Congratulations on this incredible find. Thank you for your ethics that you showed in offering the woman a fair price for everything, That is something that is missing with so many people these days.
I have an ML7 which I bought 7-8 years ago. I was fortunate in that it was loaded with accessories and I have not yet had to buy anything for it. It is also on very good condition and had an easy life. It’s a thing of beauty!
For those that haven't moved a bench lathe or larger, lathes are extraordinarily top heavy. If you can, find an owner's manual or someone who can describe the correct way to lift the lathe. If you have just a plain sling around the bed to pick the machine up it will roll over and if you are by yourself it will get away from you. Even a small bench lathe like the one shown is pushing near 1/2 a ton and when it goes over you won't be able to stop it. Also be wary of straps over drive rods and lead screws. You can easily bend them if you put them in a bind when lifting. Cheers from NC/USA
One thing I would add, is take a look around the workshop area and observe how the previous owner worked/stored their tools/what he made. That also gives an indication of how the lathe was treated. Avoid a lathe where it looks like the previous owner was rough on his tools. Been there, bought the lathe (ML7) and discarded it. Now I know better and bought a lovely, well looked-after Super 7.
Every time I watch your videos I learn something new sometimes the new knowledge isnt that useful but interesting and fascinating all the same, and sometimes its a little gem encrusted piece of gold. Your E-Bay tip is one such piece of gold.
I have an early 1950's Super 7. Although I have watched a number of videos, I had not realised how many similarities there are between it and the ML7-R. The bed, headstock, tailstock, belt covers, changegear cover, and leadscrew assembly all look like I could fit them straight onto my lathe. The most obvious difference is the cross-slide, and the compound-slide mounting method. My early model does not have a powered crossfeed; that came later, and sadly, I don't have the optional Quick-change gearbox.
I'm impressed that you gave her a fair price. So many would have tried to scam her. And I have to say that it looks like an excellent machine. That is to say owned by someone who cared for it. I hope it proves to be as good as it looks.
It's not in my nature, I always like to be fair. I am a firm believer in the phrase "do unto others" . . . It is a nice Lathe which just needs adjustment and the Widow of the previous owner was a lovely old lady.
I am currently building a lathe. I need to be able to build parts for cars and heavy equipment. I also want to tinker around and make a steam engine to pump water from the river to irrigate a field. I build lots of steel structures and am a welder fabricator. I am not trained on how to operate a lathe but I watch these videos and am fascinated by your work and many other people also. I am in a remote area of the mountains in Mexico. There is no lathe for 5 hours from me. So it goes without saying I would have the only show in town.
A lovely lathe Keith. Congratulations on your new tool. It is good to know you treated the seller with respect and paid a fair price. You are a gentleman. Life is better for everyone when people behave decently.
When i bought the Super 7B that i have, we ended up using a engine hoist to do the hard work. At home once a tray had been made , me & my Son lifted it onto the tray. Quite a heavy & lovely machine to own. I never tire of looking at it. Plus of course using it, along with the great old Tom Senior milling machine. Regards. Steve.
I too had a Unimat lathe (SL model) on which I machined my first Stuart casting model. It was the number 8 and way too large for the Unimat. But with time and ingenuity I made it work. I still run the engine 50 years later with the 504 boiler. A Myford was recently listed Locally (Santa Fe, New Mexico) with a vast amount of accessories. But alas, was beyond my budget. Happy New Lathe!
hi Keith. i cannot wait.. looking forward to you fitting the quick change . ive wanted to do it on mine for years .. hope all is good stay safe an well tone..
The spare Crosslide is the shorter one originally fitted before they did the longer ones. The older ML7 was fitted with a 65 tooth gear for some reason which is not dividable with anything? The Super 7 and ML7R have a 60 tooth one which divides with all sorts. 3 and 6 and 6 for me over the last week. Yes Hunslet smokebox door rivets and Regulator bushes. David and Lily.
Got a bit behind with your youtube releases. So... 9 videos to watch over the next couple of days. Also. Got myself a job at a local machine shop recently. The have me started in painting and shipping. Your videos really are a great wealth of information that I think is going to help me along. Hopefully things keep going well for you and give you more oppertunities to emmpart your ideas to others, Keith.
Very interesting thanks. I’m working in Qatar and am looking for a lathe for my workshop. I have a young machinist who is getting excited at the prospect of a lathe to work on.
