Whoa!! Great work, been looking at rebuilding mine (appears to be exact one). It’s been through 3 generations of my family business! Great informative video!
I am very happy to be restoring a South Bend model C of 1935 build of 4 foot bed. Saved from an old wheat terminal area I cleaned and managed a best refit to working components. Now semi retired, I have more time to complete various shop refit and what I manage to final lathe placement and tool positions. I raised a block stand as fully leveled and continue to slowly forge ahead to full restore. What I take note of is what level of quality I must meet as shown to your skill and craftsmanship. Your completed refit is just superb. What I truly enjoy is where as chinese mini lathe with tin and plastic, I will take minor wear in stride as the castings and bearings are so durable, the design so well composed it quite still delivers work product. Enjoyed every bit of your post. M.
@@MyLilMule I was at GE employ after 4 years military. So was within a big shop, just not so much as lathe. Now, I miss my machine shop friend who I might have asked about best metal fab, and think up projects. With, the south bend and where small, difficult flaws harm precision. But where the unit is so rugged and fun to use. I also, repaired the micrometer unit I am using, and designed my own tool post. I confess to using soft plastics and non ferrus as projects, as to not see wrecks as bed way and holders. And where I continue to add best items to general stock, project aims and tools, fitment and capacity. I am keen to Max Grant, an AU toolmaker who I recommend to any machine repair as process and where he is very adept to scraping and teaching to set up, repair as lathe and mill. A detail I rather studied was your bronze hammer and small punch end use, and the paint. The color and finish were so excellent to your work, you see. As well as the controls. I hope to continue to have fun as refit to South Bend units and tools. I simply like the sort of peaceful and quiet time as might approach a journeyman fitter. My personal regards. M.
Bravo!!! Served my apprenticeship under my father in our own shop back in the 80’s.. we had a restored Model A 9” and I loved it. Your After pic made me want to chuck it up and turn something right away. Very nice and outstanding work. You should be proud ..
Working on my little 9” . It was in a garage that was dilapidated and so there is a lot of rust. All but two of the tail stock MT’s are so pitted that they are just gonna go to steel heaven. I have been glued to this video and will be watching it over and over again.
Glad you find it useful. All of this is taken from individual videos I did of each of the components, so there is more detail in them if you need it. Thanks for watching!
Hi there, iv just watched you dissasemble, and rebuild your South Bend Lathe after what must have been many hrs of painstaking work, very labour intensive but a very rewarding result. You have reserected basically what was an old neglected, to a fully rebuilt lathe. I hope you get many years of pleasure using it, Stan in Scotland
Thanks you for watching! I would like to grind the bed ways some day. I've grown fond of the lathe, and although I won't say I would never sell it, it is increasingly unlikely.
@@MyLilMule I’m working on an Artisian 12 X 24 . Very old, 1923 I think. # 505 made. 1927 was last year, I think. I bought it to do one job, when that’s done the next fella can own it.
What a beautiful Video....and an even more Beautiful restoration on your 13".....These past two days I have been going over my recent 13" purchase and cleaning and checking wear.....I will never attempt the depth of restoration that you have done......I would never get it back together.....so best leave it alone......Thank You so much for sharing your journey with us.....Bravo and Cheersfrom Orlando Florida, Paul
If I can do it, anyone can. It is WORTH IT, for nothing else, than to make sure those oil wicks are in good shape. Lack of oil can be deadly to these machines.
I've been going back and forth on if I am going to just get the mill running now and use it for a while, or jump into a full restoration this fall. We'll see. :)
You did a great job on your restoration, and wonderfully filmed. I just started my journey on a S/B 16” tool room lathe. I’m sure to be using your footage as a reference.
Excellent job man, I'm restoring a cincinnati tray top 18×54 right now, I do two to three machines a year, the best way to get to know your equipment, excellent work..
