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  1. #1
    Join Date
    Aug 2010
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    Near Bendigo, Victoria, AUS
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    72
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    3,102

    Default An "unearthed" CVA precision capstan lathe

    Yesterday I was asked by another forum member "Anorak Bob" to describe my first introduction to lathe ownership - he seemed amused and thought others would be too....

    In about 1974 I was building my first house and picked up a trailerload of gravel at a local sand and soil yard after a really heavy downpour that washed our driveway away.
    Looking around the sodden yard, I spotted what looked like a headstock sticking out of a heap of muddy sand. I asked if there was a lathe buried there and the young guy loading my trailer confirmed it was "dad bought a small lathe a few decades ago, never got it to work and put it up there out of the way. It got covered over the years and the rain washed the top out". I asked if he wated to sell it and he offered it to me for either $10 or $20 - I can't recall. Naturally I agreed and he dug it out with the loader. It was a small but very heavy lathe with integral cast base, but no tailstock or saddle. It had a turret (didn't know what that was) instead.
    So I went home and emptied the trailer in the driveway and went back.
    After loading the heavy lump (completely filled with mud) onto the trailer, the father of the loader driver came over and said he still had a box of collets and bit in the shed. If I wanted those I could have them. I didn't know what collets were and thanked him after loading the box of bits (some marked "Hardinge" - a meaningless name to me back then) in the boot.
    After spending nearly a year (!) cleaning the poor thing out - with wirebrushes, screwdrivers and pressure washer, I took everything apart - some bits with great difficulties.
    Since I had no idea how to really use a lathe - especially one with a fitting (turret) that I'd never seen before and lots of bits missing everywhere (e.g. the gearbox was empty, the Lots of things were well and truly stuffed or useless: the integral 3-phase moter rusted into a solid lump of iron and copper, the cooling pump completely worn out and the headstock spindle worn badly too.
    In 1975 I enrolled in a Hobby Machining Course at the local TAFE which ran for another 4 years (before it folded) once a week for 3 hours.
    I got some initial tuition and then took my lathe bed there to rebuild along the lines of a Myford ML10.
    The teacher helped me with this undertaking with lots of supervision, advice and set-ups.
    I got hold of a large jagged lump of cast iron scrap about 2" thick and a triangular shape about 3'x1'. I then set about fabricating a power hacksaw to cut this into suitable sized pieces to make a saddle, apron, cross slide, top slide base and top slide, tailstock base and handwheels. The longest cut took 3 1/2 hrs to complete in the poor power hacksaw.
    The lathe was operationally but without half-nut, threading or powerfeed capacity by 1979. It has a handwheel on the leadscrew at the tailstock end. I fabricated a tailstock by welding a number of thick steel plates and a piece of 1 1/2" square steel bar. I stress relieved in our open fireplace by building a fire around it and keeping it glowing red for several hrs and letting it cool in the fire overnight.
    It then was machined at TAFE, spindel made etc.
    I've been using this lathe ever since - and it now needs a rebuild again. It is quite worn - this is why the topic came up in a scraping discussion.
    Only a few months ago I found out what it originally was: a precision turret lathe from the late '30s most likely, a CVA Model 75 Precision Capstan lathe.
    Here are some photos and a description of it - near the bottom of the page (the colour photos).
    Today it looks like this:


    Cheers,
    Joe

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Jul 2010
    Location
    Melbourne
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    Default

    lol And I get excited when I make a spindle adaptor.
    Great work Joe, amazing.

    How did you fit the chuck?(I assume it didnt have one?) Can you still use the collets?
    Stuart

  3. #3
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    Aug 2010
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    Toorloo Arm, VIC
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    Default

    I'm off to get a trailerload of gravel.....


  4. #4
    Join Date
    Aug 2010
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    Near Bendigo, Victoria, AUS
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    Default

    The spindle nose has a thread (2"x16tpi). The collet nut fits there.
    I turned several backing plates to fit its register and thread and also turned an 8" face plate with T-slots to suit.
    Over the years I acquired a 5" 3-jaw and 4-jaw chuck. The collets are still in use, but the closer mechanim was rusted solid. I turned a backstop ring and use the nose nut to close them.
    Joe

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Jul 2003
    Location
    The Fabulous Gold-plated Coast.
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    69
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    Default

    Holy Schmidt!

    My hat's off to you! That is a Herculean effort in my book.
    It's all part of the service here at The House of Pain™

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Oct 2010
    Location
    Newcastle Australia
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    Default

    I like that story!

