21-06-2011, 04:26 PM
Hi,
Thanks David; you would have done the same for me.
Your Drummond lathe is indeed of the style I like so much Alan; built to last many lifetimes. My Myford is a toy in comparison and I miss my Colchester Triumph; the Triumph was fitted with all power feeds; a gearbox and a Matrix clutch. I miss the clutch in particular as it made stopping and starting so easy rather than having to keep switching the 5HP motor on and off; I worked my Triumph so hard one day with repetitive start/stop that the clutch started smoking and locked solid; once it cooled down and was given a drink of oil all was well again unlike my Myford when I was cutting my wave winder gears; the motor burned out completely as it couldn't stand the pace.
It truly saddens me that such wonderful machines as these heavy industrial lathes now fetch so little money compared to the much smaller lathes such as the Myford.
There's nothing like starting at the top Jamie and I like your choice of lathe it being the John Lang lathe you posted the link to. You would know you had bought a lathe had you bought this one and it certainly would have prevented your shed blowing away although the shed might sink a couple of feet or so into its foundations. Alan is correct that such a lathe would require serious lifting equipment. When I acquired my Triumph lathe I had to hire a wagon with crane and transporting a lathe is not as easy as one would believe because such heavy lathes need lifting in a certain way if distortion of the bed is to be avoided.
I shudder to think of anyone being allowed to use such a lathe without prior training as they are extremely dangerous; such a lathe running in low gear could easily pull an arm off.
If you prefer hand planing Josh by all means go for it and enjoy it. I once bought a lot of antique Maple flooring from a demolition site wishing to make a new kitchen from it.Not only did my newly sharpened hand plane merely skid over the surface but I couldn't even cut it with my hand saw and gave the lot to a neighbour to use as firewood. The timber was as hard as granite.
I'd be pleased to see pictures and details of your completed projects Josh and am happy to hear you are gathering some nice kit around you including the Gryphon bench grinder mentioned elsewhere.
Here are a few pictures of my Colchester Triumph and Dominion lathes sadly now sold to make space in my garage. The space problem can clearly be seen due to the Dominion being buried. Both lathes went over to good homes in Ireland.
Kind regards, Col.
[attachment=2171][attachment=2172][attachment=2173][attachment=2174]
Thanks David; you would have done the same for me.
Your Drummond lathe is indeed of the style I like so much Alan; built to last many lifetimes. My Myford is a toy in comparison and I miss my Colchester Triumph; the Triumph was fitted with all power feeds; a gearbox and a Matrix clutch. I miss the clutch in particular as it made stopping and starting so easy rather than having to keep switching the 5HP motor on and off; I worked my Triumph so hard one day with repetitive start/stop that the clutch started smoking and locked solid; once it cooled down and was given a drink of oil all was well again unlike my Myford when I was cutting my wave winder gears; the motor burned out completely as it couldn't stand the pace.
It truly saddens me that such wonderful machines as these heavy industrial lathes now fetch so little money compared to the much smaller lathes such as the Myford.
There's nothing like starting at the top Jamie and I like your choice of lathe it being the John Lang lathe you posted the link to. You would know you had bought a lathe had you bought this one and it certainly would have prevented your shed blowing away although the shed might sink a couple of feet or so into its foundations. Alan is correct that such a lathe would require serious lifting equipment. When I acquired my Triumph lathe I had to hire a wagon with crane and transporting a lathe is not as easy as one would believe because such heavy lathes need lifting in a certain way if distortion of the bed is to be avoided.
I shudder to think of anyone being allowed to use such a lathe without prior training as they are extremely dangerous; such a lathe running in low gear could easily pull an arm off.
If you prefer hand planing Josh by all means go for it and enjoy it. I once bought a lot of antique Maple flooring from a demolition site wishing to make a new kitchen from it.Not only did my newly sharpened hand plane merely skid over the surface but I couldn't even cut it with my hand saw and gave the lot to a neighbour to use as firewood. The timber was as hard as granite.
I'd be pleased to see pictures and details of your completed projects Josh and am happy to hear you are gathering some nice kit around you including the Gryphon bench grinder mentioned elsewhere.
Here are a few pictures of my Colchester Triumph and Dominion lathes sadly now sold to make space in my garage. The space problem can clearly be seen due to the Dominion being buried. Both lathes went over to good homes in Ireland.
Kind regards, Col.
[attachment=2171][attachment=2172][attachment=2173][attachment=2174]
