I am recently retired and have inherited two machines from my father. Both have seen better days. Both machines were stored for about 25 years and have suffered as a result. One is a Mars lathe, a fairly old and heavy machine with a lot of problems, but I'm OK with that.
The other is what seems to me to be an unusual machine for home use. It is called a Unimac, and I know a little bit about it - but not enough. It was made by an Adelaide company called Precision Grinding Company in Croydon West. The inventor/designer was on the original Inventors show (ABC TV in the 70's or 80's)
This Unimac can be set up as a lathe (no leadscrew or power feed) or a borer or miller. One of the challenges is that everything seems adjustable, including the height of the headstock (300mm range) and tailstock (200mm range), the angle of the headstock. Equipment with it includes a very large aluminium faceplate (18"), another CI faceplate (10"), 4 way toolpost for 1/2" tools, and a weighty cross slide/saddle arrangement.
A conventional lathe would be more suited to a beginner like me, but I can't afford to spend on another machine. I have to 'make do' with what I have. I would like to get a 3 jaw chuck for this machine.
Googling 'unimac' shows how popular this word is - for washing machines and company names - but not one mention of my inherited machine. Has anyone out there heard of these machines, or have any parts or information about them? Perhaps they were known only in Adelaide?
Note: This is NOT a Unimat, but a Unimac.
Thanks for reading this post.
Doug http://cdn.homemodelenginemachinist.com/images/smilies/confused.gif
The other is what seems to me to be an unusual machine for home use. It is called a Unimac, and I know a little bit about it - but not enough. It was made by an Adelaide company called Precision Grinding Company in Croydon West. The inventor/designer was on the original Inventors show (ABC TV in the 70's or 80's)
This Unimac can be set up as a lathe (no leadscrew or power feed) or a borer or miller. One of the challenges is that everything seems adjustable, including the height of the headstock (300mm range) and tailstock (200mm range), the angle of the headstock. Equipment with it includes a very large aluminium faceplate (18"), another CI faceplate (10"), 4 way toolpost for 1/2" tools, and a weighty cross slide/saddle arrangement.
A conventional lathe would be more suited to a beginner like me, but I can't afford to spend on another machine. I have to 'make do' with what I have. I would like to get a 3 jaw chuck for this machine.
Googling 'unimac' shows how popular this word is - for washing machines and company names - but not one mention of my inherited machine. Has anyone out there heard of these machines, or have any parts or information about them? Perhaps they were known only in Adelaide?
Note: This is NOT a Unimat, but a Unimac.
Thanks for reading this post.
Doug http://cdn.homemodelenginemachinist.com/images/smilies/confused.gif