suggest lathes .co.uk for lathe spec and motor spec.

What Noel said.

Re the ‘too big’ question, I say ‘with great power comes great responsibility!’

• Having extra power tempts the operator to use it, and the lathe may not be rigid enough to cope.  Cutting creates equal and opposite forces on the lathe that twist the tool-post and cross-slide, increase wear and tear on the bearings and gears, and stretch the belts, etc. etc.  The cost of forcing the lathe outside it’s design envelope is reduced finish and accuracy, and – if the operator is continually heavily handed – he will eventually force repairs.
• Extra bad things happen when, not if, there’s a crash.  A souped up motor will inflict a lot more damage than a standard one.  Rule of thumb, unless the power supply or some mechanical device limits it, the power output of an overloaded electric motor could peak at, say, 5 times it’s continuous rating.   So fitting a 1HP lathe with a 3HP motor would have 15 horses tearing at it, not a mere 5.   Generally speaking, lathes of this size are fitted by the manufacturers with motors in the 0.75 to 1.5HP range, power not chosen for accuracy and long-life.

The description of the Atlas3000 on lathes.co.uk led me  to think initially it was a beefy machine.  Not so sure after reading this:   ‘In the right-hand section of the box was a safety over-load clutch that protected the drive against damage – one of the problems with earlier lathes being the tendency for the cast-in key on the ZAMAK gear that engaged with the leadscrew to shear off.’

ZAMAK eh!  Not the end of the world, but strength-wise, this Atlas may be a sheep in wolves clothing!  Putting a big motor on this particular lathe may not pay.

I don’t think it insane for an owner to go, say, 33% over the designers rating, but doubling the power or more is frankly unwise.   Unless done deliberately to improve productivity, after the owner promises not to cry if the machine eventually breaks.

Oh, and believing oneself to be a careful machinist who will never crash tempts gremlins beyond endurance; they will find a way of causing havoc! You can guess how I know…

🙁

Dave