lathe

Mike Kelly · #1 16-03-12, 01:40

This is my American HENDEY lathe , it was purchased by GMH in 1948 . It is the METRIC version , which is unusual . Nice old machine , it's worn here and there , but has lots of life left in it

It is a 1938 design .

MIKE

Alex Blair (RIP) · #2 16-03-12, 10:22

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mike Kelly

This is my American HENDEY lathe , it was purchased by GMH in 1948 . It is the METRIC version , which is unusual . Nice old machine , it's worn here and there , but has lots of life left in it

It is a 1938 design .

MIKE

Mike ..That is a nice little lathe..
back in the old days when we left an overseas military base we either took every thing home or destroyed it...It could not be given or sold on the local economy ,for one reason there was no taxes paid on it ..import or excise taxes and the local dealer of anything that we may sell or give would get in an uproar over cutting them out of a sale..
Back in '70 we closed down our NATO commitment in Sardinia,Italy and we junked just about every thing..Most of the avionics flew home and one or two of the hanger line pieces went home.. The trucks were loaded up and driven up through Italy..through Switzerland and into Germany to Lahr..
I was one of the last to go out of there in July of '70 and I remember cutting up a Celtic 14 lathe with the oxy acetylene..It was a dandy little lathe and I wish I could have taken it home but I didn't have room..
It made me sad to do it but what do you do,,,??
Too big and no one wanted it back in Canada..We sent lists of equipment back to Canada ..but there we other bases closing down too... One of our bigist losses besides our 104 rocket range and sea survival school in Sardinia was our lose of our only aircraft carrier..the Bonne Adventure..Thanks to our lap dog,commie loving,draft dodging Liberal prime Minister Piere Eliot Trude@u
I spelt his name like this because he now has a son running in parliament..God help us if he ever gets into a leadership role..and it looks like he may,but all the old military guys here can attest to these incidents that changed Canadian military history for the worst..
Now see you got me started ///
Anyway that is my Lathe story..
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ipk0P3e4EAs

It was almost as bad as loosing the Avro Arrow back in '58..by that lick spittle running dog Conservative John Diefenbaker..
http://www.lathes.co.uk/mondial/page3.html

Mike Kelly · #3 16-03-12, 12:17

Sad story Alex

If you want to know about Celtic lathes ..click here

http://www.lathes.co.uk/mondial/

http://www.lathes.co.uk/mondial/page3.html

maple_leaf_eh · #4 16-03-12, 23:53

Quote:

Originally Posted by Alex Blair

Mike ..That is a nice little lathe ... back in the old days when we left an overseas military base we either took every thing home or destroyed it.

... Back in '70 we closed down our NATO commitment in Sardinia,Italy and we junked just about every thing.

One of our bigist losses besides our 104 rocket range and sea survival school in Sardinia was our lose of our only aircraft carrier..the Bonne Adventure..Thanks to our lap dog,commie loving,draft dodging Liberal prime Minister Piere Eliot Trude@u
...

It was almost as bad as loosing the Avro Arrow back in '58 ...

So Alex, are you upset? Would you share with the rest of us why you feel this way? Go ahead. No one will judge.

guyvapeur · #5 18-03-12, 02:21

I acquired a lathe about 15 years ago..... I was not sure what I would build with it but I had had it with the job and was trying to remember what job I had ever held that I truly enjoyed. I remembered my first shop classes where I was introduced to a lathe..... I and remembered the wonderment the machine had left with me..... So....years later...... I bought one and to this day, I get a load of therapy while standing before the lathe. Yet tonight, I just finished up what could be best called a coupler to turn a 1925 railroad motor car lantern into a modern led.... spotlight... using the old casing.

Now as for Alex and the Bonnaventure.

Are you aware that the main lifeboat ( 1 of 2 I was told) from the Bonnaventure is sitting derilict in a junk yard West on Hwy 17.I believe it is Eds Salvage near Antrim????.... yup...It was last used for a Cadet program and then sold through Crown Assets.... Last time I saw it, it had been sitting open end up to the elements..... Now that would have been a worthy restoration.

Guy

Bob Carriere · #6 21-03-12, 03:52

If it is .....will get it for you Guy......

Bob

c. ladouceur (RIP) · #7 27-03-12, 05:25

Poor P.E.T.,bushwhacked by closet Francophone!

bill m · #8 06-04-12, 12:29

Nice lathe Mike and one with a little bit of history.
cheers
Bill.

Mike Kelly · #9 06-04-12, 14:17

Quote:

Originally Posted by bill m

Nice lathe Mike and one with a little bit of history.
cheers
Bill.

hi Bill

Yes I've since discovered it was made in June 1940 . The Hendey historian in the USA is looking up the sales records for me .It is still a mystery how it ended up here in Australia . The sales agent was in Paris, FRANCE.

I had a horrible time removing the heavy chuck backing plate . It is a 2 and 3/4" X 5 TPI thread , it was stuck solid . I had to remove it piece by piece , with a big cut off wheel .