This particular video is exceptionally important. As a prospective beginner, I would probably get excited and be taken by a slick seller. Your showing us this episode is great, but I think a little more detail about what to look for, what to avoid, and a bit more about inspection, could have been VERY USEFUL. None the less, Another great bit of instruction, well worth the time and effort. '-)
I was too busy at the time to make a more detailed video, but it's a good idea and I will make a video called "What to look for when buying a used Lathe" }:-)))
That wax paper (not sure what it's called) the change gears are wrapped in really brings back memories... Haven't seen any of that in decades. They must have stopped wrapping parts in it in the '80s.
Great tip about checking the bed for wear. How would you go about checking the headstock bearings for wear or run-out in the head stock? Probably not a concern with this particular machine as it looked well cared for, but it would be useful info for beginners like me.
You lucky dog! I have been after a myford for a while but they are as rare as hens teeth in the states. One thing puzzles me. Are the change gears unique to whitwoth threads? I will need to do quite a bit of BSA/English threading on my Wadkin restorations so I need to figure out the tooling. Cutters and gears.
I especially appreciate your advice to stay calm and level headed during a pre-purchase inspection. Do you think it wise to have a notepad or checklist of things to cover?
Congratulations on this incredible find. Thank you for your ethics that you showed in offering the woman a fair price for everything, That is something that is missing with so many people these days.
I have an ML7 which I bought 7-8 years ago. I was fortunate in that it was loaded with accessories and I have not yet had to buy anything for it. It is also on very good condition and had an easy life.
It’s a thing of beauty!
I’ve had mine for many years now ! Excellent machines
Yes they are!
Thanks for the tip on the ebay 'sold' searches. What a great idea!
Glad it was helpful!
For those that haven't moved a bench lathe or larger, lathes are extraordinarily top heavy. If you can, find an owner's manual or someone who can describe the correct way to lift the lathe. If you have just a plain sling around the bed to pick the machine up it will roll over and if you are by yourself it will get away from you. Even a small bench lathe like the one shown is pushing near 1/2 a ton and when it goes over you won't be able to stop it. Also be wary of straps over drive rods and lead screws. You can easily bend them if you put them in a bind when lifting.
Cheers from NC/USA
One thing I would add, is take a look around the workshop area and observe how the previous owner worked/stored their tools/what he made. That also gives an indication of how the lathe was treated. Avoid a lathe where it looks like the previous owner was rough on his tools. Been there, bought the lathe (ML7) and discarded it. Now I know better and bought a lovely, well looked-after Super 7.
Every time I watch your videos I learn something new sometimes the new knowledge isnt that useful but interesting and fascinating all the same, and sometimes its a little gem encrusted piece of gold. Your E-Bay tip is one such piece of gold.
Congratulations, great lathe.
Thats a good video and sound advice matey thank you.
Glad you enjoyed it }:-)))
I have an early 1950's Super 7. Although I have watched a number of videos, I had not realised how many similarities there are between it and the ML7-R. The bed, headstock, tailstock, belt covers, changegear cover, and leadscrew assembly all look like I could fit them straight onto my lathe. The most obvious difference is the cross-slide, and the compound-slide mounting method. My early model does not have a powered crossfeed; that came later, and sadly, I don't have the optional Quick-change gearbox.
I'm impressed that you gave her a fair price. So many would have tried to scam her.
And I have to say that it looks like an excellent machine. That is to say owned by someone who cared for it. I hope it proves to be as good as it looks.
It's not in my nature, I always like to be fair. I am a firm believer in the phrase "do unto others" . . . It is a nice Lathe which just needs adjustment and the Widow of the previous owner was a lovely old lady.
I am currently building a lathe. I need to be able to build parts for cars and heavy equipment. I also want to tinker around and make a steam engine to pump water from the river to irrigate a field. I build lots of steel structures and am a welder fabricator. I am not trained on how to operate a lathe but I watch these videos and am fascinated by your work and many other people also. I am in a remote area of the mountains in Mexico. There is no lathe for 5 hours from me. So it goes without saying I would have the only show in town.
Thanks for the ebay search tip, and by the way great video...thanks Keith.
A lovely lathe Keith. Congratulations on your new tool. It is good to know you treated the seller with respect and paid a fair price. You are a gentleman. Life is better for everyone when people behave decently.
