Thread: harrison lathe

Well done Mike, but can we please please have some pics of it and the shaper?
And how is the hendy coming along?

Originally Posted by Ueee

Well done Mike, but can we please please have some pics of it and the shaper?
And how is the hendy coming along?

will do Ewan

the motor will ideal for a conversion as you have done , variable speed

is yours fixed yet

pics................

the spindle nose is so small compared to the rest of the machine .....

the carriage is rather robust

............................

the machine shows its age .... been used , but has life in it still

the carriage handwheel is a bit sloppy as it enters the apron, years of use

the tailstock # 3 morse female needs reaming , its pitted

Hi Mike,

Is this going to be put to work or is it a restoration project?

Stuart

Hi,

The crows foot or arrow underneath "Made" on the motor plate generally represents Government and specially in Australia, military owned equipment.

Ben

Thanks for the pics Mike.
I see that the carriage handwheel is on the wrong side It can probably be bushed, from memory the LeBlond need the same.
The motor is only 120v so finding a controller may be an issue, unless you know how to rig a 180v one to limit the top end voltage (it's pretty easy actually) You should be used to dodgy wiring with all that Lucas stuff in the Land Rover.....
Looks like a nice solid machine, is the apron in an oil bath, or open? I guess it has an MT3 T/S and H/S?

Edit, Should have looked a little harder last night, it is not 120v.....its 220 you could run it on a 180v controller.

Ok, I have learnt more That box on the front with the brass handle on the side is a control box for onboard the ship. There is a multi stage resistor network inside that box that is engaged bit by bit as you turn the brass handle to on , it slowly connects the ships DC supply to the motor , rather than one big jolt of DC . There is a overload relay in there too . Somebody has roughly connected up a bridge rectifier for the mains 240 v AC ( a ordinary Tandy thing ) and that rectified output goes into the original 220 Volt DC + and - connections - It's a bodgy job and not very safe , no capacitor filtering at all, the output would be a very rough DC . I think I will junk the old motor and use a modern motor problem is : the lathe is geared to about 500 rpm spindle speed with a 1500 rpm motor . These lathes had a 2 speed motor 1500/3000 in a land workshop . Mike

Originally Posted by Stustoys

Hi Mike,

Is this going to be put to work or is it a restoration project?

Stuart

A bit of both Stuart

Yes it might have been on HMAS Melbourne, who knows , or the Sydney . The /i\ symbol is a Govt. stamp

the DC starter box

the bodged bridge rectifier somebody has installed

metalworking

Heavier oil in the gearbox might quieten it, light oil is ok in a cold place like england

Ken

Originally Posted by Gringo

Heavier oil in the gearbox might quieten it, light oil is ok in a cold place like england

Ken

Yes .

I have had a closer look and most of the noise is coming from the change gears , they are way out of adjustment, like the teeth are only meshing a small amount.


I don't know why, but with the lathes I've bought , they are always out of adjustment by a long way e.g., little maintenance , or the owners just don't have a clue how to fix things , or they dont know even the basics of how to use the lathe for that matter .

A few pics

the gearbox lid has a magnetic bolt, it fits into the recess that drains oil into the 2 Timken bearings

Mike