Craftsman lathe is it a good deal?

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98rangerll

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I found a old craftsman lathe for sale for 115.00 I'm real tight on money and it doesn't come with much it has a Jacobs chuck and some change gears no centers or chucks or face plate not even sure if it turns or not is it worth buying and getting a chuck for it or would I be farther ahead to get on ebay and buy on for double the money that has a bunch of stuff with it and not have to search for all the pieces to get it in running order? Any advice guys
 
No centers, no chucks, no face plate.

What does it come with? Kind of missing some important parts. Price out the missing stuff and compare that to a complete setup.

I would look some where else.
Pierre
 
Buck's right.. we need pictures..

My gut feeling though: Save up your money and keep looking..
 
Like said above: pics help. Also depends on the model, shape and how close it is to you. Shipping adds a whole lot to internet "bargains". I paid a whole lot more for a worn 12" Craftsman about 30 years ago and drove 200 miles to get it. But I needed it then and it's served me very well. You will need some basic tooling before you can use it at all, so figure that cost into the initial purchase price.
 
image.jpg Got a pic the lady says it has a set of change gears but she didn't know if its a complete set or partial set but other than that what you see is what you get from what she says the lathe is about a our from we're I am I can go pick it up my self so I would have a little fuel witch saves from shipping charges but its still money is money and she says she might come down a little she was talking about 50 bucks but then changed her price to 150 and I told her it wouldn't happen and then she said 115 but now she is talking about coming back down some so ill keep you posted as she goes

image.jpg
 
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That is a Dunlap lathe, sold by Sears under their Craftsman label.

There has to be components etc somewhere in the house. They will not be large like a 10" Atlas but try to look around. At least it is only missing the chucks.

Here is a writeup about these lathes.
http://www.lathes.co.uk/craftsman/page4.html

Pierre
 
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Pass -- keep looking. You can find a better machine for a little more money.
 
I agree. Pass this one up. That is a Craftsman "109", which is notorious for bending the head stock spindle in the event of a crash. For what it will cost to accessorize this one, you can buy a larger and complete setup on ebay
 
I agree with everything the others have said here. The lathe was made by a company called AA products for Sears. Save your money and buy something else. While yes it is a lathe, though small, it will give you twice it's weight in frustration trying to really do anything of benefit on it.

Even a small 6" Atlas would be light years ahead of this machine. Any lathe someone advertises as a Sears, Craftsman, or Dunlap metal lathe 6" lathe that has V type ways will be a AA machine like the one above. There was a previous generation of this machine that will look a bit older and less refined but real official for a small lathe; they are NOT as good as they look. In summation, run from any older metal lathe of this size with V type ways.

I would give an approving nod to a 6" Atlas or Craftsman lathe with flat ways though. Just know that many folks will tell you to run from virtually any Atlas machines. I am not one of those folks, almost every machine I own is an Atlas/Craftsman machine. I like them, they were what was convenient to me, and they do what I need them to do.
 
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