Very nice-looking lathe! I own a QC-42 that I'm in the middle of refurbishing/rebuilding/restoring. It was neglected for years, so it's not coming apart easily. Thank God for eBay sellers that have many original used parts! Mine apparently took a good whack to the cross slide/apron, because every control handle was broken off of it! Thanks for this video; it echoes my thoughts on why I bought Atlas, too, four years after you did. Edit: Mine came with the original cast iron base legs. It's a very heavy unit, slightly top heavy even, and was probably damaged while moving it. Not only was it neglected, it's here in Florida and spent several years in an open barn, so pretty rusty, too, but cleaning up nicely.
I picked up mine from a nice gentleman in Delaware for $400. It was in pieces. I got the V48 10" model with babbitt bearings. He said it was missing a few pieces - I suspect it is missing a few more so I did buy some on eBay already. I know nothing about any of this stuff except from studying youtube videos. Fortunately, my uncle is a self taught machinist and has created some incredible things with his lathe and mills but the virus is putting the stop to him visiting me and consulting me. He is currently working for a company that restores cars from the early 1900s (like early early models). Thank you for the video.
Thanks for checking it out. I too knew nothing about Laths but have been watching a lot of videos (.e.g., mrpete222) as well. So, have fun and thanks again
My Dad had one of these. Sadly, he passed away a year ago. It is sitting on a cabinet with several drawers and old accessories and tools. It is a little dirty, but it works. It would be great to find a home for this fine old piece of machinery.
Good video. When I bought my house the previous owner left a complete Atlas 10" TH54 with steady rest, mill attachment, center support and a couple of chucks. Not thinking I'd ever use it I sold off all the accessories except for the chucks. I tore it apart and lubricated and painted it and it sat for a few years because it takes up too much space and I would only use it for small parts. I recently took it out and (wait for it) I cut the bed down to a 36". Now it's a TH36, but like the smaller foot print and once I find a QCTP I'm going to start on some small projects. It seems like a well built quality lathe.
I just got the deal of a life time,,,drove 100 miles to pick up a 12 inch and a 6 inch atlas but the big surprises was in the rusted bucket with them,, inside was a milling attachment, steady rest and follower rest and faceplate and 3 dogs and nice 4 jaw Chuck to go with 3 jaw on lathe,,all for the 12 inch and it also came with quick change gear box,,, l payed 500 dollars for both and all attachments, ran micrometer and caliper down all 54 inches of the ways and it was perfect and needle on dail indicator hardly moved on spindle,,, was the exact same model number as my 12 inch atlas I already have. But the gearbox is in better condition then mine..
I'd been lusting after a lathe for a long time. Picked up a model 618 Atlas three years ago for $300 with some tooling and now have a ton of accessories. I've been experimenting with ER-32 and ER-16 collets lately. I have two motorcycles and that's the primary use for the lathe. You mentioned Timken tapered roller bearings. I used to work for the Timken company as a Millwright.
Awesome I have had one since I was a kid about 12 years old. I wouldnt be able to live without it. Make sure you get a service manual with a parts list and some spare parts for your carrage too.
I have the ten inch 54 lathe. Mine is well used but still goin. I have the quick change gear box too. I got it for 300 bucks in the basement of a hoarder house. I did have to take almost everything apart clean and lube it. You can turn more than mild steel. I had to make a special wide shoulder bolt out of a grade 8 bolt from the hardware store. Chewed right through it no problem.
Looks great. Enjoy your new lathe. I had a friend give me a DOA Craftsman 618 when I bought a Clausing 8520 mill from him for $800. The 618 needed some TLC, before use. I repaired the 618, and have used the mill and lathe the last three years. They both have been wonderful machines. I have since bought an Atlas QC54 lathe for $575 at an auction. It's nice to have the power feeds and gearbox on the QC54. I will now return the working 618 to my friend so he can enjoy it.
I have to brag. My H36 was $120 about 3 years ago. Only missing the chip guard and the toolpost rocker. Good shape, no major damage. Needs paint though, it looks a mess. Babbitt headstock; that's probably why it was so cheap, but I pour aluminum so if I have to pour babbitt then I'll take a shot at it. Evidently it was a WWII factory machine I think.
I hope you enjoy what is obviously a very nice lathe. The WW2 assumed connection is probably not true. From about a year before Pearl Harbor, Atlas machine tool purchases were rationed by the US government as were most other machine tools. Essentially, you needed to prove to the US Government that you needed a lathe that was going to help us or our allies win the war. One of my Atlas lathes is actually of WW2 vintage. How do I know? Easy?, when taking the lathe apart for a rebuild I wanted to check the head stock bearing for damage of any sort. When I finally got to examine the bearings I found the dates 10-14-1941 10-21-1941 written on the bearings with an acid etching pen at the Timkin Roller Bearing Company. This lathe was used in a US defense plant, the only organization that was permitted, by law, to purchase such a lathe. The bearings were in pristine condition. The rest of the lathe needed a lot of attention which I was able to do in my other machine shop. It is now in serviceable condition.
wow I've never seen an old lathe in this condition for that money! I picked up my 12" Craftsman for $600 that had been rebuilt and painted, but no tooling, chuc, etc. Dumped another $600 into basic tools. Love these old lathes.
I have 6 atlas lathes now I've bought and restored, 2 - 12inch with quick change gear boxes and 3- 6 inch 618s and a 109 ,,, I've seen prices triple since I've got them..