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Mar 2011
    Location
    Dural NSW
    Age
    82
    Posts
    1,203

    Smile Capstan Lathes

    Joe, it was great to read your article on the restored Capstan Lathe, I admire the effort & detail you have put into the project.
    I have always been an admirer of Capstan & Turret lathes, after I worked one for some months at AWA Ashfield NSW during my first year of Apprentice ship back in 1958
    They had a large number of Capstan lathes turning out precision & repetitive work.
    Some years back I purchased a Hercus Capstan Attachment for my Hercus 260 Lathe, to satisfy a long time urge.
    Its done plenty of work, & I still set it up from time to time for machining repetitiive parts. Its paricularly good for multiple drilling operations, rather than tedious tailstock changes in a drill chuck. The advantage of a depth stop is also handy.
    Thanks again for your write up, & all the best for your machining.
    Bruce
    Abratool NSW

  8. #8
    Join Date
    Jul 2006
    Location
    Athelstone, SA 5076
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    4,255

    Default

    "buried in mud for donkeys years eh" mine didnt even stay in the box as long as that

    and what a good restoration job

  9. #9
    Join Date
    Apr 2008
    Location
    Canberra
    Posts
    805

    Default

    Nice one. Makes the restoration needed for the lathe in this thread suddenly seem like a walk in the park.

    http://www.woodworkforums.com/f65/re...le-3-a-137255/

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Mar 2009
    Location
    Melbourne
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    54
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    That's a great story Joe.
    Most people dont realize just how enduring some old machinery can be.
    One of my stationary engines spent the best part of 60 years at the bottom of the Muarry river and we managed to get it going again.
    Is that a Cash Engineering mill you have there?
    Cheers,
    Greg.

  11. #11
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    Near Bendigo, Victoria, AUS
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    Default

    Yes, Greg (kwijibo99),my mill is a horizontal Cash (around 1940s - "war" finish).
    I bought that for $200 off a dealer in Sunshine, Vic. about 20 years ago. It was missing the table feed screw, nut, ends and handwheels bar one.
    Imade all of those bits.
    It needs scraping - that's why I have such an interest in that topic.
    Cheers,
    Joe

  12. #12
    Join Date
    Mar 2009
    Location
    Brisbane
    Posts
    85

    Default

    Hi

    Bruce's (Abratool) reply as a first year apprentice reminds me of my first year as electrical apprentice in 1963 at the Brisbane City Council Electricity Dept workshops at Mayne Brisbane.

    I made 3600 of the attached bolts on a Colchester (I think) turret lathe.
    Made from stainless steel hex bar, when it must have been cheaper to make them.
    Used for making "Air Brake Switches" for electrical distribution.
    I kept one as a momento.
    1 3/4 x 3/8 BSW SS.

    I was 15 years old.

    We were well trained and supervised by a nice old foreman fitter and turner, with snowy white hair, who was a perfectionist. I still have visions of him sharpening HSS lathe tools on a oscillating traverse semi-automatic sharpening machine (dont know its real name). It had an Eclipse magnetic (vise) attachment to hold the bits and tools whilst being ground.

    A great place to learn all manner of things, technical, and people related.

    cheerio, mike

  13. #13
    Join Date
    Jan 2011
    Location
    sydney
    Posts
    90

    Default

    An engineers supplier I was at two days ago had a vernier that was made in 1890 and some other old measuring equipment dated early last century. It occured to me that this stuff would look great on my wall. However, I dont think it was for sale

    Might go back and make the guy an offer.

  14. #14
    Join Date
    Mar 2009
    Location
    Melbourne
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    54
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    Default

    G'day Joe,
    I've got a Cash mill myself.
    They were designed during WWI and manufactured by Cash Engineering in Richmond (Vic) for the US Army Airforce for aircraft production and were made for a period after the war.
    Cash engineering is still going and are leading designers of air-compressors and although they no longer make them in Richmond they licence the design to companies around the world.
    I got in touch with the grandson of the founder who is the current CEO and he was a really nice bloke.
    Anyway just though you might find this info interesting.
    They are a good little mill.
    Cheers,
    Greg.

  15. #15
    Join Date
    Nov 2008
    Location
    Perth WA
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    71
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    6,458

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by Abratool View Post
    Joe, it was great to read your article on the restored Capstan Lathe, I admire the effort & detail you have put into the project.
    I have always been an admirer of Capstan & Turret lathes, after I worked one for some months at AWA Ashfield NSW during my first year of Apprentice ship back in 1958
    They had a large number of Capstan lathes turning out precision & repetitive work.
    Some years back I purchased a Hercus Capstan Attachment for my Hercus 260 Lathe, to satisfy a long time urge.
    Its done plenty of work, & I still set it up from time to time for machining repetitiive parts. Its paricularly good for multiple drilling operations, rather than tedious tailstock changes in a drill chuck. The advantage of a depth stop is also handy.
    Thanks again for your write up, & all the best for your machining.
    Bruce
    Abratool NSW
    Hello Bruce,

    I wouldn't mind discussing the set up of the turret attachment. I will start a new thread because this one is about Joe's machine.

    There is something captivating about turret lathes. If you have not already seen this, here is a link to a site featuring the rebuilding of a Ward 1A. You may find it interesting.

    http://www.oldengine.org/members/diesel/ward/Ward1A.htm

    Bob.

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