# new (old) logan 920



## s1dev

I'm in the process of acquiring a Logan 920 I've nevered owned a lathe before, what sort of preventative maintenance should I do before making chips and what should I be careful of?


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## Chuck K

Those are some really vague questions.  Maintenance would depend on the condition of the lathe.  If it's been sitting unused for years it might need a complete tear down and clean and lube.  If it's been in use by a conscientious owner it might only need the usual day to day lube and maintenance...or anything in between.  You could do yourself a big favor by downloading and reading the book "How To Run A Lathe" by south bend. It's a book that's been around forever but everything in it is still applicable. The 11" Logan is a great lathe.  Good luck and have fun with it.

Chuck


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## s1dev

So I found out that I'm missing a toolpost, a compound rest, a threading dial, and the mechanism that advances the turret. Where can I find these?
it appears the v belt is worn out since it keeps slipping and there doesn't appear to be a way to change the tension other than adjusting the screws on the motor mount which is already fully out
there also is something odd going on with the gears, all of the visible ones are turning although the leadscrew is not, is it possible a gear is missing in the thread per inch selection lever area?

I have what the previous owner said is the manual although it doesn't make mention of the turret much at all


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## Chuck K

I didn't realize that the 920 was a turret machine. Do you have a standard tailstock for it also?  I think my logan manuals have the turret breakdown in them. You might not have the original Logan manual.  A few pics of your lathe would go a long way toward getting answers to some of your questions.  The tool holder isn't a big problem.  You can get a Chinese Aloris knockoff for around 100 bucks.  Your going to want to find a compound for it.  Logan parts are plentiful.  If the machine has the rear mounted motor assembly (again pics would help), the belt adjustment is the stud sticking through the top of the countershaft cover.  When you run the machine do any gears in the quick change gearbox turn?  Is the tumbler on the back of the headstock in the forward or reverse position?  If it's in neutral the lead screw won't turn.

Chuck


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## s1dev

I've figured out that the bolts on top just sit in the holes and by tighting the bolts it tightens down on the tools, one of the bolt's threads needs to be run through a die. I believe the threaded rods on the end are for depth but they were in a bag of tooling when I received the lathe. I didn't notice it before, but maybe someone took the turret and the gear cover from another, restored, lathe?




It appears that someone attempted to make a toolpost for it but it doesn't hold any of the tools that came with it


These I couldn't figure out what they were. the nuts on the part on the right are cotter pinned



The pulley in the back of this picture turns free of the rod although when the set-screws were taken out to get a look at it and the shaft was turned there was no movement at the bottom of the hole. it appears to have enough grip to turn the chuck
I forgot to get a picture of the belt that's slipping but its the one in the cover behind the drum switch


Also, the lever that engages the gears for the powerscrew was in the up position. all the gears that were visible from the left side were turning, although when looking up into the quick change gear box, there was no movement


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## jererp

When I bought my 850, one of the first things I did was purchase the parts manual from Logan Actuator.  I got both the paper copy and an electronic copy.  My electronic copy has an exploded view and parts list for the turret you have.  Paper copy does not. It is the LA 70 pilot wheel turret. The third picture from the top appears to be parts of the indexing mechanism for the turret.  They were probably removed to keep the index mechanism from turning. Does it lock securely to the lathe bed? If so, then you may not be missing much, if any, of the mechanism. If all the parts are there, you may want to consider selling it. There aren't as many of them around, and could help fund getting the other parts you need. I know I've been asked if I would like to get rid of mine....so far I am keeping it.


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## Chuck K

Your drive belt between the motor and countershaft is tightened by the adjuster behind the motor.  Looks like you have a machine that was setup for production work.  You have the double cross slide rather than a compound....turret rather than conventional tailstock.  It kind of limits what you can do with the lathe.  If you want to turn, bore, tap, and part small pieces you have the perfect setup.  For most hobby machinists a compound and a plain tailstock is a bit handier.  I have one of those turrets if you find that you need a few parts.  I haven't looked at it for some time, but I think it just has a broken handle on it.

Chuck


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## s1dev

just missing a spring and a pin which I'll probably acquire from mcmaster carr as Logan Actuator wants $37.25 for the spring and $10 for the pin.
what's a ballpark figure for the completed turret? Is it enough to get a compound and tailstock?
Also turns out that both the belts are too small which seems to be causing a significant portion of my problems


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## Chuck K

When you say "Also turns out that both the belts are too small which seems to be causing a significant portion of my problems", are you referring to the flat belt that drives the spindle and v belt from the motor to countershaft...or do you have 2 v belts on the motor pulleys? That would certainly cause some slippage.....unless you have pulleys with no steps.  I have no idea what the market is for turrets.  If someone wanted one bad enough and they had a parts lathe with a cross slide and tail stock, they would probably be willing to work out a trade that at worst wouldn't cost you a whole lot. It looks like your going to need the top of the cross slide and the compound.  I'll look through my parts today and see if I have any of those parts.  I sold most of one parts machine, but I think some of the cross slide is still around.  I might have a tail stock thats missing the spindle.  I would just have to look. 

