Warbaby Southbend 9C lathe

All discussion about lathes including but not limited to: South Bend, Hardinge, Logan, Monarch, Clausing and other HSM lathes, including imports

Moderators: GlennW, Harold_V

Post Reply
User avatar
kc6uvm
Posts: 144
Joined: Tue Jan 16, 2007 11:34 pm
Location: Lancaster, CA

Warbaby Southbend 9C lathe

Post by kc6uvm »

Life has been know to throw the occasional curve ball, but it seems I got tossed a screw ball this time... :(
It's a long story for another thread...
Starting over with this machine:
KIMG0137.JPG
The lathe's serial number suggests it was made during the war. All the lathes I ever used in the Navy were painted battleship grey. Don't know how a lathe could be painted blue.... 8)

The motor and first stage reduction aren't Southbend but looks like Sears/Atlas.
KIMG0138.JPG
I'm going to replace the old switch on the Delco motor and acquired a start up switch through Amazon for turning on the motor to be mounted elsewhere. Start up switch is a FoxPro product with a lock out on the start button.
KIMG0135.JPG
The machine came with a couple four jaw chucks, three jaw chuck, face plate and centers. I'm lacking the change gears. It didn't come with those.
I built the work bench out of two by fours and used adjustable levels under the legs. Have the assorted oils for the machine and should get things up and running by February 2018.
Attachments
KIMG0136.JPG
George J. Becker
Lancaster, CA (formerly of Shandon, CA)
Model railroading is fun but the work expands proportionately to the track gauge.
earlgo
Posts: 1794
Joined: Sat Jan 29, 2011 11:38 am
Location: NE Ohio

Re: Warbaby Southbend 9C lathe

Post by earlgo »

Obviously someone "restored" it, per the rules of rebuilding an old lathe. :roll:
If it turns out it cuts true and works smoothly with all the correct lubes, it really doesn't matter what color it is.
E-bay occasionally has SB change gears.
Nice job with the lathe so far.
--earlgo
Before you do anything, you must do something else first. - Washington's principle.
SteveM
Posts: 7763
Joined: Mon Jun 27, 2005 6:18 pm
Location: Wisconsin

Re: Warbaby Southbend 9C lathe

Post by SteveM »

You will do a LOT more turning than threading, so you can get by without change gears for now, as long as you have gears that will move the carriage slow enough for a decent power feed. Wiat for a good deal to come to you. Be sure to research what the gears are, tooth count and how many in the set.

The size of the motor and countershaft pulleys looks wrong compared to what actually came on a south bend. Looks like you will be running too slow.

Measure all your pulleys and do the math. Figure how many RPM you will have in each of the three direct, then look up the ratio for back gears in a catalog and calculate the back gear speeds.

I would suggest getting a set of pulleys that will give you a speed range up to the max speed listed in the catalog for the year of the lathe (older ones have a lower top speed than newer ones) and using a double pulley system on the motor to get you an additional six speeds for a total of 12. Note that that model may have originally come with a two-pulley setup (a catalog will show you for sure). Just try not to go faster than the original speed. Be sure to map out all the speeds so that you don't end up with a lot of duplicates.

Good luck with it and keep us up to date on your progress.

Steve
User avatar
kc6uvm
Posts: 144
Joined: Tue Jan 16, 2007 11:34 pm
Location: Lancaster, CA

Re: Warbaby Southbend 9C lathe

Post by kc6uvm »

Lathe wire up, tested, and motor runs. Doesn't blow out the GFC outlet in the garage. :D
Lathe up and running
Lathe up and running
Found an inexpensive tool post on Amazon. Will upgrade to an AXA at a later date.
Almost ready to make chips.
A tachometer is next project to be fitted on the headstock.
George J. Becker
Lancaster, CA (formerly of Shandon, CA)
Model railroading is fun but the work expands proportionately to the track gauge.
User avatar
wlw-19958
Posts: 1072
Joined: Fri Dec 22, 2006 5:41 pm
Location: Lewes, DE

Re: Warbaby Southbend 9C lathe

Post by wlw-19958 »

Hi There,

Just because it was made during the war years
doesn't mean it was made for the Navy. If it was
made for the Navy, it should have an anchor stamped
on the bed near the serial number.

Lots of Government agencies and private companies
used lathes and the demand was high during WW II.
SBL would paint a lathe any color if ordered to. If
ordered in a different color, it should be listed on its
build card. Check with the current SBL company.
They have the records of the old SBL (I think they
charge a $25 fee for the service).

If it was built to War specification, there will not be
any brass or bronze used in its construction. Check
your cross feed nut and gearbox bearings. They will
be cast iron if it was built to War specs. Also, the ID
and gearbox tags will be steel.

Good Luck!
-Blue Chips-
Webb
earlgo
Posts: 1794
Joined: Sat Jan 29, 2011 11:38 am
Location: NE Ohio

Re: Warbaby Southbend 9C lathe

Post by earlgo »

Why spring for a tachometer when you know the motor rpm and the pulley diameters. Simple calculations will give you the spindle speeds.
WLW I did not know that the Navy stamped an anchor near the serial or used iron gears or didn't use brass/bronze bushings. Interesting to know.
--earlgo
Before you do anything, you must do something else first. - Washington's principle.
User avatar
kc6uvm
Posts: 144
Joined: Tue Jan 16, 2007 11:34 pm
Location: Lancaster, CA

Re: Warbaby Southbend 9C lathe

Post by kc6uvm »

Don't have plans to dig deeper into the machine unless I really have to....
Just looking for an additional indicator for rotational speed. The tach was under $20 (on Amazon) and came with the sensor. Just plan on mounting a small magnet somewhere out of the way on the spindle. Might print me a box for the tach on the new 3D printer once I figure out how this 3D printer works and get my desktop PC back up and running. The cad and cam software was on the PC. Been beseeched with computer problems for the last month. This Raspberry PI is the only functioning SBC working in the house. It's integrated with my ham radio station.
From my own experience while serving in the Navy, all the machines in my shops and the SIMAs I visited were painted battleship gray, cleaned up some more during down time and repainted in battleship gray. Maybe this lathe was meant for the Air Force... Or the previous owner repainted it in blue to match his tastes...
This lathe is a hodgepodge of parts. Not all are South Bend. As long it works and does the job I ask it to, I'll be happy till I can afford a bigger machine that has more zuu zoos and wam wams...
I promoted in my job last week and the next two months will be off on TDY for training. Going to busy with work... Less time for projects.
George J. Becker
Lancaster, CA (formerly of Shandon, CA)
Model railroading is fun but the work expands proportionately to the track gauge.
Post Reply