Isn't that the truth! I don't know why a lot of folks are afraid to dig into them, but I know I was, too. LOL. If I found another Southbend at a great price like this one, I'd do it again. I keep my eye open all the time for one, or even something like the one you are working on. I'd like to find a similar era Monarch gear head lathe, rebuild it and then I'd sell off the Southbend. I'm looking forward to getting started on my Bridgeport. I'd like to find a K&T Model 1 or 2 sometime in the next few years that I can add to my shop.
@@MyLilMule I've got a #2 universal k&t mill to restore it runs great, war finish 1944, got a model A monarch lathe 1880s, got a 1896 Camelback drill press made in buffalo n.y, need to sale a few,lol.. Got a early 1900s pratt&whitney lathe it's restored, got two sebastian lathes also 16×54--18×54..I use them daily..
@@kentuckytrapper780 Awesome problem to have. :) The K&T #1 or #2 is top of my list for machines I'd want (just one of them). If the timing was better, there was one for sale not too awful far from me for less than $1k.
@Wujek Wladek I can't say for sure, I didn't keep track. But it was about 3 months of occasional evenings and weekends. I didn't work in it every day, or even every week.
@Wujek Wladek You can make small parts on a big lathe, but you can't make big parts on a small lathe. My lathe has some wear in the ways that I have to account for when making some things, but for smaller parts, it doesn't come into play. One day, when I make a collet chuck, it'll be more precise than I will ever really need.
@@MyLilMule Well you couldn't possibly only have one lathe, surely you need a metric and an imperial one? Plus a third one in bits you plan to convert to CNC eventually when you get around it.
Well done. Looks like you and I are following a similar path. I am restoring a 1935 15" swing SB right now and making videos of my progress. Best wishes!
I'd encourage you to do that. I enjoyed this so much, I've done something similar to a Bridgeport, a K&T horizontal mill, and have a small shaper and ANOTHER 13" South Bend I plan on rehabbing. It's a lot of fun.
This looks identical to my SB heavy 10 L. I love the color you chose. Can you tell me what primer and paint was applied? How did you keep track of all those parts? Great job. Paul
Thank you! These South Bends are nice machined. No primer. Just Rustoleum enamel paint from a can, Smoke Grey. Primer really isn't necessary on rough castings. It's been holding up great for a few years now. As far as the parts, I put everything into cheap plastic containers I bought from the local Dollar Store and then wrote on the lid in Sharpie. I will say, having it on video was a great help, because I was always able to refer to the disassembly video to remember how it went together. 😂
Nice job , someday I hope to restore my Logan 11" , only owned and used her for forty yrs. Like a Timex she just keeps on chippin.. Only three belts in all that time.
If you need a new variable speed pulley or sheaves, Speed Selector makes pulleys that replace the Reeves, Hi-Lo, TB Woods and Lovejoy pulleys that went out of business or got bought. Most are in stock or Speed Selector will custom make if needed. They have an actual engineering department; very helpful.
I have no need. These pulleys are available everywhere since hundreds of thousands of South Bend lathes were manufactured. I don't know why anyone would need an aftermarket pulley. There are no Reeves drives on these lathes.
Wonderful work! So I was basically given this exact model except for a few different options. It has the turret tail stock, collet closer head stock, and a weird double tool post. It's in slightly worse shape that what you started with judging by looks alone.. Would you recommend going through the rebuild process? With the hard work you put in yours turned out beautiful! Be very proud! I guess my big concern is the platform able to produce extremely accurate parts? I've never operated a south bend and have only heard charter online.
My lathe is a bit worn, but the spindle is in decent shape. As such, I can work around the wear in the bed ways and make accurate parts. Sounds like your machine was configured for more production work. The turret makes changing tools fast and the double tool post is usually set for the front to be a typical turning tool and the back side to be a cut off tool. When making the same part dozens or hundreds of times a day, having those features are a must. They are still useful in an every day setting, of course. I do think it is worth doing some level of a rebuild if you want the lathe to be that much more usable. The oil felts alone are worth taking it apart. If the lathe sat for any length of time, they may be too dried up to be usable. Plus, you never know what a previous owner did to it. Digging into it will take some work, but I would do it again in a heartbeat. I learned a LOT about this lathe and have no worries should something go bad - I already know I can take it apart and I've built up enough confidence that I can probably fix whatever it needs. My advice: DO IT. You'll have a blast.
