Advice on lathe for home shop

[projectnut]

well I went back to the machine tool dealer and the 40” Harrison is pretty beat. There’s definite wear in the ways and the thread dial is missing, brake assembly is making noise on the drive sheave end, I’m gonna pass on that one. The 25” machine still is under consideration.

I heard back from the guy selling the 15” tray top Cincinnati and it’s a 15X42 and the total length is 8 feet. It’s a couple hour drive to go look at it but I’m thinking of borrowing a trailer and taking a ride. What should I be looking at on the Cincinnati beyond the regular items? Any Cincinnati specific faults or weaknesses that I should be on the look out for?

The Cincinnati is sounding better all the time. The work envelope is similar to my Sheldon although the total length of the machine you're looking at is a bit longer. I would certainly consider it if you have the space for it.

As for a trailer I would recommend a drop bed style. I've used them to move several machines. The bed is hydraulically lowered to the ground for loading, then raised to the normal travel position. It makes loading and unloading much easier, and minimizes the chance of tipping the machine while loading and unloading.

Here's a link to some available from SunBelt Rentals.
Platform Lift Trailer Rentals | Sunbelt Rentals

I rented one identical to the first one on the list. It had a 9' bed and load capacity of 10,000 lbs.

I didn't rent the one I used from them. I found the same style available from a local rental company. It cost less than $200.00 for almost a week.

Here are a couple pictures of the lathe on the trailer. I didn't tow it with the Jeep, I used the Expedition. I just used the Jeept to turn the trailer into the garage.

 

[GSweldmech]

good point on the loading, I have overhead hoists in my shop that should get it off of the trailer. It occurs to me that this machine is set up for 480 volts, I have no idea if it can be converted to run on 230 and the seller hasnt answered my questions.

 

[matthewsx]

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Definitely use the drop deck trailer unless the seller can load with a forklift and you're confident with your overhead hoist setup.

John

 

[Flyinfool]

If you can get the seller to send you a pic of the motor data plate that will say if it is a dual voltage motor.

 

[projectnut]

I would be surprised if this wasn't a dual voltage motor. Here's a link to a wiring diagram I found on the Vintage machinery site for the Cincinnati tray top machines. It appears to have an internal transformer which would allow the machine to be powered by either 220 or 440 volts.

OEM Wiring Diagram (vintagemachinery.org)

Here's a link to a sales brochure from the same site. The last page lists the electrical specifications. From this publication it appears all the machines that can be run on 480 volts can also be run on either 220 or 550 volts. The only other option was a 110/220 volt motor.

20863.pdf (vintagemachinery.org)

 

[GSweldmech]

So I’m waiting on the Cincinnati guy to give more feed back on voltage, loading etc. while I wait I continue to peruse the craiglist etc. this morning I came across a 15X30 leblond servoshift. I read a lot of things on the web that say other than the servo shift it’s a decent lathe. The seller says it shifts fine and he has owned it for 17 years and had no problems. It’s got a wizard DRO that the cross slide scale is no good, I know nothing of wizard and whether replacements are available , I’ve got to do some research. Do any of you gents have any experience/ opinions on the leblond ? It too is a 2 plus hour drive away, the only one I’ve found close is the Harrison mentioned above.

 

[7milesup]

I have never run a LeBlond GSweldmech, but I have seriously considered them. There was a 15x54 in my area that just sold on an auction for $4775. Plus loading fee of $600 plus buyers fee of 15% plus tax of 7.25% for a total of $6489. It was a nice looking lathe but did not have any tool posts, no tooling and no chuck.
From my research on the Servo Shift, it seems that maintenance is usually the cause of it not shifting correctly. Changing out the fluid, etc may eliminate any issues. They are a smooth running lathe. Here is a video of one running.

and another one...

As far as the DRO, I would not worry about it. Depending on the type of communication architecture that it has, you may be able to just replace the scale. Worst case scenario would be to replace the whole setup with a DRO from AliExpress. About $250.

 

[projectnut]

We had several LeBlond machines in the shop where I worked. The smallest was 13" and the largest was about 24" if I remember correctly. They were excellent machines, and some still survive in commercial shops today. A friend of mins has a 13" and a 16" that get used on a daily basis. They're in the 50 year old range and still run like new.

None of our machines were the Hydroshift models.

 

[GSweldmech]

Well I’m gonna take a long ride tomorrow and look at the leblond and perhaps look at the Cincinnati on Wednesday. This afternoon while waiting for football to start a Logan 6560H popped up on FB marketplace in the next town over. this lathe looks stupid clean, either someone took great care of it or they just did a restoration on it. The guy is asking $3000 for the Logan which I think is high for a Logan and he’s saying tooling is not included but available for extra. It has a turret tailstock with the monster spoked handle Logan used which I’m not crazy about, not sure if he has a regular tail stock. Does anyone know anything about this model Logan.

 

[matthewsx]

No experience with the Logan but it looks pretty puny compared with the machines you've been looking at. Anything with a turret is likely to have been used in production though so a close inspection would be warranted if you do get interested. $3k does sound pretty high though.

John