Chuck


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## s1dev

The V belt is 37" where the manual says 40" and the flat belt is pulling the flat belt pulley for the V belt into the nut for the drum switch mount


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## Chuck K

Ok...I understand what you're saying.  I think it should have threaded holes for the switch mount so you don't have nuts inside the case....I could be wrong on that.  I have gone through the clearance issues when trying to determine what length belt to use.  There may be a little give in the belt housing if you loosen the two bolts in the back of the housing.  You may be able to pick up another 1/8" of clearance.  I've had housings that had an extra set of holes drilled to offset the housing it a bit. You could probably get rid of the funky latch that some previous owner made and replace it with a piece of 3M dual lock.  The stuff is like velcro on steroids.

Chuck


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## s1dev

if its not too much trouble, would you mind measuring spring #51 in the turret?


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## Chuck K

I'll have to look in a manual a figure out what spring your looking for.  For some reason I was thinking 10" logan...but yours is an 11" if the "9" in the model number is any indication.  I do have a complete turret from an 11" machine, so if I have the time tomorrow and its not a major project to get the spring out, I'll get you some measurements.

Chuck


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## s1dev

Thanks

I replaced the too short flat belt with a link belt from harbor freight and it fixed my clearance issue with the v-belt and is running nicely. Next on the list is the V-belt and turret, then I'll see about the gearbox and compound (and possibly a tailstock)


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## Chuck K

Ok, I dug the turret out and took it apart today.  I found a parts breakdown in one of the manuals I have and I see the #51 spring you mentioned.  The spring in the turret I have looks nothing like the one pictured.  It's a piece of flat spring steel rather than the coil spring pictured in the manual.  I looked all over the shop for my camera today and couldn't locate it, so I can't show you a pic. I'm sure it's right where I left it....hopefully I can find it tomorrow and post a pic.  I have a turret from a 10" also but I don't think it's exactly the same.  I didn't know harbor freight sold link belts.  I bought some online.  Nice belts, but they are pricey.  I spent the money for the endless belt that Scott Logan sells for the last 820 I had.  It's a really quiet running belt, but the price is kind of hard to justify.  If you can find a serpentine that's the right length they work really well.  The problem I've run into with serpentine belts that I buy from NAPA is that the lengths vary as much as an inch.  I got tired of returning belts that they special ordered for me.  When I find my camera I'll post pics of the cross slide and compound parts I have also.

Chuck


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## Chuck K

I found my camera.  Here's pics of the spring.  The cross slide and compound I have are from a 10" lathe, so I didn't bother taking pics.


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## s1dev

Thanks. I think I'll just make a spring from some spring steel
I took a look in the quick change gearbox and there are two 16/32 tooth double gears with stripped 16 tooth gears. Since there aren't any on ebay, I'm going to attempt to make my own. It appears that the 32 tooth gear was pressed onto the 16 tooth gear so I don't believe it should be too difficult


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## s1dev

For the compound, will getting these work?
http://www.ebay.com/itm/VERY-NICE-L...=BI_Heavy_Equipment_Parts&hash=item43c3633080
http://www.ebay.com/itm/VERY-NICE-O...=BI_Heavy_Equipment_Parts&hash=item565f876605


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## Chuck K

Those parts are from a 10" lathe.  I don't know if they are the same as the 11" compound.  If they are, you could probably buy a whole parts machine for the price he wants for the items listed.  

Chuck


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## s1dev

where would be a good place to look for a parts machine?


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## Chuck K

Well, being in TX, parts machines might be a little scarce....I didn't take that into consideration when I posted my last reply.  Logan's are fairly plentiful in northern IL. I guess it depends on how patient you are.  If you want it right away it will probably cost you more.  I would want to make sure the parts from a 10" were interchangeable with an 11" before buying parts on ebay.   

Chuck


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## s1dev

I've gotten a phase II QCTP for it and am still looking for a tailstock since I doubt there will be much straight shank tooling available. The 10" tailstocks will fit on the ways so I plan to just make an aluminum spacer for the tailstock to sit ontop of to get the proper height. Ideally, I would also get a compound but those are even more scarce than tailstocks.


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## s1dev

Does anyone see any problems with mounting an atlas tailstock to my lathe other than I'll have to make a spacer for it? and a holddown in this case
http://www.ebay.com/itm/ATLAS-10-LA...423?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item20df370517


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## stevecmo

I think your biggest problem would just be alignment.  The Atlas has flat ways and your Logan has one vee way.  

There are a couple of yahoo Logan forums.  Have you joined them?  Someone on those lists may be able to help with parts.  Also, Joe at Plaza Machinery my have a tailstock.

Hope that helps.

Steve


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## s1dev

I've asked on the yahoo group with the only suggestions broadening my search slightly but still nothing. I'll see what this turns up, it looks promising. Lets hope that its not too much. Does anyone know if the ways and nut for the double t slot cross slide are the same as the 9" compound?


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