is also various other things relating to machining, if you guys browse through and see something else I should bid on let me know.  Thanks again


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## woodtickgreg (Oct 10, 2017)

Nice south bend, probably a 13, they did not make a 12 that I am aware of. Super heavy so try and figure out how your going to move it if you win.
Let's see, what else should you bid on.......................ALL OF IT!!!!


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## wschock (Oct 10, 2017)

What would be a good price to pay for a lathe like that


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## woodtickgreg (Oct 10, 2017)

Lathes like that in rough shape start around 1500.00 and go up from there.
Also depends on what comes with it as far as tooling and chucks etc.


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## Chipper5783 (Oct 10, 2017)

It is pretty short.  It is pretty sparse on tooling.  There is no word on its' condition.  I assume it has to be purchased without the option of even turning it on!  It appears to be out of a pretty dirty environment.

I have purchased machines with all of the above issues, and ended up with some very nice kit because of it (and spent many hours cleaning and fixing - but that is what I do for fun).  However, when I am faced with the above issues - I pay practically nothing (about 3x the scrap value).  Usually such "deals" go to someone else - that is fine, there is plenty of opportunity around and one or two machines a year is all I can handle.

My advise, if you are new to machining - go buy a lathe that has everything working (even buy a new one).  For just getting started in machining, get something that is a reasonable size machine (which that one is)  - but get something a bit longer.


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## wschock (Oct 10, 2017)

Thanks guys, say by chance i get it dirt cheap,  next problem is moving it.  any ideas on how much it weighs?


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## Bob Korves (Oct 10, 2017)

1500 pounds, plus or minus?


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## Bob Korves (Oct 10, 2017)

I would also be looking for a lathe with a longer bed, unless you know you will be only working on short parts, or if you are severely short of space, which would also make me look elsewhere.  It looks like that one would be limited to work about 18" between centers, with the chuck removed, and shorter yet with the chuck in place.


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## Silverbullet (Oct 14, 2017)

A lot of the cost you must figure is the moving it. If you use riggers just double your cost. Even more if you get it cheap.


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## gonzo (Oct 15, 2017)

SB lathes with gear change handles one on top and the other in front are all older models like 1945 or earlier ( I think ).
Therefore more chance of a lot of wear and more importantly, replacement parts if needed could be difficult to find.
I would not purchase one of those older models.


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## Eddyde (Oct 15, 2017)

That looks like my heavy 10" except it has a short bed, I doubt its a 13". Prolly weighs about 850-900 lb. (my long bed weighs 950). You can take the chuck, tailstock off to bring it down a bit more. As for worth? Hard to say without being able to seat firsthand, I paid $800 I certainly wouldn't go much higher sight unseen. Gonzo is correct, its pre 45 or so but they can still make accurate parts if not completely worn out. SB's are great lathes to learn on.


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## wschock (Oct 15, 2017)

The lathe went for $500. Had no tooling with it other than what you guys say in the picture, I was able to look at it closer, had quite a bit of backlash on all the cranks and the ways were pretty rusty. I decided to let that one go and keep looking.  Thanks for all the replies


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