@@MyLilMule That's exactly what I was wanting to hear. The past week I've done lots of looking around and parts seem available and I've seen rebuild kits for the felts. Guess I'll be in a cave for the winter. Thanks!
Did you have a parts diagram before you started? How were you able to keep tracks of all your parts after disassembly? I want to restore one but hesitating due to so many gears and know that I won't be able to put it everything back. I am able to restore minor things like antique scroll saws but this look too complex. This restoration look amazing btw.
It's not as complex as it appears. I used two primary resources, aside from the lathe itself. One was a restoration book published by Illion (available on eBay, search for "south bend lathe 13 rebuild package") - very useful, lots of photographs and comes with felts and oils. The other was the Vintage Machinery website. There are hundreds of scans of publications for South Bend lathes including complete parts lists and diagrams.
Excellent series.... My 16" is now off trailer and on the floor. Still checking major components but can already see that I will be needing a few small parts like oil cups, screws, etc. Did you find any one source for most parts? So far, my major components appear to be useable. Thanks for any direction in sourcing such items. Butch
Thank you! For New Old Stock items, I was able to get some from a man named Ted Pflugner. Ted used to work for South Bend before they were sold to Grizzly and has quite the inventory. You can find him on the SBL facebook group, Practical Machinist and by email (latheman2@aol.com). If Ted doesn't have it, eBay has been a good source, as well as the aforementioned groups/forums.
I bought the threading chart from someone that used to work for SBL. The others were on the lathe. I cleaned and painted a couple of them, but the others I just cleaned off the paint that was painted over them and left them brass. It would have been too much work to repaint them.
@@MyLilMule I hear ya,, I've rebuild many quick change gear boxes the heat would worry me as far as expansion that's really old cast iron. But you go it all that matters
Whoa!! Great work, been looking at rebuilding mine (appears to be exact one). It’s been through 3 generations of my family business! Great informative video!
Glad it was useful!
I am very happy to be restoring a South Bend model C of 1935 build of 4 foot bed. Saved from an old wheat terminal area I cleaned and managed a best refit to working components. Now semi retired, I have more time to complete various shop refit and what I manage to final lathe placement and tool positions. I raised a block stand as fully leveled and continue to slowly forge ahead to full restore.
What I take note of is what level of quality I must meet as shown to your skill and craftsmanship. Your completed refit is just
superb. What I truly enjoy is where as chinese mini lathe with tin and plastic, I will take minor wear in stride as the castings and bearings are so durable, the design so well composed it quite still delivers work product. Enjoyed every bit of your post. M.
I am glad you enjoyed it.
@@MyLilMule I was at GE employ after 4 years military. So was within a big shop, just not so much as lathe.
Now, I miss my machine shop friend who I might have asked about best metal fab, and think up projects.
With, the south bend and where small, difficult flaws harm precision. But where the unit is so rugged and
fun to use. I also, repaired the micrometer unit I am using, and designed my own tool post. I confess to using
soft plastics and non ferrus as projects, as to not see wrecks as bed way and holders.
And where I continue to add best items to general stock, project aims and tools, fitment and capacity.
I am keen to Max Grant, an AU toolmaker who I recommend to any machine repair as process and
where he is very adept to scraping and teaching to set up, repair as lathe and mill.
A detail I rather studied was your bronze hammer and small punch end use, and the paint.
The color and finish were so excellent to your work, you see. As well as the controls.
I hope to continue to have fun as refit to South Bend units and tools. I simply like the sort of
peaceful and quiet time as might approach a journeyman fitter. My personal regards. M.
Bravo!!! Served my apprenticeship under my father in our own shop back in the 80’s.. we had a restored Model A 9” and I loved it. Your After pic made me want to chuck it up and turn something right away. Very nice and outstanding work. You should be proud ..