When i bought the Super 7B that i have, we ended up using a engine hoist to do the hard work. At home once a tray had been made , me & my Son lifted it onto the tray. Quite a heavy & lovely machine to own. I never tire of looking at it. Plus of course using it, along with the great old Tom Senior milling machine. Regards. Steve.
Nice looking, and sounding lathe. A great find.
I too had a Unimat lathe (SL model) on which I machined my first Stuart casting model. It was the number 8 and way too large for the Unimat. But with time and ingenuity I made it work. I still run the engine 50 years later with the 504 boiler. A Myford was recently listed Locally (Santa Fe, New Mexico) with a vast amount of accessories. But alas, was beyond my budget. Happy New Lathe!
hi Keith. i cannot wait.. looking forward to you fitting the quick change . ive wanted to do it on mine for years .. hope all is good stay safe an well tone..
The spare Crosslide is the shorter one originally fitted before they did the longer ones.
The older ML7 was fitted with a 65 tooth gear for some reason which is not dividable with anything? The Super 7 and ML7R have a 60 tooth one which divides with all sorts. 3 and 6 and 6 for me over the last week. Yes Hunslet smokebox door rivets and Regulator bushes. David and Lily.
VERY sound advice for buyers. Thanks Keith.
Got a bit behind with your youtube releases. So... 9 videos to watch over the next couple of days. Also. Got myself a job at a local machine shop recently. The have me started in painting and shipping. Your videos really are a great wealth of information that I think is going to help me along. Hopefully things keep going well for you and give you more oppertunities to emmpart your ideas to others, Keith.
Very interesting thanks. I’m working in Qatar and am looking for a lathe for my workshop. I have a young machinist who is getting excited at the prospect of a lathe to work on.
Thank you very much your information is good no matter where you live or what you’re looking to buy great advice
I have always wanted a lathe and that looks like a lovely little lathe which I am sure you will make great use of. Congrats.
I have a myford ml7 love it it's circa 1956 according to the serial number
Very nice lathe Keith, can’t wait to see what parts you make with it, looking forward to seeing it in your videos. 😊
This particular video is exceptionally important. As a prospective beginner, I would probably get excited and be taken by a slick seller.
Your showing us this episode is great, but I think a little more detail about what to look for, what to avoid, and a bit more about inspection, could have been VERY USEFUL.
None the less, Another great bit of instruction, well worth the time and effort. '-)
I was too busy at the time to make a more detailed video, but it's a good idea and I will make a video called "What to look for when buying a used Lathe" }:-)))
Nice find Keith, enjoy.
Play safe from Elliot Lake, Ontario, Canada.
Congratulations.
That wax paper (not sure what it's called) the change gears are wrapped in really brings back memories... Haven't seen any of that in decades. They must have stopped wrapping parts in it in the '80s.
Was it ‘vapour phase inhibitor’ paper or was that something else?
Gauge plate (01 tool steel) still comes wrapped in it.
Great tip about checking the bed for wear. How would you go about checking the headstock bearings for wear or run-out in the head stock? Probably not a concern with this particular machine as it looked well cared for, but it would be useful info for beginners like me.
Nice work and fair.
This looks to be a good series
nice job( as the old sayings go: let the buyer beware,at time can get other peoples problems(not in this case))
You lucky dog! I have been after a myford for a while but they are as rare as hens teeth in the states. One thing puzzles me. Are the change gears unique to whitwoth threads? I will need to do quite a bit of BSA/English threading on my Wadkin restorations so I need to figure out the tooling. Cutters and gears.
I hardly ever use my Lathes for screw cutting, I use taps & dies mostly.
Looks like you made a good buy!
Keith, good on you for not taking advantage of an elderly person good karma goes around and comes around I believe
Thanks for sharing!
Nice, nice , very nice!
Very nice machine
Yes, it works well too }:-)))
Good video. Thanks.
I especially appreciate your advice to stay calm and level headed during a pre-purchase inspection. Do you think it wise to have a notepad or checklist of things to cover?
Yes, a checklist could be useful.
Good advice!!
Glad it was helpful!
From where I can purchase this..?
Please share your details
www.myford.co.uk
hi good vid I'm sorry that i mist you on your resent visit up north hope to meet you sum time regards bob
كيف أحصل على واحدة ؟وكم السعر؟
try www.myford.co.uk
MyFORD are the rolls-royce lath's
It will be a much better lathe than your old well loved Boxford.
My old renovated well loved Boxford, now in Colchester Ash Grey }:-)))
⭐😃👍