# Rule Britannia...



## Scouse (25 Jun 2014)

I have had an eye out for a lathe for a while; to be honest it has been a bit of a lazy search, I don't know the first thing about them so I was just watching the occasional potential victim on ebay which wasn't too far away, wasn't too much money and was old enough to make it interesting, or more difficult depending on the point of view.

So it was on Saturday afternoon, while taking a leisurely stroll into the village, my partner noted a small ad in a shop window. It must be said that she is a ninja when it comes to spotting rusty old stuff which I invariably miss, as was the case here as I walked past the shop oblivious. It had already been reduced once and the paper was yellowing so I wasn't confident, but a quick phone call and a 500 yard drive and I was in a garage next to a gorgeous restored Ford Pop looking at this.

















Britannia of Colchester lathe. The owner was a retired chemical engineer who no longer used it and was more interested in it going to a good home than its financial value.

He informed me that he had been told that it was an 1898 model 13, which I guess fits with the info on Tony's site (lathes.co.uk). I have to say that on quick inspection and without getting misty eyed, in common with most old engineering, it is needlessly beautiful, even down to a tiny bead around the edge of the original wooden handles.

Anyway it came with a boxfull of stuff, which is where you lot come in, because I don't know what is for the lathe and what is just general unrelated stuff. I do know these are changewheels for the screw cutting (might need a manual to figure them out...)





but as to this lot





Some bits I know, spare jaws, the woodworking rest and its attachments, but these?

















Two of the three above J and S things are cranked, one is straight (doesn't show very well in the picture)





(the little bowl in the last picture is made of brass)

It came with the original base which had sadly lost its treadle mechanism in the past, but after removing a piece of hardboard revealed the original hardwood bench top complete with holes for the treadle belt





As a consolation the treadle has been replaced by a massive and gorgeous 1930's Crompton Parkinson repulsion start induction motor, completely silent and no bearing play what-so-ever





The final bits, the fitted four jaw chuck which needs each jaw to be adjusted independently, a faceplate, apparently, whatever that is and a Taylor self centering chuck which weighs a ton and are quite good apparently.













So a good clean is in progress as we speak, and although the motor runs nicely I might have it checked for safety since it has had a new wire fitted into the original bakelite block; an NVR switch might be a good idea too.

As an interesting post script, I bought a new wallet last week, bear with me; it only has one note section as opposed to my old one within which I used to separate business and personal money. I had 20 or thirty quid in it when I went to the bank for the lathe money and when I paid, I just absent-mindedly took the notes out of the wallet and gave them to the Steve the seller. When I got home I realised I had inadvertantly paid over the asking price for the lathe. I didn't really mind because I thought it was probably worth it, just felt a bit daft. A couple of hours later a knock on the door revealed Steve, who had driven up and down the mile and a bit length of my road looking for my car to return the money. I split it with him and after some reluctance said he would give it to Alzhiemers Research, but talk about having your faith restored! Genuinely decent bloke.

So what are all the bits? How does it all work? And what should I make first? All help appreciated!


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## Spindle (25 Jun 2014)

Hi

In the first close up, the toothed tools on the right are thread chasers, and the wheeled tools on the left are probably knurling tools.

The cylindrical items with screws in the sides are chucks, insert the work and grip / centre by adjusting the screws

The items marked J&S are tool holders, they will probably have a square section hole in the end to accept a piece of tool steel which is locked in place by the screw

First pic below the change wheel one - cutting tools at top right, big lump bottom left may be a tailstock tool holder.







Regards Mickট


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## wizard (25 Jun 2014)

very nice


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## Phil Pascoe (25 Jun 2014)

Get yourself a couple of good books, they'll show you what most of the bits are. The Workshop series (some kind person will provide a link) are pretty much foolproof. There are a couple of books on small lathes published in the '40's or '50's that are good reference - all my stuff is in store at the moment, so I can't help any further. This might prompt someone else, though.


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## bugbear (25 Jun 2014)

phil.p":mre7i0ff said:


> There are a couple of books on small lathes published in the '40's or '50's that are good reference - all my stuff is in store at the moment, so I can't help any further. This might prompt someone else, though.



The classic is "The Amateur's Lathe" by Lawrence H. Sparey.

BugBear


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## woodfarmer (25 Jun 2014)

The three bits with bolts sticking out of the top of the thick ends are tool holder. Basically you can buy tool steel in the correct section to fit in the "Handle/holder" Grind the tools to suit. it is likely that the offset one is set up for thread cutting.


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## Cheshirechappie (25 Jun 2014)

A bit of background reading - http://www.lathes.co.uk/britannia/index.html

Useful books - 'Using the Small Lathe' by L.C.Mason, 'Workholding in the Lathe' by Tubal Cain (T.D.Walshaw), 'Model Engineers Handbook' by Tubal Cain (T.D.Walshaw).

The three jaw Taylor chuch was used a lot on production machines at one time, and was consequently well-made and solid. The three outside jaws for it are shown in the sixth photo, middle top, just left of the cutting tools.

What to make first? Get some free-cutting mild steel drawn bar (EN1A grade) or brass bar, and make some swarf. Get used to using the machine a bit.


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## AndyT (2 Jul 2014)

Wahey! Nice one Scouse! 
Sorry to be slow on spotting this thread - but I'm really pleased to see that you've got a lathe that's just as nice as mine, with the added luxury that it has been better looked after and comes with more bits!

I think you've got most of the stuff ID'd now, but I will just suggest that in this pic






the big lump on the middle left goes the other way up and will bolt onto the "ways" to support either of the little T-shaped toolrests shown below it, so you can either turn wood, or else do freeform handheld work on brass, as discussed recently here and in the next few posts in the context of making cap iron screws!

The three little stepped bits in the top row are alternative jaws for the three jaw chuck, so you can either grip something solid by compression from the outside, or something hollow by expansion from the inside. 

The books by Sparey and Mason are both very good and well worth getting, but with something this age you can have the fun of reading the original period instructions. The Big Daddy of them all is the multi-part "Turning and Mechanical Manipulation" by the Holtzapffels, available to download from WK Fine Tools here - you need Vol 2, "Hand, or Simple Turning". 

Alternatively, you could do worse than look around for "The Practical Metalworker" edited by Bernard E Jones in similar format to the "Practical Woodworker" and published in four volumes around 1920. (There seems to be a 1938 version in three volumes as well.) There's a big chunk on lathes like yours in vol 1 and 2.

Also, do watch the YouTube videos by MrPete222 aka Tubalcain, who has several older lathes and knows how to use them. But most of all, get the motor connected and get playing!


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