Thank you. I had a lot of fun, so much so, I have another one I hope to get started in the next 6 months!
Working on my little 9” . It was in a garage that was dilapidated and so there is a lot of rust. All but two of the tail stock MT’s are so pitted that they are just gonna go to steel heaven.
I have been glued to this video and will be watching it over and over again.
Glad you find it useful. All of this is taken from individual videos I did of each of the components, so there is more detail in them if you need it. Thanks for watching!
That's got to be the best method of removing the motor/countershaft assembly I've seen!
I can't take the credit for it. Saw it done on another's YT channel.
Abso-dawg-gone-lutley a beautiful work of art that you have there young man!!!
Thank you kindly!
The background music was as soothing/relaxing as watching you work. Good job with the restoration.
Thank you very much! Glad you enjoyed it.
Looks really good. You would never expect it to come out so nice.
Thanks. I really enjoyed doing this rebuild. I hope to find another machine in similar shape so I can do it again.
Hi there, iv just watched you dissasemble, and rebuild your South Bend Lathe after what must have been many hrs of painstaking work, very labour intensive but a very rewarding result. You have reserected basically what was an old neglected, to a fully rebuilt lathe. I hope you get many years of pleasure using it, Stan in Scotland
Thanks you for watching! I would like to grind the bed ways some day. I've grown fond of the lathe, and although I won't say I would never sell it, it is increasingly unlikely.
Great job ! Solid, accurate, done rite!
Thanks for watching!
@@MyLilMule I’m working on an Artisian 12 X 24 . Very old, 1923 I think. # 505 made. 1927 was last year, I think. I bought it to do one job, when that’s done the next fella can own it.
What a beautiful Video....and an even more Beautiful restoration on your 13".....These past two days I have been going over my recent 13" purchase and cleaning and checking wear.....I will never attempt the depth of restoration that you have done......I would never get it back together.....so best leave it alone......Thank You so much for sharing your journey with us.....Bravo and Cheersfrom Orlando Florida, Paul
If I can do it, anyone can. It is WORTH IT, for nothing else, than to make sure those oil wicks are in good shape. Lack of oil can be deadly to these machines.
Really enjoyed this whole series MLM...on to the Bridgeport 💪
I've been going back and forth on if I am going to just get the mill running now and use it for a while, or jump into a full restoration this fall. We'll see. :)
You did a great job on your restoration, and wonderfully filmed. I just started my journey on a S/B 16” tool room lathe. I’m sure to be using your footage as a reference.
Thank you very much! I almost bought a 16" a few months back, but the bids on it went way higher than I expected.
How’s the 16” going? I’m doing one now!
@@Oldtimeytools I'm just starting to assemble. Some items painted, but not all. Simple high quality machine! Good luck on yours 👍
Very nice work
Thank you!
She didn’t give up her beauty without a fight. Well done. Thank you for sharing. Liked and Subscribed.
Thanks for the sub! I've been keeping my eye out for another similar bargain. I had so much fun restoring this one, I want to do it again.
Excellent job man, I'm restoring a cincinnati tray top 18×54 right now, I do two to three machines a year, the best way to get to know your equipment, excellent work..
Isn't that the truth! I don't know why a lot of folks are afraid to dig into them, but I know I was, too. LOL. If I found another Southbend at a great price like this one, I'd do it again. I keep my eye open all the time for one, or even something like the one you are working on. I'd like to find a similar era Monarch gear head lathe, rebuild it and then I'd sell off the Southbend.
I'm looking forward to getting started on my Bridgeport. I'd like to find a K&T Model 1 or 2 sometime in the next few years that I can add to my shop.
@@MyLilMule I've got a #2 universal k&t mill to restore it runs great, war finish 1944, got a model A monarch lathe 1880s, got a 1896 Camelback drill press made in buffalo n.y, need to sale a few,lol..
Got a early 1900s pratt&whitney lathe it's restored, got two sebastian lathes also 16×54--18×54..I use them daily..
