Thread: nuttal herbet lathe

hi all just bought a nuttall lathe belt drive have very little knowlege of lathes at all would appreciate any advise is it worth restoring or just try use it

Unless you’re looking for a project, just give it a reasonable clean and use it.

Steve

I agree with Steve, a full restoration is a major project.

A good clean and oil, however, is essential.

Make sure to remove all the surface rust from the sliding parts, which hopefully should only involve Steel Wool/Scotchbrite and some sort of solvent (Turps/WD40).

There's a few threads here on those lathes which should help you figure out the machine.

Basic cleaning and inspection is always a good way to start learning about machine tools and how they operate, and there's plenty of help available here if you get stuck on anything.



Dave.

Clean her up, and any deficiencies will become apparent in use. One thing (among many) that is not intuitive to beginners is the importance of levelling the lathe to ensure any twist is removed from the bed. Otherwise you will just turn carrots, and may mistakenly think the machine is clapped out.
And check the wiring... i have had a few old machines, and the insulation on the old wiring is very often crumbling, potentially exposing copper to iron...

Rowdy