deadfred (please sign all posts),
TH42 means Timken tapered roller bearings on the spindle (the other choice at the time was babbit), Horizontal countershaft, and 42" long bed. A 42" bed will have approximately 24" distance between centers (one in the spindle and one in the tailstock with the tailstock at the right end of the bed). Another common descriptor is 10X24, which means 10" swing (the largest diameter that can be mounted and clear the bed, not the carriage) and 24" between centers.
It is an Atlas F-Series 10" (the final version) made from about 1938 until 1957. If you'll post or PM me the serial number I'll give you at least a rough idea of when yours was built. It is also a Change Gear machine, meaning that to change the rate of advance of the carriage per spindle revolution, you must manually change the gears on the left end of the headstock (large casting on the left end of the bed which carries the spindle).
You can download a PDF of the parts manual from our Downloads section, along with several other publications. As has already been said, the other publication that you need to get is the Atlas Manual of Lathe Operation and Machinists Tables (MOLO for short). Scans of the MOLO are not permitted here (or on Yahoo) because it is still in print. You can buy a new copy today from Clausing (about $35.00). However, between 1937 and 1988, Atlas printed 33 editions. Out of those 33, there are 9 distinct versions. The best version to match your machine would be either the 2nd (but you also need the Atlas (not the Craftsman) Threading Supplement) or the 4th, which has the supplement bound in. They turn up pretty frequently on eBay. There is usually one or two running there priced over $100, the sellers being misinformed and thinking that because it was Copyright 1937 it's worth big bucks. It isn't. Typical prices are $35 and down. However, 99% of the sellers don't know that there were several versions all saying "Copyright 1937", of which only the 1st version is actually rare. Download the file "MOLO History.pdf" for details on how to ID the one that you need.
Robert D.
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UNKN,
Do you know which Edition the one available on SCRIBD is?
Robert D.
This site has the atlas lathe maunual, you can look at the manual but only print it one page as needed I have used this site a number of times;
