Thread: Tailstock and Bed

Hi,

Regarding the tailstock, probably does de-value the cost of the lathe as a whole but I'm not sure by how much. Make sure tailstock and headstock are aligned (vertically) otherwise you will have to shim up the tailstock. Also, check the bed of the lathe for wear and tear. If a lathe comes without the matching tailstock it may mean its came from a tafe or highschool at some point, so more wear and tear etc.

Being upgraded to a A model stock spec shouldn't be a problem but make sure it works the way its meant to.

Hope this helps. I'm sure many other Hercus owners will chip with more advice.

Ben.

Wouldnt matter if the bed and tailstock or any of the other matching numbers do not correspond as long as said earlier that all is aligned correctly,although some of the more pedantic lathe kickers may turn there nose up at different numbers.

In regards to the C model/A model,unless you were going to be doing a lot of facing of large diameter stock the only things you would need to change is the Gearbox,Leadscrew and the Stud gear for feeding and Screw cutting.

Originally Posted by Auskart

Looking at purchasing a 2nd Hercus, Do non matching Tail stock and Bed numbers devalue the lathe, if so by how much.

Shane, definitely yes, a non matching TS (Tailstock) devalues the lathe.

By how much depends how well the new TS has been matched to the lathe. Matching a TS to an existing lathe does takes time. If the new TS CL (center line) is higher than the HS (headstock) CL, then it is a relatively easy job of milling or scraping the TS down. But if the new TS CL is lower than the HS CL, it becomes a can of worms that eats some time to fix. Note that the tolerance for the TS center line is always high (this is also reflected in the inspection record), meaning 0.1mm higher than the HS CL is acceptable, but even-so-little below it amounts to a reject lathe.

The devaluation amount for a non matching TS therefore depends very much on how much you value your time to verify and if necessary fix the CL hight. It also depends a lot on what you want to do with the lathe. For rather coarse jobs it my not matter at all if the TS is a few tenths of a millimeter high or low. But if you plan on doing some finer work, like drilling small holes or reaming precise holes or turning accurate stuff between centers, then a correctly matched TS is very important. Because a badly matched TS will cause small drills (say under 1.5mm dia) to wander off center or break, to ream oversize holes, and to turn taper between centers.
[QUOTE} Also have looked at a model A that has been setup on a model C bed, does that make any difference. Cheers Shane.[/QUOTE]

Again it depends how well the conversion was adjusted. You cannot know how well it was done, therefore you will have to check it. And that again takes time, and if it was badly done even more time to fix it. So yes, unless you know and trust the person that did the conversion, a devaluation is appropriate. Chris

matching bed & tailstock numbers becomes more important if you don't have the luxury of inspecting the lathe before purchase. No guarantee of alignment I guess, but at least you know it won't be miles out.

And then there is assumption. Thinking that those matching serial numbers mean all's well. Mismatched numbers should suggest an awareness to check, matching, well maybe not so.

My saga - https://www.woodworkforums.com/f65/ta...6/#post1523980

BT

Auskart,
I have recently rebuilt a hercus with a non matching tailstock number.
It was a "well worn" lathe and I did have my milling machine handy so I was able to tackle the issue of alignment easily.Dunnno how it affects my "value" but I do have a lathe that is worthewhile. Taper turning has never been a problem. After I machined it flat and shimmed it to heightI have a lathe that does the job.

Cheers Phil

Thanks to everyone for the info.

Shane.