@@kentuckytrapper780 Awesome problem to have. :) The K&T #1 or #2 is top of my list for machines I'd want (just one of them). If the timing was better, there was one for sale not too awful far from me for less than $1k.
@Wujek Wladek I can't say for sure, I didn't keep track. But it was about 3 months of occasional evenings and weekends. I didn't work in it every day, or even every week.
@Wujek Wladek You can make small parts on a big lathe, but you can't make big parts on a small lathe. My lathe has some wear in the ways that I have to account for when making some things, but for smaller parts, it doesn't come into play. One day, when I make a collet chuck, it'll be more precise than I will ever really need.
Great work!
Thanks!
Beautiful work...
That is one fine lookin machine!
Thank you for the kind words.
Great job man. Your lathe looks like a new machine. I hope that it gives you loads of enjoyment.
It is! At least until the next one comes along. I doubt seriously this will be my only or last lathe.
@@MyLilMule Well you couldn't possibly only have one lathe, surely you need a metric and an imperial one? Plus a third one in bits you plan to convert to CNC eventually when you get around it.
@@legallyfree2955 The possibilities are endless.
That’s a ton of work. Looks great
It was, but it was fun. I didn't mind doing it.
Nice job amazing lathe congratulations sir.
Best regards from Greece John Grizopoulos retired machinist
Thank you very much!
Well done. Looks like you and I are following a similar path. I am restoring a 1935 15" swing SB right now and making videos of my progress. Best wishes!
Thanks. I'll be checking out your channel!
Ya know, I think that was the dirtiest lathe I have ever seen. Beautiful job!
I've seen worse. LOL. Thanks for watching.
Beautiful Job, make me wanna restore my 1947 Southbend 14 1/2
I'd encourage you to do that. I enjoyed this so much, I've done something similar to a Bridgeport, a K&T horizontal mill, and have a small shaper and ANOTHER 13" South Bend I plan on rehabbing. It's a lot of fun.
Wonder full job
Impressive!
Thank you!
I t's beautiful. I hope my 10L looks at least half as good when I'm done with it.
Bill
This looks identical to my SB heavy 10 L. I love the color you chose. Can you tell me what primer and paint was applied?
How did you keep track of all those parts?
Great job.
Paul
Thank you! These South Bends are nice machined. No primer. Just Rustoleum enamel paint from a can, Smoke Grey. Primer really isn't necessary on rough castings. It's been holding up great for a few years now. As far as the parts, I put everything into cheap plastic containers I bought from the local Dollar Store and then wrote on the lid in Sharpie. I will say, having it on video was a great help, because I was always able to refer to the disassembly video to remember how it went together. 😂
Great transformation. 👍
great job
Thanks!
What paint did you use? Looks great!
Rustoleum Smoke Grey enamel pain. Thanks for the kind words!
And the sound scape music is relaxing.
Happy you like it, too. Thanks for watching!
Nice job , someday I hope to restore my Logan 11" , only owned and used her for forty yrs. Like a Timex she just keeps on chippin.. Only three belts in all that time.
I lost out on a Logan just before I found this South Bend!
Nice restoration, good colour choice, should serve byou well for another fifty year's ( how many man hours)?.
Not sure
Top work,nice maschine
If you need a new variable speed pulley or sheaves, Speed Selector makes pulleys that replace the Reeves, Hi-Lo, TB Woods and Lovejoy pulleys that went out of business or got bought. Most are in stock or Speed Selector will custom make if needed. They have an actual engineering department; very helpful.
I have no need. These pulleys are available everywhere since hundreds of thousands of South Bend lathes were manufactured. I don't know why anyone would need an aftermarket pulley. There are no Reeves drives on these lathes.
Congratulations.
Wonderful work!
So I was basically given this exact model except for a few different options. It has the turret tail stock, collet closer head stock, and a weird double tool post. It's in slightly worse shape that what you started with judging by looks alone.. Would you recommend going through the rebuild process? With the hard work you put in yours turned out beautiful! Be very proud! I guess my big concern is the platform able to produce extremely accurate parts? I've never operated a south bend and have only heard charter online.
