Murad bormilathe on ebay

[David Clark 13Participant @davidclark13]

I have no connection with this seller. Item no 111744398755

[David Clark 13Participant @davidclark13]

Murad bormilathe on ebay

[Michael GilliganParticipant @michaelgilligan61133]

That's a lot of engineering for £1,600

MichaelG.

[MuzzerParticipant @muzzer]

That's a funny old boy but a nice looking example.

[will hawkesParticipant @willhawkes78155]

i am fitting one in my new workshop (when the builders get a move on)it came from a retired engineer and seems a great bit of kit,i contacted the family of the maker about trying to source parts and the nephew seems to have machines and spares, but now seems to have disappeared, i want to use it for boring cylinders from vintage motorcycles plus making big bore panther engines, the only thing i can see with the one on ebay is that the seller is being highly ambitious with his price , i would have thought about a third of his asking price is sensible ,mine was virtually a gift so i can afford to fit it in next to my old colchester, i tried advertising for spares with no luck and have now picked up a murad cadet at a sensible price which means a lot of the parts will fit both machines, they are great british engineering machines. will

[Neil WyattModerator @neilwyatt]

This is the machine that inspired J A Radford's elevating spindle and tailstock mod for his Myford.

Interestinglyt the one on Ebay seems to have a much higher standard of finish than the non-tarted up ones on Lathes.co.uk. Perhaps it was the demonstrator from MEX 1960 – which fits in with its purchase date!

Neil

[Ady1Participant @ady1]

An Intruiging machine. There's even a slot in the spindle nose to make it a posi drive

[Neil WyattModerator @neilwyatt]

Rare to see pics of ETW in action. Shows how (a) he was a big lad and (b) the Bormilathe wasn't – only 10" between centres is an odd choice for a maximum a 7" centre height.

I imagine anyone wanting to turn things up to 17" diameter would probably need to turn long things as well, unless they saw its market as complementing a second lathe of perhaps 4-5" centre height.

Neil

[mark muradParticipant @markmurad67120]

Hello Gentlemen this Mark Richard Murad CEO of Murad International LTD Is this Bormilathe for sale because I shall buy It?. my email adress is markrichardmurad@gmail.com call me in the USA (216) 421-5733 I can also provide what ever my Uncle Wadia taught me while he raised me to be the next generation to design Murad cars and Lathes.

[Ady1Participant @ady1]

tsk tsk tsk

[Neil WyattModerator @neilwyatt]

I think that post may be genuine, there's only one other post from Mark Murad:

**LINK**

Mark I suggest you look here:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/111744398755?ru=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.ebay.co.uk%2Fsch%2Fi.html%3F_from%3DR40%26_sacat%3D0%26_nkw%3D111744398755%26_rdc%3D1

Neil

[RobboParticipant @robbo]

Well its sold now anyway, listing ended this morning around 0750, for the asking price.

[AjohnwParticipant @ajohnw51620]

It's been through the listings more than once. Rumour has it that they aren't really rigid enough for serious work so are something of curiosity but can be finished rather well.

The ship type things with a lathe and a miller in one unit are a somewhat different kettle of fish. They have appeared on ebay from time to time but weight wise are rather hefty. Those did do real work.

John

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[Steve GarnettParticipant @stevegarnett62550]

Hi – long time no speak. Been busy with a load of other stuff. Still am, in fact.

But since I've had a Bormilathe for several years now, I can tell you a bit more about how it behaves – and with a few caveats, it's not as bad as you might think. Yes, I have it for reasons alluded to above – you can put flywheels on it, which I can't on the Kerry. Well not very big ones, anyway.

As far as rigidity goes, it's not bad – as long as you take a few precautions, primarily remembering to lock the vertical slide holding the headstock in place after you've moved it. If I put a dial guage (mounted on the milling table) on the inside of the spindle, I have to put one heck of a lot of force into the headstock before there's even a hint of movement on the dial – and this is a 0.0001" guage. Likewise, there's no perceptible run-out in the spindle either when you rotate it. The last job I used it for was as a horizontal mill, to cut a vee in a chunk of mild steel to use as a new base for a fixed steady for the Kerry. It didn't bat an eyelid. But there again, I've also reworked the cross-slide somewhat, which has also helped. So I'd say that yes, you can do serious work with it – as long as you have your eyes open.

And that's the thing really – not miraculous out of the box, but with some work it can be improved. It has some annoying features – like no means of controlling the motor. You plug it in, it runs. The backgear control leaves a little to be desired as well – not exactly positive in its operation. Drive to the leadscrew is 'fun' to set up, and non-reversible. Without a lot of work, it's not really going to be anybody's main lathe for long – that is, unless they've never met another lathe…

The temptation to spruce it up and put it on eBay is quite strong, if it fetches anything like £1,600. That is so much more than I paid for it!

