| Project by DaddyT | posted 172 days ago | 702 views | 0 times favorited | 16 comments |  |
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I got this lathe from a guy I meet when I went to have the front brakes put on my wifes car. Its a 1956 Craftsman with a 12 inch rest(sweep?) and 39 inches from point to point. I consider myself very lucky to have found this deal. Paid $120 for the lathe, stand, knives, calipers, 2 different size plates, AND about 100 pieces of walnut, maple, and oak spildles. The wood varies in size from 3 foot long to 10 inches, most being 1 1/4” x1”. I dont know for sure but Im guessing the wood alone was worth the $120. The lathe works fine and dandy but could use some cleaning up, which I plane to do ( if I can quit playing with it long enough ). Ive touched up the edges of the knives and the are great.Now all I have to do is figure out how to really use the darn thing to make something worth posting on here. Need a chuck (I think? ) to turn some bowls and plates, which is really what I wanted a lathe for . Always wanted to have a good lathe and learn how to use it, so now I’ll take any and all help you guys can offer !! p.s. Also got a Craftsman shaper from him as well. Paid $50 for it but I have no cutters as of yet. Been looking on ebay for some that I can afford, but as of yet no luck.
-- Jimi _ permanent inhabitant of the man cave( workshop )
16 comments so far
HallTree
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2043 posts in 518 days
posted 172 days ago
A great find. Looks like you are off to a new area of woodworking. Up to now I have been doing my own break jobs, but…......
-- Ron in Osseo, Minnesota
CharlieM1958
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6674 posts in 969 days
posted 172 days ago
Nice score!
-- Charlie M. "Woodworking - patience = firewood"
PurpLev
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1774 posts in 399 days
posted 172 days ago
awesome deal! def. the wood alone is worth that investment. free lathe and tools? can’t beat that.
-- When in doubt - There is no doubt - Go the safer route.
jim1953
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1270 posts in 593 days
posted 172 days ago
Great Find
-- Jim, Kentucky
SteveKorz
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2007 posts in 465 days
posted 172 days ago
SCORE!
-- As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another. (Proverbs 27:17) †
Bureaucrat
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4455 posts in 403 days
posted 172 days ago
Great Score! You deserve it though for taking good care of your wife’s car. Have fun!
-- Gary, South Central Wisconsin. So much to learn, so little time!
scottb
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3338 posts in 1078 days
posted 171 days ago
great find, yep, free tools with some nice wood… bonus that they are nice quality vintage tools. Looking forward to seeing what comes of it.
-- I am always doing what I cannot do yet, in order to learn how to do it. - Pablo Picasso -- http://blanchardcreative.etsy.com -- http://snbcreative.wordpress.com/
BarryW
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728 posts in 657 days
posted 171 days ago
Gee, somebody already took my word…but a good word is worth repeating. SCORE!
-- /\/\/\ BarryW /\/\/\ Stay so busy you don't have time to die.
woodworm
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5797 posts in 341 days
posted 171 days ago
The treasure hunt winner….is…....(drum roll….....) Jimi..!
-- Regards, Woodworm - KL, MY.
Karson
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21154 posts in 1151 days
posted 171 days ago
Good catch. Did he throw in the car repair also.
-- Karson Southern Delaware karson_morrison@bigfoot.com †
TedM
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1737 posts in 483 days
posted 171 days ago
Schwing!
-- I'm a wood magician... I can turn fine lumber into firewood before your very eyes! - http://www.woodworkersguide.com
SPalm
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833 posts in 633 days
posted 171 days ago
Sweet. Nice spindle stock too. So nice to have a bunch of wood to play around with.
A few suggestions:
Make a cover for that exposed belt.
File the tool rest smooth.
Old Craftsman lathes used a MT1 taper and Grizzly still sells cheap centers with this size.
http://www.grizzly.com/catalog/2009/Main/129
Grizzly also sells a fairly cheap faceplate and insert, much cheaper than a chuck.
And there are a lot of nice videos on YouTube about sharpening and turning.
Steve
-- Stevethepeeve -- I'm no rocket surgeon
rikkor
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11345 posts in 625 days
posted 171 days ago
I am sure you got $120 in wood. Therefore, you got a free lathe and tools. Good job!
rtb
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535 posts in 464 days
posted 171 days ago
How would you like to make a quick $100, 150, 200 ?? OK, as I have suggested, in previous comments, is go take a turning class. If you can’t do that try the public library and READ extensively (ie don’t just look at the pictures) There is a lot that you need to understand and experience and trial and error can be a very pailful experience. Done properly turning can be the most satisfying experience. How about cost + $250
-- RTB. "dumb animals are not stupid they simply can't talk "
PGreene
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79 posts in 181 days
posted 171 days ago
I got a similar deal on a very similar lathe. My suggestion would be to invest in a class or read a lot. Also, I was anxious to jump right into bowl turning before I learned a lot and I could have really hurt myself. I got lucky a few times before I got smart and decided to learn something first. Do this and you will get addicted quickly!
-- Patrick
DaddyT
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34 posts in 261 days
posted 171 days ago
Thanx alot for the words of wisdom guys. Let me say that I do know alittle about using a lathe just not as much as Id like to. Ive already orderd a video and have watched all that youtube and how.com has to offer. Im not crazy or stupid enough to attempt to use this thing to turn a bowl without first knowing how. I learned how to turn spindles in shopclass and a friend that use to live here but moved away showed me a few things also. But thanx so much for the input guys and please feel free to keep em coming.
-- Jimi _ permanent inhabitant of the man cave( workshop )