Me and my toys, Sorry machines!

[Daniel MackayParticipant @danielmackay21455]

Hello from Scotland, Sorry jumped in last night & forgot to introduce myself, I am definately a “recycled teenager !” I was 85 years old last Monday, I was a brass moulder to trade many years ago, but as the shipbuilding/engineering trade on Clydeside started to shrink, I had to reinvent myself, by going into teaching, & also worked in an industrial museum latterly as a curator/ conservation engineer,  I have been around machinery  , lathes etc since I was fifteen,, When I left school for the first two years of my life I worked in a coalmine, both surface workings, & underground, But when I was 17 years of age, A pretty decent old fellow who owned a small jobbing foundry started me as an apprentice, so on that score the rest is history.

I have my own home workshop, I am more interested in the “Machines that make the machines” having 4 lathes , from a tiny watchmakers Boley & Leinen , Up to a Myford super 7, a nice little Zyto which I rebuilt a couple of years ago, a 6″ Colchester 1930 era cone drive m/c, which takes me back to my night school days, when I was 15 years old, Coupled to my turning dept,  I have two shapers, A small hand operated planing machine one 9″Royal pillar mic, another one a nice 6″stroke power driven Adept and a powerful 6″ stroke Denham slotting machine, ( I am well on with the overhaul of a 4&1/2″ centre height Smart & Brown screwcutting toolroom lathe,)  Milling dept a small jig boring/milling machine , and a Chinese Warco drill mill A good machine   Over the years I have built a fair number of Stuart Turner 10v & 10H engines for various folk,  Only have one left for myself !  The old boys who taught me model engineering practices, Glasgow men, who were hard taskmasters, but hearts of gold,  Occasionally I make an aluminium casting for my shop, planning to make some bronze castings when I build another furnace   Life is fun     Daniel Mackay.

[noel shelleyParticipant @noelshelley55608]

Welcome Daniel from another  foundryman ! Noel.

[Howard LewisParticipant @howardlewis46836]

Welcome!

You are well experienced and set up, so that very little is beyond you.

Another “recycled teenager”, in East Anglia!

Howard

[Thor 🇳🇴Participant @thor]

Welcome Daniel, you have a well equipped workshop.

Thor

[Kiwi BlokeParticipant @kiwibloke62605]

Daniel, welcome! It’s good to know there are others who are interested in the machines themselves, for their own sake. Sometimes we seem to be despised by folk who think we should be making models, but I note you’re a model-builder also, so I guess you’re safe. I’ve collected far too many machines, and have bought machines to rebuild machines to rebuild machines… If anyone is in a similar position, they have my sympathy. What on earth will happen when the mothership comes and rescues me from this decaying planet is anyone’s guess…

[vic neweyParticipant @vicnewey60017]

You sound a bit like me Daniel, although I am a mere boy at aged 78 I also like the machines themselves rather than what you might make with them.

I have 2 German Pittler lathes dating from 1894 with overhead countershafts and a mass of rare accessories, a 1939 Holbrook Model B8, a South Bend 9 inch,  an unbranded Myford clone, an Emco Mentor mill dating from 1960’s and a neat 1940’s era BTM watchmakers lathe in a fitted Oak box. BTM made parts for Bletchley park Enigma decoding machines. I nearly forgot my Emco Unimat SL I bought new in the 1960’s.

[Daniel MackayParticipant @danielmackay21455]

Hi Vic, Thank you for your welcome, I am impressed with your machine tools , Very nice  I have came across 3 Pittler lathes in Scotland, One of my friends has a nice larger onewith its triangular bed, fortunately has all its screwcutting gears &worms,  I noticed you also have a 4&1/2″ South Bend, at this moment in time I am working on a similar sized &pattern of lathe a Smart & Brown built in 1948, I have never in all my life came across a more neglected and filthy machine, In fact my principal tool should have been a size 10 shovel! To compound the misery, the poor machine was slaggered with gold colour hammerite paint  YUCK!  However I am getting there turning it back into a nice machine in its original battleship grey, It is a good sound machine, Not a lot of wear, and I was lucky to get new leadscrew nuts for it second hand , Never used    Perseverence & Patiens thats all we need

Catch up later

Daniel.

[vic neweyParticipant @vicnewey60017]

Hello Daniel,

My South Bend is the basic type without a selector gearbox but it’s not a problem as I hardly use it . I discovered that Boxford parts are identical seeing as they are made from the same blueprints. I replaced a couple of parts and added some change wheels but came unstuck with a faceplate which won’t screw right on. After 1940 the pitch had a minor alteration and my lathe dates to 1939!

I have both B2 and the larger 24″ C3 Pittler lathes, both fully equipped as well, the bed design is called trapezoidal.

I have made several Youtube videos and posted photo’s on the Machine museum website where I have had comments such as “this type of lathe don’t have a leadscrew” even though I pointed out that it’s well hidden inside the bed. If your friend in Scotland is interested he can view my Pittler website which contains a lot of info and photo’s

https://sites.google.com/view/pittler-lathes/

regards

vic

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