Thinking of Purchasing a Craftsman 12"

[ChandlerJPerry]

Maybe any is better than none but assuming you aren’t in the position to buy new, whatever money you spend on buying and fixing up this one is not available to use on something better.

If the craftsman is local to you why not go take a look at it. Seeing it in person will give you a much better idea of what will be involved. For reference I just refurbished a 6” craftsman and have roughly the same amount into fixing it up as I paid for it.

john

I already asked if the seller would be interested in allowing me to come in person with cash in hand but they would prefer to play the eBay game, they told me they have been in touch with people willing to purchase it on there and pay shipping, which I think is a bluff but what can you do? He also told me that he thinks it's worth his minimum bid at least as there are others on the site selling for more. Never mind that those are ready to run with better tooling and features lol. In his listing he states that he doesn't know much about it, so I guess that's wrapped all the way around from, "no lowballers I know what I have" to the opposite end of the spectrum where he knows so little that he doesn't know what it's really worth lol.

 

[DavidR8]

For what it’s worth there is another member here who bought a lathe on eBay and it turned out to be a complete wreck (imho) even though the seller thought it was in great shape.


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[ChandlerJPerry]

What worked for me was putting out a want ad. I did that and had four responses in minutes.


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Good tip that I've yet to try, I just made my own want ad, I will have to see if I can drag anything in.

 

[ARC-170]

I have a similar lathe that I bought in similar condition for about $400. I live in LA. I learned a lot restoring it. I can't tell what some of the parts are in the pictures, but they don't look like they belong to a lathe. This has a stand, which is a plus. I don't miss a QCGB as much as I thought.

 

[ChandlerJPerry]

I have a similar lathe that I bought in similar condition for about $400. I live in LA. I learned a lot restoring it. I can't tell what some of the parts are in the pictures, but they don't look like they belong to a lathe. This has a stand, which is a plus. I don't miss a QCGB as much as I thought.

Yeah I more or less wrote the tools and accessories off as junk, there might be a few good things in there if one were to pick through it, but they aren't much of a selling point to me. Currently I would like a QCGB but it's less of a requirement anymore. In my current position turning down a machine for lack of it would be silly.

 

[ARC-170]

Could you convince the seller to let you come look at it? To him you want to inspect it in person before bidding. Maybe wait until after his first auction is over and show up with cash. Of course, with 20+ watchers, they may all be waiting to bid. You never know. If you lose it, there will be others. I looked for a few weeks and asked lots of questions and learned what to look for. When a machine came up, I knew what to expect. My $400 lathe has cost me about $1000 extra in tooling, etc. But it has been fun! And I've learned so much about it. Hang in there! Good luck.

 

[ChandlerJPerry]

Could you convince the seller to let you come look at it? To him you want to inspect it in person before bidding. Maybe wait until after his first auction is over and show up with cash. Of course, with 20+ watchers, they may all be waiting to bid. You never know. If you lose it, there will be others. I looked for a few weeks and asked lots of questions and learned what to look for. When a machine came up, I knew what to expect. My $400 lathe has cost me about $1000 extra in tooling, etc. But it has been fun! And I've learned so much about it. Hang in there! Good luck.

Part of the reason I offered to show up with cash is that this is the second auction. He initially asked like $1,200 I think which went nowhere. He relisted it and has been severely dropping the price every couple days to where it is now, so I thought for sure that meant he wanted to move it and would entertain me.

 

[matthewsx]

I already asked if the seller would be interested in allowing me to come in person with cash in hand but they would prefer to play the eBay game, they told me they have been in touch with people willing to purchase it on there and pay shipping, which I think is a bluff but what can you do? He also told me that he thinks it's worth his minimum bid at least as there are others on the site selling for more. Never mind that those are ready to run with better tooling and features lol. In his listing he states that he doesn't know much about it, so I guess that's wrapped all the way around from, "no lowballers I know what I have" to the opposite end of the spectrum where he knows so little that he doesn't know what it's really worth lol.

Think about it like this, if you wanted a used car would you buy it sight unseen?

It may well be that this is the best you can do for your money but you don't know because the seller won't let you inspect it. Either they have something to hide or they are one of those sellers that is impossible to deal with. Either way I think I would pass on this one.

Lots of folks on here have been where you are and the ones who do their homework, wait for the right deal, and have the cash in hand when it comes are happiest with the outcome.

Restoring old tools is a cool hobby and one that I've quite enjoyed. It is however a different thing than just making stuff and if you don't already have a lathe you might need a different one to make the parts for the one you're restoring. Be honest with yourself about how much time and effort you are willing to put into a project and what your ultimate budget really is. It's easy to go down a path that will end up costing more than buying new if you're not familiar with fixing old tools. Even if you are things like hidden cracks can put a big dent in your budget, ask me how I know this....



John

 

[ChandlerJPerry]

Thank you to everyone for the advice, I think I am going to let this one go unless the price takes a sudden and unexpected nosedive. I did post a wanted ad and will keep my eyes open for another machine.

 

[mickri]

I looked for a year before I found my Craftsman 12x36. And it was only a couple of miles from my house. As I searched it became apparent that most sellers didn't know squat about what they were selling. I figured that anything that came out of a machine shop was worn out and would need lots of love to be usable. In the end I concentrated on estate sales where the family was selling off Grampa's stuff. In your area I would also look in the obituaries searching for a reference to a machinist having passed away. Follow up with the family about what they might have for sale.

Also have you mentioned to people where you work that you are looking for a lathe for a garage shop. One of your co workers may have one sitting in a corner of their garage or know someone who has a lathe.

You won't get any deals from a dealer. Dealers will sell off all of the tooling that they can and will only include a bare minimum of what they couldn't sell separately with the lathe. Tooling can often cost more than the lathe.

And you definitely want to inspect the lathe before making an offer.

Have you thought about what you would like to make with your lathe? Write out what I call a statement of requirements, SOR for short, that your lathe will need to be able to do to make what you want. Doing gunsmithing requires a totally different machine than making clocks. You will also find that hobby size machines will sell for top dollar in most areas whereas big lathes will sell for scrap value or less.

Most of all be patient.