The lathe is top shelf . Each spindle bearing ( timken tapered roller O class ) has its own bath of oil . It has a clutch , auto reversing carriage , and its built like a battleship .

Mike Kelly · #10 06-04-12, 14:29

the removal process . I damaged the thread slightly , a shame, but I had no other options left .

As I opened the electrical relay box , a circuit paper fell out , with this on the back : an inspectors signature maybe.

Mike Kelly · #11 06-04-12, 14:33

oops mising pic

bill m · #12 07-04-12, 02:37

A lucky find Mike,
the fact it is 1940's and in very good condition is outstanding. These machine tools are collectible in their own right. I like the 1940 inspection slip!
I am planning on a lathe purchase in the not too distant future. Nothing like the smell of machine shop coolant

I currently work at Redline Engineering near Moorabbin airport managing and building aircraft components for local concerns.
The workshop is all CNC machines with just one turret milling machine and a Colchester lathe.
The CNC's are fascinating but are not with the character of the older manual machines.
cheers
Bill.

Mike Kelly · #13 07-04-12, 02:53

Quote:

Originally Posted by bill m

A lucky find Mike,
the fact it is 1940's and in very good condition is outstanding. These machine tools are collectible in their own right. I like the 1940 inspection slip!
I am planning on a lathe purchase in the not too distant future. Nothing like the smell of machine shop coolant

I currently work at Redline Engineering near Moorabbin airport managing and building aircraft components for local concerns.
The workshop is all CNC machines with just one turret milling machine and a Colchester lathe.
The CNC's are fascinating but are not with the character of the older manual machines.
cheers
Bill.

OK Bill

Colchesters are excellent lathes , but spares cost a small fortune , they used special bearings in the headstock and these are thousands of $ to replace .

Many people buy the new Chinese machines , they have improved greatly in the past ten years , but I still don't like them .

At the moment, there is a glut of older used lathes on the market , manufacturing has mostly died here and many companies get rid of their machinery .

You can pick up beautiful quality old lathes for around 2000$ . These days cheap phase converters ( called VFD's ) are available on EBAY ..you can run 3 phase motors from single phase with ease

A good first lathe is a Hercus 260 , made in Adelaide . Hercus still supplies spares for them

Big tip , try to find a lathe with heaps of accessories , these cost more than the lathe itself does

Go to this site and clik on HERCUS http://www.lathes.co.uk/page21.html

Mike

bill m · #14 14-04-12, 22:38

Thanks Mike,
I am already familiar with Lathes.uk, it is a fantastic resource for those interested in machine tool history. You seem to be well placed when these jewels come up for new ownership title!
You mentioned a Paris based sales order? In 1940 Australia was desperate for machine tools and with this lathe possibly bound for France it may have been diverted to a destination more able to use it other than the foreign regime on French soil at that time!
Speculation can run wild!
cheers
Bill.

Richard Coutts-Smith · #15 10-05-12, 03:35

Here you go Mike, a little toy most of us like to get our hands on.....and complete with military provenance, what more could you possibly want.
Rich.

Richard Coutts-Smith · #16 10-05-12, 03:42

I suppose this GenSet would come in handy as well. Found this on the same site, different owner and not a cherished item like the lathe box.
Rich.

Mike Kelly · #17 10-05-12, 06:01

Richard

Yes quite a beast . Imagine what it would weigh

Would it have been mounted on a trailer at some point ? They would have had a 3 phase generator for it somewhere .

Mike

Richard Coutts-Smith · #18 10-05-12, 07:31

Not sure how it would have travelled in the day Mike, only ever seen this one. At the moment it is being shipped back via Semi. and after cramming the box full of other site paraphenalia a Franna was needed for the lift.
The front of the box is hinged at the top, so it can be propped open for easier access and all is still in regular use.
My kind offer of looking after this unit has been knocked back.....
Rich.

Mike Kelly · #19 10-05-12, 11:19

The machine is a Japanese Dainichi . It is a lathe, milling machine and shaper , all in one .

http://www.lathes.co.uk/dainichi/

Richard Coutts-Smith · #20 10-05-12, 13:17

Yes Mike, you are right, I only read it as a "Universal machine Tool", 'cause I did not have my glasses on when I took the photo.
Rich.

George McKenzie · #21 10-05-12, 17:22

I had a big 72" lathe with three legs but when you don't have the room I would sujest for a new comer get a 36" to 40 " bed with a hole through the head stock big enough to shove a 1" bar through .To do anything bigger take it to a machine shop .I am usung a 36" belt drive older lathe that I like .Alot of the China ,Indian lathes don't have strong enough gears in them.

Mike Kelly · #22 13-07-12, 13:37

Maybe the puzzling story has been solved . My 1940 Hendey lathe , issued to GMH . How did it arrive here in Aust. , more of a mystery as the French plate on it and it is a metric version

Reading the GMH war record has provided a clue , this scan reveals all .

Mike

Mike Kelly · #23 12-09-12, 10:35

Interesting tour of the Hendey factory

http://www.lathes.co.uk/hendeyfactory