Lathe ID

[Jameshow]

I seem to be on a roll!

Can anyone identify these two lathes that are to be donated to our men's shed?
The wood lathe - how does it compare to a ml8?

Many thanks

James

 

[Old.bodger]

I think the wood lathe is a Union Graduate……up there in the top league in it’s time.

 

[Jameshow]

Yes it is a good lathe.
But I don't want to get rid of the ml8!

I'll see if another shed wants the ml8?

 

[Sandyn]

The ML8 is a good lathe, but that one looks a lot a lot more rigid. The ML8 suffers from having a round bed, so the tailstock always has some radial movement about the bed. For most things this doesn't matter, but if you are turning between centres and remove the piece. It's almost impossible to get the same alignment again.

 

[Jameshow]

And the metal working lathe???

 

[Inspector]

There is a site with a lot of metal working equipment, mostly metal lathes, that you could browse through to find it but it would be a lengthy endeavour. Lathes + Machine Tool Archive

It looks a lot like a South Bend Series 20. An American machine that may have been imported or made under licence by a different maker. South Bend Series 20 Photographic Essay During the war Southbend and possibly Atlas in the US, Hercus in Australia and a company in England (can't remember the name) made basically the same lathe by the thousands for war production. Whether that one is among them I can't say.

At any rate it looks to be in good condition and worth grabbing without hesitation. Later if your club wants to it would be an easy sell. I don't see the tailstock in your pictures but there are used ones for sale on eBay etc although not cheap.

Pete

 

[Jameshow]

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/SOUTH-BE...2349624.m46890.l49286&mkrid=710-127635-2958-0
Definitely a south bend.
Box tree are the UK maker but they seem to be a later model?