2012-04-29 13.09.06

New member of the family…

Yesterday it finally happened. I’ve been pacing around like an expectant father for the last week, as I have been looking for a lathe for a while now, and last week I went to see one that finally fit the bill (or rather, the budget!). A ‘used’ looking 9” Hercus model ‘A’, with powered cross-slide and thread-cutting gearbox (was on my ‘essential’ list!). With it came all the change-gears for the metric thread-cutting, steadies, 3(!) chucks and loads of tooling, a quick-change tool-post with 6 (!) tool-holders and loads of other goodies…

When It came it was a bit tatty and grubby but looked all there, as indeed it is! A good spruce-up brought to light that the bearings are all in good shape, as is the bed and all the gearing, too! The original paint has long since been gone over in a very dark, almost black colour (perhaps it was even black once!) and odd bits of metal are showing through the chips and other, only skin-deep, blemishes…

A brush with some “nitromors or similar and a light sanding for a ‘key’ to the base and coat of ‘Battleship Grey’, and the old girl will not only work, but also look almost as if it were brand new! Perhaps I’ll even get around to doing it on a long, summer evening sometime! Here are the rest of the pics, the first two before and the others after the clean-up.

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The horseshoe quick-change tool-post…

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The head, chuck and thread-cutting-gearbox, 48 varieties!

2012-04-29 13.09.06

Tailstock and thread-start indicator on the back of the saddle, one of the quick-change tooling-holders next to the spanner in the drip-tray.

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I still have to rig up a white-water cutting-fluid system, a few guards and a splash-back, before any larger and continuous jobs can b e attempted, but it’s ‘good-to-go’ as it is, and very pleased I am!

Thanks, Les, of the Historic Motor Cycle Racing Register of South Australia!

 

© peter gouws 2012

Made on a mac