# Logan Powermatic #1



## AR1911 (Dec 20, 2013)

I had been looking for a Logan Powermatic to match my Millrite Powermatic, since 2004. I did not realize I had been looking that long until I ran across an old post on PM.
  Anyway, I went to a local auction recently. This was one amazing lot. It was a 50,000 square foot warehouse FULL of machine tools. This guy had been collecting tools for many years. None were under power, a few were apart. I bet there were at least 30 lathes 12" and under, and they went cheap. How about a nice Monarch 10EE for $800? 
   And there was a Powermatic Logan, 11" in the correct green!  And also a 12" PM in gold. Both have taper attachements, 3-jaw and 4-jaw. Long story short, I ended up with both for less than I was willing to pay for the green one alone.

I am  now in the process of cleaning them up. Have not yet applied power to either, but they look like low-usage machines.   The Gold one is cleaned up, but the green one is "as found" in the photos below.











Now my problem is Too Many Lathes. My 9A South bend is for sale, and my mint Craftsman 618 is spoken for.  That leaves these 2 Logans and a near-new Grizzly 12x37.  I need to pick 2 to keep, and I'm having a real hard time with that. :thinking:


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## Senna (Dec 20, 2013)

*Re: Logan Powermatic*

Very nice score!!

Gotta love a sparsely attended auction for great deals.

Wonder if any other members from TX were there? Seems like I've heard some TX guys say that there usually isn't any machinery for sale out there.

My advice; keep the green Logan and the gold Logan.


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## AR1911 (Dec 20, 2013)

*Re: Logan Powermatic*



Senna said:


> Very nice score!!
> 
> Gotta love a sparsely attended auction for great deals.
> 
> ...



Actually, there were over 100 registered bidders. There were just SO many machines!   I wish I had take some pics of the warehouse before anything got moved. There were literally 100s of machines, and most of them were in the home shop category.  This was not a machine shop, this was a collector.  Reason all this was being sold is the guy has Alzheimers. Sad.
  Interestingly, I was looking at the photos on my hard drive, and found the green lathe - by serial number - from an ebay post in 2010!  

Yes I'm also leaning toward the 2 PMs. But I just bought this Grizzly last summer, and it's the nicest lathe I've ever owned. It has all the tooling , the steady and follow rests, and a nice collet closer. The 2 PMs have no tooling other than the chucks and 1 follow rest. 
I think my short-term plan is to keep the 3 of them.


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## Senna (Dec 20, 2013)

*Re: Logan Powermatic*



AR1911 said:


> Actually, there were over 100 registered bidders. There were just SO many machines!   I wish I had take some pics of the warehouse before anything got moved. There were literally 100s of machines, and most of them were in the home shop category.  This was not a machine shop, this was a collector.  Reason all this was being sold is the guy has Alzheimers. Sad.
> Interestingly, I was looking at the photos on my hard drive, and found the green lathe - by serial number - from an ebay post in 2010!
> 
> Yes I'm also leaning toward the 2 PMs. But I just bought this Grizzly last summer, and it's the nicest lathe I've ever owned. It has all the tooling , the steady and follow rests, and a nice collet closer. The 2 PMs have no tooling other than the chucks and 1 follow rest.
> I think my short-term plan is to *keep the 3 of them*.



I like that plan!!


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## valleyboy101 (Dec 20, 2013)

*Re: Logan Powermatic*

I think that you were a prospector that stuck gold!  The Powermatic looks from the photos to be a keeper.
Congratulations on your purchases - such opportunities are once in a lifetime.
Michael


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## Happycamper (Nov 15, 2014)

*Re: Logan Powermatic*

AR, I know this is an old post and you had responded to another thread I had, but, did you keep the two powermatics?

Jerry H


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## GarageGuy (Nov 16, 2014)

*Re: Logan Powermatic*



AR1911 said:


> I think my short-term plan is to keep the 3 of them.



That's the kind of compromise I like  :biggrin:

GG


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## AR1911 (Nov 16, 2014)

*Re: Logan Powermatic*

Yes, I still have the 3 of them. Just finished the 9" and it turned out nice.
But the gold 12" will probably need a new home soon.


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## Happycamper (Nov 16, 2014)

*Re: Logan Powermatic*

The one with the spindle brake, is that a low voltage operated item and how does it work?


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## AR1911 (Nov 16, 2014)

*Re: Logan Powermatic*

I think both have one. It's a mechanical lever with a small "shoe" that presses against the spindle pulley. I think the 12" has a switch in it also. The 11" has a place for a switch, but none present. I suspect that came with the mag switch option.


