Good deal on Craftsman 12" lathe??

[black85vette]

I am going over to look at a Craftsman 12" lathe. Asking price is $1250. It is a little larger than I was looking for but I can make it work in my shop. Comes with motor, 4 jaw chuck and some tools. I could not find anything like it on Ebay to get a comparison on the price.

What do you think?

 

[bearcar1]

That's a tough one to call BV. There are of course many 'little things' that come into play as far as pricing on machine tools. The overall condition of the machine being probably the #1 driving factor along with how much extra tooling is included. (Oh yeah, the misc. extras can start getting into some serious scratch.) Parts availability needs to be considered as well. Lastly is the size. Undersized or oversized to the task(s) at hand and the required space in the work area. I almost forgot to mention about if it is wired for what your work area is provisioned for, is the machine wired for 220v 3phase or standard 110v household current? Many things indeed, only you are the one that can determine if it is worth the asking price or not. Maybe the seller will 'negotiate' a lower price, they may have the 'hots' to get rid of it. Good luck with your mission and report back on the outcome, we'd all like to hear about bargain finds. ;D

BC1
Jim B.

 

[Tin Falcon]

BV:
Look up a 12" atlas for comparison should be the same lathe with a different label. Looks like it comes with a follow rest. I am not impressed with the follow rest "Displayed" on the ways. IMHO shows carelessness.. Nothing metal should be laid on the ways. If on used that area it should have a wooden tray set on the ways then set stuff on that.
I would want well tooled and very good condition for that price that includes a 3 jaw chuck and a collet chuck a steady rest would be nice. I could be wrong it was a few years ago I bought my 9" South bend.
Tin

 

[steamer]

Well...there is a question!

I built most of my launch engine with a 10" Atlas. A late 1940's vintage with tooling. I sold it well tooled 3 years ago for $750. new 3 jaw excellent 4 jaw QCTP and holders, heavy face plate, drive plate 3 sets of centers, wrenches, spotting tool post, steady rest, follower rest , drill chuck and factory wrenchs on factory stand. Even leveled it and demo'd it to the buyer!

She was a good lathe but just a bit too small. Trading up cost me. In the end it was worth trading up.

Just Wished I went with the big lathe first though. So looking at a 12" lathe makes sense to me.

$1250 seems high with the tooling offered, but I can't tell you the worth of a lathe in your part of the states. The lathe is worth what people are willing to pay for them I am sorry to say.

OK it has the Timken bearing head...a plus! How are the ways? Lightly tighten the carriage clamp with the carriage in front of the chuck and roll the carriage back towards the tailstock. If there is wear, it will show. A little is fine... a lot is not!

Quick change gear box! that is a definite plus...my 10" was change gear.

Observe the ways....are they worn significantly where the carriage rides? It will be very obvious if they are.

Check the tailstock taper for gauling. This happens a lot on MT2 sockets that get pushed too hard. Again a small amount is correctable...beyond that it gets dicey.

Backlash on the cross slide? .010 or more like .040"?

Check the leadscrew threads to see if they are thin near the chuck....compare to the threads near the tailstock that don't get used.

How many times has the compound been driven into the moving chuck? The scars will tell the tale.

Does it come with a bench?.....something else to build otherwise.

Just my thoughts.....worth exactly what you payed for them.....Good luck!

Regards,

Dave

 

[black85vette]

Lots of good info! Thanks for the input.

I went over and had a look. It is a 1969 model. It had an entire tool box with it as well as the setup manual / parts list and operation manual. Several tool holders, knurling tool, cutoff tool, threading tool. Includes a steady rest that looks unused. Had a Starrett micrometer and Craftsman dial indicator. Has a heavy wooden bench with it. Motor is dual voltage and currently set up for 110v.

Best part was the condition. No marks showing the compound had ever touched the chuck. Likewise the chuck does not look like it ever crashed into anything. Ways are barely polished from carriage travel and show no wear at all. No marks on the ways near the chuck or anywhere else. Tailstock has no gauling and the chuck with it looks like it was barely used. No rust anywhere. Very little backlash on the cross slide.

Looks like I found a winner. Ended up paying $1150 for it. Don't know that I can find one in better shape than this one. My friend, who is a professional tool and die maker, came over and looked at it. He thought it looked like it was used very little.

Wires are original and the insulation looks brittle. Think I will rewire it before the "smoke test". Motor assembly was not mounted so I have those two things to take care of.

Now I need another engine project!!

Thanks for all your input and things to look for!

 

[DavesWimshurst]

BV,
Congratulations on your find. I had a 12" atlas built in 1975 that looked the same as the one in your picture. It was a big step up from the 6" atlas I started with, much easier to use and more accurate. I sold it for $1100 including 3 and 4 jaw chucks, motor and heavy metal bench in 1980.
They are a little light weight for heavy work but are a pretty good model builder's lathe and a good size to build lots of model engines. :

Dave

 

[steamer]

Well good to hear your happy and it came with some accessories and some tools.

Sounds little used....

Best of luck with her!....Happy engine building!

Dave

 

[Tin Falcon]

BV:
Congrats and happy machining. Condition mean a lot. Mine came for a college lab so not heavy use. some wear of 60 plus years though.
Tin

 

[bearcar1]

Well now, that is good news to hear. Now when can we expect to see some parts being made? ;D ;D Keep it clean and well oiled and it will reward you with tenfold the enjoyment of a fine tool. It sounds like you hit the mother load. Now you may begin the quest in looking for a 3-jaw chuck to fit it and your off to the races laddie.

BC1

Jim B.

 

[Maryak]

BV,

Congratulations, enjoy your lathe :bow:

Best Regards
Bob

 

[black85vette]

Turning out to be an even better deal. I ordered in an adapter plate and after facing it and turning the locator I am now able to use the 3 jaw chuck, 4 jaw chuck and faceplate that I had on my 7x10 lathe. Pretty good deal for $18 bucks.

Also machined a block for the toolpost from the 7x10 and made a nut for the T slot in the compound. This puts the tool post at the perfect height for the cutting tools I already have. So I can use the set of indexable turning tools, the parting tool and the holder I made for my boring bar set on the new lathe.

Next I have ordered some MT3 collets for the 7x10 lathe to hold my end mills. I already have a Taig milling attachment for it so my plans are to just leave it set up for milling work.

Nice to not have to go out and buy all new tooling.