[Ady1Participant @ady1]

Back up again

[BarrydrumParticipant @barrydrum]

I found this post interesting as the toolroom where I served my time in the early sixties had one of these and was used for small odd jobs. It always appeared to work fine. In the main works there were two Murad capstan lathes with speed change foot pedals and they were fine machines. If you look the Bormilllathe up on Tony Griffiths website towards the end there are some new photos of what appears to be the actual machine that is on Ebay, stating it is now in the states with the nephew of Mr Murad, either its not now for sale or he decided he wasn't going to buy it.

Barry

[AjohnwParticipant @ajohnw51620]

Posted by Ady1 on 19/09/2015 01:07:53:

Back up again

That seems to be happening on some others from time to time of late. It can sometimes happen because people don't pay or for some reason find collecting too much of a pain – or maybe not as expected. I always wonder.

John

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[Steve GarnettParticipant @stevegarnett62550]

Okay, it’s about nine years since I posted above, and I have finally decided to part with my Bormilathe, because it’s had no use for ages. I find it rather hard to believe that it’s actually worth the £1,600 pounds that Mr Murad may or may not have paid for the one mentioned above, but I would like to know what others think its realistic value may be before advertising it anywhere (apart from sort-of on this thread, obvs!)

Unlike some, as well as the cross-slide, this example has the milling table and an arbor (not original, but works fine with it), and also a single-speed ‘Bronson’ motor. And I believe a complete set of change gears. What it doesn’t have is either a three or four jaw chuck, but it does have a set of Murad collets – this is how it came, and I only ever used it as a horizontal mill. Its cosmetic condition? Meh – it’s been stood around for quite a while but it would clean up fine, I think.

But I have no clue as to what it’s worth. Anyone got any idea at all? There appear to be none on sale anywhere, so there’s nothing I can find to compare it with, nor anything remotely like it. Thanks in advance for suggestions…

[SillyOldDufferModerator @sillyoldduffer]

No idea Steve.  You have a rare beast.  Could cause a feeding frenzy if several rich collectors at auction all decided they must have it.  Or maybe no-one wants it at all!  Folk wanting a lathe for practical reasons might worry about spares availability and the other disadvantages of unusual machines if the lathe needs work. Doesn’t help value that the machine isn’t pristine or fully accessorized.

Although lathes.co.uk are generally kind to Murad equipment, ‘Those who have owned both the Bormilathe and conventional Murad lathes comment upon the superiority of the latter in terms of detailing and finish – the Bormilathe being decidedly crude in comparison.’  

Not a machine I would want to own, and if one were taking up space my garage I’d want to get rid quick, perhaps starting it on ebay at £200 or less.   On the other hand, if storage wasn’t a problem, I’d start with a considerably higher price in hope that the magic name ‘Murad’ might attract a shoal of competing collectors.   Try and see.  If no-one wants it, drop the price!

Hard to give advice, because although I’m clear why I don’t want one, that’s just me.  For all I know many others are keenly interested in Bormilathes.   Getting them excited is the advantage of an auction, but auction prices can badly disappoint.  The disadvantage of an auction is that only one bidder notices the sale; remember too it’s his job to pay the minimum he can get away with, not to give the seller a ‘fair price’.

Myfords are easier to value because so many have been bought and sold over decades.  In comparison a Bormilathe is unpredictable  because it doesn’t have much of a track record.

Dave

[Steve GarnettParticipant @stevegarnett62550]

Thanks for replying, Dave.

Yes, it definitely is a bit of a ‘niche’ machine. It strikes me that for model engineers, at least, it might have the attraction of being able to swing a 13″ flywheel – I don’t know. There’s at least one Youtube video about modifying aspects of Bormilathes to make them more flexible, so it might make a project for somebody. Yes I could do with the space back, but it’s not an imminent problem, so I’ll pitch it a bit higher and see what happens, I think. Initially I’ll do some photos and stick it in the classifieds here.

Steve

[Tony Pratt 1Participant @tonypratt1]

Steve,

SOD is right, very hard to price this M/C, perhaps start at £200 and reserve it at £600 or whatever you are comfortable with?

Tony

[HopperParticipant @hopper]

They can’t have been too bad. Here is Edgar T Westbury himself using a Bormilathe. No idea of the story behind the pic. Randomly found it when looking up about his Phoenix model engine.

[Steve GarnettParticipant @stevegarnett62550]

Hopper, I think that Edgar T Westbury was demonstrating it at an exhibition – I’ve seen the picture before. But you’re right – they can’t be that bad, otherwise I’m sure he wouldn’t have put his name to it.

Tony – that’s approximately what I was thinking.

Steve

[egaParticipant @ega]

Couldn’t see it in the classifieds but there is an advert for sale on eBay from when Murad were at Queenborough.

[Steve GarnettParticipant @stevegarnett62550]

That’s quite a lot to pay for an advert!

Haven’t put it in the classifieds – yet. Apart from anything else, I’ve only just got the photos sorted. Upon reflection, I think I’ll try Ebay first, because it’s easier to set a reserve. I’ll put a link to it in this thread when I do, for anybody who may be interested.

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