Starting the search

[Nesse1]

Just my opinion, but that South Bend is a behemoth. It's very old also. If I were looking to do fine detailed precision work, I'd be looking for a smaller, more precision machine. Easy to say, but maybe hard to find (for a good price.) Condition is everything though. Good luck with your search.

 

[markba633csi]

That is a fairly large, heavy lathe for hobby use- a good choice though if you can use something that big

 

[Seuss54]

I'm very fond of these 14.5/16" SB lathes. This one is fairly late as they go, in that it appears to have larger dials on the compound and cross feeds.
The plate for threading and feeds on the gearbox seems to be MIA. Would like to see a few close-ups rather than all the pix shot from a safe distance, as it were, but the six-jaw chuck is good to have especially when working with thin-wall materials. Wonder what tooling it comes with it?

I just noticed the missing information plate looking at the picture again, I'm guessing that is something I can find online. One question I have is if there is a repository somewhere for manuals for these older machines online? I assume there must have been an owners manual when the machines came out but I don't know if there is a sub forum or repository you guys know of where I could easily find it.

I plan on going to go see it in person next weekend when I'm free if it's still available I will make sure to take lots of pictures! Thank you to everyone for their advice and input, it is truly invaluable.

 

[Seuss54]

Just my opinion, but that South Bend is a behemoth. It's very old also. If I were looking to do fine detailed precision work, I'd be looking for a smaller, more precision machine. Easy to say, but maybe hard to find (for a good price.) Condition is everything though. Good luck with your search.

How much precision do you estimate one could get out of something this size? I don't expect to be machining anything accuractely to a thousandth any time soon but would 5 or 10 thousandths seem reasonable?

 

[Choiliefan]

SB's How to run a Lathe is about as close as you can get to a manual:

http://vintagemachinery.org/pubs/1617/17726.pdf

Vintage Machinery has a lot of free reprints:

South Bend Lathe Works - Publication Reprints | VintageMachinery.org

 

[Seuss54]

Ah, I can't believe I forgot about Vintage Machinery, thank you!

 

[David2011]

How much precision do you estimate one could get out of something this size? I don't expect to be machining anything accuractely to a thousandth any time soon but would 5 or 10 thousandths seem reasonable?

Those lathes were capable of excellent accuracy when new. How accurate it is today depends on its condition. Even a worn lathe is usually capable of good work over a short distance. The problem comes in when working on longer pieces. A badly worn lathe will cut a taper. IMO a goal of 5-10 thousandths is way too loose but you’ll see that for yourself once you start cutting metal. Even when I first started learn to use a lathe my goal was -0.00/+0.003 but that’s not hard to achieve.

 

[Ultradog MN]

That is a fairly large, heavy lathe for hobby use- a good choice though if you can use something that big

What is "hobby use"?
I'm just a hobbiest but my lathe, a 14.5x30, weighs 2 tons.

 

[David2011]

What is "hobby use"?
I'm just a hobbiest but my lathe, a 14.5x30, weighs 2 tons.

Old Monarch?

 

[Flyinfool]

Heavy is bad for moving it but once in place and set up then heavy becomes your best friend. Heavy means stiffer and therefore less deflection under load and less chance for chatter.

Try everything on the lathe, all of the change gear settings and all of the spindle speeds and both forward and reverse spindle, and carriage feed as well as cross slide feed. Don't forget the half nut. Everything should move smoothly

If he can show you the machine running that is a BIG plus. Sometimes if there is a new machine the old one have been moved to a spot with no power. No power means you are taking a big chance that all the electrics and mechanics are working as they should. Factor that heavily into the price.
If you have a good straight edge you can use it to tell if the ways are worn real bad. It will be harder to see smaller amounts of wear. For the ways that stick up you check the tapered surfaces not the small flat on top. Place the straight edge and shine a bright flashlight and look from the other side. Light coming thru means wear. Most of the wear will be within a foot or so of the chuck face. that is where most of the work happens.