I just bought an Atlas 10" F series TH54 lathe and LOVE IT! However, its dirty and covered in dust for sitting many years. I got it along with 3 boxes full of attachments, face plates, 2 chucks, carbide bits, holders, ect.....ALL FOR $250!! The guy I got it from got it from his dad, who use to be the lead sculpter for GM corvette. Engineering and design was his back ground and passion from what this man was telling me, so I figured he would only have high quality tools in his shop. This gentleman had no use for the lathe since he had a much nicer lathe and has access to a lot of tools, considering he is the Team manager for Andretti Racing for the Formula Lite series. Anyway, I feel like I got an AWESOME STEAL with what I got and the price! I am planning on doing a complete tear down and a full restoration. I have the table that came with the lathe , including all the original paper work and manuals. Its got the two Maple wood shelves and cast Iron legs that are also in very good shape, other than covered in old oil and dust and a little bit of surface rust from non use. The lathe bed also had the dark rust coating on the machined surface, but scraped right off with a paint scraper and shined up really nice. My question to you is, Where did you get the paint for your restoration? And did you brush or spray? I really do not want to remove the tags since the original rivets are still good and plates are tight, straight and clean. The painted surface is just chipped and oil stained and shows years of use. I want to bring it back to showroom. Thanks for the vid! Maybe I will put mine up after!
It's in great condition,,,I bought a 12 x 36 atlas,,,also in great shape, and has the quick change gear box and aloris tool holder,,,payed 650 and more then happy,, the quick change gear box costs as much as the lathe itself.. And I added a treadmill motor on mine,,,now that's the way to go
I need to stop now,,,l have 6 atlas lathes all in very good condition, 2 12x36s with quick change gears,,3 618s and a 109 with many attachments and tooling,,,,buying them up cheap here in Delaware as the prices are climbing as people realize vintage lathes are the best way to go.
You make some very nice videos, i have a 12” atlas lathe, i much better have the old iron made in the USA back when we made things. Found you looking a belt grinder videos i want to try to build another one, your is a solid design. Thanks man take care.
Thank you - yes all I needed to do was clean it up with a fresh coat of paint and of course the pin strips. These lathes are pretty reasonable and hope this helped.
@@larsrehner7506 it's great. Probably wont stand up next to a new grizzly, but those are also over 1k more. If it comes with a bunch of extras (mine did) I'd say go for it.
Hey very nice post I like your reasons I love your lathe for 500.00 what a steal!!!! I signed up to follow you just because you have a lathe sign by General Patton that’s cool!!! Lmao
Excellent, I love old lathes, and I like the flat ways too. My favorite. Does the 10 and the 12 inch look exactly the same, just with a taller headstock on the 12 ?
I found an Atlas Model #101-58618 about an hour from me. Thinking about driving down to check it out. Does anyone know anything about this model number? Any PDF manuals? Thanks
nice machine, the chuck looks like it wobbles too much? when you refer to lathe size 10" or 12" are you talking about chuck diameter or distance from center to center?
@ 2:11 you can see the inside of the change gear cover, you can only see the F-28 molded into the cover, on mine it is 10F-28 which I was told makes it a 10X28 lathe not a TH42 ???? or am I nit picking ?? that is a enormous chuck you have mine only has a 3 or 4 inch 3 jaw :(
Is there significant similarity between Atlas lathes and those built by Atlas for Sears? For instance, is the Atlas manual shown here applicable to Craftsman lathes built by Atlas?
what is the back set of gears for? when i engage mine it just locks up the chuck.. but i am new to machining i got this lathe for 200$ its in beautiful condition looks like only used a handful of times.
Anyone know where I can download a pdf manual for the TH42? Just picked it up last night and all I can find are options to pay $45 for a copy or get a dvd. Thanks!
Marketplace on Facebook is where I found my Lathe. I monitored Marketplace for several months before I found one. Good luck - Hopefully you guys will land one
@@RickRabjohn I didn't even get a chance to buy that lathe. It was immediately sold. I assumed getting machines around a big hub like chicago would be easy, seems they're scarce and expensive!
Got Atlas 10 for £180 off Ebay in UK come with some tooling 3 jaw 4 jaw chuck and good selection of gears only thing up with it is crack on banjo bracket . It came with new half nuts fitted and revers gearbox in good order even got the original cast iron legs . mounted it on legs with oak board
@@cduemig1 Machines are getting scarce and expensive. I studied machining over the pandemic and it's impossible to find cheap machinery now. I've spent the last 7 months looking for a Mill and every time one shows up at a reasonable price there are tons of people all over it. I finally had to settle on a Rockwell 21-100 that is completely disassembled and missing parts. It's the only way to get a Mill for less than $2,000. I saw a nice Atlas 12 lathe on Craigslist that went for $2500! It's insane and I'd love to see the underlying factors as to why this is happening.
Blessl ya brother but I just have to put this in. When somebody says "AUTOMATIC FEED" about a manual machine it's like fingernails on the blackboard to me. Guess it goes back to my shop teacher back in 1963 who drummed that into our young heads that there is nothing automatic about the feeds on common lathes and mills, The term is POWER FEED and there is nothing automatic about it. Just ask anybody who got fired over crashing a carnage into a chuck or jamming the cross slide and broken a couple of shear pins. I'm no cork sniffer but to call power feed automatic is just plane wrong. Even a lathe with a carriage stop trip out aint no Acme Gridley or Haas, there bunky.. Sorry for the rant, gang but calling something that can destroy a machine by completely misleading name is where I draw the line. .
