# Long term home wanted for Holbrook lathe



## woodfarmer (22 Jun 2016)

Today I had to change chucks from 4 jaw to 3. I could barely lift them up onto the lathe bed. It is now close to the time where I would like to rehome my mid 1920's Holbrook lathe. It is fairly rare as I have never seen a picture of one like it. speeds, feeds and threads all off gearbox. just work the levers. Ideally into an industrial museum or museums workshop. I would like for it to live on after me somewhere kind. Can anyone suggest some where?

Not asking any money, just want a good home for it.


----------



## graduate_owner (22 Jun 2016)

I have the same issue with the chucks on my Colchester Master. I tend to just use the 3 jaw now and the 4 jaw stays on the floor.
My friend has a Colchester Mastiff and those chucks are seriously, seriously heavy so he bought a cheap ratchet pullers and rigged up a winch which clamps to ths bed and swivels to place the chuck just ag the right position. I am thinkng to make one now, to save my back.

K


----------



## nick61 (4 Feb 2017)

Did you find a good home for it? From a photo you posted in another thread it looks likes a model G. The model G was made alongside the model T; the former with a gap bed, the latter without. G did not last in production as long as the T. They were made in 3 sizes: 13, 15 and 17, which indicate the swing in inches. They had 24, 30 and 42 inches between centres respectively. Holbrook had offered gap bed lathes before but the model G was the last. I have an example of it's predecessor, as well as 3 model C from the 1950s and 60s.

Nick


----------



## AndyT (5 Feb 2017)

Presumably you mean a location in England, not in France?

The problem is that the museum sector has been starved of funds for so long that many museums have closed and many cannot afford to look after donations....

However, one possibility would be the TATHS collection at Amberley, Sussex.
Their only resource is the keenness of a handful of volunteers and the limited space they have. They have already got several lathes, displayed in working order. That could mean that they would welcome another, or could mean that they have enough lathes now! More info here

http://taths.org.uk/tools-trades/amberl ... collection


----------



## dickm (5 Feb 2017)

....... or buy an engine crane to help move the chucks???


----------



## nick61 (5 Feb 2017)

Off topic, to some extent, but engine cranes don't really work for lathe chucks: the jib doesn't usually extend beyond the legs so if the lathe has any base within the width of the crane legs it won't be able to reach the centre line. An overhead crane is ideal; I made one out of racking and an 'I' beam which serviced two machines in a confined space. In larger spaces with more machines the cost, and loss of headroom become a problem. A better solution is a hydraulic table to lift the chuck/dividing head/rotary table or other heavy fitment so that I can slide it or roll it into place. On a lathe this means having some timber in lace to protect the ways and get the chuck to the correct height to push into engagement with the head.

Only public museums have funding issues that prohibit acquisitions; private ones, like mine, do not.

Nick


----------



## Inspector (6 Feb 2017)

To manage the 6" to 10" chucks of my lathe I stick a 2 foot or so length of broom stick or wooden closet rod in the chuck and snug it down before removing it. That gives me something to hold while I loosen it and slide if off the shaft. When the chuck is out far enough to get the left hand on to the stick I can lift it off the machine. To put it back at a later date I put the stick in the shaft and slide the chuck back on until I can align and tighten it. I still protect the ways with plywood but I don't have to worry about the greasy chuck slipping out of my hands and following gravity to my body parts on the way down to the bed or floor. 

Pete


----------

