Atlas 12x60 lathe

[Tree Sling'r]

I’m looking online at a nice Atlas 12x60 bench top lathe. Does anyone here have experience with one? My lathe is too small for what I want to do.
Thanks!

 

[blades]

old iron- parts can be a problem, need to very carefully inspect ways particularly the first 12" or so from the chuck as that is where the most wear occurs. need to put a dial indicator on that area as well as checking run out on the spindle. Bearing wear. then there is the gears and back gears that need to be looked at closely. one also needs to go over the lead screw and the carriage/ apron for any problems there ( replaced teeth in gears giving a slight hitch in the get along. or the clutch not grabbing depending on the design.)
Old iron can be much nicer than the new stuff but it also can be a heck of a pocket drain.

 

[srcarr52]

Older lathes can be pretty inefficient to run too. Newer machines have features like a third shaft for forward/reverse lever on the apron, quick change gear box instead of having to physically swap out the gears on the side to change the feed rate, as well as gear heads so you don't have to transfer the belt to another pulley to change the spindle speed. All these little things make jobs go much faster. I think that would be the 3000 series which has a threaded chuck, so you have to be careful when using reverse and changing chucks can be a bit of a pain.

http://www.lathes.co.uk/atlas/page4.html

If the Atlas is cheap enough it will fit the bill but the comforts of a newer lathe are worth the extra $$ if you plan to use it more than once a month.

10" swing is about the smallest I'd buy to do chainsaw cylinders. The bench top 9" lathes can only swing 5" over the cross slide and I think some of the larger cylinders have fins that stick out further than 2.5" from the centerline. With a 10" swing you are usually over 6" swing over the cross slide.

 

[Stump Shot]

@srcarr52 Unfortunately in the "new normal" times we live in, buying a new lathe can be problematic with stocks being depleted. I know this as I was looking for a new one not long ago to replace the one I was using and finally bought that old South Bend and didn't look back as every lathe I wanted was out of stock.

 

[srcarr52]

@srcarr52 Unfortunately in the "new normal" times we live in, buying a new lathe can be problematic with stocks being depleted. I know this as I was looking for a new one not long ago to replace the one I was using and finally bought that old South Bend and didn't look back as every lathe I wanted was out of stock.

I noticed used prices of lathes have gone up in the last few years as well.

Still, it would have to be a heck of a deal for me to buy an older lathe over a modern one. But I also spends hours in front of my lathe so those newer features mean a lot more to me.

 

[Tree Sling'r]

old iron- parts can be a problem, need to very carefully inspect ways particularly the first 12" or so from the chuck as that is where the most wear occurs. need to put a dial indicator on that area as well as checking run out on the spindle. Bearing wear. then there is the gears and back gears that need to be looked at closely. one also needs to go over the lead screw and the carriage/ apron for any problems there ( replaced teeth in gears giving a slight hitch in the get along. or the clutch not grabbing depending on the design.)
Old iron can be much nicer than the new stuff but it also can be a heck of a pocket drain.

Thanks a lot for the input. I am going to look at it on Friday and try it on Friday.

 

[Tree Sling'r]

Older lathes can be pretty inefficient to run too. Newer machines have features like a third shaft for forward/reverse lever on the apron, quick change gear box instead of having to physically swap out the gears on the side to change the feed rate, as well as gear heads so you don't have to transfer the belt to another pulley to change the spindle speed. All these little things make jobs go much faster. I think that would be the 3000 series which has a threaded chuck, so you have to be careful when using reverse and changing chucks can be a bit of a pain.

http://www.lathes.co.uk/atlas/page4.html

If the Atlas is cheap enough it will fit the bill but the comforts of a newer lathe are worth the extra $$ if you plan to use it more than once a month.

10" swing is about the smallest I'd buy to do chainsaw cylinders. The bench top 9" lathes can only swing 5" over the cross slide and I think some of the larger cylinders have fins that stick out further than 2.5" from the centerline. With a 10" swing you are usually over 6" swing over the cross slide.

Thanks Shaun. I’ll have a big learning curve if I do get it - looking and trying it on Friday. $1500 seems like a good price. He says it’s “true” and well taken care of and maintained. Also, too many extras to post he said. Lots of tooling.
I’ll definitely keep you guys posted.

 

[srcarr52]

You can never have enough tooling! And quick change tool posts tool holders!

I use a lot of indexable carbide tool holders from Shars or other imports. Once I find an insert style I like, I find a box or two off ebay for 1/4 the price of new.

CCGT inserts are great for aluminum and are tough enough to cut through even the nastiest over plated squish bands.

 

[Tree Sling'r]

You can never have enough tooling! And quick change tool posts tool holders!

I use a lot of indexable carbide tool holders from Shars or other imports. Once I find an insert style I like, I find a box or two off ebay for 1/4 the price of new.

CCGT inserts are great for aluminum and are tough enough to cut through even the nastiest over plated squish bands.

