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8.25.2013

up and running

As of last week, there there are now two operational lathes in the shop!

One is an Austrian built, Emco Maximat V10P,






and the other is a UK built, Myford ML7 Tri-Leva.

Please note that the 80s era, faux wood panelling was already in the room when I took possession of the property. It's not even 70s era, real wood veneer. Shameful...

The Emco needs a little more work; its 4-speed milling head is not currently functional. During the tear-down and move from the original owner's shop to my own, we cut the power cable between the headstock and milling head. It's only a 3-wire hookup, and I wanted an inline disconnect anyway. Just a slight inconvenience and delay.

Ultimately, there will be only two lathes in the shop; this Emco and a diminutive, US made Taig fitted with a variable speed, 90VDC treadmill motor for very small work. The Myford shown, plus some other equipment, will be going to new homes at some future point (hopefully sooner rather than later). 

It was difficult to chose between the machines - they are products of different design ideals and each one offers a distinct list of pros and cons. In the end I decided that the power crossfeed, quickchange "speeds & feeds" gearbox, and sump style headstock oil system made the Emco a more appropriate fit for my anticipated needs. 

I had long coveted a Myford lathe of any kind so, when this one became available (freshly rebuilt), I jumped at it. It has proven more than adequate so far and, given the number of magazine articles dedicated to improvements and accessories for this machine, I've no doubt that it will continue giving good service for decades to come. It is merely that there are a few features I miss having on the Myford which I found handy on the machines I used during my time at school (see note above). I don't really have room for both big machines so one of them must go. 

Now, if I ever found a Hardinge HLV-H in good condition locally, changes would have to be made...

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