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  1. #1
    Join Date
    Aug 2015
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    Default Lathe Bed Hardness

    Got hold of a portable hardness tester and went for a look-see at some of me old lathes.

    As the tester works in the vertical I did the testing on the flat part where the tail stock runs on the ways of the V way machines. Due to the wear on the machines not giving a true flat I did multiples of the 5 ping averages - so at best a ball park figure. Note: the flats may not have gotten the same hardening as that of the V ways.

    Not knowing much about what the hardness tester read-out were saying, re them HLD’s, and to give a comparison I could relate to, I took a reading of a Taiwan built Hare and Forbes lathe and a 600 Co Taiwan Colchester to give me-self a baseline. Both lathes gave a reading of 755.

    1930’s South Bend: 535

    Colchester Student: 765

    Early Hercus: 530

    Hercus 260: 725

    1890’s Smellie and Co: 535

    Mars: 550

    Rexman: 460

    Advance: 490




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  2. #2
    Join Date
    Jul 2016
    Location
    Melbourne
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    35
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    1,522

    Default

    Useful information, surprising that all the hardened values are so close

    Sent from my SM-G973F using Tapatalk

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Aug 2015
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    QLD
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    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by caskwarrior View Post
    Useful information, surprising that all the hardened values are so close
    Yep. The one stand-out were the 1950’s (?) Colchester.




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  4. #4
    Join Date
    Aug 2015
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    QLD
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    Default

    Been roaming the industrial waste-lands....me back shed , and got some more numbers...

    Nuttall Herbert 1940’s lathe: 490

    Kerns Type S bed ways: 420

    Hercus mill bed ways: 490




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