Silly question: how do I know if the quick change post style on the Atlas is AXA or AXO or something else? Will either work? I only used one set up for cutting bases on my Grizzly 4000, cut squish by hand.

 

[srcarr52]

Silly question: how do I know if the quick change post style on the Atlas is AXA or AXO or something else? Will either work? I only used one set up for cutting bases on my Grizzly 4000, cut squish by hand.

The Dorian and Aloris use letters for the sizing where the rest of the world uses numbers. So AXA = 100 series, BXA = 200, CXA = 300 and so on. The tool post and tool holders should be marked. If not you can use the charts below to figure it out.

There is a 0XA (000) size but that is for really small lathes, less than 8" swing.

With the 12" lathe you are in the transition from AXA all the way to CXA. The real deciding factor is the vertical distance from the lathe centerline to the top of the compound. If the height of the bottom lip of the tool holder plus the tool height is larger than this distance then you can't get your tool down to the centerline. See the CH Min/Max from this chart.



This bigger the Quick Change Tool Post (QCTP) the larger the tooling you'll be able to use. There are #1 and #2 XL tool holders that allow you to use a little larger than standard tooling, in a BXA the normal tooling is 1/2", the XL allows for 3/4" but needs an extra 1/16" drop down on the toolpost.

If you are looking to buy a QCTP I'd go with a wedge style vs. a piston. They are a little more expensive but the tool offset is way more consistent and it is a little more rigid.

 

[Tree Sling'r]

The Dorian and Aloris use letters for the sizing where the rest of the world uses numbers. So AXA = 100 series, BXA = 200, CXA = 300 and so on. The tool post and tool holders should be marked. If not you can use the charts below to figure it out.

There is a 0XA (000) size but that is for really small lathes, less than 8" swing.

With the 12" lathe you are in the transition from AXA all the way to CXA. The real deciding factor is the vertical distance from the lathe centerline to the top of the compound. If the height of the bottom lip of the tool holder plus the tool height is larger than this distance then you can't get your tool down to the centerline. See the CH Min/Max from this chart.

View attachment 348595

This bigger the Quick Change Tool Post (QCTP) the larger the tooling you'll be able to use. There are #1 and #2 XL tool holders that allow you to use a little larger than standard tooling, in a BXA the normal tooling is 1/2", the XL allows for 3/4" but needs an extra 1/16" drop down on the toolpost.

View attachment 348594

If you are looking to buy a QCTP I'd go with a wedge style vs. a piston. They are a little more expensive but the tool offset is way more consistent and it is a little more rigid.

Wow! Thanks a lot! Great information.

 

[Al Smith]

Old lathes are about like old chainsaws .You find them where you find them and prices could be all over the place .They made a zillion South Bend and Atlases .I'm not sure about Atlas but South Bends had bushings in the head stock you could adjust to take the slop out of them .
Craigs list is a good way to find them .I once found 3 or 4 for a guy on one of the seaward islands off Washington state and I'm 3,000 miles away .

 

[Tree Sling'r]

Old lathes are about like old chainsaws .You find them where you find them and prices could be all over the place .They made a zillion South Bend and Atlases .I'm not sure about Atlas but South Bends had bushings in the head stock you could adjust to take the slop out of them .
Craigs list is a good way to find them .I once found 3 or 4 for a guy on one of the seaward islands off Washington state and I'm 3,000 miles away .

I got mine on Friday, it’s a nice clean 12” Atlas. Now, looking for a 4 jaw chuck and back plate set up.

 

[Al Smith]

On the quick change system on my Monarch 10" EE I was given the post and made most of the slides from bar stock using a Bridgeport model M milling machine that once was owned by Mall Tools .For all I know it might have made parts for those giant old chainsaws .
As far as indexable carbide I've got drawers full as well as the holders .All freebies from outdated tooling used for automotive engines .
Then comes the "cannon barrel " lathe .WW1 Bowes and Emmes 20 by 48 converted to a Lima drive from a line shaft machine .It's only 3 HP but it will really hog off steel .Sounds like a threshing machine with cup and McCoy style oilers .Uses a multi tool turret .Usually with large high speed steel and some times with carbide depending .I've turned brake drums for dump trucks on that old antique . That one is around 7-8,000 pounds .I bought it for about scrap iron prices .

 

[blades]

One nice thing about old iron - they do not flex much and they do not walk across the floor by themselves. Once you get those pieces back in shape they will last few more lifetimes.

 

[Al Smith]

The first lathe I ever used at about 15 years old was an old South Bend with a 5 gallon bucket full of change gears . At that age I had no idea of how to cut threads but I could cut shafts and using a vertical milling device turn beer can openers into car keys . I have no idea when that old machine was made but it sat on a cast iron base about like a heavy duty base for a singer sewing machine .Might have came over on the Mayflower .

 

[Al Smith]

Those use threaded based chucks and face plates and usually are not costly .Try pricing a pin drive like on my Monarch some times . That will make you pucker .