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## Happycamper (Nov 17, 2014)

*Re: Logan Powermatic*

That is the switch in your pic with the '274' tag hanging on it? Where is the shoe located on the spindle? I just bought one on an auction and in the process of adding a VFD. That will bypass the mag starter so I'm trying to figure out how to make use of the switches on the machine. I didn't know what the lever under the e stop was but suspected it was a brake. It looks like it's wired in only to the estop and start switches. There is nothing in the manual about the brake so I'm trying to figure it all out. Thanks for your help. 

Jerry H. 
Waco


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## AR1911 (Nov 17, 2014)

*Re: Logan Powermatic*

Below is a photo of the outside of the stop lever.
I don't have pics of the other end with the shoe.  It bears on the spindle pulley but I don't recall for sure which part of the pulley without looking at it.

Too cold to go to the shop today, but I'll go tomorrow.


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## Happycamper (Nov 18, 2014)

*Re: Logan Powermatic*

That's the lever I'm talking about. It has two red wires going to it with one going to the start switch and the other to the estop switch. It's in the low 20's this morning here in Waco. At least my shop has heat. Can't stand the cold.


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## AR1911 (Nov 18, 2014)

*Re: Logan Powermatic*

I am almost certain that is covered in the back of the manual.
I will check when i get out to the shop (when it warms up later today)


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## JimDawson (Nov 18, 2014)

*Re: Logan Powermatic*



Happycamper said:


> That's the lever I'm talking about. It has two red wires going to it with one going to the start switch and the other to the estop switch. It's in the low 20's this morning here in Waco. At least my shop has heat. Can't stand the cold.



That is probably a Normally Closed switch, that Opens when you hit the brake.   That would drop out the mag starter when the brake is activated by hand.  It could be wired in to the VFD to act the same.

Burrr, it's warmer up here, and I'm waiting for my shop to warm up.)


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## Happycamper (Dec 13, 2014)

*Re: Logan Powermatic*

Ok, got another question about the 11". Where do you oil/lubricate the QCGB? On the gold lathe I can see the oil cups on the top of the QCGB. But on the 11", I can't find any.

Jerry H.


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## AR1911 (Dec 13, 2014)

*Re: Logan Powermatic*



Happycamper said:


> Ok, got another question about the 11". Where do you oil/lubricate the QCGB? On the gold lathe I can see the oil cups on the top of the QCGB. But on the 11", I can't find any.
> Jerry H.



There really is no provision for lubricating the QCGB. That box design is common to all the 9" 10" and 11" lathes back to WW2. All I do is spray machine oil up into it from the bottom periodically.  It's the same for SB and many other smaller lathes.
  If anyone has a better method I'd love to hear it.


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## GarageGuy (Dec 13, 2014)

*Re: Logan Powermatic*

I have a pump oil can with an extended flex tip filled with Royal Purple synthetic differential lube that I use on the QCGB.  I separate the gear selector handles to opposite sides of the box, and thread the flex tip up over the gears.  When I bought the machine, one of the gears in the box was trashed, so I rebuilt the box and used Royal Purple as assembly lube when I put it back together.  Extremely slippery, and makes the gears run very smooth and quiet.  The difference was dramatic.

GG


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## Happycamper (Dec 14, 2014)

*Re: Logan Powermatic*

75/90 or the 75/140?


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## GarageGuy (Dec 14, 2014)

*Re: Logan Powermatic*



Happycamper said:


> 75/90 or the 75/140?



85w-140.  It works excellent on the side gears too.  It's sticky, so it doesn't fling as much as lighter lubes.


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## Happycamper (Dec 14, 2014)

*Re: Logan Powermatic*

Thanks. I ran royal purple in a HD I had and really liked it. FWIW I found some more info on lubing the QCGB here:

bbs.homeshopmachinist.net/archive/index.php/t-5984.html

you'll have to copy and paste the link


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## GarageGuy (Dec 14, 2014)

*Re: Logan Powermatic*

I read the thread in your link, and it was interesting.  These old ~ 1945 vintage lathes have survived more abuse and poor quality lubrication (or worse yet, no lubrication) than we will ever subject them to.  Modern lubricants are light years ahead of what these machines ran on for decades.  

When I replaced the gear in my QCGB and used RP as an assembly lube, it was so slippery that I had a devil of a time hanging on to the pieces while assembling them.

GG


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