Lathe, New addition to home shop!

I decided to take this lathe home from my machine shop, it was hardly ever used anymore and it could be handy to have at home.

That would be a neat toy to have. It probably cost new more than all the average homeowner's tools.

Nice machine and it'll probably get used more at home than it did at the shop.

I have my ideal lathe. It belongs to a buddy and he has the skills to use it ... which I don't. I would like to learn to use it one of these days but as long as it only takes a six-pack for him to do my occasional "favors", I think it's a good deal. I can sit in his shop all afternoon and watch him work. It's fascinating because our minds work in completely different ways. When he starts talking about or sketching out a project, I'm thinking in wood and he's thinking in metal. Everybody needs a friend who owns a machine shop.

Very nice Jake!

What's the swing and bed length on that machine?

I've had little luck trying to find something like that around here. Either too much money or way too small.

Very nice Jake. Congrats I bet that puppy was hard to move.

East Texas Frank, does your friend have room for one more friend? I don't have a friend with a lathe. Sounds like a good way for us lathe-less guys to go though.

Nice, Jake! I've wanted one of those for a long time. I subscribe to EastTexFrank's method with one twist: the owner of the shop has had me run the lathe if he's busy. I hope he's too busy to run the milling machine some day...

The lathe has 12'' swing and a 36'' bed. My father bought it new in the early 80's and we formed a company in the mid 80's and boughtit from him then.
My two sons are both good machinists and they will probably use it more than I will to make mountain bike parts.

zionview said:

I subscribe to EastTexFrank's method with one twist: the owner of the shop has had me run the lathe if he's busy. I hope he's too busy to run the milling machine some day...

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No, I'm afraid that my buddy has more sense than let me run any of his equipment. He builds the frames for pro-fuel dragster motorbikes and ships them all over the country and the world. He does occasionally hand me the broom and let me to sweep the floor though.