South Bend Lathe

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Steve Beckwith

Joined
May 29, 2004
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393
IMG_0974.jpg IMG_0973.jpg IMG_0972.jpgI have the opportunity to buy this lathe for somewhere around $200-250. Comes with a box of extra stuff. The price seems right but i don't know anything about turning metal. If there are issues with the machine are parts available? Seems like a good deal to me but i would appreciate any feedback as to this machine. Thanks, Steve Beckwith
 
These lathes are popular and very well made! I was in highschool in the early 70s and this is what we used. You can't go wrong with a Southbend unless the bed is bent or it's very rusty
 
I have a very similar one.Also check the "ways" I only use mine for repairing hose fitting so I only bore. There is a learning curve(not to bad)and good tooling isn,t cheap.Old style tool post I think I see gonna want to up-grade that. Good luck Lu.
 
I need to inspect the ways as well as to open the side case to inspect the gears. It obviously is well used, I'm not looking for a project at this time. Thanks for the replies
 
VEry good price for that.
It depends on the rusty vs just dusty situation.


Quick change gear box= they don't all have that.
If it's a bust, you can make your money on reselling that part alone.



Threading dial, they don't all have that either.



What is in the box of stuff ?
 
The box-o-stuff turns out, I believe, to be a Folgers coffee can with a couple of home made jigs in it...not much. I inspected the gearing inside the cover on the left side today, they all look good, no chips, no visible wear. The (head stock?) turns freely and does not have any side to side slop that i can detect by hand, just a little in and out play. It is dirty, some rust here and there except for the extreme right end of the bed rails, there is enough rust there to leave some pits when it is cleaned up. All of the hand wheels turn freely, the oil cups are dry. I am going to go ahead with the deal, I might even get the guy to take a knife in trade.
 
Glassguy,
I used a 9" "C" Soutbend for a long time. Its the same as the one you are looking at, but without the gearbox.
You have a great deal sitting in front of you, and it is a great lathe to learn on. See whether the owner still has the follow rest kicking around.
It is the material supporter that rides with the carriage. Lots of part and help online for this lathe if you ever need it. If it runs, buy it and run away!
 
Its a nice looking machine at $250. I rebuilt one awhile ago, the total cost was about $7-800.

The one you show, has many of the pieces I had to source to make mine run. Parts are still relatively easy to find, even NOS pieces.
 
Dont walk, run and get that lathe. Great deal as Southbend is one of the best. I have had several southbends and love mine. Youtube how to use it and you will be so glad you got it. I think it is probably worth up to 1000.00. At least in the south as there are less lathes here than in the north. Most this size are usually in decent condition as were used as hobby lathes and not production lathes. Price a new one and they are not as nice as the older ones. After getting it buy a quick change tool post. About 100.00 for an import and you will have a ball.
 
I picked it up yesterday, 250 bucks, and spent 3 hours removing a layer of crud all over it, I still have quite a bit of cleaning to do. The rust on right end of the ways was dealt with using wd40 and a scraper. Came out better than I would have thought. The box-o-stuff turned out to be 60-70 lb if chucks, cutters, turning plates, countersinks, misc home made jigs, a trammel I believe, 3 Starrett calipers, things that I have no idea what they are for but they are factory made accessories for the lathe. The negative I see so far is that it has a Craftsman 1/2hp motor. I do not know if the motor works. It seems as if the drive belt has to have a joint that can be taken apart so that it can be fed around the spindle on the lathe itself. What I have for a belt appears to be a piece of tire tread that has a couple small nut/bolts that fasten the two ends of the belt together. I do not know what a real belt should look like. I have some leather that is almost 1/4" thick and more than wide enough to make a belt. Would that work? I'll look at Youtube. Thanks for the feedback, I guess I have gotten a pretty sweet deal. What a nice machine. I just have to learn how to use it. Steve B
 
There are split belts that people use. I believe stapled leather was the original one. Some people use a 50-53" (IIRC) automotive serpentine belt on theres. I could verify that in my rebuild book if you want but you are right, you have to press out the countershaft and the spindle for that.
 
The belt was just a flat straight strip of leather, the ends could be joined with a tapered glue joint, or with "alligator belt lacing", the 2 part type with a "hinge pin" being preferred if you thought you might ever need to remove the belt. In shops where time was cheap, you might see a belt with a laced butt joint, expect to replace the thong or string periodically though. Leather belting and connectors are still available from McMaster-Carr and other industrial suppliers, If you cut your own leather strip, be sure the cuts are straight and that the leather is consistent in thickness side-to-side, or your belt may curve and wander a bit.

Don't worry too much about the 1/2 hp motor if it runs, it's "geared down" a bit at the jack shaft so you should see adequate torque at the lathe. Having only a modest amount of motor power will encourage light cuts, not a bad thing when you are learning. Once you know what you are doing and you find yourself limited by only having 1/2 hp in a heavy cut, then think about replacing the motor
 
Don't be afraid to completely take it apart.Do it carefully Photo as you go .Get books of videos. Taking apart is a good way to learn how it works.
A Southbend will bring back memories for many people !!
 
Well, I got it running today and the first thing that happened was the chuck, which I had recently lubed, slung a nice spray of skunk oil in my face and down the front of my tshirt. I think it likes me! The power cross feed seems to work, I still do not understand the transmission but that is something for another day. I replaced all of the wiring and the reversing switch works. I have a long piece of leather that I am going to join with Chicago bolts. I really want to be able to take the belt apart if necessary.
 
Glass guy,
I got tired of the click click of my leather belt, and is tendency to slip whenever I went for a bigger bite.
I switched it out with a serpentine belt from the auto parts store. Worked much better. Cost 12 bucks
 
My advice is do not take the headstock apart until you get a manual for it. There are steps that have to be followed such as take this off 1st then this will free up etc. There are also shims that are very thin on the headstock that need to be set correctly when re-assembly. Post pictures of the parts you have and I will help identify them. The transmission is for cutting threads. Example, The # 20 on one of the plate will tell which lever to move and will indicate 20 threads per inch. The other lever is for speed of travel for lead screw. Main rule NEVER ENGAGE AUTO FEEDS while running and WHEN YOU HAVE CHANGED TRANSMISSION UNTIL YOU HAVE MADE A TURN BY HAND. You can break a lathe that way and strip gears. What a deal you got. The tooling that you say you dont know could be worth 3 times what you paid. Here is a link to e-bay for correct belt. http://www.ebay.com/itm/Custom-Cut-...-9-10-lathe-/370503484980?hash=item5643ba8634
 
I already had a strip of leather ready to go so I will stitch that together tomorrow for the time being. I had no intention of disassembling the head stock. I'm curious to see how well the leather will hold up. I'll order a link belt soon. S
 
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