Anyone Have Experience Running a TOS Lathe?

[SteveHGraham]

I am wondering if anyone here has personal experience with a TOS lathe. These are Czech machines. Very odd stuff. I've been reading about them at lathes.co.uk.

I came across one which looks to be very, very lightly used. The price is very low, maybe because it's hard to sell a lathe no one has heard of. It has a fair amount of tooling with it.

It's pretty tempting, but it has some shortcomings. For one thing, it's really big. The bed is 60" long, and I was shooting for 40. Also, the spindle bore is only 1 5/8", and I was hoping for 2". I don't know what the top speed is yet; I wanted 1500 or more. I've read that some older models didn't go that high. It has no gap. That's a bummer. I don't know how important it is, but it seems stupid to be content with a 16" swing when I can have over 20".

I would also be worried about the cost and availability of used parts, although the outfit that made it can supply new ones.

[John Evans]

No personal experance with one ,but pop this question over on PM as I know some members there have TOS lathes. As to gap both of my lathes have it and in 6 years have never needed it. Of course my big 18" will actually swing about 21" over the ways. Chuck size also effects top speed ,with my 16" 4 jaw 512 is Max., for the 1800 top I have to use a 8" or small chuck.

[SteveHGraham]

I'll have to wear a disguise so Milacron doesn't frag me immediately.

I'll reveal my crazy reason for wanting a gap. A long time ago, I had this idea that I could use it to fix my brake rotors if I ever screwed them up. But last week I learned you can do it on a mill with a rotary table. And what are the odds that I'll actually do it, regardless? Sometimes a silly idea gets stuck in my head.

A big spindle hole would be nice, though.

[SteveHGraham]

I guess my rotors would fit on a 16" lathe, though.

[John Evans]

Most rotors are so cheap now days that I don't bother to turn them and I have a brake lathe to boot. The only reason to turn a rotor is if they are warped ,some grooving don't hurt a thing not like drums where it can cause a pull. If you are going to have only one lathe a 16" is a good compromise , me a 12" & 18" work good. Wish the 18" was 60" or 80" long though . My 18" has a 2.5 spindle hole.

[SteveHGraham]

Of course you're right, but you know how it is. If I didn't want to do things that were totally unnecessary, I wouldn't be here!

[John Evans]

Oh !! How well I know that feeling Steve.

[Jim_Nolan]

Tos lathes have a good reputation over here they are probably at the high end of imported equipment They don't have the negative connotations associated with the far eastern machinery. As quality control and finish have always been good. Unfortunately there are not many second hand machines about they are still manufacturing a full line of machine tools, i looked at a 13” swing model last year but the new price was 4 or five times that of your typical chinaman.

Jim

[GlennW]

Steve,

Jet makes a 1440ZX that has a 3 1/8" spindle bore if a larger bore is what you are after.

I looked at a very nice used one about five years ago, and it was about $6000.00 back then, and about $12,000 new.

[SteveHGraham]

I wish that Chin Hung I found were a little bit shorter. I was really pleased with the asking price.

[Harold_V]

I'll reveal my crazy reason for wanting a gap. A long time ago, I had this idea that I could use it to fix my brake rotors if I ever screwed them up. But last week I learned you can do it on a mill with a rotary table. And what are the odds that I'll actually do it, regardless? Sometimes a silly idea gets stuck in my head.

How good are you on the machines? Cutting the rotors is easy. Cutting them properly, not so. Mess with rotors and you aren't good, chances are you're going to be very unhappy with your efforts. Surfaces MUST be dead parallel, and at a right angle to the centerline. Any deviation yields lumpy brakes, but then a new set of rotors will cure that problem.

Harold

[ML]

Steve,

I thought the same thing (rationalizing lathe purchase?) when I got my lathe. Yet when the time came I found that due to "cost saving" there is little if any extra meat on rotors to clean up. As with many items made today they are disposable not repairable.

Michael