Restored South Bend Lathe

1950 Model 10"
South Bend Lathe

  • It was completely disassembled, all parts were cleaned and checked for wear,.
  • The old paint was stripped, then I reapplied new primer , painted it two tone green, and then reassembled the whole thing.
  • There are two shades of Forest Green paint. The paint job looks better than the photo shows.
  • Some small knobs that were broken, were replaced with ones I made.
  • Original 3/4 hp 3 phase motor was replaced with a 1 hp single phase motor. I'm considering an instant reverse single phase motor, or returning to a 3 phase with a phase converter.
  • Drive belt is a composite material instead of leather.
  • Power switch is still the original. I see no disadvantage to its position. I add the the gooseneck lamp on to it.
  • The chip tray was added by the previous owner, and serves its purpose well. I'm not a purist, and didn't intend a 100% accurate restoration.
  • Mounted on the lathe, is my homemade tool-post grinder. I have also made the multi-tool holder, steady rest, drive-plate, and diamond dresser holder shown the photo.
  • This is my first metal lathe. I have had a great time learning how to use it. I have made several useful tools with it already.
    I have made zero adjust back plates on all of the chucks. Also, I'm making a taper attachment, which is almost finished. It is one I found in an old Popular Mechanics magazine.
    Martin Kaiser of St. Petersburg, Florida, has just completed his taper attachment made from these plans. He is using it on an Enco 12" lathe and says it worked out perfectly for his lathe. Photos of his outstanding finished project are below. My thanks to him for sharing his work. Click on photos to enlarge them.



I've added the Lathe Drawing and Parts list from the old South Bend "How to Run a Lathe" book for anyone who may need it. I'll leave it on the site unless South Bend decides it shouldn't be here :>)

My homemade steady rest, tool bit holder, and diamond dresser.

  • Stead rest is fabricated of several pieces. Guides are bronze. My intention is to replace them with bearings. It works quite well like it is though.
  • Tool bit holder is made from a piece of 3"x3"x2" cold rolled steel. It holds 1/2" tool bits, but has other adapters for boring bars. It can be adjusted to use 1/8" and 1/4" bits also
  • Diamond dresser holder is three way adjustable. It has an aluminum base that mounts on the bed ways.

 

 


Tool Post Grinder

  • Motor is 1/3 hp 3450 rpm from a portable dishwasher. It had an integrated motor mount which I had to leave attached.
  • The spindle will accommodate an internal as well as the external grinding shafts.
  • I hope to improve on the the spindle in the future. Although it runs very smooth, I know I can do an even better job on the next one, now that I see just what is needed.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


Grinder mounted. Click for larger picture.