My lathe is a bit worn, but the spindle is in decent shape. As such, I can work around the wear in the bed ways and make accurate parts. Sounds like your machine was configured for more production work. The turret makes changing tools fast and the double tool post is usually set for the front to be a typical turning tool and the back side to be a cut off tool. When making the same part dozens or hundreds of times a day, having those features are a must. They are still useful in an every day setting, of course.
I do think it is worth doing some level of a rebuild if you want the lathe to be that much more usable. The oil felts alone are worth taking it apart. If the lathe sat for any length of time, they may be too dried up to be usable. Plus, you never know what a previous owner did to it. Digging into it will take some work, but I would do it again in a heartbeat. I learned a LOT about this lathe and have no worries should something go bad - I already know I can take it apart and I've built up enough confidence that I can probably fix whatever it needs.
My advice: DO IT. You'll have a blast.
@@MyLilMule That's exactly what I was wanting to hear. The past week I've done lots of looking around and parts seem available and I've seen rebuild kits for the felts.
Guess I'll be in a cave for the winter. Thanks!
Did you have a parts diagram before you started? How were you able to keep tracks of all your parts after disassembly? I want to restore one but hesitating due to so many gears and know that I won't be able to put it everything back. I am able to restore minor things like antique scroll saws but this look too complex. This restoration look amazing btw.
It's not as complex as it appears. I used two primary resources, aside from the lathe itself. One was a restoration book published by Illion (available on eBay, search for "south bend lathe 13 rebuild package") - very useful, lots of photographs and comes with felts and oils. The other was the Vintage Machinery website. There are hundreds of scans of publications for South Bend lathes including complete parts lists and diagrams.
👍🔥 Отличная работа.Удачи.
Спасибо
Very cool, how much was the lathe in that condition?
I paid $700 for it.
Excellent series.... My 16" is now off trailer and on the floor. Still checking major components but can already see that I will be needing a few small parts like oil cups, screws, etc. Did you find any one source for most parts? So far, my major components appear to be useable. Thanks for any direction in sourcing such items. Butch
Thank you! For New Old Stock items, I was able to get some from a man named Ted Pflugner. Ted used to work for South Bend before they were sold to Grizzly and has quite the inventory. You can find him on the SBL facebook group, Practical Machinist and by email (latheman2@aol.com). If Ted doesn't have it, eBay has been a good source, as well as the aforementioned groups/forums.
How long are those wooden skids?
I'm moving a 16" tomorrow. Lol
I believe they were 6' 4x4s.
beautifull
Thank you!
Where did you buy/find those South Bend copper/brass name plates/decals?
I bought the threading chart from someone that used to work for SBL. The others were on the lathe. I cleaned and painted a couple of them, but the others I just cleaned off the paint that was painted over them and left them brass. It would have been too much work to repaint them.
What is the description and purpose of the string-like material used at 16:10?
Oil wick. It picks up oil from the oil cups or the bottom of the apron and lubricates the other moving shafts.
@@MyLilMule Interesting, that’s new to me. Thanks for the reply and info! Beautiful work.
@@mybreathyourlung You're welcome. And thank YOU for watching!
Sehr schöne arbeit. Habe eine Mondiale M zum restaurieren. könntest DU mir bitte helfen?
Ich habe auf Ihre E-Mail geantwortet. Ich hoffe, Sie finden die Informationen für Ihr Projekt nützlich. Danke fürs Zuschauen!
Wow.........
Thanks for watching.
Restored 7 lathes and a Sheldon horizontal mill some 1940s and never used heat and wouldn't recommend it,, maybe propane are map but not oxcy..
There's more than one way to skin a cat.
@@MyLilMule I hear ya,, I've rebuild many quick change gear boxes the heat would worry me as far as expansion that's really old cast iron. But you go it all that matters
Absolutely entertaining, relaxxxxxxing, and informative! Enjoyed watching! Thanks!
Very nice work.
Thank you!