I am looking to buy a lathe and mill but don't have any more than $3500 to spend

If I were you I'd get a square column mill-drill and a used 9" or 10" South Bend or Logan or Sheldon lathe in good condition. This month's "Home Shop Machinist" has an ad for a nice-looking square column mill-drill.

Everyone wants to go buy a machine from a store and get a great deal. Well, buying a machine tool isn't like buying a toothbrush or an Ipod. You have to look. It took me 3 years to find my first lathe, which was a 9" South Bend Model B. I had to drive 200 miles each way to get it. I loved that lathe but as always happens, a couple of years after I got it a buddy called me to let me know of a mint Model A (quickchange) going for cheap in an estate sale. Longest bed SB ever made for a 9" lathe, 54" which lets me turn 36" between centers. Once you start looking and learn how to look in your area, you *will* find machinery. If you're near a city it will have machinery. If you aren't, there will be farmers, who will have machinery. Take a class at your local technical college in machine tools and talk to the instructor and the other students. Look for a local metalworking club. Yes, this is all a lot of work and trouble, but in my opinion that's what it takes.

You can get that mill-drill for a couple grand (that's assuming you have to drive to LA to pick it up and you'll need $200 for gas) and you can add a DRO from Shooting Star for about another $500, that will leave you $1000 for your lathe, which should get you a nice one.

Good luck - GWE

You can get a decent southbend on ebay for $1000 and a Bridgeport for $2000, that should leave you with $500 left over for tooling.

How about a clean Powermatic/Logan 11" and a Bridgeport J-head mill delivered any where with in 300 miles of Costa Mesa, CA for your $3500. Delete the Pm/Logan and put in a 12"x24" Jet and save $500. Delete the B'port and put a a late model heavy drill mill with powerfeed and save another $500. If you really want to save money I have decent Harbor Fright 3 in 1 for only $275.00. If you want small used machines call me at (949) 645-7601 Leigh @MarMahcine in Costa Mesa, CA

Good looking machines. I saw them today.

Gunner

"Gunner, you are the same ridiculous liberal f--k you ever where." Scipio

I'm wishing I lived closer to the left coast so I could check out Leigh's stuff myself. Any ideas on a reputable machine dealer closer to Texas? I've been looking around for a larger lathe for over a year and haven't found *anything* worth buying. I guess maybe since machinery is not as common around here the pricing is way out of line with the coast.

Robert

Hey, Texas isn't that far from LA!! Not to mention, it's all flat, and a great drive too. I've bought from Leigh and they don't come any better than him. If I were you I'd make that long drive and just treat it like the adventure it is. While you're at it, you can go visit Gunner's fabled back yard. I think you can find *anything* in his yard, but it will take a lot of looking. It helps if you like cats .. :-)

Grant

Grant: I don't want to discourage visitors form Texas but you should check the map. There is a Continental Divide between here and Texas. That may not seem like much but it goes up a few more thousand feet then the Siskiyus and they make going up to your place seem uphill. Maybe it's just going strgight up the map that makes it seem so arduious. Leigh@MarMachine

And think - close to the beach - the one with water! Martin

Well, West Texas, New Mexico and Arizona always *seemed* flat to me .. :-)

Having driven it in 2 days - the long trip from Austin to north of LA - Went by the southern route - I10 IIRC - 200 feet (approx) to 4000 feet in El Paso - but that is a days - a long day ride. Slow and steady.

The worst 'hill' I know is the Grapevine outside LA.

There is a tough runner up - out on the road just before Wichita Falls, Tx. But that was another road trip and many years before. :-)

Martin

I give discounts if you Take cats.

Gunner

It's not unwise to remember that Mother Nature is essentially a murderous, sneakly, promiscuous bitch who has been trying to kill you since your conception.

Eventually she will succeed, perhaps with the help of your fellow man.

Life consists in putting off the inevitable as long as possible and taking what good and joy you can before her success.

Whether you attribute that situation to evolutionary forces, a fallen nature after Adam and Eve screwed the pooch, or whatever, it's no less true.

Be friendly, pleasant, unaggressive, and honest toward all and be prepared to ignore, avoid, or even kill anyone who is otherwise toward you. Being ready doesn't mean eager, just ready. What true friends are found in life will undestand and accept that fundamental rule of human interaction." John Husvar

Robert I am a retired Engineer/Toolmaker with a home shop. I have a 21" Harrison (Colchester) lathe for sale. New in 1980 and well tooled. Located in central Arkansas

Email back if you are interested.

John Normile aajnorm at sbcglobal.net

Oooo....nice lathe. Big...really big..but nice. Gonna be hard to turn carb jets and the like with it..but still nice.

Gunner

"The French are a smallish, monkey-looking bunch and not dressed any better, on average, than the citizens of Baltimore. True, you can sit outside in Paris and drink little cups of coffee, but why this is more stylish than sitting inside and drinking large glasses of whiskey I don't know." -- P.J O'Rourke (1989)

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KT,

Take a look at Metal Web News' equipment for sale listings. Many lathes and mills there.

METAL WEB NEWS

Bill Gray

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